Heritage Trails :: NHB Marked Trails :: Queenstown Trail

Did you know that Queenstown has the honour of being "the Firsts" in many areas: the first satellite town, where the first HDB flats, the first branch library, the first neighbourhood shopping centre and the first sports complex were built.

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.

Where It All Began
The story of Queenstown began in the squalid slums of the city, where three quarters of the population of over 1.5 million were crammed into 1% of Singapore by the 1950s. Under the British colonial government, the Singapore Improvement Trust (SIT) was formed in 1927 to carry out general improvement works, and later, housing. The SIT introduced the concept of satellite towns: self-contained communities with all the necessary residential and social amenities such as schools and markets for its residents.

The first such planned community was to be Queenstown. Bounded by Ridout Road, Alexandra Road, Tanglin Road, the Malayan Railway, North Buona Vista Road and Holland Road, the new town was named in commemoration of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953. Although building works were started by the SIT in 1952, the town was eventually realised by the Housing and Development Board (HDB).

The former swamps, cemeteries and farmland of Bo Beh Kang village, literally "No Tail River" (Hokkien), soon gave way to modern housing estates. Out of the five neighbourhoods planned by the SIT, only Neighbourhood 1 (Princess Estate) had been completed by the time it was dissolved in 1959. Work had just begun on Neighbourhood 2 (Duchess Estate) and 5 (Queen's Close). The development of the rest of Queenstown fell on the shoulders of the HDB. It added another two neighbourhoods, (Neighbourhood 6 Mei Ling and Neighbourhood 7 Buona Vista) making a total of seven neighbourhoods that made up the original Queenstown.

Each neighbourhood came complete with its own amenities. Larger facilities such as the library and sports complex were shared by the entire town. Over time, each neighbourhood would develop its distinct character as people lived, played, schooled and worked in them. Come, join us to explore Singapore's oldest HDB housing estate...