Arrival: February 13th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on February 13th, 1928. The ship reached Victoria 11 hours behind schedule, having been delayed by a terrific storm that struck 2 days out of Yokohama. One large wave hit the bridge, breaking windows and allowing water to enter. While the ship was pitching and rolling during the storm, a floating object was struck, damaging a propeller.
On this voyage the ship carried less than 200 passengers.
The ship brought 3,500 tons of cargo including 3,500 bales of raw silk valued at $5,000,000.00
At Victoria 81 tons of cargo and 502 bags of mail were unloaded. Most of the mail was destined for the United States.
The British Columbia Provincial Police were requested by American Authorities to take an American passenger into custody. Upon arrival in Vancouver immigration officials apprehended the individual.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on February 13th, 1928.
| D. Cochrane | Engineer of the rising Sun Petroleum Company en route to England. |
| H. S. Janes | Far Eastern representative of the Automatic Electric Company, Chicago travelling to the United States. |
| K. Tsunoda | Prominent oil exporter en route to New York. |
| Mrs. A. Cartwright | |
| R. S. Fox | Of Grays Harbour |
| R. W. Money | Standard Oil Company. |
| R. E. Stewardson | Shanghai architect. |
| H. E. Goldsmith | Assistant Director of Public Works, Hong Kong. |
| K. S. Robertson | Of Hong Kong Public Works Department. |
| F. C. Fogg | Managing Director of Tait & Co., tea merchants. |
| A. Rollnick | Of France, motion picture director. |
| J. T. Ruckner | Of Los Angeles, associated with Paramount Films. |
| Major A. E. Thompson | Of Straits Settlement, merchant. |
Departure: February 25th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by L. D. Douglas, began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on February 25th, 1928. The ship carried nearly 350 passengers and 3,000 tons of cargo for various ports in the Far East. The cargo included automobiles, tires, ammonia, apples, lead, cigarettes, canned milk and dried seaweed.
Notable passengers embarking aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA on February 25th, 1928 at Vancouver and Victoria.
| Mr. and Mrs. W. M. Archibald | Former is mine manger at the Consolidated Mining Company at Rossland, Canada, en route to the far East. |
| Mrs. Frederick L. Chapin | Of Washington D. C. en route to Peking |
| R. J. Marriott | Manager of the Western Canada Flour Mills at Calgary, Canada, en route to Hong Kong. |
| A. S. Ramsey | Of James Ramsey Limited, Edmonton, Canada, en route to Kobe. |
| Harvey Sangster | Overseas manager of the Ariel Works Limited of Birmingham England en route to Japan |
| W. F. K. Telfer | Member of Butterfield & Swire, shipping agents, en route to Hong Kong |
| W. B. Woods | Of Toronto, Gordon, Mackay & Company, en route to Japan. |
| J. D. Woods | Of Toronto, Gordon, Mackay & Company, en route to Japan. |
| V. L. Bourigin | |
| Mrs. J. F. Downing | |
| Jessie Downing | |
| Charles Goldrei | |
| Lionel Maltby | |
| Mr. and Mrs. Nordegg | |
| John W. Plattner | |
| Mr. and Mrs. J. Sagan | |
| Dr. Miyake | |
| Reverend Martin Boniface | |
| Dr. M. P. Young |
Arrival: April 15th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on April 15th, 1928. A smooth passage from Yokohama was described. A passenger list of 550 was reported. At Victoria 183 tons of cargo were discharged and at Vancouver 4,129 tons. A total of 1,340 bags of mail were discharged at Victoria, 38 bags for Victoria delivery, 21 bags for delivery to the United States by airplane, and the remainder ordinary mail for the United States.
A passenger on this voyage, Toichiro Araki, of Japan was engaged in race around the world by using only conventionally established services. The Tokyo newspaper Jiri Shimpo organized the race. Toichiro Araki was racing around the world by proceeding east. His rival Ryunichi Matsui, another journalist, proceeded west across Siberia. A first place prize of 3,000 yen was available to the winner.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on April 15th, 1928.
| Mr. and Mrs. W. N. Archibald | Of Rossland, B. C., the former being of the Consolidated Mining & Smelting Company, en route from tour of the Orient. |
| Mr. and Mrs. R. C. Colt | Former being noted manufacturer of firearms returning from a holiday to the Orient. |
| G. H. Wright | Shanghai solicitor en route to England. |
| E. S. C. Watson | Of Shanghai en route to Victoria. |
| H. W. Lester | Of shipping firm Dodwell & Company returning from the Far East |
| J. P. Warren | Of shipping firm Dodwell & Company returning from the Far East |
| Justice E. Finley Johnson | Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippine Islands en route to Palo Alto, United Stares. |
| Major and Mrs. W. H. Anderson | Of manila. |
| Mr. and Mrs. A. C. Aubry | Former being Willys-Knight representative in the Orient. |
| Mr. and Mrs. Harold Bell | Of Sydney Australia, the former being Director of Winch Combe & Co. en route to England. |
| E. L. Hosie | Secretary of the Hong Kong and Whampoo Dock Co. |
| Mr. and Mrs. M. M. Murray | The former being Engineering Superintendent of the China navigation Company. |
| H. A. Smith | Vice-President of the American Express Company. |
| F. G. Small | Associated with American Express Company. |
| W. C. Lancaster | Accountant for the Shanghai-Nanking Railway. |
| Toichiro Araki | Japanese journalist engaged in an around the world race. |
| W. A. Donaldson | Of the Hong Kong Daily Press |
| Mrs. J. D. Thompson | Of Hong Kong |
| T. Bannister | Shanghai merchant. |
| Dr. J. Cash | Of the Rockefeller Foundation at Peking. |
| B. M. Fleming | |
| A. S. Ramsay | Edmonton merchant returning from a buying trip to the Orient. |
Departure: April 27th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on April 27th, 1928. The ship carried 300 passengers and a capacity cargo for various ports in the Far East.
The EMPRESS OF ASIA’s departure from Vancouver was delayed 21 hours to allow connection with the train carrying passengers and mail from the Canadian Pacific Steamship liner MONTCLARE on the Atlantic coast.
April 27th, 1928 was a busy day in Victoria harbour with visits from the EMPRESS OF ASIA, the Pacific Steamship Company’s EMMA ALEXANDER, the Royal Mail Steam packet liner RADNORSHIRE, the cableship RESTORER, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha liner ARIZONA MARU, and the Canadian-Australasian Royal Mail liner AORANGI.
No passenger information is available for this crossing.
Arrival: June 15th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on June 15th, 1928. The ship reached Victoria several hours ahead of schedule, after averaging a speed of 19.5 knots on the crossing. A large list of passengers was reported with 785 aboard; 150 in First Class, 80 in Second Class, 28 in Third Class, and 527 in Steerage. The EMPRESS OF ASIA would leave for the Orient in only five days to permit adjustments to meet the requirements of the Canadian Pacific Steamship summer schedule.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on June 15th, 1928.
| Major Hilton Johnson | Commissioner-General of the Shanghai Municipal Council. |
| Baron Albert Saboine | Commissioner of Customs at Kongmoon. |
| E. D. Sassoon | Shanghai financier. |
| S. M. Joseph | Shanghai financier. |
| Mrs. Hummel | Associated with the Consolidated Mining & Smelting Company of Canada. |
| Mrs. H. L. Mullins | Of Kobe. |
| H. W. Page | Hong Kong businessman. |
| R. D. Craig | Advisor to the Ministry of Agriculture, Bangkok. |
| E. Davidson | Of Hong Kong. |
| H. R. Stuard | Of Hong Kong. |
| L. W. Allibester | Of Hong Kong. |
Departure: June 21st 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on June 21st, 1928.
To meet the demands of the Summer Schedule the ship made a fast turnaround, having arrived only on June 16th.
The ship carried approximately 400 passengers with 73 First Class, 69 Second Class, 18 Third Class and 220 Steerage passengers. Twenty-five passengers boarded at Victoria. A heavy cargo of 4,000 tons was carried and destined for various ports in the Far East. The cargo included heavy shipments of canned goods and refrigerated fruit.
Notable passengers embarking aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA on June 21st, 1928 at Vancouver and Victoria.
| Emilio Aguinaldo | |
| Major T. C. Bowie | |
| Monsignor J. J. Clifford | |
| Walter L. Fasnacht | |
| George Gassoun | |
| P. K Konigsberg | |
| Justice and Mrs. E. Finlay Johnson | Travelling to Manila from the United States. The former a member of the Supreme Court Bench in the Philippines. |
| Dr. A. A. McFadyen | |
| Arthur H. Mescher | |
| Rev. Dr. O’Connell | |
| Robert T. Paine | |
| Captain J. P. Shelley | |
| Lady Whyte | |
| N. C. Schippers | |
| K. P. Au | |
| Frances Russell | |
| L. D. Plummer | |
| Dr. P. G. Iske | |
| Isobel Ingram | |
| H. C. Hawkins | |
| E. Louise Crow | |
| Bertha Cornish | |
| C. Chapman | |
| D. H. Belliss | |
| H. Ott | |
| Mrs. T. B. Culver | |
| Miss Harris | Associated with the British American Tobacco company. |
| Mrs., Peter Honigsborogh | Of Shanghai. |
| Mrs. Cole | Associated with the American Trading Company in Tokyo. |
| J, K, Bousfield | Of Hong Kong. |
| E. C. Moss | Travelling from St. Margaret’s School on Vancouver Island to Kobe. |
| H. I. Moss | Travelling from St. Margaret’s School on Vancouver Island to Kobe. |
Arrival: August 4th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA commanded by A. J. Hailey concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on August 4th, 1928. A smooth passage from Yokohama was described with an average crossing speed of over 19 knots. A passenger list of 500 was reported with 56 Saloon, 46 Second Class, 36 Third Class and 320 Steerage. Cargo included a heavy silk consignment of 4,138 bales of raw silk and 231 cases of silk goods. Other cargo included tea, rice, pineapple, rubber, rattan furniture, curios and coffee. A large mail consignment was carried, comprising nearly 2, 000 bags. A total of 760 bags of mail were discharged at Victoria, 37 bags for the local delivery, 20 bags for delivery to the United States by airplane, and the remainder, ordinary mail for the United States.
The ship carried three rare birds from Japan that were being transported for display at the Toronto Exhibition.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on August 4th, 1928.
| C. A. Goetz | Nanking businesswoman. |
| Prince and Princess Rangammanor | Of India, on a tour of Canada and England. |
| Lee Ketchin | Automobile Club of Washington official. |
| Arthur Rollin | Manager of the Hong Kong branch of the Bank of France. |
| B. Kemura | Manager of the Katakura, Seishi Kaisha Silk Company of New York. |
| John Ledge | Of Boston, wool merchant. |
| H. W. Kendall | Of Boston, wool merchant |
| Dr. Lloyd Nash Robinson | Of the engineering firm, Stone & Webster, Boston. |
| Captain the Honourable W. F. Somerset | Returning to London from Shanghai. |
| Charles C. Rose | Of the Saginaw Lumber Company of Aberdeen, Washington. |
| P. A. Cox | Assistant manager of the CPR Oriental Services |
| Major-General Evan Gibb | Of London, bound for Bermuda. |
| William Hughes | Of the Shanghai Disinfecting Company. |
| George swan | Assistant Government Marine Surveyor at Hong Kong. |
| G. Bodiker | German Consul-General at Tientsin |
| Mr. and Mrs. E. D. Mather | Returning to London after a trip to China. |
Departure: August 16th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on August 16th, 1928.
A full cargo of freight was reported.
The ship carried 560 passengers comprising 135 First Class, 125 Second Class, 50 Third Class and 250 Steerage.
Many passengers with missionary or business interests in the Far East were returning after summer furloughs in Britain, Canada, and the United States.
Notable passengers embarking aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA on August 16th, 1928 at Vancouver and Victoria.
| Bishop W. N. Ainsworth | En route to Yokohama. |
| Reverend J. A. Harmon | En route to Yokohama. |
| Mr. and Mrs. Samuel J. Mills | En route to China on missionary assignment. |
| Rev. Montgomery H. Troop and family | En route to China on missionary assignment. |
| Mrs. Charles Steinbeck | En route to Japan on missionary assignment. |
| Alden Steinbeck | En route to Japan on missionary assignment. |
| M. J. Higginbotham | Of vancouver, travelling to Kobe for a teaching assignment. |
| J. A. Langley | Trade commissioner in Tokyo. |
| Dr. J. E. De Becker | Prominent Kobe barrister. |
| B. Guggenheim | Of the noted financial family. |
| Mr. and Mrs. B. C. Guy | Of the Bradford Company, British Woolen manufacturers. |
| G. A. Johnson | Shanghai architect. |
| S. H. Laurence | British textile industry representative. |
| F. B. Marshall | A Madras tea planter. |
| G. S. Merrick | A Director of tobacco merchants Godfrey Phillips, London, England. |
| Mrs. Lee Dan | Wife of Lee Dan, Victoria importer. |
| Lee Chune | Of the Yung Chong Lung Company, Victoria en route to Shanghai. |
| T. W. T. Tucker | Prominent Kobe businessman. |
Arrival: September 29th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA commanded by A. J. Hailey concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on September 29th, 1928. A passenger list of 500 was reported with 90 First Class, 50 Second Class, 16 Third Class and 239 Steerage. Cargo included 700 tons of raw silk valued at $4,000,000.00. The silk would leave for the east by a special train of 16 cars. Other cargo consisted of 975 tons of overland cargo, 100 tons of perishable freight and 760 tons to be transshipped through Panama Canal to Eastern Canada, New York, Boston, and Philadelphia.
Note of Interest:
On this voyage passengers included members of the Illinois baseball team that had been touring the Orient. The team was destined for Seattle.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on September 29th, 1928.
| Reverend G. F. Mosher | Bishop of the Philippines |
| J. W. Mears | Of Manila |
| A. F. Vanhall | Prominent Dutch merchant. |
| C. O. Drake | |
| Dr. Gilbert Grosvenor | President of the National geographic Society |
| A. Nagano | Of the Fuji trading Company. |
| F. Yamaji | Mitsui Company official. |
| Y. Fukukita | Of the Oji paper Mills. |
Departure: October 11th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on October 11th, 1928. Upon reaching Victoria, the ship was forced to anchor for several hours at Royal Roads and await the departure of the AORANGI. The AORANGI, due to favourable weather arrived at Victoria from Honolulu 12 hours early. The EMPRESS OF ASIA carried 910 passengers with 165 First Class, 145 Second Class, 25 Third Class, and 575 Steerage.
Mrs. Yayoi Yoshioka founder of the only medical school for women in Japan was a passenger on this voyage accompanied by her son Hiroto.
Arrival: November 24th 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey concluded a Pacific crossing upon reaching Vancouver on November 24th, 1928. The ship carried 28 First Class passengers, 20 Second Class, 17 Third Class and 181 Steerage. Four of the First Class passengers disembarked at Victoria. Cargo discharged at Victoria included 2,400 bundles of Japanese oranges, rice, tea, Oriental foodstuffs, and curios. Cargo for Vancouver measured 4,363 tons and included 47,600 bundles of Japanese oranges, 1500 tons of raw silk and 200 cases of silk goods. The Japanese oranges were the first of this year’s crop to reach the Pacific coast.
Notable passengers aboard EMPRESS OF ASIA arriving at Vancouver on November 24th, 1928.
| Dr. L. C. Beard |
| Mrs. F. Frincke |
| Herbert Geddes |
| K. Ikeda |
| Captain C. R. Jones |
| F. W. Kress |
| H. A. MacLean |
| C. C. McIvor |
| Mrs. N. W. McIvor |
| G. A. Merrick |
| Mrs. A. Moore |
| R. A. Nicholson |
| A. Raymond |
| George Robinson |
| F. W. A. Scott |
| W. Shaland |
| G. Sziro |
| R. V. Johnson |
| Captain G. L. Gringham |
| Lieutenant C. Urwick |
| G. D. Waters |
| J. J. Welker |
| E. M. Zais |
| Mr. and Mrs. P. E. H. Walker |
| Z. Toda |
| J. W. H. Twilley |
| Captain F. Aguado |
| L. M. Beytagh |
| G. Dempsie |
| Mrs. E. B. Gulick |
| Mr. and Mrs. D. H. Scott |
Departure: December 1st 1928
The EMPRESS OF ASIA, commanded by A. J. Hailey, began a Pacific crossing upon sailing from Vancouver on December 1st, 1928. The ship carried 60 First Class passengers, 60 Second Class, 40 Third Class, and 500 Steerage.
On this voyage the ship was docked at Hong Kong for overhaul.
No passenger information is available for this crossing.