From a collection of photos taken in 1895 and 1896 by André Salles, here are
some selected images of colonial Saigon. These seldom seen pictures from 9x12
cm glass negatives were only recently digitized by the
Bibliothèque nationale de France. Subjects include the market, botanical garden, transportation, river scenes
and government buildings. Captions (in French) are from the descriptions
written on the backs of the printed photos.
The first group of pictures are of the the old Saigon market (Cho Cu), then
located between today's Ham Nghi Street and Nguyen Hue boulevard. This real
estate is now occupied by the curious looking BITEXCO tower
building.
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| Au Marché |
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| Au Marché |
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| Au Marché |
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| Au Marché |
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| Au Marché |
Horse drawn vehicles and rickshaws appear in these Saigon street scenes. There
is a nearly deserted Boulevard Norodom and a lonely station stop on the
Saigon-My Tho railway. An outdoor roadside restaurant looks much the ones seen
today except for the coaches for hire parked outside.
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Saigon restaurant en plein air
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Some photos of government buildings. The post office, the Ministry of
Justice, Governor's Residence and Hotel de l'Inspection. Also photos of
the botantical garden and the cathedral.
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La Poste
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Palais de Justice
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Palais du gouverneur général des colonies
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En place pour le tour de l'inspection
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L'inspection
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L'inspection
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Jardin de l'inspection, vue de l'intérieur
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La Cathédrale
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Au jardin botanique
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The Saigon River is seen in several of the photos. There is an old sailing
vessel converted into what looks like floating military housing, or perhaps a
prison. The arroyo chinoise is seen with sampans and
Messageries Maritimes steamer unloads its cargo.
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Le ponton "Loire"
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L'arroyo chinoise
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La rivière devant la ville
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Le quai pour les sampans
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| Quais de Saigon |
