St. Francis of Assisi Church in Sham Shui Po to be listed as Grade 1 historic building

The government is proposing to list St. Francis of Assisi Church in Sham Shui Po as a Grade 1 historic building, according to a document from the Antiquities Advisory Board (AAB).

The proposal will be discussed at a meeting on the historical building assessment this Thursday (Sep 11), as stated in the document.

The history of the church dates back to 1869, when a small chapel was built to serve priests working in China. It was named in memory of the pioneering Jesuit, St. Francis Xavier, who came to Asia in the 16th century.

Redeveloped in the 1930s, the church was renamed “The Church of the Five Wounds of St. Francis of Assisi”. 

However, it was demolished in 1943. A new church was built in 1953 close to the area affected by the Shek Kip Mei fire, bearing the original name.

The architectural style of the church blends Chinese and Western elements, and its interior illumination relies on sunlight filtering through the stained-glass windows, as the building has no pillars.

Meanwhile, the nearby St. Francis of Assisi’s English Primary School (Old Block) is expected to be listed as a Grade 3 historic building.

The Antiquities and Monuments Office will upload the proposed grading and assessment report for the heritage site to the AAB website for a one-month public consultation, after which the grading will be formally confirmed.

In addition, the Historic Buildings Assessment Panel also reviewed three other heritage sites, including the Pak Shing Hau Temple in Wan Chai, Leung Ancestral Hall in Yuen Long, and Po Tin Ka Shuk in Tai Po.