Colonization_Medical and Hygienic Infrastructure in Sai Ying Pun

COLONIZATION:

SAI YING PUN

西營 盤

ARCH2058 Modern Architecture ASSIGNMENT 3: GUIDEBOOK

| Fall 2021

Colonization: Medical and Hygienic Infrastructure in Sai Ying Pun Cai Yijun Jenny (3035703637) Ha Yat Ting Gloria (3035698791) Harjono Alicia Angelica (3035709461)

MEDICAL AND HYGENIC INFRASTRUCTURE IN SYP Colonialism was believed to transform the physical space at every scale. Hong Kong was colonized by the British Empire from 1841 to 1997. During that time, the mortality rate of both the Chinese population and British troops was alarming as the epidemic was highly widespread. According to the colonizer, sanitation and hygiene might affect the number of the deceased. Therefore, they slowly implemented western medical technology in exchange for Chinese traditional medication. On a bigger scale, the form and materials of buildings were successfully changed as newer structures were built in order to retain good hygiene habits.

This book will guide the reader through 5 different medical sites located in Sai Ying Pun, which is the heart of the pandemic during the second world war. Inside, different types of sites will be deciphered with the perspective of colonial architecture followed by their development.

1 KWONG FUK I TSZ

Kwong Fuk I Tsz in the 1970s

Renovated Kwong Fuk I Tsz

Kwong Fuk I Tsz is a temple that was built in 1851, founded by local merchants. It was a temple dedicated to the Kshitigarbha Buddha who would offer blessing to the deceased.

The ancestral hall is built to housed tablets of Chinese who died after migrating from China to Hong Kong during that time. After reports of seeing unattended corpses and appalling living conditions in the temple, the temple is forced to close in 1869 in which the British government intervened and demanded establishment of a Chinese Hospital to cope with the unattended sickness. The falling of the Kwong Fuk I Tsz prompted the rising and formation of the Tung Wah Hospital. NowaDays, it is open again for religious purposes.

2 TUNG WAH HOSPITAL

Tung Wah Hospital in 1902 (Source: https://mediakron.bc.edu/edges/a-his Tung Wah Hospital

Centenary Building

Centenary Building

Li Shiu Chung Memorial Building

Hawkins Wing

Drawing with annotations

Tung Wah Hospital entrance

Tung Wah Hospital is established in 1870.

During that time in the 1850s, a lot of Chinese were unwilling to receive Western medication and would rather die in the Kwong Fuk I Tsz than to consult a Western doctor. This encouraged the emergence of the first Chinese Hospital which serve patients with Chinese medicine. However, during the outbreak of the plague in 1894, the sanitation of the hospital was too poor which led to the second interference of the British government to proper inspection of the hospital’s operation. The hospital then became a hospital both offering traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine and is now the second largest general hospital in Hong Kong.

3 BACTERIOLOGICAL MUSEUM

Serum laboratory in 1906 (Source:https://www.hpcbristol.net/visual/na16Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences (HKMMS) The Anatomy Room

Red brick façade of the Museum of Medical Sciences

Ground Floor

Gallary Lecture Room

First Floor

The Old Laboratory

Second Floor

Bacteriological laboratory view from Caine Road in 1935 (Source:https://gwulo.com/

Drawing with annotations

The Bacteriological institute is the first medical laboratory which is built in 1906. Due to the slow development of bacterial knowledge in the 19th centuries, people are incapable of controlling the outbreak of the plague and other infectious diseases. The institution was first only for temporary medical experiments, but then expanded its role named the Pathological Institute for vaccines production after the Second World War. It is now open as the Museum of Medical Sciences since 1996. The architecture is built in a Edwardian style which adapted the Western architecture to subtropical climate. The building is constructed with red brick, with parapet walls decorated with Dutch gables along with arcaded verandah, which is a unique Western style rarely seen in Hong Kong.

4

Entrance of the Western Community complex

Red brick construction of the Complex

WESTERN DISTRICT MEDICAL HOSPITAL

The Western District Medical Hospital, also named the Old Tsan Yuk Maternity Hospital was founded in 1922 under the Chinese Dispensary Committee and was classified as a grade III historic building. It was the first maternity hospital for Chinese in response to the rising amount of newborn. Built in Neo-classical architecture style with red bricks, the maternity hospital moved to a new location in 1973 and has converted to a community complex since then. The architecture adapted its new functions. The staff and servant quarters which were previously used in the hospital as medical wards were converted into function rooms and office for lectures and exhibitions, etc.

5 SECOND STREET BATH HOUSE

Pink façade of the bathhouse

Interior of the bathhouse

The second bath house was built in response to the poor sanitary condition of Sai Ying Pun during the outbreak of the Bubonic plague in 1894.

It was classified as a grade II historic building. It is one of the public facilities that remains in use up to today. Along with its unique pick-coloured façade, most of the interior in the bathhouse is preserved. Interestingly, it is one of the only three bathhouse that solely provides shower without toilets. The design of the bathhouse focused on functionality, which makes partitions between bathing sections small enough to view the other sections. In addition, there was an improvement in the drainage system of the bathhouse, in correspondence to the poor drainage system that severely affected the hygiene problem during that time. Although less people would use this public facility nowadays due to the wealth and improvement in quality of life, some of the citizens would still come for shower and for laundry uses.

ARCHITECTURE RESPONDS- TUNG WAH HOSPITAL IN THE 20TH CENTURIES GLORIA YAT TING, HA

Sai Ying Pun which its name means “West Camp” is the area of the British military camp during the British colonisation1. Located at the western side of Hong Kong, it is the place where most Chinese, which had a low economic status, stayed at that time. Due to the low economic status, the environmental condition in Sai Ying Pun district is deplorable such as having poor sanitation and hygiene.

The Tai Ping Shan district had a population of more than 7000, the cramped housing area was described “unfit for human habitation”2.

The two storey dwellings are described by

Simpson, “infested with rats, which at times they find their ways on to the higher floors.”

The poor living conditions and lack of health knowledge of Chinese residents sped up the outbreak of the plague. The condition was gradually controlled after the interferences of the British government through different measures politically to address the health crisis. In specific, this passage investigates the how the Kwong Fuk Ancestral Hall and Tung Wah Hospital became an architectural medium for the colonial government to exert colonial forces to Hong Kong through the reorganisation of hospital space, which were in response to the health condition during that time. The passage also investigates how through architectural literature could we understand how a construction of a space was contributed from social, cultural and environmental aspects.

Built in the 1850s, the Kwong Funk Ancestral Hall is a Chinese temple of the Ksitigarbha Buddha. During the colonisation of the British after the Opium War, a lot of Chinese immi-

grants moved to Hong Kong for a better living. The temple was then popular in the use to house tablets of mainland Chinese who died in Hong Kong and offering blessings for them to rest in peace, awaiting their transferences to their native villages. People would worship in the main hall, while all the tablets are hosted in the rear hall. During that time, the British government did not inspect in local conditions. As time pass by and number of deaths increased, it is realised by the Colonial Surgeon that the Chinese are not willing to visit the Government Civil Hospital due to their deep mistrust in Western Medicine that they would rather die in the Kwong Fuk I Tsz3.

House-to-house inspection was employed which faced strong resistance from Chinese residents4. The acting Registrar General Alfred Lister, described the appalling condition:

in, and another room contained a boarding on which lay two creatures half-dead, and one corpse, while the floor, which was of earth, was covered with pools of urine.5”

“One apparently dying from emaciation and diarrhoea was barricaded into a place just large enough to hold the board on which he lay, and not high enough to stand up

After the emergence of the Tung Wah Hospital in 1872, the situation in the Kwong Fuk I Tsz is alleviated. Tung Wah Hospital had rendered better services as a a poor house

The dead and the ill lived in the small, cramped area which the insanitary condition sped up the spread of diseases. The first interference of the colonial government was then by 1870, the government passed an ordinance to establish a Chinese Hospital by Chinese community which would be offered “considerable forces”. However, the government also have the right to inspect, intervene and abolish the hospital at any reasonable time6. Through the existing construction and living condition of the Sai Ying Pun district, it prompted the rise and emergence of the Kwong Fuk Ancestral Hall and Tung Wah Hospital.

and refuge for the sick than the Kwong Fuk I Tsz. The Chinese hospital provided more medical facilities and the greater accommodation size for the sick, which had temporarily curbed the serious deaths in the Sai Ying Pun area. It was described by Isabella Bird, an independent travel writer, that Tung Wah Hospital is “designed to impress the public7” : “the Tung Wah Hospital consisted of several two storied buildings of granite, with large windows and a lofty central building which contained the directors’ hall, the accommodation of resident physicians, and the business offices.8” As it was considered “Western” for people to go to hospital for treatment, the Tung Wah Hospital was designed to be “Chinese” with religious objects at the main hall like altar with incense burners. A patron deity Shennong whose legacy is to care for the sick was for worshipping for people regularly in the morning. The hospital had a clear and obviously improved infrastructure that worked for

the hospital system during that time. Consisting of four individual two-storeyed buildings, the were three wards divided to accommodate more than 100 patients, solely using partitions to separate wooden stalls for every two patients, with opened windows to ensure air ventilation9. There were earthen furnaces that could brew Chinese medicine for patients and a garden for rehabilitation. Bird described the arrangement as “humane” but described the system adopted was “one of the most antiqued quackeries”. Nevertheless, the Tung Wah Hospital become one of the first Chinese Hospital with proper medical facilities and was seen as a symbol of Chinese independence in a colonial city10.

It was soon realised that the sanitation of the hospital was not properly managed and deteriorated during the plague in 1894. Described by Bird, the kitchen that contained earthen furnaces to brew Chinese herbs were “dirty and not cleaned”. In addition, it was found out that materials for Chinese treat-

ment such as musk, lard and ambergris were non-sterilized, which promoted infections11.

With terrible overcrowding and lack of supervision, the mortality rate of the Tung Wah Hospital was around 50-60% which was much higher than Government Civil Hospital of only 6-7%. This led to the second interference of the British government, which was to employ Western treatment methods and reorganisation of hospital space of the Tung Wah Hospital. Condemned by Dr. James Lowson who is an assistant Superintendent in the Government Civil Hospital, Tung Wah Hospital’s is “hotbed of medical and sanitary vice” and should have been early abolished. It was recorded by Francis Clark, a medical officer of health, that medical-wise, the hospital has lack of isolation wards for infectious patients to be isolated. Sanitation-wise, there were inadequate latrines and bathrooms and defective drainage systems. Management-wise, there were lack of sunlight guiding into the wards as most verandas are used for storage which blocks the light entry12. The reorgani-

sation of hospital space included an expansion in hospital area by 30% and included better ward lighting and ventilation for surgical wards and introducing a Receiving Ward System to isolate infectious patients13. New flooring was installed to improve current sanitation problems. In addition, patients were given choice to select from traditional Chinese medicine or Western medicine, which significantly lowered the mortality rate. The colonial government was lenient to the local Chinese authorities and allow the hospital to preserve traditional functions that aligns with the Chinese beliefs. In fact, the hospital provided free coffins and burials for the dead and repatriation of the remains of people to their home villages as it was considered the Chinese Confucian rules to properly keep the remaining of the dead bodies14.

It is debatable whether Tung Wah Hospital’s survival was contributed by political reason15.

To analyse further, architecture could be a tool to manifest colonization, just as how

Tung Wah Hospital emerged, developed and improved through the plague epidemic as a hospital system with their ever-changing organization of space. With the minimal interference from the British government, which was often viewed as “cultural, social and political imperialism”16, it was believed that the British government did not intrude on destroying Chinese customs, which allow Chinese medicinal methods and hospital spaces to develop with both Chinese and Western culture embedded. The architecture has become a Chinese institution serving the Chinese community, expressing their resistance to Western treatments. The architecture was seen as a colonial resistance at the time.

In conclusion, through studying the history of the Kwong Fuk I Tsz and Tung Wah Hospital during the late 20th centuries, the architecture provided information of the sociocultural background of Hong Kong. The relationship between Kwong Fuk I Tsz and Tung Wah Hospital showed how the British Government intervened with the local environmental and

social conditions. The ever-changing interior design and spatial arrangement of Tung Wah Hospital as it developed provide evidence about the relationship between the local Chinese authorities and the British government as they addressed the health crisis, which makes the Tung Wah Hospital a vital manifest of the evolution in medical history of Hong Kong during the late 20th centuries.

Notes

1. Jmsc6110.jmsc.hku.hk. 2021. 2018 – Sai Ying Pun | JMSC6110 Online Magazine. [online] Available at: <http://jmsc6110.jmsc.hku.hk/2018-sai-ying-pun/> [Ac cessed 22 December 2021].

2. Ching, Frank. “The Bubonic Plague: And a Degree of Recognition.” In 130 Years of Medicine in Hong Kong, 47-76. Singapore: Springer Singapore, 2018.

3. ChanYeung, Moira M. W. A Medical History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 2018.

4. Reor Sihn, Kyu-Hwan. “Reorganizing Hospital Space: The 1894 Plague Epidemic in Hong Kong and the Germ The ory.” Daehan Yisa Haghoeji 26, no. 1 (2017): 65.

5. ChanYeung, Moira M. W. A Medical History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 2018.

6. Ibid.

7. Ibid.

8. Ibid.

9. Sihn, Kyu-Hwan. “Reorganizing Hospital Space: The 1894 Plague Epidemic in Hong Kong and the Germ Theory.”

Daehan Yisa Haghoeji 26, no. 1 (2017): 83.

10. ChanYeung, Moira M. W. A Medical History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 2018.

11. Ibid.

12. Ibid.

13. Sihn, Kyu-Hwan. “Reorganizing Hospital Space: The 1894 Plague Epidemic in Hong Kong and the Germ The ory.” Daehan Yisa Haghoeji 26, no. 1 (2017): 85.

14. “HASLink| Century-Old Tung Wah Hospital: A Beacon of Humanity Lights up Dark Times.” n.d.www3.Ha.org.

hk. https://www3.ha.org.hk/ehaslink/issue113/en/in side-story-1.html 15. ChanYeung, Moira M. W. A Medical History of Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Chinese University Press, 2018.

16. Ibid.

ROLE OF COLONIZATION: ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BACTERIOLOGICAL INSTITUTE JENNY YIJUN, CAI

Sai Ying Pun, located in the western part of Hong Kong, was the area where British military camps were located during the British colonial period. The poor living conditions of Sai Ying Pun residents and the lack of health knowledge accelerated the outbreak of the plague. The establishment of the Bacteriological Institute was a measure taken by the colonial government at the time. After the colonial government intervened in the health crisis through various political measures, the condition was gradually brought under control. This essay will explore how colonization

has affected Hong Kong’s medical and health care through the different stages of The Bacteriological Institute. At the same time, I will discuss whether the method of establishing and selecting and developing the Institute of Bacteria is the most correct choice at that time.

The Bacteriological Institute (BI ), built in 1905, is a three-story building made of red bricks. The roof is covered with Chinese eaves, extra-large windows, a wide corridor terrace and arched windows and doors.

It is a British Edwardian building. It was listed as a legal monument in Hong Kong in 1990. The bacteriological laboratory consists of the main building and an animal house, which is composed of mangers, bungalows and staff quarters. It is the first public health and medical laboratory in Hong Kong specifically built and performs the functions of the Center for Disease Control17.

The emergence of the Bacteria Inspection Center was mainly due to the outbreak of

the plague that would affect the health of the public, but the colonial government made this decision because the social development of Hong Kong was stagnated due to the periodic plague, and the economy was hit hard.

Every time a serious human disease broke out, ships avoided calling at ports, cargo was subject to compulsory quarantine, and Hong Kong people and businesses were affected. At that time, Hong Kong had developed into a major shipping port. Over time, without seeing any lasting signs of improvement, Governor Sir Henry Black decided to take more drastic measures. Based on the recommendations of the Executive Council, he proposed to the Colony Office to introduce an experienced bacteriologist to Hong Kong to prevent and control the plague.

Because of the request of the experienced bacteriologist, William Hunter, the need to establish the Bacteriological Institute became severe. He was reluctant to think about it because he was unwilling to “Give

up his job at home and go to Hong Kong to find a temporary job, and if he couldn’t get the laboratory and equipment, he didn’t think there was anything to be a bacteriologist in Hong Kong.” Purpose”. For various necessary reasons, the first Bacteriological Institute in Hong Kong was built.

At that time, many colonial officials questioned whether Hong Kong should use the funds in the most useful way if they could afford the funds. They believe that i, decentralization is a waste of funds, and it can be done in India or some other places. At the same time, they believe that even if significant progress has been made in serum therapy or knowledge, it is of little value to Hong Kong, if any. The conditions that caused the plague were obviously dirt, overcrowding and rats. In colonial officials’ views, first-class clinical and research work has nothing to do with Hong Kong in terms of medicine and public health. Their first thought is that they must find the cheapest option that meets the

expected results to contain the plague and any other diseases that threaten the business lifeline of urban ports. But these questions were ignored by the governor at the time.

In The Bacteriological Institute, bacteriologists discovered where the bacterium pestis bacillus lurks and how it spreads. Eventually it was discovered that these were transmitted by rat fleas. After that, the government issued some regulations-”Systematic cleansing and washing out of all native dwellings at least once in 3 months with a flea killing mixture-kerosene emulsion.18” The inspection of water, milk, dairy products, food and other items in the Bacteriological Institute has also greatly helped the government find ways to improve sanitary conditions and reduce the spread of bacteria. Method. In 1904, William Hunter tested the potability of water in his annual report. In that report, he compared bacteriological and chemical analysis methods to detect sewage pollution. William Hunter found that the water in Hong Kong ponds

has Very high bacterial purity. Since then, the government has also taken many measures to improve the drainage problem. For example, increasing the number of public bathrooms, changing the flow of drains, increasing the combined rain and sewage drainage system, adding water closets, etc. With the release of the policy, the plague has gradually eased.

The government virus testing service was moved to Queen Mary Hospital from 1960 the new public health testing center in Kowloon. The center now provides all microbial monitoring services, focusing on monitoring influenza and other infectious diseases and other emerging viral infections. Other public health services are also located in this center.

Therefore, although the responsibility for providing clinical laboratory services has been delegated to the pathology departments of hospitals under the Hospital Authority, after a period of fragmentary development, public health laboratory services are once again concentrated in one place. With the opening

of the Health Protection Center in 2004 after the 2003 atypical pneumonia crisis, the Public Health Laboratory has also become a part of the center administratively, thereby strengthening coordination and communication among the various departments involved in the control of infectious diseases. Therefore, the story of the development of public health laboratory services goes around a circle, from plague to atypical pneumonia, starting from a single central laboratory, then experiencing expansion and decentralization, and finally regrouping into a central laboratory and an administration center19. The Bacteriological Institute guided the development of the entire medical system, but later lost its functionality.

The Institute’s laboratory facilities is hard to use in 1960, and the building itself can no longer be remodeled or refurbished. The headquarters of the Pathological Institute moved to a newly designed laboratory in 1960, and the old private reference materials were used only for vaccine production. In

1973, even this vaccine production facility was moved to a new location on Victoria Road, Pok Fu Lam, and this building became the storage area of the Government Institute of Pathology. Afterwards, the Pathological Institute established a steering committee led by the dean, Professor Zhiping He, to start project, bringing together medical professionals from different disciplines, as well as architects and historians and other professionals.

The Colonial Government Property Agency received multiple applications for approval to convert old private properties into museums. In 1995, the steering committee assisted in the establishment of the Hong Kong Medical Museum Association, which was eventually successfully transformed into the Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences20.

As the world’s first medical museum, Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences’ primary goal has always been to let medical professionals, students and the public understand medical science. From the Taiping Moun-

tain plague outbreak a century ago to the SARS outbreak in 2003, Hong Kong experienced a public health crisis and learned lessons from it. “The purpose of our exhibition is not only to promote health education, but also to strengthen our commitment to society.21” Professor He has participated in a number of projects aimed at achieving this goal.

She connected the museum to the community and assisted in the establishment of the Tai ping shan Medical Heritage Trail, allowing the public to see the remains of one of the earliest residential areas in China. , And trace the starting point of Hong Kong’s public health, including the first Chinese medicine hospital, bathroom, disinfection station, etc.

Looking back at the history of the Institute of Bacteriology, the Bacteriological Institute was forced to establish after the outbreak of the plague, which was officially opened 100 years ago in 1906, to the Institute of Pathology, and to the current Hong Kong Museum of Medicine. The building still stands today. When

we stood on the arcade of the Bacteriological Institute which has been converted into the Museum of Medical Sciences and looked at this animal house, which has now become a playground and a bustling meeting place for young and old, we were amazed. In this perfect integration between the museum and the social structure. In fact, the community has truly accepted the importance of this building, so it offers many exciting opportunities for the future. Therefore, although the colonial government did not start with the purpose of helping Hong Kong’s medical development, the establishment of the Institute of Bacteriology in the early stage is very important to Hong Kong’s medical development. The establishment of The Bacteriological Institute has made great contributions to the discovery of medical theories, the follow-up policy, the improvement of environmental sanitation, the establishment of the entire medical system, and the improvement of civic awareness.

Notes

17. Choa, Gerald Hugh. “A History of Medicine in Hong Kong.” The Medical Directory of Hong Kong, 2nd ed. (1981): 12-27.

18. Starling, A. E., and Hong Kong Museum of Medical

Sciences. Plague, SARS and the Story of Medicine

Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2006.

19. De Nys-Ketels, Simon, Laurence Heindryckx, Johan Lagae, and Luce Beeckmans. “Planning Belgian Congo’s Network of Medical Infrastructure: Type-plans as Tools to Construct a Medical Model-colony, 1949-1959.” Plan ning Perspectives 34, no. 5 (2019): 757-78.

20. Starling, A. E., and Hong Kong Museum of Medical Sciences. Plague, SARS and the Story of Medicine in Hong Kong. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2006.

21. Chan, Kenny K. H, Shadow Y. K Ng, and Vivian W. C Yim. “A Glimpse into the Past: Rediscovering Hong Kong’s History of Medicine with Professor Faith Ho.” Hong Kong Medical Journal = Xianggang Yi Xue Za Zhi 21, no. 4 (2015): 382-83.

SANITATION AS A COMBAT TO HIGH MORTALITY RATE

ALICIA ANGELICA, HARJONO Hong Kong was a colony of the British Empire since the opium war from 1841 to 1997. During this period, the colonizer implemented the idea of colonial architecture, which was typically associated with buildings constructed in the second world war period before the global architecture movement. However, in Hong Kong the influence last until post WW2, therefore the characteristics of colonized structures were not limited to those built before or during the war period, but also far beyond the post-war period. Accordingly, the difference in characteristics between colonial and post-colonial architecture was developed slowly unlike the clear separation in other colonized countries22. One of the ob-

jectives of the British Colonization was the sanitization of properties, especially medical infrastructure which held many lives at stake due to unsterile practices and widespread plague. Hence, drainage systems and bathhouses were introduced to ensure hygiene is a priority. For instance, a product of this idea was The Second Street Bath House and The Western District Medical Hospital, or beforehand known as Old Western Public Dispensary and Old Tsang Yuk Hospital. In this essay, a brief history of the precedent building will be first introduced to be analyzed further with the perspective of colonization along with its architectural aspects, followed by its contribution to a hygienic environment and effect on the medical system. Afterward, the investigation of sanitation and effectiveness of bathhouses will be reported, before closing the discussion with the Hong Kong drainage system.

An epidemic had occurred in Hong Kong from 1894 to 1923 due to the dwellers in Tai Ping Shan Street which rapidly increased the wide-

spread of the bubonic plague23. The cause could be traced back to the poor economic situation of the Chinese laborers which led to unsanitary and unhealthy living due to unawareness of hygiene24. This phenomenon later aware the people and government of the importance of hygiene in public health. To combat the spread of the plague, the Committee of Public Health along with the Hong Kong governor urged to upgrade the living condition in Sai Ying Pun by maintaining the cleanliness of streets, introducing sanitary codes for citizens, and enhancing medical services25. Changes could also be seen in the medical practice. In the past, hospitals practiced traditional Chinese healing methods which were deemed to be unsafe due to their unhygienic factor. In response to this situation, the British colony introduced western medication, which was first rejected by people. As the western practice got widespread among different hospitals, it is proven that the effectivity might be better than the latter, therefore people started opening their minds. With the

increasing trust in western medical methods due to lower mortality rates, the Western District Medical Hospital or Old Tsang Yuk Hospital was built in 1909 to facilitate medical care for pregnant women with proper sanitary protocols. On the other hand, The Old Western Public dispensary or the Cultural Heritage Resource Center was known as the West York Chinese Medical Bureau and the Convenience Clinic that accommodated plague patients26. However, the building was remodeled in the mid-1930s before being relocated to another area due to baby boom service oversupply27. Nowadays, the Tsan Yuk Hospital became the Western District Community Centre. The Hospital still does examinations for patients, although the more challenging cases will be transferred to another hospital.

The Western District Community Centre had been classified as a Grade III historical building, meaning it has high significance to Hong Kong history.The outer façade represented Hong Kong British colonial building

both in form and material usage. Constructors used red bricks as the main building material, which was common in colonial buildings. In addition to that, the spiral staircase in the interior space was also one of the characteristics of a colonial building.

To decrease the spread rate of diseases when the plague broke out, the colonial government built a public bathroom, also known as a bathhouse, alongside public dispensaries, to improve hygiene conditions in central and western districts28. Bathhouses already exist in a poorer district with dense populations in smaller living spaces as an important sanitary practice for the Chinese dwellers. In the state of war after the pandemic had gone down, the sickness and death rate of British troops in Tai Ping Shan District was high, reaching 20.43% compared to 1.78% for the local population29. Therefore, they began to follow simple sanitary practices from the local community, which is bathing. This condition forcibly urged the colonizer to improve

Hong Kong’s sanitary condition to decrease the fatality percentage of their troops. The British used analysis results from the western sanitary science along with the local practice to improve the hygiene condition, for example, refining bathhouses. Nowadays, the second street bathhouse is still serving public baths and become a second-class historical building as evident of hygiene importance30.

The second street bathhouse is the oldest public bathroom in Hong Kong. The design puts functionality over privacy back in the colonization period as effectivity was deemed to be most important31, therefore the interior was made in simplicity to maximize the effectivity of space, construction time, and cost. The bright pink paint surrounding earthtoned buildings was an eye-catching factor to guide them easily to the property as most homes did not accommodate bathrooms at the time32. On the other hand, simplicity came with great thought the detail. For instance, excessive indoor humidity might affect the

structural integrity of the building itself. To tackle this problem, air gaps or air holes were designed between the beams in the taller upper wall to ventilate the interior space.

The drainage system was introduced using the method of western sanitary science which raises a question from The Committee of Public Health and Hong Kong governor if drainage service is linked to the sanitation of a site.

According to past reports, the situation of undeveloped Hong Kong was alarming as most lanes are in an indecent state where unsanitary organic and inorganic matter were untreated for a relatively long period which caused the widespread of virus, bacteria, and many forms of plague carriers to proliferate and possibly cause a major outbreak33. Therefore, a decent drainage system followed by effective ventilation was an urgency to prevent diseases and ensure the sanitation and health of citizens although it was a challenge as the construction in the past is faulty. For instance, the densely populated dwellers highly value the smallest

of space, hence neglecting the idea of drainage and ventilation. However, with the development of Hong Kong infrastructure along with the plague, proper drainage and ventilation become an obligation in every building.

As a result, the sanitary condition and health rate in Hong Kong had greatly improved.

The British introduced the principle of drainage system to the local constructor. It must have a sufficient fall and be ventilated to prevent the accumulation of gas34. Drainage came in a wide variety of types and purposes. For example, underground sloped sewers were used to contain unsanitary organic and inorganic matter while building drainage in the form of vertical and horizontal pipes were used to transport used water from inside to outside the building without exposure to people, therefore protecting them from possible diseases. The Western District Medical Hospital and the Second Street Bath House implemented this system by installing an exterior water pipe

that was easier to construct and maintain.

In conclusion, many heritage sites in Hong Kong were evident of attempts of facilitating a hygiene environment to prevent or end epidemic during the colonization period. In the case of the bubonic or black plague, the Committee of Public Health, the Hong Kong government, and the British Empire were urged to enhance the medical and sanitation protocol due to the high mortality rate on both parties. In the center of the pandemic, especially in the Tai Ping Shan District in Sai Ying Pun, some medical facilities and bathhouses were built to promote hygienic habits and treatment based on western research brought by the colony. In addition to this, the colonizers also introduced the western way of drainages, sewerage, and ventilation in all properties.

Keeping clean sewage and drainage was fatal to maintaining hygiene. Therefore, the health rate and awareness of the population increase.

In the context of COVID-19, architecture

could function as the preventive and control measure for epidemics by retaining good hygiene and sanitation35. According to the information gathered in this essay, proper drainage, ventilation, and great habit is the key to maintaining good public health. However, as the pandemic emerged, extra measures must be taken to avoid the widespread of the disease. For instance, a proper distance between one individual to another, an isolation place for those plagued, proper air filtering, private bath, and toilets must be facilitated as much as possible. Although the current pandemic does not align with the period of colonization, the knowledge has been developed to serve the same purpose, to decrease the mortality rate. Nevertheless, Hong Kong and many countries around the world were struggling to manage the pandemic even after a few years of technological, infrastructural, and scientific development. Therefore this essay will end with a question: when can global facilities be ready to contain epidemics?

Notes

22. Hoyin, Lee. 2021. “Hong Kong Colonial Architecture, 1841-1997” 23. Zhu, Xu & Weijen, Wang. 2021. “Developing Hygienic Urban Spaces | HKIA E-JOURNAL 24. Zhoru, Zhong. 2021. Orientaldaily.on.cc.

25. Drainage Service Department. 2021. “Sewerage and Flood Protection - Early Development of Hong Kong and the Advent of the Bubonic Plague 1841–1894” 26. Ibid.

27. Cecilia, Chu. 2021. “Combating Nuisance: Sanitation, Regulation, and the Politics of Property in Colonial Hong Kong” 28. Cache.org. 2021. “The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage” 29. Cache.org. 2021. “The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage” 30. Drainage Service Department. 2021. “Sewerage and Flood Protection - Early Development of Hong Kong and the Advent of the Bubonic Plague 1841–1894” 31. Hk.on. 2021. on.cc.

32. Cache.org. 2021. “The Conservancy Association Centre for Heritage” 33. Drainage Service Department. 2021. “Sewerage and Flood Protection - Early Development of Hong Kong and the Advent of the Bubonic Plague 1841–1894” 34. Ibid.

35. Fezi, Bogdan Andrei. 2020. Review of Health Engaged Architecture in the Context of COVID-19. Researchgate. net

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The Modern Architecture Guidebook Hong Kong’s built environment represents a unique site of inquiry in the global history of the Modern Movement. The Modern Architecture guidebook series draw from an inter-disciplinary toolkit of knowledge, references, and field studies to understand the processes at work in the built environment. Each walking tour in the series begins with one of the 98 MTR stations in Hong Kong as the meeting point.

First opened in 1979, this modernist infrastructure has produced a city rationalized around transportoriented development. Organized around key themes (industrialization, colonization, environment, internationalization, migration, decolonization, counterculture, and globalization), the guidebooks present a critical yet open perspective towards the implications of large-scale modernist schemes on the environment and community.

© ARCH2058 Eunice Seng 2021