HANOI TRAMWAYS IN 1901
This article combines a tram ride from the centre of Hanoi to the Tramways Factory (Usine des Tramways) illustrated by old postcards, a visit to the factory itself and a brief history of the Hanoi tramways.
The visit to the factory took place in late 1901, around the time that the first two tramway lines opened.
The Tram Ride:
Our journey by tram to visit the Tramways Factory starts at the Square du Petit Lac, which is at the junction of Boulevard Francis Garnier (named after famed explorer of the Mekong River and military commander who was killed defending Hanoi against the Chinese in 1873) and Rue Paul Bert (named after the Resident General of Annam & Tonkin in the 1880s). The Square du Petit Lac is just a short walk from the splendid Metropole Hotel which only opened its doors in August 1901.
The scenes around the Square du Petit Lac are shown right: A, B, C and D. The index map shows from where each photograph was taken and the arrow indicates the direction in which the camera was pointed.
Boarding the Line 1 tram, we head north along Boulevard Francis Garnier with the Petit Lac to our left. Towards the top of the lake, we pass the
