Sam Phran ( th, สามพราน, ) is the southernmost district (''

amphoe An amphoe (sometimes also ''amphur'', th, อำเภอ, )—usually translated as "district"—is the second level administrative subdivision of Thailand. Groups of ''amphoe'' or districts make up the provinces, and are analogous to count ...

'') of Nakhon Pathom province,

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

History

The district was established in 1896, then named Talat Mai District. It was renamed Sam Phran in 1917. The name ''Sam Phran'', meaning 'three hunters', refers to the three hunters according to local folklore about the construction of

Phra Pathom Chedi Phra Pathommachedi or Phra Pathom Chedi ( th, พระปฐมเจดีย์) is a Buddhist stupa in Thailand. The stupa is located in the Wat Phra Pathommachedi Ratcha Wora Maha Wihan ( th, วัดพระปฐมเจดีย์ร ...

. The district was the site of the Kader Toy Factory fire in 1993, the worst industrial factory fire in history. The factory was owned by the

Charoen Pokphand The Charoen Pokphand Group Company, Ltd. (CP) (; ) is a Thai conglomerate based in Bangkok. It is Thailand's largest private company and the largest privately held Royal Warrant holder of the Thai Royal Family. The company describes itself as havi ...

(CP) Group, a Thai

transnational corporation A transnational corporation is an enterprise that is involved with the international production of goods or services, foreign investments, or income and asset management in more than one country. It sets up factories in developing countries as land ...

and one of Asia's largest

agribusiness Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy, in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise. The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit w ...

firms.

Geography

The district is elongated in an east-west direction and neighbouring districts are (from the north clockwise) Mueang Nakhon Pathom, Nakhon Chai Si, and Phutthamonthon of Nakhon Pathom Province,

Thawi Watthana district Thawi Watthana ( th, ทวีวัฒนา, ) is one of the 50 districts (''khet'') of Bangkok, Thailand. Its neighbor, clockwise from north, are Bang Kruai district of Nonthaburi province, Taling Chan, Bang Khae, and Nong Khaem Districts of ...

and Nong Khaem of

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

, Krathum Baen and Ban Phaeo of Samut Sakhon province, and Bang Phae of Ratchaburi province. The main water resource of the district is the large

Tha Chin The Tha Chin river ( th, แม่น้ำท่าจีน, , ) is a distributary of the Chao Phraya river, Thailand. It splits near the province of Chai Nat and then flows west from the Chao Phraya through the central plains, until it empt ...

River or Nakhon Chai Si River which meanders through the district in a southeasterly direction. Sam Phran district has evolved as a ribbon development of ''

tambon ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district ('' amphoe'') and province ('' changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 '' khwaen ...

s'' (sub-districts) along

Phetkasem Road Phet Kasem Road (, , )ราชบัณฑิตยสถาน. ''อ่านอย่างไร และ เขียนอย่างไร ฉบับราชบัณฑิตยสถาน.'' พิมพ์ครั้งที่ ...

, a major thoroughfare linking

with the cities of ''Nakhon Pathom'' and

Kanchanaburi Kanchanaburi ( th, กาญจนบุรี, ) is a town municipality (''thesaban mueang'') in the west of Thailand and part of Kanchanaburi Province. In 2006 it had a population of 31,327. That number was reduced to 25,651 in 2017. The town ...

Economy

The district is the site of two Wai Wai noodle factories, one each in ''Om Yai'' and ''Rai Khing''. The Tha Kham Sub-district (usually written ''Takham''), is the centre of the Roman Catholic Christian religion in Thailand.

Michael Michai Kitbunchu Michael Michai Kitbunchu ( th, ไมเกิ้ล มีชัย กิจบุญชู, ; born 25 January 1929) is a Thai prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Bangkok from 1973 to 2009 and was elevated to the ca ...

, Cardinal of Thailand, was born in Sam Phran and many Catholic religious institutes have their convents, monasteries, and headquarters in the area as well as Thailand's major seminary. The largest and most important installation in the Catholic enclave of Tha Kham is the campus shared by Joseph Upatham School, one of the largest combined kindergarten, primary, and secondary schools in the country. It is one of the 43 schools and colleges governed by the Education Department of Bangkok Archdiocese (EDBA). The Ban Phu Waan Pastoral Training Centre, a leading Catholic conference and convention centre is also here. There are several other large private schools in Tak Kham including St. Peter's school (mixed gender, grades K–9) also governed by the EDBA in the parish of St. Peter, and Marie Upatham, an independent Catholic school for girls in the Tha Kham village of Mor Sii. Sam Phran is the site of the National Police Academy and numerous other colleges including St. Joseph Intertechnology College, a Catholic vocational school and teacher training centre also governed by the EDBA.

Administration

The district is divided into 16 sub-districts (''

s''), which are further subdivided into 137 villages ('' mubans''). Sam Phran is a town (''

thesaban mueang Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system. The mu ...

'') and Om Yai a sub-district municipality (''

thesaban tambon Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system. The mu ...

''). There are a further 15 tambon administrative organizations (TAO).

Places of interest

* Wat Rai Khing (วัดไร่ขิง), temple on the Nakhon Chai Si River (Tha Chin River) *Rose Garden Riverside (สวนสามพราน),

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

* Samphran Elephant Ground & Zoo (ลานแสดงช้างและฟาร์มจระเข้สามพราน),

crocodile farm A crocodile farm or alligator farm is an establishment for breeding and raising of crocodilians in order to produce crocodile and alligator meat, leather from crocodile and alligator skin, and other goods. Many species of both alligators an ...

and zoo, a branch of

Samutprakarn Crocodile Farm and Zoo The Samutprakarn Crocodile Farm and Zoo ( th, ฟาร์ม จระเข้ สมุทรปราการ ) is a crocodile zoo in Samut Prakan Province, Thailand. The park claims to hold the world's largest crocodile in captivity, na ...

*Samphran Peacock Park (สวนนกยูงสามพราน),

peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

park and zoo * Royal Police Cadet Academy (โรงเรียนนายร้อยตำรวจ),

Royal Thai Police The Royal Thai Police (RTP) ( th, สำนักงานตำรวจแห่งชาติ; ) is the national police force of Thailand. The RTP employs between 210,700 and 230,000 officers, roughly 17 percent of all civil servants (excludi ...

(RTP) academy * Don Wai Floating Market (ตลาดน้ำดอนหวาย),

floating market A floating market is a market where goods are sold from boats. Originating in times and places where water transport played an important role in daily life, most floating markets operating today mainly serve as tourist attractions, and are chie ...

Notable people

* Chanathip "Messi-J" Songkrasin, Thai professional footballer *

, Cardinal of Thailand *

Pallop Pinmanee Pallop Pinmanee ( th, พัลลภ ปิ่นมณี,, born 25 May 1936) is a retired Thai Army general who took part in several coups, ordered the massacre of insurgents at Krue Sae Mosque and allegedly played a role in the attempted c ...

, a retired Thai Army general

References

External links

amphoe.com
(Thai) Website of district
(Thai)--> {{Authority control Sam Phran