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| Image credit: Wikipedia |
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| Raffles' landing site at Singapore River. Image credit: Wikipedia |
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| Jackson Plan 1822. Image credit: Wikipedia |
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| An Orang Laut village in Indonesia in the 1990s. What Raffles saw might look something like this. Image credit: Wikipedia |
Raffles ordered the swamps filled with earth from a small hill at today's Raffles Square to make embankments on both north and south banks.
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| Commercial Square 1900s. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
Commercial Square (today's Raffles Square) was built on the flattened hill, and Boat Quay built on the reclaimed land over the swamp. Launched in 1822, this would be Singapore's first land reclamation project.
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| Screengrab from Google Map |
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| Boat Quay 1860. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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The carp is still an auspicious symbol to Chinese today.
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| South Boat Quay 1840s. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Boat Quay 1910. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
Who here is lucky enough to have smelled the old Singapore River? 🙋 I have 😂
By 1977, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew decided that enough was enough. He had a vision of Singapore River as a world class entertainment hub.
Mr. Lee challenged the Ministry of Environment, "In 10 years let us have fishing in the Singapore River... ."
And so, the S$170 million Singapore River clean-up was launched. Looking at the Singapore River today, it was a S$170 million very well spent.
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| Boat Quay just before the end of one of its past lives. Image Credit: National Archives of Singapore |
They were displaced by container ships discharging goods by giant cranes assisted by computer technology. By 1983, Boat Quay's berths closed and bumboats were cleared from Singapore River.
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
By 1984, people could swim in the Singapore River again.
Cleansed, the next stage in the life of Singapore River was about to begin.
The last days of the old Boat Quay in 1983 before the demolition machines come. The once log jammed bumboat berths were empty, the shophouses mostly vacant and dilapidated, the old sauntered around with faraway looks in their eyes, the young wide eyed but oblivious to the changes awaiting them.
The demolition machines came in in 1983. Fortunately, many of the heritage buildings were gazetted by the Urban Renewal Authority in 1989 for conservation.
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| Boat Quay 1990s. Image credit: Wikipedia |
The bumboats are gone for good, but one thing about Boat Quay never changed. From the beginning till now, Boat Quay is still one of Singapore's dining hotspots.
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Image Credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Boat Quay Food Centre. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
Truth be told, I've been here only a couple of times as I don't live or work near here.
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| Boat Quay Food Centre. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
You've heard people say how they miss the old hawker centres. Here's two I missed a lot - Boat Quay Food Centre and across the Singapore River, Empress Place Food Centre.
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
In 1983, the hawkers from both food centres were temporarily moved to Empress Place Transit Food Centre. Many people were sad when both hawker centres were eventually demolished in the 1993.
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| Boat Quay 1990s. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
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| Empress Place Beef Noodles |
Empress Place Teochew Beef Noodles was opened by the granddaughter of Tan Chee Kok, the man who brought Teochew beef noodles to Singapore in the 1920s, and the founder of Hock Lam Beef Noodles.
Empress Place Teochew Beef Noodles is no more - it was last operating at Maxwell Road Food Centre by Tan Chee Kok's great granddaughter Melissa but closed in Apr 2020 (no thanks to COVID-19 pandemic social distancing measures) .
But, Hock Lam Beef Noodles lives on at Old Airport Road Food Centre by Lee Chee Kok's grandson Francis and by his great grandson Edwin at North Canal Road. Yes, that's just the second street behind Boat Quay.
More on the history of Hock Lam Beef Noodles👈 click
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| My Little Spanish Place |
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| Menya Sakura |
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| My Little Spanish Place |
That signature smell of Singapore River was also gone.
The reincarnated swanky Boat Quay is now where people look for enjoyment, put on happiness but I wonder who can say they belong here.
Boat Quay became a tourist trap with the usual tourist trap issues. In a way, things have not changed at Boat Quay. It was the chance to be rich that brought traders jostling for a piece of the Belly of the Carp. I will be surprised if doing business at Boat Quay wasn't even more cut throat back in its bumboat, tongkang days.
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| Image credit: National Archives of Singapore |
Stay tuned.
Date: 22 Jun 2020