By 1895, Saigon had been occupied by the French for 36 years. When looking at photos from this period, it’s clear that the French placed great value on urbanizing the sleepy fishing outpost, formerly known as Gia Dinh.
Within a few decades, the colonial authorities had laid out the city’s streets, built the Notre Dame Cathedral, the Central Post Office and other iconic buildings, some of which still remain.
Check out this map of 1881 Saigon to see just how quickly the city filled out.
No matter how impressive, it's important to remember that this rapid development was accomplished with the sweat of Vietnamese labor, for the benefit of the French.
[Photos via manhhai]
