About 46 Boat Quay

46 Boat Quay is a riverfront shophouse at Singapore 049835, in postal District 1. It stands in the curved terrace of shophouses on the south bank of the Singapore River, with the towers of Raffles Place directly behind. Little is published about this single unit, so most of what follows concerns Boat Quay as a whole.

The terrace belongs to the Boat Quay Conservation Area, gazetted on 7 July 1989. The riverside in front of the shophouses is a pedestrian promenade, and the ground floors along the quay are used mainly for restaurants and bars with offices and other uses above.

Interesting facts

Boat Quay was formed in the early 1820s. According to URA, a hillock near today's Battery Road was levelled in 1823 and the earth was used to build up the swampy south bank.
By the 1860s about three-quarters of Singapore's shipping business was handled here. The bend in the river was said to look like the belly of a carp, a shape Chinese traders considered lucky for business.
The river clean-up of 1977 to 1987 ended the lighter trade. The last cargo boats were moved to Pasir Panjang in 1983.
URA decided in 1986 to keep the shophouses. NLB records that 108 shophouses were included when the area was gazetted in 1989.
Most of the original buildings were two-storey shophouses about 4 to 6 metres wide, in Early, Transitional and Art Deco styles.

Nearby

Raffles Place MRT (East West and North South Lines) is about 5 minutes' walk. Clarke Quay MRT (North East Line) is around 8 minutes away. UOB Plaza and OCBC Centre are immediate neighbours. Elgin Bridge and Cavenagh Bridge lead across the river to the Asian Civilisations Museum, the Victoria Theatre and the Padang. Lau Pa Sat and Hong Lim Market and Food Centre are both within about 10 minutes.

Key facts

Address: 46 Boat Quay, Singapore 049835
District: 1
Property type: Conservation shophouse
Nearest MRT: Raffles Place (EWL, NSL)
MCST: 3232