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A. Introduction
Before the Second World War, Tsuen Wan was only a rural area with clusters of
villages. Larger villages were located at the central part of Tsuen Wan which were
near the market and the port. Smaller villages were scattered near the foothills. In
1911, there were only about 3,000 land dwellers in Tsuen Wan. In pre-war Tsuen Wan,
there were few means of transport. Castle Peak Road was opened in 1917 but regular
bus services only started in 1933.
In the early development of Tsuen Wan, people built sea walls and reclaimed
land to gain more fertile cultivated land. In 1954, there were about 400 acres of
farmland in Tsuen Wan and most of the farmers were Hakka. At that time, vegetables
and rice were the main crops. Pig rearing and fishing were also practiced.
In the pre-war years, there were only a few factories in Tsuen Wan. Local,
small-scale industries, such as the making of bean sheets and preserved fruit
processing, could be found there. However, Tsuen Wan was developed into a modern
industrial district in the 1950s. In 1958, textiles, enamel and metal-wares were the
main industries in Tsuen Wan.
After the Second World War, a lot of people moved into Tsuen Wan and lived in
squatters sprang up along hillslopes. In the 1960s, the government of Hong Kong
decided to develop Tsuen Wan into a new town. It was the first new town in Hong
Kong and extensive reclamation was carried out there. Some traditional villages were
resited and public housing estates (e.g. Fuk Loi Estate in 1967) were built.
In 1978, the government decided to develop Mass Transit Railway (MTR) in
Tsuen Wan. Extensive relocation of traditional villages was carried out. A lot of
farmlands were changed into urban areas for residential, industrial and transportation
land uses. From 1954-1976, about 130 acres of farmlands disappeared. In this
fieldwork, you’ll investigate the processes and impact of urban development on the
residents of Tsuen Wan. The focus of the study will be on changes in residential land
use, so industrial development of Tsuen Wan will be neglected.
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B. Pre-trip Activities:
1.
a)
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Study Figure 1 and highlight the following villages in yellow on the figure:
Muk Min Ha Tsuen
Pak Tin Pa Tsuen
Sai Lau Kok Tsuen
Hoi Pa Village South Terrace
Hoi Pa Village Northeast Terrace
Hoi Pa Resite Village
Hoi Pa San Tsuen
Sam Tung Uk Resite Village


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Kwan Mun Hau Tsuen
Yeung Uk Tsuen
Ho Pui Tsuen

Ham Tin Tsuen
b) On Figure 1, highlight the location of Tsuen Wan MTR Station and Tsuen
Wan West MTR Station in red.
c) Assume Tsuen Wan MTR Station is the city centre of Tsuen Wan nowadays,
describe the locational characteristics of the above villages in Tsuen Wan in
2009.
2.
a)
In Figure 1, highlight the location of Sam Tung Uk Museum in brown.
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Figure 1 Tsuen Wan in 2009
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b)
Before extensive urban development in Tsuen Wan, the original Sam Tung
Uk Village was located at the site of current Sam Tung Uk Museum. The village
was later relocated to Cheung Pei Shan Road (Sam Tung Uk Resite Village).
Compare and contrast the location of Sam Tung Uk Museum and Sam Tung Uk
Resite Village in Tsuen Wan. Why was there such locational change?
c) Study Figure 2 and Figure 3. Compare and contrast the appearance and
facilities of the buildings in the figures.
Figure 2 Sam Tung Uk Museum
Figure 3 Sam Tung Uk Resite Village
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d) If you were one of the villagers relocated from Sam Tung Uk Museum (the
old Sam Tung Uk Village) to the current Sam Tung Uk Resite Village, do you
like such relocation? Why?
e) You may refer to the following books / website for more information about
urban development of Tsuen Wan in the past several decades.
 許舒博士著(1999)《滄海桑田話荃灣》，香港：滄海桑田話荃灣出版委
員會。
 鄭寶鴻著(2002)《新界街道百年》，香港：三聯書店(香港)有限公司。
 可觀自然教育中心暨天文館
http://www.hokoon.edu.hk/weeklysp/0706_1.html
3.
a) Browse the following websites for information related to the recent
development of Tsuen Wan.
 未來發展 荃灣發展逐漸西移

http://hk.realestate.yahoo.com/060922/299/1tm76.html
CityWalk / 荃新天地

http://www.citywalk.com.hk/
Nina Tower / 如心廣場
http://www.ninatower.com.hk/intro_cn.html
b) Describe and explain the spatial distribution of these new developments in
Tsuen Wan in relation to the location of Tsuen Wan West MTR Station.
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C. The fieldwork investigation:
Aims:
The aim of this fieldwork investigation is to investigate the changing residential land
use pattern of Tsuen Wan along with its processes of urban development.
Field sites:
In Figure 2, five checkpoints have been chosen for this fieldwork investigation:
 Checkpoint 1: Sam Tung Uk Museum
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Checkpoint 2: Tak Wah Park
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Checkpoint 3: The area around Tsuen Wan Market
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Checkpoint 4: Vision City and the nearby area
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Checkpoint 5: Hoi Pa Resite Village and Sam Tung Uk Resite Village
(Note: Checkpoints 1-4 are within walking distance but from Checkpoint 4 to Checkpoint 5,
transportation means should be arranged.)
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Figure 2 Five major checkpoints for the fieldwork investigation in Tsuen Wan.
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Fieldtrip:
Data collection for this study may take you about 1 day. Five basic checkpoints have
been designed for you to collect data relevant for the study. You may, of course, add
additional points according to your enquiry title and research interest. Discuss your
plan with your geography teacher and ask for his / her advice before adding these
additional checkpoints.
Stages of fieldwork enquiry:
Your fieldwork investigation will be divided into 3 main stages as follows:
Stage of fieldwork enquiry
Marks
1
Planning and preparation
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2
Data Collection
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3
Report Writing

Data processing, presentation
and analysis

Interpretation and conclusion

Evaluation
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Stage 1—Planning and preparation
1. After finishing the pre-trip activities, you now have a preliminary understanding
about the development of Tsuen Wan. Based on the information, develop your
own enquiry title about urban development in Tsuen Wan. Study some possible
directions below:
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Impact of urban development on villages (e.g. location, functions, sustainability) in
Tsuen Wan;
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Changes in the land use pattern (especially residential land use) of Tsuen Wan;
The processes of urban development in Tsuen Wan;
Urban renewal in Tsuen Wan;
The role of railway (or major roads) in the development of Tsuen Wan; and / or
Sustainable development in Tsuen Wan.
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2. After choosing from these directions, prepare for the fieldwork in Tsuen Wan. Fill
in Table 1:

Develop the enquiry title / question based on your chosen direction(s)
(See “Appendix 1”);

Clarify the objectives of the enquiry;

Identify the type of information (primary and secondary data) that is required;

Decide on the methods and instruments to be used;

Prepare for the enquiry, e.g. designing record sheets; and
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Develop the enquiry sequences.
Enquiry Title:
Explanation of the study
(scope, objectives, geographical questions / problems / phenomena / focusing
questions / hypothesis):
Relevant geographical concepts and perspectives (with references):
Required information (primary and secondary):
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
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Methods of investigation:
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Instruments for data collection:
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Enquiry sequences:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
…
Table 1 Planning and preparation for the fieldwork investigation
Stage 2—Data Collection
In Tsuen Wan, collect data at the checkpoint(s) you
choose for your enquiry. At this stage, you should:
 use different techniques and instruments to collect data in the field;
 record and organise field data systematically; and
 gather supplementary information after the fieldwork.
Below are some suggested activities and guiding questions for each checkpoint. You
may consider including them in your fieldwork investigation.
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Checkpoint
1. Sam Tung Uk
Museum
Suggested activities and questions for thought
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[Opening hours: 9am-5pm
(Tuesdays, 25-26 December,
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1 January and the first three
days of the Lunar New Year
are museum closing days)]
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Visit the Orientation Room of the Museum
to gather more information about the early
development of Tsuen Wan.
Visit the Assembly Hall, Ancestal Hall,
Period Houses and Side Houses of the
Museum. Draw annotated diagrams /
sketches to show the appearance and
functions of the traditional village houses in
Tsuen Wan.
Go to the Lecture Room of the Museum.
Some videos about traditional village life
will be shown there. Watch the videos and
know more about the traditional village life
in Tsuen Wan in the past.
Visit the Exhibition Hall of the Museum.
There is an exhibition about urban
development in Tsuen Wan — “A
Kaleidoscope—Tsuen Wan Then & Now”.
You may also find the original locations of
most of the villages in Tsuen Wan (listed in
P.4) before extensive urban development.
Mark their original locations in Figure 1 to
see the changes in spatial distribution of the
villages.
2. Tak Wah Park

In Tak Wah Park, there are several village
houses and a school of the former Hoi Pa
Tsuen. What are the functions and
appearance of them?

Visit the Tsuen Wan Environmental
Resources Centre. It is one of the village
houses of the former Hoi Pa Tsuen. Do they
have similar functions and appearance with
those at Sam Tung Uk Museum? Why do
they have such functions?
What are the locational characteristics of the
village houses at checkpoints 1 and 2?
[Opening hours for Tsuen
Wan Environmental
Resource Centre:
Monday-Tuesday,
Thursday-Saturday –
9:30am-1:00pm and
2:00pm-6:30pm;
Wednesday –
2:00pm-6:30pm; Closed on
Sunday and public holidays]

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Checkpoint
Suggested activities and questions for thought
3. The area around Tsuen
Wan Market

The buildings there represent another stage
of urban development in Tsuen Wan. Design
relevant record sheets, contrast the buildings
there with those at checkpoints 1 and 2 (e.g.
age, functions, number of floors, density,
facilities).
4. Vision City and nearby
area
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Observe the buildings in the area (e.g. Vision
City and Nina Tower) and the facilities
nearby.
Design suitable record sheets and / or

questionnaires to investigate the recent urban
development processes in Tsuen Wan. What
are these urban development processes? How
do they change the urban landscape of Tsuen
Wan? (You may compare and contrast the
buildings there with those at other
checkpoints.)
5. Hoi Pa Resite Village
and Sam Tung Uk Resite
Village
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The original Hoi Pa Village (checkpoint 2)
and Sam Tung Uk Village (checkpoint 1)
were relocated to this area. What are their
locational and functional differences with
those at checkpoints 1 and 2?
Table 2
Stage 3—Report writing
After data collection, you are required to develop a
fieldwork report in not more than 1,500 words. It
should mainly base on primary data but secondary data
can also be used as supplementary information. All
secondary data used should be acknowledged.
The report may include the following parts:
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Cover page
Contents page
Introduction (including the objectives,
methodology used for the fieldwork)
enquiry title(s),
site
and
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Presentation of the collected data
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Analysis of the investigation results
Interpretation of the findings
Conclusions
Evaluation (of the whole enquiry) and suggestions
Appendices (may include some sample record sheets and other materials
that are relevant to the investigation)

Bibliography
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Appendix 1
How to develop a geographical enquiry title?
When developing your enquiry title, you should make sure
that your enquiry is geographical in nature. In other words,
you should ensure that your title includes geographic
concepts, such as space, location and environment, and is
related to the study of spatial relationships. The following
key questions are useful for checking whether your
enquiry is geographical or not:

“What is there?”
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“Where is it?”
“Why is it there?”
“What are the effects of it being there?”
“How is it changing over time?”
“What action is appropriate?”
(Quoted from P.281 of a book— Baker, S., Mitchell, L., Murray, S.,
Rousham, W. and Simpson, N. (1996). Pathways in Senior
Geography—Essential Skills. South Melbourne: Thomas Nelson
Australia.)
If your enquiry includes all / some of the above, it can be
regarded as a geographical enquiry. Discuss with your
geography teacher and make sure that your chosen title is
manageable in terms of time and resources available.