The Padang - Singapore's 75th National Monument
The Padang is officially gazetted as our 75th National Monument, making it the first green, open space to join the list of National Monuments.
National Monuments
The Padang (1820s)
Our National Monuments are an integral part of Singapore’s built heritage, which the National Heritage Board (NHB) preserves and promotes for posterity. They are monuments and sites that are accorded the highest level of protection in Singapore.
Singapore gazettes Padang as a national monument on National Day
The Padang - a site of countless historic events in Singapore's history - will officially be gazetted as the nation's 75th national monument on Tuesday (Aug 9), the 57th anniversary of the Republic's independence.
On Monday, Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong said that while the site has no physical structures, its open space is the site of many shared memories as a nation.
The gazette protects the site from alteration and change that would affect its character and significance, while allowing it to continue to be a social and community space enjoyed by Singaporeans, he added.
National monuments of Singapore
National monuments of Singapore are buildings and structures in Singapore that have been designated by the National Heritage Board (NHB) as being of special historic, traditional, archaeological, architectural or artistic value. For historical significance (World War II, self-independence of Singapore, transformation and the oldest memories to the structure), these buildings are not allowed to be demolished. The Preservation of Monuments Act gives the board authority to order preservation of such sites and promote research and public interest in the monuments.
The NHB is a statutory board within the Government of Singapore, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and it has so far gazetted 81 buildings and structures as national monuments. The latest additional to the list is Fort Siloso:
- 75 The Padang (1820s)
- 74 Fort Siloso (1878)
- 73 Singapore River Bridges: Cavenagh (1869), Anderson (1910), Elgin Bridge (1929)
- 72 Changi Prison Gate Wall and Turrets (1936)
- 71 Former Fullerton Building (1928)
- 70 Istana Kampong Glam (1839–1843)
- 69 Jurong Town Hall (1971–1974)
- 68 Alkaff Upper Serangoon Mosque (1932)
- 67 Sri Thendayuthapani Temple (1859)
- 66 Chung Cheng High School (Main) Admin Building & Entrance Arch (1965)
- 65 Civilian War Memorial (1967)
- 64 Former Tanjong Pagar railway station (1932)
- 63 Esplanade Park Memorials (1954)
- 62 Former S'pore Conference Hall & Trade Union House (now S'pore Conference Hall)
- 61 Bowyer Block, Singapore General Hospital (29 March 1926)
- 60 Former Saint James Power Station (1926)
- 59 Former Command House (1937–1938)
- 58 Former Keng Teck Whay (1847–1875)
- 57 Church of St Teresa (7 April 1929)
- 56 Former Raffles College (now NUS Campus at Bukit Timah (22 July 1929)
- 55 Former Ford Factory (1941)
- 54 Tou Mu Kung Temple (1881)
- 53 Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (1901)
- 52 Church of Our Lady of Lourdes (1888)
- 51 Saint Joseph's Church (1906–1912)
- 50 MacDonald House (1949)
- 49 Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (1869–1870)
- 48 Former Cathay Building (now The Cathay) (1939)
- 47College of Medicine Building (1926)
- 46 Tan Teck Guan Building (1911)
- 45 Former Admiralty House (1940)
- 44 Prinsep Street Presbyterian Church (1931)
- 43 Chinese High School Clock Tower Building (1925)
- 42 Former Nanyang University Library & Admin Building, Memorial & Arch
- 41 Central Fire Station (1908)
- 40 Ying Fo Fui Kun (1881–1882)
- 39 Former Hill Street Police Station (1934)
- 38 Chesed-El Synagogue (1905)
- 37 Former Tao Nan School (now Peranakan Museum) (1906)
- 36 Former Ministry of Labour Building (now Family Justice Courts) (1928)
- 35 Maghain Aboth Synagogue (1878)
- 34 Yueh Hai Ching Temple (1895)
- 33 Former Sun Yat Sen Villa (now Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall) (1880)
- 32 Former Attorney-General's Chambers (now Parliament House Block C)
- 31 Former Saint Joseph's Institution (now Singapore Art Museum) (1867)
- 30 National Museum of Singapore (1887)
- 29 Former Empress Buildinng (now Asian Civilisations Museum) (1864–1920)
- 28 Former Supreme Court (1937–1939)
- 27 Parliament House and Annex Building (now The Arts House) (1827)
- 26 Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall (1862)
- 25 Former City Hall (1926–1929)
- 24 The Istana and Sri Temasek (1867–1869)
- 23 Former Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel & Caldwell House (now CHIJMES)
- 22 Goodwood Park Hotel (Tower Block) (1900)
- 21 Telok Ayer Chinese Methodist Church (1924)
- 20 Raffles Hotel (1887)
- 19 Former Siong Lim Temple (now Lian Shan Shuang Lin Monastery) (1902)
- 18 Abdul Gaffoor Mosque (1907)
- 17 Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple (1855)
- 16 Hong San See (1908–1913)
- 15 Saint George's Church (1910–1913)
- 14 Sultan Mosque (1928)
- 13 Jamae Mosque (1830)
- 12 Tan Si Chong Su (1876–1878)
- 11 House of Tan Yeok Nee (1885)
- 10 Al-Abrar Mosque (1829)
- 9 Former Nagore Durgha (1893)
- 8 Cathedral of the Good Shepherd (1843–1847)
- 7 Hajjah Fatimah Mosque (1846)
- 6 Sri Mariamman Temple (1827)
- 5 Thian Hock Keng (1839–1842)
- 4 Telok Ayer Market, Former, currently Lau Pa Sat (1894)
- 3 Saint Andrew's Cathedral (1856–1861)
- 2 Armenian Apostolic Church of St Gregory (1835–1836)
- 1 Thong Chai Medical Institution, Old (1892)
List of Singapore’s National Monuments
The Preservation of Sites and Monuments (PSM) division, under the National Heritage Board (NHB) and with advice from the PSM Advisory Board, guides the preservation of buildings, monuments and sites, which commemorates Singapore’s heritage as defined under the Preservation of Monuments Act.
The PSM division also leads NHB’s joint efforts with National Parks Board to list the Singapore Botanic Gardens as Singapore’s first UNESCO world heritage site. It also oversees the 100 heritage sites that have been marked by NHB. The PSM division’s administration of the preservation gazette is complemented by its outreach objectives to promote a renewed appreciation and understanding of national monuments and their history, and to encourage people to relate to them as sites of memory that convey a sense of place, identity and belonging.
To date, 75 structures have been gazetted as National Monuments.
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