52 Kennedy Road, Man Yuen Garden

Paul Chang
oldernewer
Man Yuen Garden，52 Kennedy Road

Man Yuen Garden is located at 52 Kennedy Road (52A, 52B). It was formed by the merger of 50 and 52 Kennedy Road. Its original building was demolished in the 1960s, and today's Man Yuen Garden was built on the original site in 1963. Does anyone have old photos of this place from the 1940s to the early 1960s (before it was demolished)? Welcome to leave a message, thank you very much.

It should be noted that the old photo I am looking for is of the original No. 52 Kennedy Road, which is now 52B Kennedy Road.

Date picture taken
unknown
Shows place(s)
52 Kennedy Road, Man Yuen Garden [1963- ]

Comments

Behind the SFCC school building (photo above) on the extreme left is a greyish building at 58-60 Kennedy Road (replaced by today's Sakura Court),  then a white building with a centre dome at 54-56 Kennedy Road (replaced by today's Ewan Court, misspelt sometimes as Evan Court on maps) and a partially obscured building at extreme right at 50-52 Kennedy Road (replaced by today's Man Yuen Garden). 

Suggest to view the photos of 58-60 Kennedy Road for the older buildings mentioned. Example in the photo below.

Wanchai to Bowen Road c.1950s - annotated.jpg, by marlowe

The building on a platform above 50-52 Kennedy Road is 48 Kennedy Road (Ching Ho Villa as named in the 1938 Street Index). Today, Monticello is sited at 48 Kennedy Road.

Street maps of the buildings on Kennedy Road can also be viewed at: https://www.hkmaps.hk/viewer.html . Click on the desired decade at top left in the link provided.

Thank you very much for clarifying my doubts. It not only helps to open my horizons and expand my ideas, but also is of great help to my current research. Also, I would like to ask, is it possible to check out old photos by going to the Hong Kong Land Registry? Online searches can only reveal textual information such as ownership and transaction status, or is there any organization that might preserve old photos of 52 Kennedy road? Once again express my sincere thanks to you.

Update: archival details for this site (Man Yuen Garden, on old Nos. 50 & 52)
 
Some findings from the Land Registry and the Buildings Department's BRAVO records that pin down this site's history:
 
  • Lot: I.L. 2218 S.A. & I.L. 2218 R.P. The present building stands on the combined site of old Nos. 50 and 52 Kennedy Road — all fifteen sheets of the approved plans are titled "PROPOSED FLATS ON I.L. 2218, NOS. 50 & 52 KENNEDY ROAD".
     
  • Architect: Eric Cumine (A.R.I.B.A.), Job No. 428. Plans received by the Buildings Ordinance Office, P.W.D. on 23 Dec 1961 (BRAVO file 2/2397/61), approved 9 Feb 1962; the old houses were demolished later in 1962. Date of occupation: 23 Apr 1964.
     
  • Ownership: the site was assembled in 1957 by Chan Cheung (of Yee Tak & Co., Chartered Bank Building) and Yuen Man Yuk for $151,000 (UB262632), later consolidated into sole ownership; the Government lease was varied in Jul 1961 (UB346343); the project was sold mid-construction to Radiant Investment Co. Ltd. on 11 Mar 1963 for $1,800,000 (UB395710), with Yee Tak & Co. handling flat sales (Wah Kiu Yat Po ads, Jan–Jun 1963).
     
  • Note for old-map readers: the plans mark both the "EXISTING KENNEDY ROAD" and the "FUTURE LINE OF KENNEDY ROAD" — the alignment at this bend was shifted during redevelopment, so pre-1962 maps and photos won't line up exactly with today's kerb line.
     
Old No. 52 is of historical interest: in 1947–48 it housed the founding meetings of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang (RCCK). If anyone has photos or memories of the old Nos. 50–52 (demolished 1962), I would be very grateful to hear from you.
 
P.S. Suggest amending the node title from [1963–] to [1964–], as occupation dates from April 1964.

Thank you, Admin — I've updated the completion date to 1964 (occupation 23 Apr 1964) and moved the research notes into the Place page. Recent findings from the 1961 government survey sheet (hkmaps.hk) and the 1939/1957 Land Registry memorials are now summarised there, with annotated maps. If anyone has photographs of the two original houses at Nos. 50 & 52 (demolished 1962), or can help confirm the house identities in the 1949 aerial frame, I'd be most grateful.