Edwin G.W. Sait was a young boy when his widowed mother Mary Ann Sait travelled to Hong Kong to marry Edward Newman. I found Edwin, aged 4 as a boarder with a family in Southampton in 1871. I know Edwin was educated in England and remained there until about 1882.
I think I've found him in the Hong Kong Directory as E. Sait Newman at the Family Hotel Chefoo in 1888 and 1889. Was he there earlier? After or before his stepfather died?
In 1890 he emigrated to Canada, where he practiced as an architect for many years. My questions are - how long did Edwin stay in Hong Kong? Did he study architecture or article with someone there? I can find no records of his schooling in England beyond 1881. I would love to correspond with anyone who knows more about Edwin's early years. I have lots of information about his life in Canada.
Thank you!
Emma
Comments
Edwin George William Sait Newman
Hello Emma, are you in touch with Ian Gill? He is also a descendant of the Newman family, and has done a lot of research into their time in Chefoo.
Regards, David
Edwin George Sait
Hi Emma, It seems like an extraordinary coincidence but since last week I have been in touch with a couple of people in Vancouver, Canada, who also have an interest in Edwin George Sait. Essentially, Edwin's father died in 1868 when Edwin was only 1 1/2 years old and his mother Mary Ann and his father's friend Edward Newman (my great-grandfather) married in Hong Kong eight months later. For whatever reason, young Edwin was left with another family back in Southampton and later went to school there. Mary Ann and Edward resettled in Chefoo in 1873 and bought the Family Hotel. Around the time that Edwin's stepfather Edward died in 1883, Edwin was brought out to China where he helped his mother run the Family Hotel from 1883/84 until he left for a new life in Vancouver in 1890. I suspect he learned the basics of architecture in Chefoo rather than Hong Kong, which I believe he visited mainly in transit to and from Chefoo in northern China. My email is iajgill@gmail.com and we can discuss this more fully, if you like. Best, Ian Gill.