1. The History
Nam Koo Terrace is a two-storey red brick mansion located at No.55 on Ship Street in the metropolitan area of Wan Chai on Hong Kong island. It was built between 1915-1921 by wealthy Shanghai merchant Chun-man To, incorporating elements of both Eastern and Western architecture. Chun-man was the chief Chinese silks salesman with the Wing On Company before being promoted to Assistant Manager. After two decades in the property, he was forced to vacate the mansion at the start of the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong in 1941 and died shortly after his return.
During the occupation of Hong Kong (1941 to 1945), the house was used as a "comfort house” (military brothel) for the Japanese soldiers. It was subsequently nicked-named the “Ghost house” as some believed the property to be inhabited by ghosts of the comfort women who resided here during the Japanese occupation.
Nam Koo Terrace remained under the ownership of the To family until 1988, when the property was sold to YUBA Co. Hopewell Holdings then took over ownership of the building in 1993 which the intention of demolishing it in order to make way for their “Mega Tower” hotel project a.k.a. The Hopewell Centre II. Since then, however, the building has stood vacant. The plan now is to the preserve this historical site as in 1996, Nam Koo Terrace received the status of a Grade I Historical Building from the Antiquities Advisory Board, in light of its historical and architectural importance in Hong Kong.
In early 2025, the redevelopment of Nam Koo Terrace was approved, which will mean a ‘reconstruction’ of the terrace and see $459m residential project build around the house.
2. The Explore
Place I overlooked reporting on from my trip to HK last summer. This place was on my to-do list for ages. I finally managed to have quick peek in here back in 2019 but didn’t get a proper look at the place due to the live-in security guard.
It was also a bit disappointing from an internal perspective as it was crammed with scaffolding. This time the place was easier to access as there wasn’t a soul around, so managed to get much better external shots. Internally, though, the picture hadn’t changed since last time, with internal shots of any merit practically impossible to come by.
That said, this unique place’s location and the lovely façade merit a report.
3. The Pictures
Nam Koo on its perch:
Up we go:
And we’re in:
Sits well:
They’ve demo’ed the property that was to the right of Nam Koo:
Loving the garden:
And the fountain:
Corner detail:
It really is!
It’s a jungle of scaffolding outside:
And inside:
It really is!
Some old paperwork:
One thing that still survives is this old toilet:
Window detail:
Bye-bye for now Nam Koo…
Nam Koo Terrace is a two-storey red brick mansion located at No.55 on Ship Street in the metropolitan area of Wan Chai on Hong Kong island. It was built between 1915-1921 by wealthy Shanghai merchant Chun-man To, incorporating elements of both Eastern and Western architecture. Chun-man was the chief Chinese silks salesman with the Wing On Company before being promoted to Assistant Manager. After two decades in the property, he was forced to vacate the mansion at the start of the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong in 1941 and died shortly after his return.
During the occupation of Hong Kong (1941 to 1945), the house was used as a "comfort house” (military brothel) for the Japanese soldiers. It was subsequently nicked-named the “Ghost house” as some believed the property to be inhabited by ghosts of the comfort women who resided here during the Japanese occupation.
Nam Koo Terrace remained under the ownership of the To family until 1988, when the property was sold to YUBA Co. Hopewell Holdings then took over ownership of the building in 1993 which the intention of demolishing it in order to make way for their “Mega Tower” hotel project a.k.a. The Hopewell Centre II. Since then, however, the building has stood vacant. The plan now is to the preserve this historical site as in 1996, Nam Koo Terrace received the status of a Grade I Historical Building from the Antiquities Advisory Board, in light of its historical and architectural importance in Hong Kong.
In early 2025, the redevelopment of Nam Koo Terrace was approved, which will mean a ‘reconstruction’ of the terrace and see $459m residential project build around the house.
2. The Explore
Place I overlooked reporting on from my trip to HK last summer. This place was on my to-do list for ages. I finally managed to have quick peek in here back in 2019 but didn’t get a proper look at the place due to the live-in security guard.
It was also a bit disappointing from an internal perspective as it was crammed with scaffolding. This time the place was easier to access as there wasn’t a soul around, so managed to get much better external shots. Internally, though, the picture hadn’t changed since last time, with internal shots of any merit practically impossible to come by.
That said, this unique place’s location and the lovely façade merit a report.
3. The Pictures
Nam Koo on its perch:
Up we go:
And we’re in:
Sits well:
They’ve demo’ed the property that was to the right of Nam Koo:
Loving the garden:
And the fountain:
Corner detail:
It really is!
It’s a jungle of scaffolding outside:
And inside:
It really is!
Some old paperwork:
One thing that still survives is this old toilet:
Window detail:
Bye-bye for now Nam Koo…
