Shek Tong Tsui or Belcher Point is an area in
Sai Wan
Sai Wan, also known as Western district, or simply Western, is an area in Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong that corresponds to Sai Ying Pun, Shek Tong Tsui, Belcher Bay and Kennedy Town. It formed part of the City of Victoria. West Point, a f ...
on
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of Hong Kong. Known colloquially and on road signs simply as Hong Kong, the island has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km2, . The island had a population of a ...
in Hong Kong. Administratively, it belongs to the
Central and Western District
The Central and Western District () located on northwestern part of Hong Kong Island is one of the 18 administrative districts of Hong Kong. It had a population of 243,266 in 2016. The district has the most educated residents with the secon ...
.
This area is bounded north by the
Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbor, harbour in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on South China Sea were instrume ...
, south by
Pok Fu Lam Road
Pok Fu Lam Road, or Pokfulam Road, is a four-lane road in Hong Kong. Built on Hong Kong Island, the road runs between Sai Ying Pun and Wah Fu, through Pok Fu Lam.
Description
It runs south from Sai Ying Pun, passing The University of Hong K ...
and
Third Street, and west by the intersection of
Queen's Road West and
Belcher's Street. To the east lies
Sai Ying Pun
Sai Ying Pun is an area in Western District, on Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. It is administratively part of the Central and Western District.
Etymology
In Cantonese, ''Sai'' () means "west" and ''Ying Pun'' () means "camp", especially a ...
and to the west is
Kennedy Town
Kennedy Town is at the western end of Sai Wan on Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It was named after Arthur Edward Kennedy, the 7th Governor of Hong Kong from 1872 to 1877. Administratively, it is part of Central and Western District.
Due to i ...
. To the south are the slopes of
Victoria Peak
Victoria Peak is a hill on the western half of Hong Kong Island. It is also known as Mount Austin, and locally as The Peak only generally. With an elevation of , it is the highest hill on Hong Kong Island, ranked 29 in terms of elevation in Ho ...
and
High West. While the boundaries are not de jure drawn, they are nevertheless de facto defined by Collinson Street to the west and Whitty Street to the east.
History
The name Shek Tong Tsui derives from an old stone pond nearby, or "Shek Tong" () in
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding a ...
. It was located around modern-day Hill Road and
The Belcher's
The Belcher's () is a private residential estate in Shek Tong Tsui, Hong Kong Island. It consists of six residential buildings constructed in two phases; three buildings were constructed in each phase. Construction for the first phase was comple ...
, and was used by the
Hakka people
The Hakka (), sometimes also referred to as Hakka Han, or Hakka Chinese, or Hakkas are a Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhej ...
since the 17th century.
The area was first settled in 1880 by granite miners. In the early 1900s,
Hong Kong Island's brothels were moved from
Possession Point
Possession Point () is a former point of land on the northwestern coast of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong, before land reclamation moved the location further inland.
History
The area is where Commodore Gordon Bremer, commander-in-chief of ...
in
Sheung Wan
Sheung Wan is an area in Hong Kong, located in the north-west of Hong Kong Island, between Central and Sai Ying Pun. Administratively, it is part of the Central and Western District. The name can be variously interpreted as ''Upper Dis ...
to this area under orders from the
Hong Kong Governor Matthew Nathan
Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Matthew Nathan (3 January 1862 – 18 April 1939) was a British soldier and colonial administrator, who variously served as the Governor of Sierra Leone, Gold Coast (British colony), Gold Coast, Hong Kong, Natal and Quee ...
. The place thus flourished as a
red light district
A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are partic ...
and came to its golden period. During this period, affluent Chinese in Hong Kong came to Shek Tong Tsui for entertainment, and numerous
Cantonese opera
Cantonese opera is one of the major categories in Chinese opera, originating in southern China's Guangdong Province. It is popular in Guangdong, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Macau and among Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. Like all versions of Ch ...
theatres and
Cantonese restaurants were founded in the area. It was known locally in the Cantonese phrase "tong sai fung yuet" (), which literally means "good times west of the pond". Brothels in this area inspired numerous novels and
Hong Kong film
The cinema of Hong Kong ( zh, t=香港電影) is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China and the cinema of Taiwan. As a former British colony, Hong Kong had a greater degree of pol ...
s, most notably ''
Rouge ''(1987), starring
Anita Mui
Anita Mui Yim-fong (; 10 October 1963 – 30 December 2003) was a Hong Kong singer and actress who made major contributions to the Cantopop music scene and received numerous awards and honours. She remained an idol throughout her career, and i ...
and
Leslie Cheung
Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing (12 September 1956 – 1 April 2003) was a Hong Kong singer and actor. Throughout a 26-year career from 1977 until his death, Cheung released over 40 music albums and acted in 56 films. He was one of the most prominent ...
.
This golden period lasted until the banning of prostitution by the
Hong Kong Government
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the executive authorities of Hong Kong SAR. It was formed on 1 July 1997 in accordance with the Sino- ...
in 1935. However, during the
Japanese occupation of Hong Kong
The Imperial Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Mark Young, surrendered the British Crown colony of Hong Kong to the Empire of Japan on 25 December 1941. The surrender occurred after 18 days of fierce ...
, the Japanese military government relocated all Chinese brothels to the area, which they renamed Kuramae (). Again the area boomed, with about 500 brothels, which served only Japanese.
After the Japanese defeat, the area reverted to its Chinese name, like the rest of Hong Kong. The prostitution ban returned, and all traces of Shek Tong Tsui's amorous history were subsumed by the ensuing decades of urbanisation.
Constituency
A constituency in the Central and Western District is called
Shek Tong Tsui, extending as far as
Water Street and into Sai Ying Pun. With a population of 17,170 (2011), the constituency returns one representative to the district council.
Chan Choi-hi
Dominic Chan Choi-hi (born 15 January 1956 in Hong Kong) was the member of the Central and Western District Council since 1988 until he lost his seat in 2019. He represented Shek Tong Tsui. He was the also member of the Provisional Legislative ...
was elected in 1999, and 2003. The major housing developments in the ward are: Chong Yip Centre, Dragonfair Garden, Elegant Garden, Kong Chian Tower, Kwan Yick Building Phase I, and Wah Ming Centre.
The
Belcher constituency also covers part of Shek Tong Tsui, south of Queen's Road West. Yeung Sui Yin was elected in 2003. Wong Chit Man was elected in 1999. The
Water Street constituency also lies within Shek Tong Tsui.
Transport
The tram terminus near
Whitty Street
Whitty Street is a street in Shek Tong Tsui, Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. Named after R.C. Whitty, the first manager of Hong Kong and China Gas Company, p. 248 the street is well known as one of seven terminals of the Hong Kong Tramways. The ...
is one of the termini of
Hong Kong Tramways
Hong Kong Tramways (HKT) is a narrow-gauge tram system in Hong Kong. Owned and operated by RATP Dev Transdev Asia, the tramway runs on Hong Kong Island between Kennedy Town and Shau Kei Wan, with a branch circulating through Happy Valley.
...
. Bus and minibus services are also available along the main streets.
HKU station
HKU () is a station on the Hong Kong MTR located in the Shek Tong Tsui neighbourhood of Western, Hong Kong. It is named after the University of Hong Kong, which is served by the station.
Part of the West Island line, a westward extension to ...
of the
West Island line, an extension of the existing MTR
Island line Island Line or Island line may refer to:
* Island line (MTR), one of the lines of the MTR metro system in Hong Kong
* Island Line, Isle of Wight, a railway line on the Isle of Wight, England
** Island Line (brand)
Island Line is a brand of the ...
, serves this area.
The major roads in Shek Tong Tsui are the western ends of
Des Voeux Road West and
Queen's Road West,
Hill Road and part of
Pok Fu Lam Road
Pok Fu Lam Road, or Pokfulam Road, is a four-lane road in Hong Kong. Built on Hong Kong Island, the road runs between Sai Ying Pun and Wah Fu, through Pok Fu Lam.
Description
It runs south from Sai Ying Pun, passing The University of Hong K ...
.
Connaught Road West
Connaught Road is a major thoroughfare on the north shore of Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It links Shing Sai Road in Kennedy Town to the west and Harcourt Road in Admiralty to the east.
Location
The road consists of two adjoining sections, ...
is the major access road. Hill Road is a "double decker" road taking traffic downhill from Pok Fu Lam Road to Connaught Road.
There are also a number of smaller terrace roads, including Yat Fu Lane, Woo Hop Street, Clarence Terrace, Po Tuck Street and South Lane.
Education
Shek Tong Tsui is in Primary One Admission (POA) School Net 11. Within the school net are multiple aided schools (operated independently but funded with government money) and the following government schools:
Bonham Road Government Primary School
Bonham Road Government Primary School () is a primary school in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong. Its school building is a declared monument of Hong Kong.
Rachel Yeo of the ''South China Morning Post'' wrote that "The building is considered to be a rare s ...
and (李陞小學).
References
{{Central and Western District
Central and Western District, Hong Kong
Populated places in Hong Kong
Sai Wan