"The Past is a Foreign Country", quote by British novelist L.P. Hartley.
A family who is still in their influence for more than two centuries in Britain must have possessed enormous wealth entitled to be a class of nobility and aristocracy who have typically inherited a vast amount of lands and survived through wars and changes in power. Mostly honestly don't due to the economic conditions change over time and what made the first success does not guarantee to the two or three generations to come. Every three decades make a new world we have known for the time we live. A typical quote in Mandarin speaking world that the Wealth Won't Pass for Three Generations is a resounding quote to remind every social class for not to bet on what is inherited but the ability to reinvent. There is a clan of literate that can defy the gravity. This article of another topic in Formosa destinations is about a prominent family in northern Taiwan who has continued to prosper by not through their inherited wealth but their strength of making a mark to the city and the people of Taipei. Hong's Clan from Manga is the family who have contributed the forming of Taipei walled city, soared to a thought leader of modern humanity movement and stepped up to the early endeavors of the modern medication of the island.
Four Doctors, Three Generations in a Row and Two Pioneers
Medical doctors and teachers were among the most respected social roles in Taiwan particularly since the 19th century. Dr George Leslie Mackay and other Scottish Presbyterian Church missionaries came to Taiwan as early as 1860's and one of their contributions was the introduction of the western medication as a way of curation for the local people, either indigenous or Han Chinese immigrants to mitigate rivalry and hostility during the downfall of the Manchu Chin power meeting in the midst of western colonialism. Japan's taken control of Formosa since 1895 was seen painful at the beginning as many coming from Japan infecting diseases including chief general commanders, officials and soldiers. The Japanese Formosa government made a priority to set up hospitals to house the researches in the vernacular diseases and train up local doctors to make a distinction between the traditional Han medicine doctors. Medication is a job to save people's life in those early days and this is well received as among the top in the social hierarchy pyramid. Hong's of Taipei might have been socially renown before Taiwan's Japanese governance period but it was how they re-invented themselves possibly relating to what were more needed in the social context of that time in addition to merchant or landlord class.
Figure: The building of Da Guan Eye Clinic (達觀眼科醫院) in 1920's to 1930's .The house was initially a two story street house with three arched veranda at the front. The garden in the left of the front row of house was later extended for the ward for the clinic. Source: National Taiwan University Library
Born in 1893, Dr. Hong Chang-gen (洪長庚) was in the generation of Hong's family during that shift of powers of Taiwan. He traveled to Japan as early as in age 14 and later studied in medical education that was primarily western medication from the Meji Reform in Japan. He is the first Taiwanese born student graduated from Imperial Osaka University in 1920. He later accepted a research assistant work with his Japanese professor and in 1924 he took a teaching role at the Imperial Tokyo University and carried out his research in the same university. He published his dissertations in the field of eyes illness and related syndromes for Japanese in 1927 and in the following year he received a doctoral degree from Tokyo. Dr. Hong Chang-gen is the third western medicine trained Taiwanese doctor in history and the first specializing medical treatment as an ophthalmologist.
At the time Hong Chang-gen published and submitted his research works and he has told his father in Taiwan who had been rather ill and old in age. In May of 1927, his father passed away few weeks after his sister Hong Kuan-kuan (洪寬寬) got married with a talent from Tamsui town Huang Yen-shen (黃炎生) whom was deeply admired by his father Hong Yi-nan (洪以南) as a town minister for the port Tamsui. Huang Yen-shen, born in 1903, was the first Taiwanese born Court Judge in Japan, received such certificate at his age 26 and he later served as n attorney in the district courts in Taipei and Taichung after returning from Tokyo.
With his father sudden passed away, Dr Hong Chang-gen decided to come back to Taiwan after the degree although he could pursue a prospect future in Tokyo Japan. With holding quite an experience in Japan, he soon decided to open an eye clinic in 1929 hoping to cure the eye diseases for Taiwanese and this clinic was in fact the first ever established by the Taiwanese doctor.
In memory of Hong Chang-gen's father he named his eye clinic as Da Guan Eye Clinic (達觀眼科醫院) as Da Guan came directly from the red brick cottage veranda house Da Guan House (達觀樓) located in Tamsui where he grew up and shared memory with his father who was a respected figure of the time among both Chinese and Japanese in northern Taiwan. Da Guan, according to the family descendant has described that it shares a meaning of unobstructed and panoramic view straight out from the house and there is another hidden metaphor to express the view toward the Mountain Guan-Yin at a short distance. Guan Yin (觀音) was actually an important Buddhist female God widely worshiped by Han Chinese settlers in Formosa since the 17th century and this is another spiritual level of how it captured the eyes and minds of the time.
Hong Chang-gen chose to locate his first Taiwanese run eye clinic in a 1920's new and fashionable neighborhood near the densely populated quarter of Han Chinese at Twa-tiu-tia, or Dadaocheng (大稻埕), and north of the quarter of Taipei Railway Station quarter where most Japanese governmental services were mainly operated and Japanese were based. The quarter was a new development with a much improved street layout and public facilities. The park circus, the tree filled green traffic round about (圓環), laid first as an index of fashionable European urban design was part of the new neighborhood that could attract new immigrants from Japan to settle in the north of Taipei train station and proved for direct links to the hub of city commerce and short of reach from the central governmental services based in the former walled city down south.
Figure: The Taipei map in 1928 clearly shows the proposed new street quarter shown as下奎府町 standing right out of the densely populated block at Dadaochen facing the river in the west where early world trade of Formosa tea since the year of 1870's had started to take shape. The street block quoted in 167 in blue circle was the site of Da Guan eye clinic since 1929. Source: Historic maps of Taiwan, Academia Sinica. http://gissrv4.sinica.edu.tw/gis/taipei.aspx
Figure: (Click to enlarge) The park circus, the trees filled green roundabout(圓環) of the 1940's, a scene taken out of the balcony of the house of 1940's leading photographer Lee Huo-cheng (李火熷). The roundabout park was later turned into the food bazaar in post 1950's, a famous food destination of Taipei during 1950's to 1990's. The house after the park with a pyramid roof was a top class garden hotel GaoYiGe (高義閣) which was the preferred hotel stay by Lin Hsien-tang (林獻堂) from tycoon of Wu Feng Lin's (霧峰林家) coming to meet with elites at Taipei (Taihoku). The house at the center right behind the roundabout park was the house part of the law office of Huang Yen-shen. The house with a pyramid rooff to the very left at distant is the Da Guan eye clinic owned by the Hong CHang-gen. Source: Photography Collection of Lee Huo-cheng (李火熷), 看見李火增
Figure: The catholic cathedral of Penlai Quarter (蓬萊町大聖堂) was put up in 1899 on the same street of where Da Guan eye clinic was about to locate. This catholic cathedral was in a rebuild in 1911 to the state shown in this photo and was part of the missionary by Spanish into the city. This is a quarter with grandeur of fashionable neighbors at the top. This elegant church dominated with a Gothic front spire was unfortunately under a target during the 1944 US air raid over Taipei was leveled to the ground leaving half of the apse standing. The church was rebuilt in late 1970s in a modernism style was changed to Immaculate Conception Cathedral Taipei(聖母無原罪主教座堂) on same site of the original. Source: wiki of Penlai cathedral in Taipei
This new neighborhood was just developed at the time when Hong Chan-gen returned from Japan. His decision to move to this new neighborhood might be also related to a closer friend of his father from Tamsui, Khoo Peng (許丙) who was in the most renown three personnel of Tamsui with Hong Chang-gen's father and he was once the chief clerk at Banchiao Lins (板橋林家) household business, one of the top three wealthiest tycoons in Taiwan, and later enjoyed his political career as officers in the Japanese government various positions. Khoo's house was next door to Da Guan eye clinic where Hong Chang-gen also chose to live as a family lodge.
The land of the Hong's eye clinic was initially purchased from a former garden house of a Japanese attorney. Hong Chang-gen had his vision for growing into additional residential space and a future ward for hospital use. The hospital's address of the time was 台北市下奎府町一之一六七 (No 1-167, 下奎府町 Lower Kuei-fu Machi, Japanese Neighborhood unit, Taipei City) indicated by the Book of People with Fame released in 1937. (Another article to decipher those early Taiwanese address to follow). This building underwent several additions through 1940's and rebuilds in later 1970's leaving only the three arcades of the facade seen today.
Figure: The only three arched veranda under a three story tall shophouse is where the former first eye hospital of Taiwan used to stand. Photo taken by Willie Chen in 2020
Figure: The postcard sent from Huang Yen-sen who still worked in Tokyo District Court to Hong Chang-gen around 1930. It was an honor for Taiwanese from Tamsui who was able to perform as good as Japanese in those days. Huang got married with Hong's sister in 1926. Source: Ken Hong's personal Flickr and album for the Hong's.
Hong Chang-gen's brother in law, Huang Yen-shen (黃炎生) the first Taiwanese judge attorney also opened his Law Office in his name as The Law Office of Huang Yen-sen (黃炎生辯護士) on the same street of Da Guan eye clinic in merely in just next door. The law office of An-Bao Chong-yi (安保忠毅), the cabinet of Taiwan Association of Lawyers, was also right next door. This neighborhood of Lower Kuei-Fu machi(下奎府町) was almost a quarter of Taiwanese elite class during 1920's to 1930's. Other prestigious Taiwanese figures before 1945, Khoo Peng (許丙) from Banchiao Lins(板橋林家) business, Yen Guo-nien (顏國年) of the Keelung Yen's business (基隆顏家), Chiang Wei-shuei (蔣渭水), the founder of Taiwanese Cultural Society and Taiwanese People's Party, Chang Wen-bang (張文伴), the founder of the Penlai Midwifery (蓬萊產婦人科), the second of its kind setup by Taiwanese in 1926, all gathered here in this new and fashionable city block.
Figure: The Penlai Midwifery(蓬萊產科婦人科醫院) by Chang Wen-bang(張文伴), the second of it its kind ever set up by Taiwanese during Japanese reign over Taiwan, locating on the same street of where Da Guan eye clinic was located. This is a quarter of Taiwanese social elites. Source: National Library of Taichung Online Archives 日書_カメうから見た臺灣published in 1929.
This clinic is also a place for Hong's family townhouse lodge since 1930's throughout the early post war Taiwan and a place Dr Hong Chang-gen inspired another two generations of medical doctors. Two sons (Hong Chu-en 洪祖恩 and Hung Tsu-pei 洪祖培) and a grand son (Ken Hong, Hong Chi-zong 洪啟宗) of Hong Chang-gen also engaged their career in medical discipline. This house of clinic residence is ever lived by most renown doctors in Taipei and two of them were pioneers in their chosen fields.
Hong Chu-en (洪祖恩), born in 1924, graduated from the National Taiwan University Medical School in 1949 as the first graduated student from the Medical School in the post war, carried on his father's profession as an ophthalmologist and became the second generation doctor for this clinic at the same site.
Hung Tsu-pei (洪祖培) is the pioneering neurologist of Taiwan and the first medical professor to separate neurology from the psychiatry in the leading medical school and hospital of National Taiwan University. He was under a recommendation from the David Landsborough IV (蘭大弼), the Junior, to further advance his research at National Hospital, Queen Square, London, part of the University of London, for one year. David Landsborough IV (蘭大弼) is also a graduate from the same hospital of Queen Square London, a center of world leading neurology research in the UK. David Landsborough IV was born in Taiwan during the devoted 40 years of medical missionary of his father David Landsborough (蘭大衛) from Glasgow Scotland for the Scottish Presbyterian Church based in Changhua(彰化) of central Taiwan. David set up the Changua Christianity Hospital(彰化基督教醫院) in a similar dedication of Dr George Leslie Mackay's Hospital (馬偕醫院) and William Campbell of Tainan Sin-Lau Hospital(台南新樓醫院), all were among the earliest western medical hospitals in Taiwan since 19th century and they share similar background from Scotland and the Presbyterian Church.
Both doctors of Hong Chu-en and Hung Tsu-pei attended the pre-university High School of Taihoku (台北高校) in Taipei which was in few years associated with Lee Ten-hui (李登輝) the first elected President of Taiwan, all born in Tamsui. Taihoku High School was later changed to the National Taiwan Normal University in the post war.
Figure: The famous figures of contemporary Taiwanese graduated from Taihoku High School (pre-1945) period of modern day Taiwan Normal University. Hung Tsu-Pei (first photo in the second last row) and Lee Ten-hui (first in photo from the top) were part of the list made in early 2010's. Courtesy of History Museum of National Taiwan Normal University.
Hung Tsu-pei married with Chu Cho-yueh (朱秋月), a daughter of Chu Chao-yan (朱昭陽) who was the founder of the first Taiwanese College, Yenpin College(延平學院), that later became the Yenpin Senior High School(延平中學). Katy Hung Hui Wen, the daughter of Hung Tsu-pei, has an in-depth article (ref 2) about both of the Taihoku High school and Yenpin College have seen their traces in the passage of the enlightenment into Taiwan modern democracy.
Ken Hong (洪啟宗), the third generation resident and doctor of this clinic, also carried on a doctor professional mainly in also neurology and has his career in Chimei Hospital (奇美醫院), Taipei Wang Fan Hospital(台北萬芳醫院) and Taiwan Miner's General Hospital(臺灣礦工醫院) after completing his degree and practice from Health Science Center at Dallas of the University of Texas in United States in 1980's. Ken has an additional passion for preserving heritage of Taipei through calling to make a dedicated Taipei Fu (台北府) Museum near the former site of Taipei examination halls to house collections of how Taipei city has become to these days through centuries of meeting the world superpowers.
Forming of A Walled City of Taipei, Taipei Fu
Tracing back of Hung Chang-gen's family in history is actually a rediscovery of historic events of Taipei. Both of his father and great grandfather played important roles to the city and the people and countless changes they have made over the centuries.
Hong's early first family root to the city of Taipei was a successful grains and grocery merchant rooted in Manga, or Bang-Ka (艋舺) for decades since their first ancestral arrival from Hohkien (or Foochien) Province of southern China in the late 18th century. Hong's great grandfather is called Hong Teng-yun (洪騰雲 or Hung Ten-yun) who was even more renown to Taipei as his generous donation of lands inside the proposed Taipei walled city to make civic infrastructure of examination halls which were the place to quiz every scholar coming to serve in the Chin Royal Court. He knew it was a such pain for motivated youth of the Taiwan island to go and travel far to mainland China or southern Taiwan capital at Tainan (台南) just to fulfill a few days exam. At the time of the 19th century, there was no ground transportation like railway or carriage, travelling out of Taipei would mean taking boat journey from port of river Tamsui to Foochow and and take another ferry boat route to Tainan city and all had go through the Deep Water Ditch (黑水溝), the Taiwan Straits, which can be a life risky journey just like early Chinese settlers coming to migrate to Taiwan. When a decision in mid 1870's from Chin China Court to build a Taipei walled city, actually the last Chinese fortified city in Manchu Chin Dynasty, in Taipei, Hong Ten-yun kindly offered part of his walled city lands as he was largely known to have a good give and take after his successful career as a merchant.
Figure: The Taipei Fu examination halls (left to the walls rampart) and the East City Gate at the far end of the walls in the year of 1899. Source: Formosa Government Album in 1899.
In the Manchu Chin administration over Taiwan, there was no strong administration hierarchy with staff well orchestrated at each level. The staffing resource only stopped at the county mayor level with subordinates made of wealthy landowners of the region to form an semi autonomous ruling. When any decision coming down from the top, it was those representatives who owned proportional lands to contribute and take actions. This could be in analogy to the city's federal states of pre-17th century Europe where noblemen and aristocracy took charge of everything locally before modern nations were formed.
Figure: The year 2020 view of the former site of Taipei Fu examination halls in same angle as in 1899. The green at the front used to house the Taipei's City Council during 1960's to 2000's. The tall building in the center is the Children Hospital of National Taiwan University Hospital which was extending itself during 1911 and replacing walled city lodge of Hong Ten Yun. Source: Willie Chen
Hong Teng-yun initially had a rice and salt business called Hong He-Yi & Co. (洪合益) which might literally resemble Hong's business of good collaboration and good for public interests. To build a new and far off Taipei walled city during the weakening Manchu Chin China in the late 19th century, sponsorship from local notable landowners or successful representatives of the region would be the key to be responsible for it. Hong's business is rooted in Manga for generations and his clan was key part of those Guild of Three Migrant Towns of Chuanchou (泉州三邑人) in Manga to donate to build a city gate, Bao Chen Meng (寶成門), or West City Gate (西門) standing toward the Manga area. There is another city gate next to the West City Gate called Little Southern Gate (小南門) which was also completely commissioned by another wealthy tycoon of Banciao Lins (板橋林家) who was one of the top three wealthiest clans in entire island of Taiwan during the second half of the 19th century.
Figure: The 1895 Photo of the Taipei West City Gate(台北西門) opening toward Hung's people and residence at Manga. The narrow rail paved the way for goods leading in and out of the Taipei walled city. Source: Taipei City Archives.
Merchant's Success and New Roles Reinventing during Shifting of Powers
Hong Teng-yun's generosity and being helpful for the civic affairs was acknowledged by the Chin government and therefore granted a honorary status through the new province minister from Foochou (福州) of the time, the Liu Min-chuan (劉銘傳) who came down to Taiwan as the first state minister when Taipei Fu (台北府) was suddenly upgraded to a capital city of the new Province of Taiwan in 1885. Taiwan island was in first time in history of Chin China for the its position of maritime defense toward the sea front of Mainland China and it was decoupled from Hohkien Province after a landmark threat event of 1884 Sino-French War battle at Hobe (aka Tamsui) (滬尾) taking place at the estuary of river Tamsui(淡水河).
Figure: Hung's Fine stone arch recorded in early 1900's by a German. (Thor in Seimongai Taipeh 洪公急公好義坊) Source: Fischer Adolf, Streifzüge durch Formosa, Berlin B Behr, 1900. The stone arch was later relocated to the nearby city park laid since 1910's.
A fine and delicate stone arch was laid for his public engagement act (or actually permitted by the Manchu Chin Royal Court after minister's submission to the royal majesty) on the road leading to the Taipei Fu State Building (臺灣府) to daily remind the Elite Class for their participation in public affairs and endeavor for wider's well beings. Hong's new home inside the new city of Taipei was also laid right next to the examination halls block making his potential permanent residence in the new city class.
Hong Teng-yun has a daughter of his own but no born boys. At the time of the mid 1850's frequent fighting between various Chinese migrant groups from Foochien province resulted in many kids were left homeless. Hong Teng-ren adopted six sons over the year. The most senior adopted son is called Hong Hui-dong(洪輝東) and he became the representative of the Hong He-yi & Co business since 1870's and involved in dealing with Manch Chin governmental affair as a local burgeoning landowner and in fact he acted on behave of their Hong's business of land donation for the future examination hall construction on their former lands inside the proposed Taipei walled city. At the same year of Sino-French war during 1884, Hong Hui-dong sadly passed away of illness at only age 45. That year, the walled city of Taipei were officially completed at a timing the port of Tamsui was in blockade by the French troops aiming to ransom on Chin Royal Court who was already in a rather awkward situation of dealing with western power coveting the lands of China.
Hong Wen-guan(洪文光), the second son of Hong Hui-dong (洪輝東) was the key successor of the Hong He-yi & Co. during 1880's. He was responsible for many civic construction for the Taipei walled city, the major fabric for the West City Gate (西門). Along with the mayor of Taipei walled city Chen Hsin-ju (陳星聚) proposed for a public education institute for the north, Hong Wen-guan was also responsible for the commissioning of the largest Han Chinese academic college ever built as the Ten Yin Academic (登瀛書院). The college was believed as one of the earliest form of a university in Taipei as it had several disciplinary subjects including the western and ethnology for indigenous. Dr. Leslie Mackay also proposed to built a college of western missionary in port Tamsui and was believed one the first privately funded university in the north of the island. The Ten Yin Academic was built in a sheer scale in architecture and even later during early years of Japanese administration over Formosa in 1895, the academic institute was converted to the club house as Tamsui Pavilion (淡水館) for the Japanese soldiers and civic assembly hall (公會堂) due to its immense quality and size of buildings.
Figure: Ten Yin Academic(登瀛書院), the one the largest Han Chinese college ever located in the northern Taiwan, was commissioned by Hong Wen-guan (洪文光), another child of Hong ten-yun under the Hong's clan. The college was located halfway between the West City Gate and Stone Arch of Hong's. The college was later renamed to Palace of Tamsui (淡水館) in the early days of the Japanese government. Source: Taipei City Archives.
At the year 1895 when Manchu Chin China lost a battle with Japan, the deal was to sell Formosa to Japan under a Treaty of Bakan(馬關條約) signed by Chin's Foreign Minister Lee Hong-chang (李鴻章). It was truly a bad moment for the civic and elite class of Taipei and people of islanders in Formosa. During the May of 1895, a resistance group formed by the allies of elite class across the island proclaimed a first ever independence called The Formosa Republic(台灣民主國) to against the rule of Japanese. As described by western media, the republic was a very short lived political entity and had a name of the Kingdom of Butterfly simply to note for its short but elegant lifespan. The Formosa Republic soon fell into disintegrated after the arrival of Japanese army in later of the year. Hong's family represented Hong Wen-guan was assigned as the senator of the Formosa Republic along with Bai's family in Wanghua (萬華祖師廟白將軍家) and Chen's family in Dalongtong (大龍峒老師府陳家).
According to the early year land survey record of Japanese Formosa government in 1895 that at least one quarter of lands inside Taipei city walls were originally under the ownership of Hong's. (ref 6) However, as the time Japanese entered the walled city in 1895, the walled city was in a physical blockade and the Japanese Formosa government expropriated the whole rice paddies lands inside the city walls for a reason to contain the outbreak of disease caused by the mosquitoes from the water drainage out of the city walls due to many soldiers were infected by illness seen in the poor sanitation of the island. Most of the Hong's wealth as a major city class were submerged in this change of power. After Japanese entering the walled city and form assembly for the civic affairs, Hong's family was not even invited for forming a council, Hong Wen-guan was deeply upset by the Japanese governor and he passed away in 1903.
Figure: Timber built Taipei Hospital laid in 1898 to serve the medical resource for Japanese in Taiwan on the same site of the former Taipei Fu Examination Hall in earlier 1880's donated by Hung Teng-yun. Source: Taipei Landmarks Photo Album released by the Japanese Formosa government in 1899.
It was much later Hong Wen-guan's younger brother Hong Yi-nan (洪以南), born in 1871, the grandson of merchant Hong Ten-yun and father of Dr Hong Chang-gen, carried out several lawsuits with the Japanese government in Formosa and had eventually got the property within walled city back in 1910.
Figure: The Poetry society Yin (瀛社) of the northern Taiwan was setup at the garden inside the former house of Hong Ten-yn inside the walled city premium in 1909. The Japanese government encourage the learning of Han Chinese poetry which was the source of Japanese poetry. The Poetry Society Li Society (櫟社) in the central Taiwan was set up inside the Lai Garden(萊園) of Wu Feng Lins(霧峰林家) almost at the same time. Hongs in Taipei and Lins in Wu Feng were in a joint relation for their endeavor for ancient Chinese poetry. Source: Ken Hong's album for the Hong's.
Hong Yi-nan made use of this legal reclaimed land to build a care free Chinese garden Yi (逸園) to house his Yin Poetry Society (瀛社) for the Han Chinese scholars and gentry members from the literal class as Hong Yi-nan himself was one of the key Classic Chinese scholars in the late Chin Dynasty.
However, Taipei was devastated in a typhoon in 1911 and his Yi Garden was badly damaged. His Japanese friend in the Japanese led government told him to halt for a restoration due to a likelihood of expansion of adjacent Taipei Hospital, which later the Taiwan Hospital at the former site of examination halls after the release of new city plan since 1900. This city land expropriation led through the 1900 new plan of inner walled city development gave Hong Yi-nan a chance of receiving compensation fund to move his property elsewhere. The new land use of the Hong's city center manor and his donated Taipei examination halls were later seeing the up of the largest state run hospital in the East Asia out Tokyo. His lands turning into the cradle of medical education and practitioners of Taiwan seem to foresee all his later three generations devoting in medical career.
Figure: The place near the old walled city lodge of Hong Ten-yun. The expanded Taipei Hospital into a grand and palatial hospital for the Formosa government on the site of the old Hong's property and examination halls of the Chin Chinese city. It was the largest of western medical institution in the Fareast outside Tokyo. Source: Taipics.com
Figure: (Click to enlarge) Traces of Hong's in the Taipei Walled City as in the map created in 1903 during early years of Japanese reign over Formosa. The green area is the Taipei walled city.
1 - The West City Gate contributed by the Manga people with chief from Hong's business Hong He-yi(洪合益)
2.-The site of the Stone Arch for the Hong's contribution.
3-The street in the name of stone arch - 石坊街
4-Ten-yin Academic and College (登瀛書院) commissioned by Hong Ten-yun's second son Hong Wen-guan (洪文光) under the branding of Hong He-yin business
5-The Taipei Fu Examination halls donated by Hong's
6-The City Lodge of Hong Ten-yun (洪騰雲宅) next to examination halls
Source: Historic maps of Taiwan, Academia Sinica. http://gissrv4.sinica.edu.tw/gis/taipei.aspx
Age of Enlightenment during early 20th century Taiwan
Hong's family relationship with the first Taipei Fu state minister Liu Min-chuan also led to an opportunity for Hong Yi-nan to step up to serve in the post 1895 Japanese led Formosa government due a mutual relationship of Liu Min-chuan's common friend in Japan also coming to serve in the land survey in Formosa, the greatest reforming affairs of the lands economics in a century. In early days of Formosa under Japanese Administration, social elites from the Han Chinese speaking groups were selected to serve in the government as they were able to communicate well and write well in bookkeeping. Due to Hong Yi-nan's highly proficient in Han Chinese poem and classics and being able to represent local voices from strong local connection, Hong Yi-nan was recruited to take a first in a government seat starting as the Minister of Public Affairs in Taipei (台北辦務署長) in 1897 and also several later roles in the Prefecture of Taipei including Chief Constable of the Taipei Port Quarantine Office (臺北檢疫委員), Councilor of Taipei Branch of Taiwanese Society in Japanese Formosa Government (臺灣協會臺灣支部評議員), Advisory Deputy of Taipei Prefecture (臺北廳參事) and gained numerous his reputation of conducting civic improvement on behalf of Taiwanese.
Figure: The Hong's residential red veranda cottage on the top of the riverside hill of Tamsui Harbor. Source: Photographer Scott in his Flickr collection. Partial coverage of 1960's US film The Sand Pebbles was featured in 2016 Taipei Film Festival.
Hong Yi-nan later was appointed as a town deputy of port Tamsui (Hobe) during 1913 as the Tamsui was a key foreign trade powerhouse of northern Taiwan since 1865 as a Treaty Port of China and Britain. He had used his compensation fund from the expansion of new Taipei Hospital on his father's city center manor property to purchase a new western veranda style of house on the hilltop of port Tamsui near the former local Rental Affairs office (公館) right next to the Matsu temple of Tamsui (淡水福佑宮) and overlook the harbor zone by the foreign settlements primarily British from 1865.
The perfect location only just in a closer interaction of the long established Han Chinese blocks and western trades but also a perfect vantage point of the spectacular scene through his veranda window toward the Mountain Guanyin floating on the river Tamsui. This cottage was later given a romantic name of Da Guan House (達觀樓) simply to recap the position of his unique location seeing right at mount Guanyin above the street level and humbleness of the host of the building enjoying in harmony of the grand nature.
Figure: The Red-Cottage gained a vantage view to the Mount Guan Yin across the river Tamsui, a painting done by Chen Chih-chi (陳植琪) in 1925-30. The river is shown with a floating island suggested the decline of river ferry due to the accumulated sandbank near the estuary of river Tamsui over decades of development upstream. (Source: Artist family own collection: http://ultra.ihp.sinica.edu.tw/~yency/theme02/htm/chihchi1.htm)
Hong's splendid red cottage sitting on the riverside hilltop was one of the mostly themed painting in Tamsui during the high of western painting movement during 1920's to 1960's. The Hong Kong based Christies' Auction outperformed award winning painting of TAMSUI SUNSET (淡水夕照) done by 1895 born Taiwanese artist Chen Cheng-po (陳澄波) is an important portrait of Tamsui town in the rise of the artist movement in 1930's to returning the home town landscape. He has many paintings themed with Tamsui Red Cottage and many of his fellow artists later his time did the same pitch. Chen Cheng-po was heard to be sponsored by Hong Yi-nan at his young age learning arts in Tokyo as Hong Yi-nan was known for his aspiration of Chinese classics, nature and environment of the time. He sent his painting of the boat at night near a green island during his learning of the as a postcard to Hong's to express his gratitude.
Figure: The early calligraphy of Hong Yi Nan found at the Fairy Cave of Keelung (基隆仙洞巖) at the coast as a gift poem to his good friend Khoo Chu Song (許梓桑), a leading literati, gentry and the town minister, in Keelung after their boating exploration into the natural sea eroded cave formed thousand years ago, a place for poem and literati to look for inspiration while the space in interlaced with rocks and sea. With the companion of Kho, Hong Yi-nan well received the transition of the natural space and left his creation of a poem for Getting into another level (別有洞天) before 1905 (the Lunar Chinese year containing 甲) and Khoo inscribed this piece of poem and calligraphy at the stone wall inside the Fairy Cave to mark a destination of poetic destination. Hong Yi-nan called himself as Endless Fool (無量癡者) to sarcastically express he can only do read and write but nothing physically else. Source: Ken Hong's Da Guan Digital Museum Blog and Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/darguanartspace/532379823?fbclid=IwAR3ml1kkeZ-3JjV5xXEra_vNgMjrqCRBFMAqa41fiwQiC_jHMZauJMzahzY
Hong's countless endeavor for literal arts mostly calligraphy can be seen throughout most temples refurbished in the decade of 1910's in Taipei. His works in poetry was very largely received by elites' stately homes of that period. His love for nature and environment often delivered in the form of Chinese poetry in which it is early revealed his early 20th century leading thought in the harmony of the embracing balance and great nature.
He was also one of the first few thought leaders in Taiwan to fight for women's right for lift the ban for women to bind their foot from their young age, and he is regarded as an early driver of women activist in the early 20th century Asia. Foot binding for almost every young Chinese women had been a long cultural constraint and life long penalty because it has a hidden purpose to please the Chinese men that women to walk elegantly with their little foots. He and his wife established Foot-binding Abolition Society in 1911 which a decade later the Japanese Formosa Government came to realize in a state scale. Hong Yi Nan's perseverance in Han Chinese arts and literacy does not limit him to hold of any social taboo in Chinese but his ability to walk out of the box and reinvent ahead of social movement.
Safeguarding Taipei's City Heritage and Public History
Besides family Hong's long traces and contribution tightly connected to the development of the people and the city of Taipei, the current generation of Hong's in Taiwan are also embracing the public history and heritage conservation for the wider interests and the residence of the northern Taiwan. Ken Hong (洪啟宗), the doctor of neurology and general medicine, has been in a generous position to build an online Digital Museum for the Taipei Fu and also has been urging to house their three centuries long family collections in a public museum to be located inside the former examination halls precinct where Taipei city does not have any of such city and people's history museum in any place yet. Dr Ken Hong is endorsing as much as what his early generation of Hung Ten-yun to be a profound donation for the city.
Figure: Dr Ken Hong gave a keynote speech in an opening event in October 2020 at Academia Sinica in Taiwan of his family and how he would like to promote heritage of the city and the people by having his family collection through centuries to be public displayed in a proposed museum on the former precinct of Taipei walled city. Photo: Willie Chen
Katy Hung Hui Wen (洪惠文), a grand daughter of Hong Chang-gen and daughter of Hung Tsu-pei is the co-author of the book A Culinary History of Taipei with Steven Crook and is doing her best part preserving the family intangible cultural influence of the city.
Hung Chih-Wen (洪致文), a cousin of Ken Hong and Katy Hung, boasts the greatest knowledge of 19th to 20th century automotive heritages in Taiwan and now the chairmen of the future Taiwan Railway Museum due to open in few years. He has authored a volume of best selling books about the railways and transportation throughout Taiwan. He is also a well known geologist, meteorologist and historian of Taipei and ow the professor in the National Taiwan Normal University.
In the following episodes, I will explore how to tell their residences through modern lens of map services by studying into the past of Taiwan and how Hong Yi-nan and Hong Chang-gen reflected themselves in their age, a rather distant past for Taiwanese to understand who they are and where they came from.
(Notes after this short write up: Thanks for Katy Hung and Ken Hong for their immense knowledge of Taipei and how it came to these days. Lots of the notes in this concise blog article has derived from their blogs and posts from the life stories of their generations ahead of our modern time.)
Reference:
1. Katy Hung Hui Wen, "Foot-binding Origin, Mongols and More", https://katyhuiwenhung.blogspot.com/2020/04/foot-binding-origin-mongols-and-more.html, 2020.04.
2. Katy Hung Hui Wen, "Enlightenment to Democracy - Two Historical Schools in Taipei", https://katyhuiwenhung.blogspot.com/2020/10/enlightenment-to-democracy-two.html?m=1&fbclid=IwAR3z_UbH4FpcrQa2IB8FD08YvUcsZ0ubguZkA-3pGf4I2LU6OjNFDxLFYpk, 2020.10
3. Hong Chitzong, Ken Hong's Blog, https://chitzonghong.blogspot.com/, accessed through 2020
4. Chih-wen Hung, "達觀眼科醫院的赤煉瓦遺跡", http://cwhung.blogspot.com/2010/01/blog-post_19.html, 2010.01.
5. Chi-wen Hung, "洪氏家族地標集", https://chitzonghong.blogspot.com/2012/05/blog-post.html, 2010.05.
6. Chih-wen Hung, "洪以南退一步換取什麼?", https://chitzonghong.blogspot.com/2018/04/blog-post.html, 2018.04.
7. Chi-wen Hung, "洪長庚拜訪黃炎生宅", https://m.xuite.net/blog/hung.chihwen/wretch/152077956?fbclid=IwAR03lFd0hj8IklpzrVANBEbf17T0joKO-UwhZo0_h0onZUFbaWT_janUu9Y, 2010.12.
8. Chih-wenh Hung, "淡水「達觀樓」記之二", http://cwhung.blogspot.com/2009/11/blog-post_09.html, 2009,11.
9. Chih-Wen Hung, "當耆老，順便逛土治後街", https://blog.xuite.net/hung.chihwen/wretch/152077707-%E7%95%B6%E8%80%86%E8%80%81%EF%BC%8C%E9%A0%86%E4%BE%BF%E9%80%9B%E5%9C%9F%E6%B2%BB%E5%BE%8C%E8%A1%97, 2009-11-10.
10. 洪啟宗 Dr. Ken Hong, 達觀數位博物館影像, https://www.flickr.com/people/darguanartspace/, Dar-Guan Visual Art Space DGVAS, dgvas.blogspot.tw, Accessed through 2018-2020.
11. 洪啟宗 Dr. Ken Hong, 達觀情懷繫北台, https://www.facebook.com/groups/2466035573522369/, Accessed through 2018-2020.
12. 洪啟宗 Dr. Ken Hong, https://www.flickr.com/people/sunangen/, Personal Flickr site. Accessed through 2018-2020.
13. 民報 (People News),【人物】 洪祖培 台灣神經科開山祖師（1926〜2019）, 民報 (People News), 2019.09, Yahoo News., https://tw.news.yahoo.com/%E4%BA%BA%E7%89%A9-%E6%B4%AA%E7%A5%96%E5%9F%B9-%E5%8F%B0%E7%81%A3%E7%A5%9E%E7%B6%93%E7%A7%91%E9%96%8B%E5%B1%B1%E7%A5%96%E5%B8%AB-1926-2019-050000789.html
14. 林忠勝, 朱昭陽回憶錄, https://www.taiwanus.us/MediaVideoAudio/books/older/4_01.htm, 1994.04
15. 張炎憲,曾秋美,施妙旻, 賴永祥先生和「私立延平學院」, http://www.laijohn.com/interview/Gou,SLian.htm, 2001.10.
16. 洪啟宗, 田僑仔的告白：土地害死人喔！, https://tw.nextmgz.com/realtimenews/news/42123104, 2016.07.
17. 陳榮基, 永遠懷念的蘭醫生In memory of Dr. David Landsborough, https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/24046318356373511/56532866759115633
18. 陳順勝, 緬懷恩師神經醫學泰斗洪祖培教授, https://www.peoplenews.tw/news/df16c09b-e64a-4856-afb1-e010bfd50d71?fbclid=IwAR2SasFbQXggjKWYjGfeGcwhIhZUw6m9AL25_MPjbg_U8jEfzwiBpZF8J40, People News 台灣民報, 2019.08.
19. 姜勝智, 唐景崧台灣民主國, https://nicecasio.pixnet.net/blog/post/448001666
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