I'm guessing this hotel stood on the site of today's Sunning Plaza. The hotel card below gives the address as 'Hysan Ave', and James Cahill describes it as:
... a small, inexpensive and likeable hotel across Hysan Avenue from Lee Gardens. It disappeared years ago, replaced by a huge, glass-fronted I. M. Pei building.
62 and 63 Gloucester Road. (On the west side of the junction of Luard & Gloucester Roads).
The location is given in the report on the annual session of the Licensing Board, reported on page 5 of the 8th Nov 1939 issue of the HK Daily Press. It notes that a Restaurant Adjunct Licence was issued to 'Tainosuke Yamakawa, Nagasaki Joe Hotel, 62 and 63, Gloucester Road ground floors.'
13, Queen's Road Central.
It looks as though this building changed hands several times. In a 1909 advertisement it is described as 'Aster House (Late Connaught Hotel)'. Then Moddsey notes that later it changed it's name from Astor House to the St. Francis Hotel. Despite the change of name, it's function stayed the same - a hotel.
The 1909 advertisement uses the spelling 'Aster' throughout, even for the 'Telegraphic Address'. However in all other references I've seen, it is spelled 'Astor'.
I had the feeling that the Gloucester Building and Gloucester Hotel were two separate places (or possibly different buildings on the same plot). But the first mention of the hotel in the newspapers was the 4 Aug 1935 issue of the Sunday Herald, noting a wedding reception held there. That means the Gloucester Building and Gloucester Hotel were in existence at the same time.
So was the Gloucester Hotel the business name for the 'apartment house' described in the Feb 1932 clipping below?
1, Connaught Road.
Can anyone confirm the opening date for the Furama? The Emporis website says 1977. But the left edge of this photo dated 1972 shows the building almost finished, so it seems unlikely it would have sat empty for 4-5 years. [Update: opening date set to 1973, see comments below].
Wikipedia says it "closed in November, and was demolished in December 2001."
Although it looks like any other modern hotel, it is an interesting location. The hotel website says:
The 34-storey hotel officially opened for business on 20 February 1973 as Hong Kong’s largest hotel. It was developed on the original “godown” of Jardine Matheson directly behind the famous Noon Day Gun. This historical site was the first plot of land in Hong Kong to be sold by public auction in 1841 when Hong Kong officially became a British Colony. Today, it is still registered as Lot. No 1.
The Ritz-Carlton Press Release wrote:
"The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong in Central, an award-winning hotel since opening in 1993, will cease operations effective January 1, 2008."
Originally known as The Mandarin Hotel, it had its soft opening on 1st September 1963:
