Sunday 3 December 2017

Henry Walker, Commissioner of Lands, British North Borneo


I am quite glad to acquire these incoming postcards to Sandakan recently. They were sent to Henry Walker and his wife. Henry Walker was Commissioner of Lands BNB between 1892-1909. He died on 13 February 1930. Both Walker and his wife were commemorated by an inscription at the base the pulpit in St Michael Church in Sandakan. 

Henry Walker (National Archives)

base of pulpit at St Michael Church






By the time he retired in March 1909, he had been working in North Borneo for 26 years. He joined the service in December 1882. He started as a land surveyor and swiftly became the Acting Commissioner of Lands in September 1883. His other duties included a stint as the editor the BNB Herald between 1894 and 1896.
In 1899, he identified a suitable plot of land just across from Gaya Island for a new township within reach of the west coast railway. Gantian had failed in this respect. He called it Jesselton after the vice chairman of the ruling chartered company. But Sir Charles Jessel never set foot in North Borneo and Jesselton in particular. Henry Walker died in February 1930.  
This series of postcards also shows the transition from an undivided back to a divided back postcard. The first divided back postcard was issued in Britain in 1902 and it was soon followed by France and Germany. It was not until 1907 when USA followed suit. To this day, picture postcards still adhered to this format. Prior to 1904, most postcards have a blank border on the picture side which was where messages were usually written. Postal regulations forbade any writing on the address side or otherwise a higher letter postage rate would applied. 

Update
It has been pointed out to me that the 4th card was probably from William Pryer's wife Ada. I have now posted the picture side with the message from ABP, Ada Blanche Pryer. 







11 comments:

  1. Dear Sir,
    Am I right in guessing that the 4th postcard down was sent by Ada Pryer? It's the way the top of the "d" is curled.

    Also, Henry Walker's wife's name in Florence Ada (King). They somehow missed the F.

    Regards,
    Judith

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    Replies
    1. Hello Judith
      Many thanks for pointing that out.
      I have now posted the picture side with the message from ABP.
      You are very knowledgeable.
      What happened to Ada after she returned to England?

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  3. Dear Sir,
    I just saw your reply. Thank you for posting the front of ABP's postcard. You have a gem there! At the moment, we don't know much about what happened to Ada after she returned to England. She only returned to North Borneo once in 1901 (after William Pryer's death in 1899)to sort out her affairs.

    If you are interested in a talk on Ada Pryer on Thursday 30 July 2020, do contact the The Sabah Society. It will be on Zoom format and presented by my relative June Corpuz. June will be pre-launching her book entitled "Reflections of a Curious Victorian Lady in North Borneo". I'm not sure where you are based but it will be "aired" @19.30-21.00 (MYT) or 12.30-14.00 (BST}.

    Best wishes,
    Judith

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Judith
      I am in the UK but was born in Sandakan.
      I might be ablle to see the talk on facebook.
      Have you heard of the Mrs Locke covers sent by APB in 1884?
      I do not have any of them as they are very expensive.
      But I do have a postcard sent to ABP from HK about an order of books.
      In addition, I have seen another postcard from HK to WBP himself about an order of seeds.
      Regards

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  4. Hi
    I am June, cousin of Judith and speaker of the Ada Pryer talk mentioned above. I am Sandakan born and reside in the UK like you. We are very interested in the messages of any postcard to/from the Pryers. We know their history well but would like to add to it. If you are okay may we continue this chat on Messenger? My contact detail is June Corpuz and my image is of a garden with a greenhouse in the background.

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  5. I can also tell you more about the Ada postcard to H Walker as we have researched to location and the post stamp.
    Regards
    June

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  6. I think my great great grandfather, Henry Blaquiere Talbot, was Acting Commissioner of Lands immediately before Henry Walker, though I am not certain of this. Henry Talbot was probably sent to Borneo on deputation from the Survey of India where he worked most of his life. He died in harness in 1892 and is buried somewhere in North Borneo. I would be very glad to know where exactly? Could it be St Michael's Church in Sandakan, perhaps ? I wonder if any of your members can help me ? I would be most grateful. Kindest regards, Rupert Blaquiere Talbot

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    Replies
    1. Please email me at fahonnliau@gmail.com
      I have information for you from the British North Borneo Herald.
      Kind regards

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  7. My great-grandfather, Henry Blaquiere Talbot, was acting Commissioner of Lands in Sandakan and died there (in Mr Pryer's bungalow) at age 62 on 14th June 1891. His obituary states that he was buried in "Sandakan Cemetery" and that a memorial was to be erected. Does anyone know anything about these last two item?
    Col (Ret'd) Richard Blaquiere Talbot
    Vancouver Island

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    Replies
    1. I have made some enquiries. The old Christian cemetery is near to Sung Siew School at the base of Trig Hill. Unfortunately, there are no death registers as they were destroyed during the war. My grandmother is buried there but a lot of the cemetery stones are eroded and it may not be easy to read them. I can not help you with it as I am in the UK. However, I have compiled some extracts regarding your relative in the BNB Herald. If you wish to have a copy, please email me at fahonnliau@gmail.com

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