It's the year 2026. Time has certainly flown since I first began this online tribute back in 2008. I just wrote a tribute to Yvonne Barbor, and now I know why her house was adorned with beautifully crafted ducks. In recollection, I have always wondered why Yvonne Barbor (née Hubback) kept consistently busy despite being 95 years of age when I met her. She was active in her literature club and often told me that her husband, Dr. Barbor, had taken up wood carving in his later years. Being a naive, ignorant Asian of 30ish years of age at that time, I didn't fully appreciate it. Only recently, as I progress in life and inch closer to my own golden years, have I begun to understand how they kept themselves active and busy in their twilight years.
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Designed a New Logo for me featuring the Signature of A.B. Hubback |
So I decided to pick up my personal blog, thelabratz.com (yes, no hyperlink here, just a squeak out!), and stumbled across the Hubback Brothers once again. For those who might not know, my current moniker is Big Ratz changed from The Hotel Station Master, as I had to move this online archive. This is because I left, and with the eventual closure of The Heritage Station Hotel years ago, this tribute has come under my personal purview once again. It feels like coming home to an old friend.
The State of This Online Archive
I have always been a hotelier. That has been my calling. How did I ever get involved with this project? Well, you can read that here. When I first started, there was little or no information about the Hubback Brothers in general. I guess in 2008, you couldn't really expect much, as the internet and online research were still in their infancy. However, I am glad that since starting this online archive, not only have I, together with the Hubback Family, corrected the attributions to the contributions made, but actually more and more people became aware of the importance of preserving our history, in all senses of the word. From photos to heritage walkabouts, and as I am writing this update, even the appropriate Government and Government-Linked Companies are now beginning to take action in preserving our past. Kudos to all – let's keep going.
A New Chapter
Since it has been so many years, I discovered that most of this blog's hyperlinks and the theme were either outdated or no longer existent. A quick search online for sites that I normally get information from showed them to be active only until around the year 2014. This is especially true about genealogy sites, which I normally frequented to check family trees. Even academic sites are now stuck behind paywalls or require you to sign in and prove that you are an academic. Though I understand the need to guard property rights, I am not an academician. So how? Gosh, how the internet has evolved.
As you may know, my work on this website and online tribute has always been voluntary and at my own cost. But hey, I decided it is time for a revamp. So I whipped out the credit card, bought a new theme and worked on a new logo for the site. After all, I have been maintaining this custom domain (thehubbacks.org) until today. So let's get an updated theme that is more suited to the times.
Over the next couple of months, I am going to update, rewrite and republish most of the articles. It is going to take a hit on my SEO ranking (not that search engines rank my site highly anyway), but if this site can last for another 10 years or more, I think that is an accomplishment enough. There is more information out there now, so I might as well put what I can find into this online archive. I know I made a promise to the Hubback Family a long time ago – but I guess I might as well continue. It's become a labour of passion, even more so than my own personal website!
"What if I told you that ever since launching this online tribute, my residence and workplaces have all somehow orbited A.B. Hubback's buildings? It's like the man's legacy has a gravitational pull, I swear!"
A Shout-Out to Blogger
Yes, Blogger has loads of limitations, but it does help to keep information alive for FREE. What else do we need? I must say, with the new theme, you may not even know you are looking at Blogger! Here is a proper shout‑out to the platform – though not really a full-fledged CMS like WordPress, I have been able to keep costs low over the years. Thank you, Google, for not killing this product! 👏 Oh, and there will come a time when I fail to renew this domain, so if you must know, the original address is https://thehubbacks.blogspot.com.
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The 2nd theme 2008 – 2026 Thank you again Blogger! |
On that note, I am also planning to add the Wayback Machine integration to this online archive, in the hopes that it will be able to capture regular snapshots of this website over the coming years. Even if the domain eventually changes hands or the hosting vanishes, those archived copies will remain as a quiet testament to the work we've done here.
Today, I am still using community-driven tools to drive this blog, from my research to editing. As you may have noticed, I do not monetise the articles here. So I have to remain as prudent as possible – please don't call me Scrooge! Curiously, I asked Gemini if my site was authoritative – and well, I am pretty happy with the answer. Be my guest, if you are curious:
https://share.gemini.google/QCX533pe4hn7
What Lies Ahead
Thank you to all my readers, both old and new. I never had any expectations till today. While I am happy that A.B. Hubback got picked up by Persatuan Arkitek Malaysia (P.A.M.), there are still more stories to tell, as I unpack the 2 folders Yvonne Barbor gave me all those years ago. I still have a few more stories left in me, so I do hope you will enjoy your time on this online tribute.
Yes, I am well aware that in 2026, the "in thing" is video – YouTube, Instagram Reels, TikTok, and whatnots. Everyone seems to be chasing that algorithm dopamine hit. While I have seen some videos that do give mention to A.B. Hubback and T.R. Hubback, I honestly don't think I will ever dive into video production myself. (Then again, I could be wrong – never say never, right?) But for now, I like the quiet rhythm of words on a page.
I think of it as a generational thing. It's fascinating to see how the tools of preservation have evolved over just a few generations. Here's a little timeline I put together:
- Alderman Joseph Hubback → Quill to Parchment
- The Hubback Brothers → Fountain Pen to Paper, later to Manual Typewriter
- Yvonne Barbor → Ball Point Pen to Paper, Manual Typewriter to Electric Typewriter
- Lloyd Gan a.k.a. Big Ratz → Electric Typewriter, Keyboard to CRT Monitor, and later LCD Monitor
- The Next Generation? → I leave that to your imagination. Voice-to-code? Neural ink? Your guess is as good as mine!
"We are not makers of history. We are made by history." — Martin Luther King Jr.
Thank you for reading. I invite you to join me on this continued journey – preserving the legacy of the Hubback Brothers for generations yet to come.
This online archive is a labour of passion, kept alive through personal funding and a deep respect for our shared heritage. If you spot any errors or have stories to share, feel free to reach out.
Originally Published: 21 June 2026 | Last Updated: 27 June 2026
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