John MacNeile Price (5 August 184311 November 1922) was a British civil engineer and the Surveyor General of Hong Kong. Price was born in Marylebone, London, to Richard Evan Price, a merchant in South America, and Fanny Nugent Price. He was the first qualified and competent Surveyor General in Hong Kong's history from 1873 to 1889. He was conversant with electrical engineering developments both in Europe and America. He met with Layton and Wickham from the

Hongkong Electric Company The Hongkong Electric Company (HEC; ) is one of Hong Kong's two main electricity generation companies, the other being China Light & Power. The company is owned by several companies including Power Assets Holdings, State Grid Corporation of Ch ...

to develop electricity in the colony. As a result, the government offered $19,000 for fifty arc lamps and pumping water up to the houses on the Peak. Price was also responsible for the redrew the proposal of the

Hong Kong Observatory The Hong Kong Observatory is a weather forecast agency of the government of Hong Kong. The Observatory forecasts the weather and issues warnings on weather-related hazards. It also monitors and makes assessments on radiation levels in Hong ...

which Major H. S. Palmer initial proposal was rejected on the ground of cost in 1881. Price proposed the revised proposal to the

Secretary of State for the Colonies The secretary of state for the colonies or colonial secretary was the Cabinet of the United Kingdom's government minister, minister in charge of managing certain parts of the British Empire. The colonial secretary never had responsibility for t ...

in London in 1882. His plan was approved in Many and construction started in 1883. As the Surveyor General, Price was also appointed member of the Executive Council and Legislative Council on 11 December 1876. He was also Honorary Chairman of the

Sanitary Board The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...

when it was first established in 1883. He sued the Robert Fraser-Smith, founder of the ''Hongkong Telegraph'' in November 1883 who accused him of jobbery and corruption but lost the case. He died in

Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

, Spain.''England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1966, 1973-1995''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Price, John MacNeile British expatriates in China People from British Hong Kong British surveyors Hong Kong surveyors Fellows of the Geological Society of London Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Government officials of Hong Kong Members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong Members of the Sanitary Board of Hong Kong 1843 births 1922 deaths