Morse Park

Morse Park (Chinese: 摩士公園), occupying 15.8 hectares (39 acres), is an urban park located in Wong Tai Sin in Kowloon. It was completed in 1967.[1] The park was named after Sir Arthur Morse (25 April 1892 – 13  May 1967), the head of The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation during and after World War II.

Morse Park
摩士公園
Morse Park No. 1
LocationWong Tai Sin, Kowloon
Area15.8 hectares
Opened1967 (1967)
Operated byLeisure and Cultural Services Department
OpenYear round
Public transit accessWong Tai Sin Station

City streets divide the park into four sections formally called Morse Park No. 1, Morse Park No. 2, and so on.

History

The Hong Kong Golden Jubilee Jamborette (香港金禧大露營), was held between 1961-12-27 and 1962-01-02, celebrating the Golden jubilee (50 year anniversary) of Hong Kong Scouting with theme One World (天下一家). At Kowloon Tsai, now named Morse Park, the Jamboree hosted 2,732 Scouts in the challenging winter with heavy rain.[2]

The park site was a former rifle range. The park was known as Takwuling Park before it opened.[3] The first phase of Morse Park was opened in October 1967 by G.M. Tingle, the Director of Urban Services.[3]

The Morse Park Swimming Pool opened in 1970.[4] It was the largest swimming complex in the territory when it first opened, although the similarly-sized pools in Kwun Tong and Lei Cheng Uk opened soon after.[5] Governor Murray MacLehose brought Queen Elizabeth II here in May 1975, using the complex as an exemplar of his government's "commitment to recreation and sport".[6]

In 1996, the landscaping of the park was awarded the Award of Merit of the Green Project.

Blake Pier Pavilion

The pavilion of the Blake Pier was later transferred to the open-air oval theatre in Morse Park. In 2006, the pavilion was once again transferred to the new Stanley Pier next to Murray House.[7]

Facilities

Tropical Palm Garden

More than 80 trees of 23 palm species are grown on the 2,000 square metres (22,000 sq ft) lawn of the Park's tropical palm garden, the only one in the city.

Arboretum

More than 100 trees of 30 rare species are grown on a 2,700 square metres (29,000 sq ft) lawn in the Arboretum of the Park.

  • Football field
  • Old style fountain inside Morse Park, however it doesn't work in recent years
  • Butterfly corner
  • Amphitheatre

See also

References
  1. Morse Park, Film Services Office
  2. "Hong Kong Golden Jubilee Jamborette". March On to 100 Years. The Scout Association of Hong Kong. Archived from the original on 11 September 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2007.
  3. "Swimming pool complex for Morse Park". South China Morning Post. 21 September 1968. p. 4.
  4. "District Swimming Pool Complex". Urban Council. Recreation and Amenities Select Committee. 8 November 1977.
  5. "Morse Park pool to stay closed". South China Morning Post. 26 January 1971. p. 4.
  6. "Morse Park impressed Queen". South China Morning Post. 9 June 1975. p. 8.
  7. Wong C.T., Ma K.Y., Leung M.K., and Liu K.M. (2007), "The Blake Pier Pavilion: Just a Memory?" Paper presented at the HKIE/IStructE Joint Structural Division Annual Seminar 2007 Archived 27 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine in Hong Kong, 16 May 2007.

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