CHAPTER SEVEN
The Portuguese Enterprises in Shanghai
THE REGISTRATION OF FOREIGN ENTERPRISES
According to the Registration of Shanghai’s Foreign Enterprises (December 1945 to December 1949), there were 13 Portuguese enterprises in the city. They were made up of a single dressmaker, a single oil company, a stationary store, one pharmaceutical company, eight importers and exporters, and a single agent. The total number of foreign enterprises was 1,307, thus Portuguese enterprises were slightly less than one percent of the total foreign enterprises in Shanghai.
Another investigation of the foreign enterprises in Shanghai had been taken from August 31, 1949, to the end of the year. It showed that there were 684 foreign enterprises: 324 companies and 360 others. In those enterprises, there were 11,758 Chinese staff members, 36,336 Chinese workers, 2,035 foreign staff members and 343 foreign workers employed. The statistics also showed that there were six Portuguese enterprises in Shanghai during that period. They included one established before 1911, two during the period 1911-1920, and then one each in each of the periods 1921-1930, 1931-1941, and 1945-1949. According to a breakdown by profession, those enterprises included a single exporter, 2 importers, a single industrialist, and two dealers. The six Portuguese enterprises employed 26 Chinese staff members, 4 Chinese workers, and 8 foreign staff members. In order to present a comprehensive picture of Portuguese commercial activity in Shanghai, the following list has been gleaned from the Shanghai commercial directories (Hong Lists) dating from the early part of the 20th century until the post World War II period.
THE SHANGHAI PORTUGUESE HONG LIST
1. The Ajax Blue Print Company had been established before 1933, registered at the Portuguese Consulate-General in Shanghai, and located at 106 Central Arcorde. The operations of the company had been listed as documentary photographer, architectural and engineering plan printers, blue-print paper manufacturers, and technical tracing paper and cloth retailer. Its Ajax Blue-Printing Paper Manufacturers had been located at 1296 East Rue Lafayette. The staff of the company included:
1933 H.L. Carson Service Manager J.C. Chay Head Printer 1936 Chen Conway Managing Director W.T.L. Chow Managing Director Youngman Tseu Managing Director Yungtse Chow Managing Director W.K. Sung Secretary K.C. Jack Accountant C.P. Champ Plan Printer T.V. Joe Factory Manager Z.C. Wolf Factory Assistant 1941 Conway Chen Managing Director K.P. Tam Service Manager 1948 Conway Chen Managing Director Jack Chay Photographer V.Y. Chu Accountant K.Y. Yih Assistant
2. Anderson Brothers had been established in 1937. The company was located at 271 Kiangse Road, Central, and listed itself as printers, publishers, stationers, sellers of office equipment, and booksellers. The staff included:
1941 J.H. Anderson Managing Director Mrs. M. M. Anderson V.H. Anderson D.J. Anderson 1948 J.H. Anderson Managing Director G.A. Anderson Assistant Manager Jonesie C.C. Yao Secretary
3. Asiatic Products Co. was the successor of James E. Nixon & Co., which had been founded in 1937 in Shanghai. In the early years, James E. Nixon had founded and acted as sole proprietor of the company. Osborne William Foegal became his first associate, and John A. Chadmers had worked there for many years. At the end of the 1940s the company had been renamed as the Asiatic Products Co. It still listed itself as cotton and cotton waste merchants, as well as importers and exporters. After the renaming, it moved from 149 Szechuen Road, Central to 40 Ningpo Road. Osborne W. Foegal became a partner in the renamed company.
4. Botelho Bros. (Merchants, Founders and Partners: B.J. Botelho, P.V. Botelho and J.H. Botelho) had been first established in Hong Kong in 1914. The head office had remained in Hong Kong with branches in Shanghai, Tsintao, Tsinan, Amoy, Foochow, Wuchow, San Francisco, and New York. It acted as agent for numerous companies: San Miguel Brewery, Manila; Transportes Maritimes do Estado, Lisboa; L. Mundet & Son, Inc., Brooklin, NY; Mundelt & Co. Lda. Seixal, Portugal; Cork Products; Crown Corks; and China Underwriters, Ltd. The company faded from view in the 1930s. Its chief staff members and locations of the branch office in Shanghai were as follows:
1919 82 Szechuen Road B.B. dos Remedios Miss A.C. Remedios R.F. Xavier 1924 64 Peking Road B.B. Remedios F.M.F. Gutierrez A. Reid Miss L. Hawes H.J. Sing 1929 64 Peking Road P.V. Botelho Partner F.M.F. Gutierrez A.L. Madeira F.R. de Carvalho Miss M.S. Botelho Miss C.M. Botelho
5. The California Pharmacy, was located at 155 Avenue Joffre, 247 Avenue Joffre after 1933, listed itself as wholesale and retail druggists. The firm had been founded before 1924 and disappeared from business listings at the end of the 1930s. The staff of the pharmacy included:
1924 J.M. de Figueiredo Proprietor George Wilhelmi Manager Mrs. Anderson S. Zee 1929 G.M. Gorjevsky Proprietor N. Egoroff Mrs. Revel-Mouroz 1933 G.M. Torjevsky Proprietor V.I. Churlianis Chemist 1936 G.M. Torjevsky Proprietor V.I. Churilanis Chemist and Manager
6. Carvalho, A.D. de; Carvalho & Co.; Naronha & Sons, a company listed as printers, stationers, and bookbinders had been established in 1857. It apparently went out of business in the late 1890s. The firm, whose first printer was J. H. Carvalho, who would later be Consul and Acting Consul-General for Portugal in Shanghai, was reorganized around 1875 and assumed a new name: Carvalho & Co. (or Partners, Ltd.). It was located at 38 Keangse Road. Three years later it was taken over by the Portugese printing company of Hong Kong, Noronha & Sons, and became the Shanghai branch of that company. Then just before 1893 V.P. Fonseca purchased the Shanghai branch and operated a separate business. The principle staff of the firm in its various forms included:
1857 J.H. Carvalho Printer A.H. Carvalho Printer A.L. Vidigal Assistant 1864 A.H. Carvalho Printer and Stationer M.F. Barradas A.A. da Fonseca H. A. Pereira 1875 A.H. Carvalho Partner H. Pereira P. da Silva J.F. de Aquino T.S. Pereira 1878 L. Noronha Absentee Owner T.S. Pereira Printer J.f. d'Aquino J.M. Botelho L.F. Carian 1893 V.P. Fonseca Owner T.S. Pereira Printer J.F. d'Aquino V. Portaria C. Delgado
7. Casa Do Povo: Provision & Wine Merchants, Importers of Oporto Wines and Exporters was located at 66 North Szechuen Road after it had been founded in 1914. F.A. Maher, a clerk of the Russo-Asiastic Bank founded the company. He established branches and agents in Chefoo, Peking, Macao, and Japan. The company went out of business in the late 1920s. Some of the staff are listed below:
1918 F.A. Maher Proprietor 1924 Mrs. M.L. Maher Proprietor of the 1920s 1929 F.A. Maher Proprietor Mrs. M.L. Maher Proprietor F. Trendel Chefoo Manager R.A. Pereira Peking Manager
8. S.P. Castilho, Castilho & Co. was billed as "storekeeper, general commision agents, importers, exporters and shipbrokers." S.P. Castilho founded the company in the beginning of the 1890s, located it at 1669 and 1670 Seward Road. It had been renamed before 1893 as Castilho & Co. Before 1910, the company had moved to 927 Miller Road and then in 1918 moved again to 18 Kiangse Road and assumed a new name, Castilho, C.M. & Co. C.M. Castilho had been listed as the proprietor. By the beginning of the 1920s, Miss M.F. Castilho had assumed ownership for the company. It disappeared from the Shanghai business community after 1924.
9. China Sales & Service Co. had a long and varied life as a Portuguese business concern in Shanghai. It had been founded in 1924 and listed itself as "importers, exporters and commission agents." J.A. Dissmeyer was the manager and sole proprietor. By 1929 it had moved to 4 Hongkong Road and the business had been described as "general merchants, commission agents, and real estate brokers." By 1933 it was the agent for Victor Tin Lithographing Co., Ltd., and in 1936 became the sole agent for the China Can Co., Ltd. That relationship continued throughout the war years. The staff of the company was fairly consistent over the years as is indicated by the following list:
1929 J.A. Dissmeyer Manager TehYung-ching Accountant S.F. Ma Cashier Edgard Lee Salesman James Liang Factory Supervisor Z.H. Yih O.S. Nyi 1941 William Bau Sales Manager 1948 J.A. Dissmeyer Manager Miss Joyce Dissmeyer Secretary S.F. Mah Cashier
10. Companhia Extremo Oriente had been established before 1938. The firm did business in "shipping, import and export." It was located at 8 Quai de France, it disappeared from the Shanghai business circles in the 1940s. F.P. de Portaria was a long-time employ along with Miss C. de Portaria and Miss M.T. Shroff.
11. Companhia Oriental Portugueza had been established before 1921 but disappeared from the business world of Shanghai by the late 1920s. In 1921 it was located at 15 Fearon Road and doing business as "wine, provision, and perfumery merchants." Within three year it had moved to 6 Quinsan Road and had added that it was the agent for "A.G. da Silva Barossa, Lida, Port, Port Wines." The staff included:
1921 F. de Portaria J.P.G. Roliz J.H. de Carvalho 1924 J.P.G. Roliz J.H. de Carvalho Miss L. Gomes H.A. Lew
12. Dawson & Co., Ltd. was an import-export company had been established before 1936 and located at 749 Bubbling Well Road. Apparently it went out of business during the mid 1940s. The firm’s employees included:
1936 J. Dawson General Manager J.M. de la Cruz Assistant Manager R. de Sa Rusario Secretary C.L. Zee Compradore T.L. Zee Clerk Shao Si Sung Clerk Wei Ming Tong Clerk K.T. Chen Clerk Sun Fah Mao Clerk Wei Noon Chang Clerk 1942 J. Dawson General Manager C.L. Zee Chinese Manager T.L. Zee Business Manager T.K. Chow Chief Accountant
13. De Sousa & Co. was established by J.M.C. de Sousa in 1926. The firm was listed as the Shanghai branch of the De Sousa & Co. of Hong Kong and disappeared from Shanghai in the late 1930s. The company had been first located at 2B Kiangse Road and later moved to 60 Kiangse Road. It had been advertised as "Merchants, Importers and Exporter of Hats, etc.," the firm also acted as the principal agents for Reid, Pinheiro & Cia, Ltd and imported corkwood and sardines from Lisbon. By the 1930s, it listed M.K. Sze and P.C. Voung as employees in addition to De Sousa and acted as agents for fire and marine insurance through the Insurance Co. of the State of Pennsylvania and the Globe & Rutgers Fire Insurance Co. By 1926, the company had moved to 149 Yuen Ming Yuen Road and V.A.M. de Sousa had joined the firm as an assistant.
14. Empresa Portuguesa de Navagacao e Comercio (Portuguese Navigation and Trading Co.) was located on the French Bund and advertises itself as "shipowners and merchants." E.C.J. Pereira was the proprietor. In 1938, C.K. Ho was an accountant; by 1941, P.H. Chow had joined the firm as office manager, H.Y. Sung was the assistant manager and H.M. Zee was the accountant.
15 A.C.D. Encarnacao, an import and export firm, was located at 150 Kiukiang Road in 1942. A.C.D. Encarnacao was the proprietor/manager, Tsin Wan Chang was the accountant, and K.T. Chen was the clerk.
16. C. Encarnacao was a gold, yarn, and cotton broker officed at 107 Central Arcade in 1933.
17. Horacio Jose de Garcia was a medical practitioner with an M.D. from Aurara University in 1928.
18. Daniel Maria Pereira Gutterres was a medical practitioner who listed himself with a practice in pediatrics, gynecology, and surgery. His office was at 2 Peking Road. He had received his M.D. from Aurora University in 1927 and advertised his practice in English, French and German.
19. Loja Portuguese existed in the late 1940s at 476 Lingsen Road Central (Avenue Joffre). The firm listed the following employees:
1948 A.M. Souza Director Mrs. Magda Souza Secretary C.Y. Pan Director C.H. Tam Director H.A.S. de Sousa Manager Mrs. B. Pereira O.H. Tsai Captain
20. Luso Enterprises, Ltd., importers, exporters, and commission agents, had been established in 1941 and was located at 113 Kiukiang Road. A.A. Alves Lico was general manager throughout the 1940s.
21. Luso Steamship Lines was also located at 113 Kiukiang Road. A.A. Alves Lico was the sole proprietor and general manager.
22. S. N. Maria Co. had been managed by L.C. Lo and had an office at 37 Rue du Consulat.
23. New World and New World Hotel, Ltd. The New World was located at 26 Bubbling Well Road in 1924. In 1933, the New World Hotel was located at 1-3 Bubbling Well Road.
24. Shanghai Machine Co.; T.E.M.A.; H. Oliveira; and H. Oliveira & Son. The machine company was founded in 1911 by W. Kuepper, H. Oliveira, and E. Bechler. The firm advertised that it "imported machinery of every discription and technical supplies." It was located at No. 1 Ningpo Road. In the early 1920s, H. Oliveira left the Shanghai Machine Co. and took over the estate of the Dutch company, T.E.M.A., which had been moved to 5 North Soochow Road. Around 1927, T.E.M.A. had been reorganized and the new company took the name of H. Oliveira & Son. That company dealt in machinery, tools, and engineering supplies and acted as agents for eleven American and European manufacturing firms. After the Second World War, hardware and building and mill supplies had been added to the inventory. In 1936, it was located at No. 1 Seward Road. By 1941, it had moved to 24 Yuen Ming Yuen Road and after the war to 57 Broadway. The comparatively large work force remained fairly stable in the 1930s and 1940s:
1933 Mrs. I. Oliveira Proprietress
A.A. dos Remedios Partner
H.C. Lubeck Manager
E.M. Oliveira Treasurer
R.J. Maitland Assistant Manager
V.A. d'Aquiar Clerk
C.M. Ozorio Clerk
A.C. Silva Clerk
Miss I.M. Oliveira Clerk
1936 Mrs. I. Oliveira Proprietress
A.A. dos Remedios Partner
H.C. Lubeck Manager
E.M. Oliveira Treasurer
R.J. Maitland Assistant Manager
V.A. d'Aquiar Clerk
C.M. Ozorio Clerk
A.C. Silva Clerk
Miss I.M. Oliveira Clerk
V. Oliveira Clerk
T.F. Wood Clerk
1941 Mrs. I. Oliveira Proprietress
A.A. dos Remedios Partner
H.C. Lubeck Manager
E.M. Oliveira Treasurer
R.J. Maitland Assistant Manager
V.A. d'Aquiar Clerk
C.M. Ozorio Clerk
A.C. Silva Clerk
Miss I.M. Oliveira Clerk
V. Oliveira Clerk
T.F. Wood Clerk
A.C. Silva Clerk
C.M. Ozorio Clerk
F. Figueireido Clerk
C.A. Lobo Clerk
Hong Kong Office:
Mrs. I. Oliveira
V.H. Oliveira
Mrs. V.H. Oliveira
1948 Mrs. I. Oliveira Partner
V.H. Oliveira Partner
J.R. Tody Import Manager
Y.I. Bahon Salesman
T.J. Smith Salesman
Louis Tseu Salesman
Thomas Ching Salesman
Chales Chen Salesman
C.V. Zee Salesman
D.L. Tong Salesman
Y.L. Tong Salesman
Wha Zee Salesman
25. Pacific Gem Company was an exporter of artificial precious stones, and was located at 6/781 Changde Road. The firm had been established in 1947 and its proprietor was L.P. Chow (Libian Zhou).
26. Rozario & Co., J.M., an import/export firm, was the Shanghai branch of the Foochow Printing Press. J.M. Rozario, who was also a clerk in the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, was the proprietor.
27. Sam Lazaro Bros. was a music and musical instruments store, which dealt with both the retail and wholesale trade. Three brothers, D. de Sam Lazaro, M. de Sam Lazaro, and J. de Sam Lazaro, who remained partners in the firm, established it in 1915. J.A. Soares and Miss O.P. Silva were clerks in the firm. By 1933, a branch had been established at 640-642 Avenue Joffre and several clerks had been added: H.W. Lowry, N. Goumensky, G. Czaco, Miss A. Kachanovsky, and A. Pushkoff. By 1936, B. de Sam Lazaro had become the sole proprietor, and A. Kuznetsoff had been added to the employed clerks. The firm had been started on Szechuen Road, moved to 130 Nanking Road, and by 1941 was located at 232 East Nanking Road. Miss M. Palmer and Miss H. Oliveira were working as clerks. In 1949, the company changed its name to the Sam Lozaro Music House.
28. Tsok An Stocking Factory was located at 1045/8 East Yuhang Road.