“Balgownie” stood on RBL 6 (1). There’s no mention of it in the 1908 Peak Renumbering Exercise, or the 1909 and 1912 Peak maps. The earliest mention of it I’ve seen is in the Peak Renumbering Exercise of 29 May 1914 in which its old Peak Number, 99A, changed to Number 103 (2). Based on this I’m concluding that construction started at sometime in or after 1912 and had been completed by 29 May 1914. I’m going for 1913 as the approximate completion date, but corrections are welcome.
The name “Balgownie” probably refers to the bridge of that name in Aberdeen, said to be the oldest complete bridge in Scotland.
Resident at Balgownie in 1915 was Mr. H. F. HICKMAN, Assistant of the China Fire Insurance Co. Ltd. (3). He was probably Mr. Harry Frank Emanuel HICKMAN, who’d married Enid HUTTON POTTS on 4 December 1912 (4). The only Mrs. HICKMAN in the 1915 Ladies Directory is recorded with the initials R. F., rather than H. F., and gave just “The Peak” as her address. It’s probably her, but can’t be sure.
These are the two best photos of Balgownie I've seen.
Balgownie is seen only in part as the top, left-most building in both photos. The wide date range of the two pics, together with various survey sheets from the 1960’s to 1996 (5) showing an unchanged building footprint, prove that the original building survived until at least 1996. It’s not there today, having been replaced by 1 Gough Hill Road which was completed in 2012 (6). I don’t know if any other building occupied the site between 1996 and 2012.
Reference
- 1924 Peak map at https://www.gwulo.com/media/13017
- https://gwulo.com/node/34922
- 1915 Peak Directory.
- St. John’s Cathedral Marriages 1912, https://gwulo.com/node/20901
- HK Maps website HK Maps
- Home Affairs Department, Database of Private Buildings, https://bmis.buildingmgt.gov.hk/
Photos that show this Place
