Photo of Blk 81 (known as the VIP Block in Queenstown).
Commonwealth Estate, fondly remembered as chap lak lao chu (sixteen storey tall flats) is the third estate developed between 1962 and 1964 under HDB. One prominent flat, Blk 81, has received numerous foreign dignitaries over the years because it offers panoramic views of the developments in Queenstown as well as Holland Road. Some of these prominent figures include Emperor Akihito of Japan and Prince Phillip.
Previously, Queenstown was a large swampy valley with a channel running through in a southeastern direction. On either side of this agricultural area were hills - feng xing and feng ling. The former was a rubber plantation and the latter, a cemetery also known as "Boh Beh Kang. The village in the area, with mainly Hokkien and Teochew-speaking dwellers was also known by this name. Pre-1942, the area was inhabited by hundreds of people in attap-roofed huts, cultivating vegetables, growing fruits and rearing pigs and chickens. (Source: Wikipedia)
The first satellite town in Singapore, Queenstown was named to commemorate Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953. It was one of the earliest housing estates, built before Toa Payoh and Ang Mo Kio. The Town Centre and the Swimming and Sports Complex are some of the facilities and amenities developed. The Town Centre was completed in 1969 with three cinemas, a shopping complex, a fresh food market, a maternity and child care centre, a bowling alley and clubs and restaurants. In the 1970s, the success of Queenstown led to the development of the nearby Buona Vista Estate and Holland Village with Queenstown held as a model. Towards the 1980s, the estate became more populated by senior citizens as the gradual migration of the younger generation to more upscale places.
This blog on "Boh Beh Kang", my personal nostalgic memories to track back the map circled in No. 1 to No. 4 and updated the photos taken recently.
No. 1: Margaret Close HDB-2 room rented flat (now demolished) which my family and I were allocated immediately after the Bukit Ho Swee fire in 1961. After a few months later, we were moved to the HDB 1-room "emergency flat" at Jalan Bukit Ho Swee.
Bukit Ho Swee fire victims moving to Margaret Close HDB 2-room transition flats with the help of military trucks. Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS).
No. 2: The Queensway Secondary School opposite Margaret Close. The school was under construction in 1961.
No. 3: The Venus Theatre and Golden City Theatre. The Town Centre which was the Tah Chung Emporium and shopping complex within the Golden Crown Restaurant in their heyday and popularity. Blk 38 cooked food centre in the vicinity of the Commonweath Avenue Cooked Food Centre.
No. 4: The photos of the NTUC Fairprice supermarket, the entertainment complex of Queenstown and Queensway Theatre, and the Queenstown Bowl.
Whatever little that I knew of Margaret Close and the vicinity within Queenstown Town Centre mentioned in the blog, I must admit that my limited knowledge and parochial personal experience of Queenstown are confined a short period of time while I was staying there. Please discover more from veteran residents of Queenstown at "Queenstown Trail" and "MyQueenstown Team" which covered a wider area of Queenstown with comprehensive, interesting and informative topics, then and now. Courtesy to their photo credits and contributions.
This trail documents the history and development of the estate since 1960s and will take you through more than fifty years of Queenstown's history through the personal stories of older residents and the buildings and places that still stand today.
THEN & NOW: U-Char Kuay [女皇鎮生活公市]
Price list displayed above the shop, now inflated since my last visit. But the tasty and crispy stuff are freshly fried...delicious. The stall owners are friendly. In the past, the whole family affair business, especially in the evening.
PENDING: Queenstown Bowl for future development.
For forthcoming housing planning and urban renewal of the younger generations of Queenstown heartlanders to look forward to a transformation, vibrant and town centre in a few years soon. Obviously, Queenstown is not a wasteland. Its the "Akan Datang" for the future heartlanders, a "River Without An End".
Update on 7 May, 2010:
Please check out the URA Concept Plan 2011 for public information.
Related Posts:
The "Good Morning Yesterday" blog pioneer of Lam Chun See at: "Places I Remember (5) - Farrer Road" and "Gather Moments While You May" reminiscing Queenstown.
Original blog at:
http://www.blogtoexpress.blogspot.com/2010/05/boh-beh-kang.html
