Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock
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Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock was a Hong Kong dockyard once among the largest dockyards in Asia. Founded by Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company (known as Hong Kong Kowloon and Whampoa Dock Company) in 1865, it was known as Kowloon Docks located on the south coast between Hung Hom and Tai Wan, facing Hung Hom Bay in the Victoria Harbour. It is also known as Whampoa Dock for short. Whampoa is indeed a place where the owner company founded a dockyard near the city of Canton.
In the eve of Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, due to its importance, the dockyard was heavily bombarded by Japanese aircraft with large casualties.
As Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company was purchased by Douglas Clague of Hutchison International in mid-1960s, both company was merged their name to Hutchison Whampoa. Clague partially transformed the dockyard to a private housing estate and forced to leave the company due to its financial difficulty. The project was continued by Li Ka Shing in 1985 and became Whampoa Garden, the second largest private housing estate in Hong Kong, after Mei Foo Sun Chuen.
The dockyard was merged with Taikoo Dockyard of Swire and moved to Hong Kong United Dockyard on the western shore of Tsing Yi Island.
Ships built at this yard include:
- VSIS CHANGTE 1925 for Australian Oriental Line - later became Royal Navy Naval Stores Issuing Ship Y1-9
- Kwai Sang 1917
- Li Wo 1938
- Sang Wo 1926
- VSIS Taiping 1926 for Australian Oriental Line