Boat Quay is a historical
quayA quay is a wharf or bank where ships and other vessels are loaded. A quay may be constructed parallel or perpendicular to the bank of a waterway. In the United Kingdom and Commonwealth nations, the word is commonly used, while Americans typically use "wharf." Similar words are found in many...
in
SingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island city-state located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, lying north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands. At , Singapore is a microstate and the smallest nation in Southeast...
which is situated upstream from the mouth of the
Singapore RiverThe Singapore River is a small river in Singapore with great historical importance. The Singapore River flows from the Central Area, which lies in the Central Region in the southern part of Singapore before emptying into the ocean...
on its southern bank.
It was the busiest part of the old
Port of SingaporeThe Port of Singapore refers to the collective facilities and terminals that conduct maritime trade handling functions in Singapore's harbours and which handle Singapore's shipping...
, handling three quarters of all shipping business during the 1860s. Because the south bank of the river here resembles the belly of a
carpCarp is a common name for various species of an oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. Some consider all cyprinid fishes carp, and the family Cyprinidae itself is often known as the carp family...
, which according to
Chinese beliefChinese philosophy is philosophy written in the Chinese tradition of thought. Chinese philosophy has a history of several thousand years; its origins are often traced back to the Yi Jing , an ancient compendium of divination, which uses a system of 64 hexagrams to guide action...
is where wealth and prosperity lay, many shophouses were built, crowded into the area.
Though serving aquatic trade is no longer Boat Quay's primary role, the
shophouseA shophouse is a vernacular architectural building type that is commonly seen in areas such as urban Southeast Asia. This hybrid building form characterises the historical centres of most towns and cities in the region.- Design and features :...
s on it have been carefully conserved and now house various
barsA bar is an establishment that serves drinks, especially alcoholic beverages such as beer, liquor, and cocktails, for consumption on the premises....
,
pubsA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of British influence. Although the terms often have different connotations, there is little definitive difference between pubs, bars,...
and
restaurantA restaurant prepares and serves food and drink to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s.
Boat Quay is a historical
quayA quay is a wharf or bank where ships and other vessels are loaded. A quay may be constructed parallel or perpendicular to the bank of a waterway. In the United Kingdom and Commonwealth nations, the word is commonly used, while Americans typically use "wharf." Similar words are found in many...
in
SingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island city-state located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, lying north of the equator, south of the Malaysian state of Johor and north of Indonesia's Riau Islands. At , Singapore is a microstate and the smallest nation in Southeast...
which is situated upstream from the mouth of the
Singapore RiverThe Singapore River is a small river in Singapore with great historical importance. The Singapore River flows from the Central Area, which lies in the Central Region in the southern part of Singapore before emptying into the ocean...
on its southern bank.
It was the busiest part of the old
Port of SingaporeThe Port of Singapore refers to the collective facilities and terminals that conduct maritime trade handling functions in Singapore's harbours and which handle Singapore's shipping...
, handling three quarters of all shipping business during the 1860s. Because the south bank of the river here resembles the belly of a
carpCarp is a common name for various species of an oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. Some consider all cyprinid fishes carp, and the family Cyprinidae itself is often known as the carp family...
, which according to
Chinese beliefChinese philosophy is philosophy written in the Chinese tradition of thought. Chinese philosophy has a history of several thousand years; its origins are often traced back to the Yi Jing , an ancient compendium of divination, which uses a system of 64 hexagrams to guide action...
is where wealth and prosperity lay, many shophouses were built, crowded into the area.
Though serving aquatic trade is no longer Boat Quay's primary role, the
shophouseA shophouse is a vernacular architectural building type that is commonly seen in areas such as urban Southeast Asia. This hybrid building form characterises the historical centres of most towns and cities in the region.- Design and features :...
s on it have been carefully conserved and now house various
barsA bar is an establishment that serves drinks, especially alcoholic beverages such as beer, liquor, and cocktails, for consumption on the premises....
,
pubsA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises in countries and regions of British influence. Although the terms often have different connotations, there is little definitive difference between pubs, bars,...
and
restaurantA restaurant prepares and serves food and drink to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s. Therefore Boat Quay's social-economic role in the city has shifted away from that of trade and
maritimeA sea is any large amount of water filled with animals such as crabs, whales, sharks, and fish, but there is inconsistency as to its precise definition and application. Most commonly, a sea may refer to a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, but it is also used sometimes for a...
commerce, and now leans towards more of a role accommodated for
tourismTourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel to and stay in places outside their usual environment for more than twenty-four hours and not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other...
and
aestheticsAesthetics is commonly known as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste...
for the
commercialCommerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer. It comprises the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information, or money between two or more entities...
zone of which encloses the Singapore River. It is the soft front to the composolitian banking and financial sectors lying immediately behind it.
Boat Quay is also the name of the
roadA road is an identifiable route, way or path between places.
along the quay, which has since been converted into a pedestrian mall.
History
Since the
founding of modern SingaporeThe founding of modern Singapore in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles paved the way for Singapore to become a modern port and established its status as a gateway between the Western and Eastern markets....
in 1819, the
Singapore RiverThe Singapore River is a small river in Singapore with great historical importance. The Singapore River flows from the Central Area, which lies in the Central Region in the southern part of Singapore before emptying into the ocean...
was the artery for much of the island's
tradeTrade is the voluntary exchange of goods, services, or both. Trade is also called commerce or transaction. A mechanism that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and services. Later one side of the barter were the metals, precious...
and economic activities. The south bank of the river, where most of the
commerceCommerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer. It comprises the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information, or money between two or more entities...
took place, is known as Boat Quay.
In the 1820s, the area was
swampA swamp is a wetland featuring temporary or permanent inundation of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a substantial number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types...
y and built over with
raftA raft is any structure, with a flat top, that floats on water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Instead, rafts are kept afloat using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrels, or inflated air chambers.-Rafts built by...
houses occupied by local
traderA merchant is a businessman who trades in commodities that they do not produce themselves, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
s. It was
reclaimThe word reclaim or reclaiming can refer to :* Reclaimed word, a word whose connotations have changed from pejorative to acceptable* Regional Clean Air Incentives Market , an emissions trading program in California...
ed with
earthSoil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics. It is composed of particles of broken rock that have been altered by chemical and...
taken from a small
hillA hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain, in a limited area. Hills often have a distinct summit, although in areas with scarp/dip topography a hill may refer to a particular section of scarp slope without a well-defined summit A hill is a landform that extends above the...
where Commercial Square, now
Raffles PlaceRaffles Place is a geographical location in Singapore, south of the mouth of the Singapore River. Located in the Downtown Core and the Central Area, it features some of the tallest buildings and landmarks of the country.-History:...
, stands.
As early as 1822, Sir Stamford Raffles had already designated the area south of the river to be developed as a
ChineseChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
settlement. Boat Quay was completed in 1842 and the Chinese, mostly traders and labourers, settled there in large numbers. Conditions were squalid but Boat Quay flourished, rapidly exceeding in volume the trade on the north bank where the
EuropeanThe European peoples are the various nations and ethnic groups of Europe. European ethnology is the field of anthropology focusing on Europe....
s had their offices, houses and government buildings.
In the midst of Boat Quay were the trading offices of some of Singapore's leading
towkays (
HokkienThe Southern Min language, or Min Nan , is a family of Chinese languages which are spoken in southern Fujian and neighboring areas, and by descendants of emigrants from these areas in diaspora. In common parlance, Southern Min usually refers to the Hokkien, in particular the Amoy and Taiwanese...
for business owners) and
philanthropistA philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
s, such as
Tan Tock SengTan Tock Seng was a Singaporean merchant and philanthropist. Born in Malacca in 1798 to an immigrant Fukien father and Hokkien Peranakan mother, Tan rose from humble origins. In 1819, Tan moved to Singapore to sell fruit, vegetable and fowl...
and
Tan Kim SengTan Kim Seng was a Straits Chinese merchant and public benefactor in Singapore in the nineteenth century.-Biography:...
. The level of activity on the river was an indicator of the island's economic status. In prosperous times, hundreds of bumboats would fight for limited
berthThe term berth is used to describe or a location in a port or harbour used specifically for mooring vessels while not at sea .-Locations in a Port:Berth is the term used in ports and harbors to define a specific location where a vessel may be...
ing space. Goods were carried from ships anchored in the river, to the road by lighters and coolies. Traders bought and sold many items, from raw materials such as
rubberNatural rubber is an elastomer that was originally derived from a milky colloidal suspension, or latex, found in the sap of some plants. The purified form of natural rubber is the chemical polyisoprene, which can also be produced synthetically...
,
tinTin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead, like the two possible oxidation states +2 and +4...
, and
steelSteel is an alloy consisting mostly of iron, with a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most cost-effective alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
, to perishables such as
riceRice is the seed of a monocot plant Oryza sativa, of the grass family . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East, South, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and the West Indies...
and
coffeeCoffee is a brewed beverage prepared from roasted seeds, commonly called coffee beans, of the coffee plant. They are seeds of "coffee cherries" that grow on trees in over 70 countries. It has been said that green coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world behind crude oil. Due to its...
, and many other manufactured goods.
Boat Quay was very resilient to change. Its role did not diminish even when a new harbour was built at
Tanjong PagarTanjong Pagar is a historic district located within the Central Business District in Singapore, straddling the Outram Planning Area and the Downtown Core under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's urban planning zones.-Etymology:...
in 1852. On the contrary, it continued to grow, spurred on by the opening of the
Suez CanalThe Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened on November 1869, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigating around Africa...
in 1869, when steamships started calling at the
port of SingaporeThe Port of Singapore refers to the collective facilities and terminals that conduct maritime trade handling functions in Singapore's harbours and which handle Singapore's shipping...
. In fact, during that period, three quarters of Singapore's overall trading business was transacted from Boat Quay.
Its decline really began in the 1960s, as mechanisation and
computerA computer is a machine that manipulates data according to a set of instructions.Although mechanical examples of computers have existed through much of recorded human history, the first electronic computers were developed in the mid-20th century . These were the size of a large room, consuming as...
isation gradually usurped the bumboat's role in the shipping industry. In September 1983, the government opened a modern, high-tech
cargoCargo is goods or produce transported, generally for commercial gain, by ship, aircraft, train, van or truck. In modern times, containers are used in most intermodal long-haul cargo transport.- Marine Cargo Types :...
centre in
Pasir PanjangPasir Panjang is an area in the south-western part of Singapore. It is located at the southern part of the Queenstown Planning Area, an urban planning zone under the Urban Redevelopment Authority. Kent Ridge is a topographical feature which runs through Pasir Panjang.-Etymology:The name Pasir...
. This led to the rapid demise of Boat Quay's river trade, as the highly mechanised container port replaced the laborious and hazardous lighter system. Therefore, during the mid 1980s, after all the trading companies had moved out and the lighters removed, Boat Quay was devoid of activity, with the river deserted.
In 1986, the
Urban Redevelopment AuthorityThe Urban Redevelopment Authority is the national urban planning authority of Singapore, and a statutory board under the Ministry of National Development of the Singapore Government.The authority was established on 1 April 1974, and is of especially critical importance to the city-state, because...
announced plans to
conserveHistoric preservation or heritage conservation is a professional endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historic significance...
Boat Quay as part of a master plan for conserving the whole of the Singapore River and its environs.
On 7 July 1989, an area encompassing
South Bridge RoadSouth Bridge Road is a road south of Singapore River in Chinatown, Singapore which starts from Elgin Bridge and ends at the junction of Neil Road, Tanjong Pagar Road and Maxwell Road....
, Circular Road, Lorong Telok and North Canal Road was
gazetteThe term gazette normally refers to a newspaper.The word comes from gazzetta, a Venetian coin used to buy early Italian newspapers; the coin became a name for the papers themselves...
d. The two- and three-storey
shophouseA shophouse is a vernacular architectural building type that is commonly seen in areas such as urban Southeast Asia. This hybrid building form characterises the historical centres of most towns and cities in the region.- Design and features :...
s in that area, with their characteristic five-foot way beneath projecting upper floors, were preserved and transformed into new businesses. The shophouses and godowns along the river bank were restored in the 1990s and are now bustling shops,
restaurantA restaurant prepares and serves food and drink to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s and
barsA bar is an establishment that serves drinks, especially alcoholic beverages such as beer, liquor, and cocktails, for consumption on the premises....
.
Historical names
Boat Quay is one of the early roads established when the
Singapore RiverThe Singapore River is a small river in Singapore with great historical importance. The Singapore River flows from the Central Area, which lies in the Central Region in the southern part of Singapore before emptying into the ocean...
was the main
port||-||-||-||-||-||-||-||-|}A port is a facility for receiving ships and/or transferring cargo. It is usually found at the edge of an ocean, sea, river, or lake. The best ports have deep water in channels or berths, and protection from the wind and waves...
area of the
colonialColonialism is the building and maintaining of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. Sovereignty over the colony is claimed by the metropole...
city. In the 19th century, the Chinese had several names for this road, referring to different sections of it:
- tiam pang lo thau or "the place to go for sampan
A sampan is a relatively flat bottomed Chinese wooden boat from 3.5 to 4.5 m long. Some sampans include a small shelter on board, and may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. Sampans are generally used for fishing or transportation, in coastal areas or rivers...
s";
- chap sa hang (十三行) or "the thirteen shops" (the part near Canton Street);
- chap peh keng (十八间) or "the eighteen houses" (the part near Circular Road);
- chui chu boi or "bathing house end";
- khoi ki or "steam bank";
- bu ye tian (不夜天) or "place of ceaseless activity"; and
- iam pang lo thau or "sampan ghaut or landing-place" (referring to the lower part of Boat Quay near Purvis Creek).
- cha chun tau (柴船头), meaning "jetty
A jetty is a structure extending into a body of water, which protects a harbor or coastline from the effects of currents and tides. Coastal lagoons fronted by barrier spits typically have entrances that migrate over time...
for boats carrying firewoodFirewood is any wood like material that is gathered and used for fuel. Generally, firewood is not highly processed and is in some sort of recognizable log or branch form....
" (the part around Read Bridge)
Some of the quay's colloquial
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
names included:
- Suspension Bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. While modern bridges of this type date from the early 19th century, earlier bridges without vertical suspenders date from the 7th Century in Central America.This type of bridge has...
Quay (after Cavenagh BridgeCavenagh Bridge is the only suspension bridge and one of the oldest bridges in Singapore, spanning the lower reaches of the Singapore River in the Downtown Core...
); and
- "The Belly of the Carp
Carp is a common name for various species of an oily freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, a very large group of fish native to Europe and Asia. Some consider all cyprinid fishes carp, and the family Cyprinidae itself is often known as the carp family...
" because of the shape of the river at this point.