Farewell, Tess
Tess Johnston, September 17, 1931 - September 14, 2025 It is with profound sadness that we announce the death of Tess Johnston, our beloved friend, mentor, and co-founder. Tess pioneered the study of pre-1949 Shanghai, beginning at a time when the city’s historic buildings and their stories were ignored, and continuing ...
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Paul French on “City of Devils”
Ahead of our City of Devils tour this Saturday (June 21, 2pm), here's author Paul French talking about the book ~ lots on interwar underworld Shanghai, rumor and gossip, old Shanghai's soundscape, plus some bonus reading recommendations. To book the walk, click here or email info@historic-shanghai.com Historic ...
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Bookshelf: HOMESEEKING by Karissa Chen
Love, the Vicissitudes of History and the Shanghai Diaspora // Author Karissa Chen joins Historic Shanghai (via Zoom) to discuss this book on Sunday May 25, 10am. To register, click here. Not in China? Email us at info@historic-shanghai.com One of the most compelling ways of telling history is through its impact on ...
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The Classical Gardens of Shanghai
Classical Chinese gardens in the springtime are a beautiful sight, but they’re an even more profound experience when you know what you’re looking at. This Sunday (April 27, 11am) we’re visiting Guyi Garden with Shelly Bryant, author of The Classical Gardens of Shanghai. It’s a remarkable, revealing experience, as ...
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Exploring Shanghai’s Literary Heritage: Murder in the Maloo
//by Susan Blumberg-Kason// April 2025 Book Club selection. Paul Bevan, who translated the novel, will join us for the discussion on April 27. To book, click here. Paul Bevan is the one of the most prominent scholars of early 20th-century Shanghai, and it is thanks to his works like A Modern Miscellany and ...
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Half of a Lifelong Friendship
By Susan Blumberg-Kason // The world knew him as C.T. Hsia, the man who brought Chinese literature--and Eileen Chang--to the West. But to my dad, Avrom Blumberg, he was his old friend, Jonathan. In 1949, at the age of 21, my dad started graduate school at Yale. He quickly befriended another graduate student named ...
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Bookshelf: Bernardine’s Shanghai Salon: The Story of the Doyenne of Old China
When we first meet Bernardine Szold, it’s 1929, and she’s on a train heading for Dairen (Dalian) to marry her fourth husband, suffering dreadful pre-wedding jitters (or perhaps it’s simply a premonition?). Chester Fritz, that fourth husband, did turn out be a mistake, but he had one thing going for him: ...
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