Customs station / Shatin Police Station (1st generation) [????-????]

Submitted by coastyHK on Mon, 10/07/2024 - 11:27
Current condition
Demolished / No longer exists
Shatin police station old and older
Shatin police station old and older, by coastyHK

I am trying to find out information at what I presume to be the first police station in the Shatin Valley. You can see on this map that the police station built in 1924 is located in the bottom left. This is now the Stewards High Rock Centre and Former Shatin babies home. But I’d like to find out about the original station which was located at the top of Un chau or Yuen chau which you can see in the top right of the photo. The police station first appears on maps in 1904.

1904 map
1904 map, by coastyHK

 

It also appears more clearly on the map from 1908

If anybody has an6 links to photos or articles about this station I’d be really grateful.

Many thanks in advance

1908 map Shatin Police station
1908 map Shatin Police station, by coastyHK

 

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Shatin police station old and older
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1904 map
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1908 map Shatin Police station
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Comments

Shatin police station 1st generation
Shatin police station 1st generation, by coastyHK

I went in search of any remnants of the old police building and found an old red brick structure in the undergrowth.

Looking at the contours of the map again it seems that the groups of buildings was on the waterfront. Now, thanks to Les Bird, it seems that the police took over a customs building that was already there. It then moved to a purpose built station in 1924, which still stands today as the a Stewards High Rock centre. That closed as a station in 1978 I believe.

Shatin police station 1st gen
Shatin police station 1st gen, by coastyHK

The Police Reports are a good source of information (search for police at https://sunzi.lib.hku.hk/hkgro/index.jsp). The 'REPORT OF THE CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE FOR THE YEAR 1899' shows that the police had moved in to this building that year:

28.    BARRACKS.

Another year has passed without it being found possible to build a new Police Station at West Point, which is much needed.

Three Police Stations were built during the year in the New Territory—at Tai-po, Au Tau (near Un Long) and Ping Shan—but the latter is not quite ready for occupation.

At Kowloon City and Cheung Chau the Police are quartered in the old Customs Stations there. At Shatin the former Customs Station is occupied by the European and Chinese Police while the Indian Police are housed in the flimsiest of matsheds.

At Starling Inlet the Police are under canvas, and a station is urgently needed for their accommodation. At Sheung-shui (close to Fu Ti Au where the Police were accommodated in a matshed during the summer), San-tin, Ping Shan Tai O, Tung Chung and Yeung Shu Wan the Police are using Chinese houses.

A Police Station is urgently required at Sai Kung in the Tung-hoi District where no Police are stationed at present for want of suitable accommodation.