Sir Shouson Chow (; 1861–1959), also known as Chow Cheong-Ling (), was a Hong Kong businessman and politician. He had been a

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

official and prominent in the

Government of Hong Kong The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the handover of Hong Kong. ...

Family

Chow is said to have been born in Wong Chuk Hang San Wai, a village at the foot of present-day Shouson Hill. Wong Chuk Hang San Wai was a village of a Chow lineage. His father was compradore of the Canton-based Canton and Hong Kong Steamship Company. His grandfather was the head of "Little Hong Kong", who helped

Charles Elliot Admiral Sir Charles Elliot (15 August 1801 – 9 September 1875) was a British Royal Navy officer, diplomat, and colonial administrator. He became the first Administrator of Hong Kong in 1841 while serving as both Plenipotentiary and Chief Su ...

post the first official proclamation of

Hong Kong Island Hong Kong Island () is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. The island, known originally and on road signs simply as "Hong Kong", had a population of 1,289,500 and a population density of , . It is the second largest island in Hong Kon ...

in 1841. He had a son, named Chow Yat-Kwong.

Career

Among the third group of Chinese students sponsored by the

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

government to the United States in the 1870s, Chow left China in 1874 and studied at Phillips Academy, Andover (class of 1880) After his graduation, he was originally granted admission offer of

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

, but his studies ended due to recall of students by the Qing government. Then he worked for the Qing government after returning to China. In 1881 he joined the Korean Customs Service under

Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 18596 June 1916) was a Chinese general and statesman who served as the second provisional president and the first official president of the Republic of China, head of the Beiyang government from 1912 to 1916 and ...

. Later he was the president of the China Merchant Steam Navigation Company of

Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...

from 1897 to 1903, and the managing director of the Peking-Mukden Railway between 1903 and 1907. He was the Customs and Trade Superintendent and Counselor for Foreign Affairs in Niuzhuang between 1907 and 1910. During this period he was promoted to Mandarin of the Second Rank. He left government service after the

1911 Revolution The 1911 Revolution, also known as the Xinhai Revolution or Hsinhai Revolution, ended China's last imperial dynasty, the Qing dynasty, and led to the establishment of the Republic of China (ROC). The revolution was the culmination of a decade ...

and became director of various companies and charities.

Public Service

Chow was appointed a Justice of the Peace in Hong Kong in 1907. He was subsequently elected to membership of the North British Academy of Arts. In 1918, he founded the

Bank of East Asia The Bank of East Asia Limited, often abbreviated to BEA, is a Hong Kong public banking and financial services company headquartered in Central, Hong Kong, Central, Hong Kong. It is currently the largest independent local Hong Kong bank, and o ...

with three Chinese partners where he was the chairman of the board from 1925 to 1929. In 1922 he was appointed a member of the Sanitary Board, the precursor of the

Urban Council 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 ...

, and the

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

, where he served until 1931. In 1926, he became the first Chinese member of the Executive Council, and was knighted. In 1933, he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws. During the

Japanese Occupation of Hong Kong The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the governor of Hong Kong, Mark Aitchison Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of British Hong Kong, Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. His surrender occurred after Batt ...

, Chow and other leading Chinese figures joined the Chinese Cooperative Council founded by the Japanese military which he was the chairman to maintain public order among the Chinese population. They did not suffer punishment for this collaboration after the return of British rule. He was publicly and privately connected with various branches of philanthropic activities. He was the President of the Hong Kong Society of the Protection of Children and Patron of the Chinese Mission to Lepers, member of the District Watchmen Committee, Permanent Advisor of the Tung Wah Hospital, Public Dispensaries, and the Po Leung Kuk. He was also advisor of the

Chinese General Chamber of commerce The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (CGCCHK; ) is a non-profit organization of local Chinese firms and businessmen based in Hong Kong. It was founded in 1900 by Ho Fook and Lau Chu-pak, two prominent leaders of the Chinese community during t ...

and Honorary President of the South China Athletic Association and the Chinese Recreation Club. He was awarded Order of the Chia Ho (Excellent Crop) Third Class by President Yuan Shih-kai. In 1918 he was awarded Second Class of the same Order, and the Second Class Medal of Brilliancy by President Hsu Shih-Chang in 1919. He was knighted in 1926 and awarded the Order of the Silver Jubilee in 1935 by

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

Memory

Shouson Hill, in the south of

, is named after him.

External links

Chow Cheong-ling (Zhou Changling) 周長齡
from ''Biographies of Prominent Chinese'' c.1925.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chow, Shouson 1861 births 1959 deaths Members of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong Members of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Members of the Sanitary Board of Hong Kong Hong Kong businesspeople Hong Kong collaborators with Imperial Japan People from Bao'an County Bank of East Asia Hong Kong expatriates in China Hong Kong expatriates in Korea Hong Kong Anglicans Hong Kong justices of the peace People from British Hong Kong Chinese Educational Mission students