From Valley to Plain - Emigration History Revealed through the Story of Ng To Yeung's House

The project focuses on the restoration of Yeung's mansion at Ng To, Kuk Po for adaptive reuse as a multi-disciplinary education research base camp, to foster the interaction among researchers, volunteers and returning villagers, and function as a gathering place to promote the cohesion of the villagers, which lays out the fundamentals of the sustainable conservation / revitalization in the future. Kuk Po village comprises Lo Wai, San Uk Ha, Yi To, Sam To, Sze To, and Ng To. The restored Yeung's Mansion is located at Ng To which is at the innermost part of Kuk Po. The development of Kuk Po village is closely related to the early emigration history in Hong Kong, and the Yeung's Mansion is a testament to the transformation in the society by then.

The emigration history of the villagers in Sha Tau Kok area can date back to the pre-1890s when some 20–25% of the population went overseas for work without involving many of the villagers from Kuk Po. It was not until the early 20th century when there was a problem of food shortage that the Kuk Po villagers had to go overseas for work. Their destinations included Nanyang (now Malaysia), Panama, Jamaica, the United States, and the United Kingdom, etc. With adequate savings, the villagers would often finance the construction of new mansions or the repair of public facilities in their villages. For the case of Yeungs' Mansion, Mr. & Mrs. Yeung went to the United Kingdom for work and it took only 2 years that they had earned enough money to rebuild their house, which expanded the house to 2-storey high, adopted the eclectic mix of Chinese and Western architectural languages, retained the traditional grey tile roof, decorative cornices, while the external wall was made of concrete with Shanghai plaster finish that combined the traditional Hakka and modern architectural styles and materials and demonstrated a unique fusion of cultures. The marking of "1967" at the frieze represents the year of its renovation. However, Kuk Po went into gradual decline as the villagers continued to move away until the early 1990s, when all villagers left. The Yeungs' Mansion also became dilapidated due to the lack of maintenance.

The restoration of Yeungs' Mansion aimed to preserve the mix of Chinese and Western architectural languages in the original building as much as possible and enhance the safety and functionality of the house. After the replacement of the damaged wooden building components, restoration of wooden staircases, improvement on the water-proofing of the roof structure, restoration of steel windows, the restored house was officially opened on February 5, 2023 during the Lantern Festival. In the premises, there is a regular exhibition on the vivid history, culture, architecture, landscape, and ecology of Kuk Po, as well as the study findings of the research team.