For offer: a very nice album! Fresh from a prominent estate in Upstate NY. Never offered on the market until now. Vintage, Old, Original, Antique, NOT a Reproduction - Guaranteed !!
Newly discovered - from the estate of United States Congressman Charles M. Hamilton (see below for bio). Quite interesting quality images. Trip of 1924 aboard the Raymond & Whitcomb World Cruise. Includes original photographs, postcards, and various ephemera - booklets, menus, advertising trade card, etc. Photos range in size from 3 x 3 3/4 to 4 1/2 x 6 1/2. Most are one of a kind. Street scenes, culture, people, etc. All pieces shown. There are no covers - these are loose pages. 14 pages (7 leaves). Items on both sides. In good to very good condition. Everything glued to black pages. Just as found. Please see photos. If you collect 20th century Chinese / Hong Kong architecture, Asian history, Asia photography, etc. this is a treasure you will not see again! Add this to your image or paper / ephemera collection. Combine shipping on multiple bid wins! 3211
Charles Mann Hamilton (January 23, 1874 – January 3, 1942) was an American politician from New York.
Life
Hamilton attended Ripley High School, the Fredonia Normal School (now the State University of New York at Fredonia), and the Pennsylvania Military College (now Widener University) in Chester, Pennsylvania. He was active in farming, and was also involved in the oil and natural gas business.
A Republican, he was a member of the New York State Assembly (Chautauqua Co., 2nd D.) in 1907 and 1908.
He was a member of the New York State Senate (51st D.) from 1909 to 1912, sitting in the 132nd, 133rd, 134th and 135th New York State Legislatures.
Hamilton was elected as a Republican to the 63rd, 64th and 65th United States Congresses, holding office from March 4, 1913, to March 3, 1919; and was Minority Whip from 1915 to 1919.
He was not a candidate for reelection in 1918, and returned to his farming and business interests.
Hamilton died in Miami Beach, Florida on January 3, 1942. He was buried at Quincy Rural Cemetery in Ripley.
Hong Kong (US: /ˈhɒŋkɒŋ/ or UK: /hɒŋˈkɒŋ/; Chinese: 香港; Cantonese Yale: Hēunggóng, Cantonese: [hœ́ːŋ.kɔ̌ːŋ] ⓘ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR),[d] is a city and a special administrative region in China. With 7.4 million residents of various nationalities[e] in a 1,104-square-kilometre (426 sq mi) territory, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated territories in the world.
Hong Kong was established as a colony of the British Empire after the Qing dynasty ceded Hong Kong Island in 1841–1842 as a consequence of losing the First Opium War. The colony expanded to the Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and was further extended when the United Kingdom obtained a 99-year lease of the New Territories in 1898. Hong Kong was occupied by Japan from 1941 to 1945 during World War II. The whole territory was transferred from the United Kingdom to China in 1997. Hong Kong maintains separate governing and economic systems from that of mainland China under the principle of "one country, two systems".[f]
Originally a sparsely populated area of farming and fishing villages,[18][19] the territory is now one of the world's most significant financial centres and commercial ports. Hong Kong is the world's fourth-ranked global financial centre, ninth-largest exporter, and eighth-largest importer. Its currency, the Hong Kong dollar, is the ninth most traded currency in the world. Home to the second-highest number of billionaires of any city in the world, Hong Kong has the largest number of ultra high-net-worth individuals.[20] Although the city has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, severe income inequality exists among the population. Despite having the largest number of skyscrapers of any city in the world, housing in Hong Kong has been well-documented to experience a chronic persistent shortage.
Hong Kong is a highly developed territory and has a Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.952, ranking fourth in the world. The city has the highest life expectancy in the world, and a public transport rate exceeding 90%.
The region of Hong Kong has been inhabited since the Old Stone Age, later becoming part of the Chinese Empire with its loose incorporation into the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC). Starting out as a farming fishing village and salt production site, it became an important free port and eventually a major international financial center.[1]
The Qing dynasty ceded Hong Kong to the British Empire in 1842 through the Treaty of Nanjing, ending the First Opium War. Hong Kong then became a British crown colony.[2] Britain also won the Second Opium War, forcing the Qing Empire to cede Kowloon in 1860, while leasing the New Territories for 99 years from 1898.[3][4]
Japan occupied Hong Kong from 1941 to 1945 during World War II.[5] By the end of the war in 1945, Hong Kong had been liberated by joint British and Chinese troops and returned to British rule.[6] Hong Kong greatly increased its population from refugees from Mainland China, particularly during the Korean War and the Great Leap Forward. In the 1950s, Hong Kong transformed from a territory of entrepôt trade to one of industry and manufacturing.[7] The Chinese economic reform prompted manufacturers to relocate to China, leading Hong Kong to develop its commercial and financial industry.
In 1984, the British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher signed the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which incited a wave of emigration from Hong Kong.[8] The Handover of Hong Kong on 1 July 1997, returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule, and it adopted the Hong Kong Basic Law.[9][10]
In the 21st century, Hong Kong has continued to enjoy success as a financial centre. However, civil unrest, dissatisfaction with the government and Chinese influence, in general, has been a central issue.[11] The planned implementation of Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 caused great controversy and a massive demonstration on 1 July 2003, causing the bill to be shelved.[12] Citizens expressed displeasure at their electoral system, culminating in the 2014 Hong Kong protests.[13] In 2019, the proposed Hong Kong extradition bill was seen as another step taken by the Chinese Communist Party to undermine Hong Kong's Rule of Law, instigating a new wave of protests.[14] In 2020, the National People's Congress passed the Hong Kong national security law to restore stability in the territory. The new law was highly scrutinized by the pro-democracy faction and provoked further political pessimism among the city's populace.[15][16]
In 1839, the Daoguang Emperor rejected proposals to legalise and tax opium and ordered imperial commissioner Lin Zexu to eradicate the opium trade. The commissioner destroyed opium stockpiles and halted all foreign trade,[47] triggering a British military response and the First Opium War. The Qing surrendered early in the war and ceded Hong Kong Island in the Convention of Chuenpi. British forces began controlling Hong Kong shortly after the signing of the convention, from 26 January 1841.[48] However, both countries were dissatisfied and did not ratify the agreement.[49] After more than a year of further hostilities, Hong Kong Island was formally ceded to the United Kingdom in the 1842 Treaty of Nanking.[50]
Administrative infrastructure was quickly built by early 1842, but piracy, disease, and hostile Qing policies initially prevented the government from attracting commerce. Conditions on the island improved during the Taiping Rebellion in the 1850s, when many Chinese refugees, including wealthy merchants, fled mainland turbulence and settled in the colony.[18] Further tensions between the British and Qing over the opium trade escalated into the Second Opium War. The Qing were again defeated and forced to give up Kowloon Peninsula and Stonecutters Island in the Convention of Peking.[51] By the end of this war, Hong Kong had evolved from a transient colonial outpost into a major entrepôt. Rapid economic improvement during the 1850s attracted foreign investment, as potential stakeholders became more confident in Hong Kong's future.[52]
The colony was further expanded in 1898 when the United Kingdom obtained a 99-year lease of the New Territories.[53] The University of Hong Kong was established in 1911 as the territory's first institution of higher education.[54] Kai Tak Airport began operation in 1924, and the colony avoided a prolonged economic downturn after the 1925–26 Canton–Hong Kong strike.[55][56] At the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Governor Geoffry Northcote declared Hong Kong a neutral zone to safeguard its status as a free port.[57] The colonial government prepared for a possible attack, evacuating all British women and children in 1940.[58] The Imperial Japanese Army attacked Hong Kong on 8 December 1941, the same morning as its attack on Pearl Harbor.[59] Hong Kong was occupied by Japan for almost four years before the British resumed control on 30 August 1945.[60]