Wander north of Tai Mo Shan. We arrive near Kam Tin and Pat Heung. This is Shek Kong in Hong Kong. Shek Kong is more than just a location. It holds stories etched in stone and sky.
Shek Kong’s name comes from an old walled village. Its Cantonese name means a rocky mount. Pots unearthed here suggest a history stretching back to the Tang and Song dynasties. Imagine life here centuries ago. The old walled village was home to the Chau family. Conflicts were common then. In 1935 Shek Kong and Kam Tin fought over water. A villager broke an embankment to divert water. This sparked a clan war. Police had to intervene.
In 1938 an airfield was built around the village. This was to defend against Japan. But it soon became a refugee camp. People escaping Shanghai and northern China sought shelter here. During the Japanese occupation the airfield returned to farmland due to food shortages. The original village was removed around 1949. Shek Kong Camp was built. Its purpose was to guard Hong Kong against communist China. A new village named Shek Kong San Tsuen was built. It stood on the opposite side of the road.
From 1950 the UK Royal Air Force used Shek Kong as a base. RAF Sek Kong housed squadrons. Spitfires and de Havilland Vampires once soared from this airfield. Helicopters became the main aircraft in the late 1970s. Shek Kong served as a refugee center again. In 1975 Vietnamese refugees found shelter here. In the 1980s a detention camp housed thousands of Vietnamese boat people. Civilian operations also took place. The Hong Kong Aviation Club trained pilots here.
After 1997 Shek Kong became a base for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force. Today Shek Kong serves military and civilian purposes. Shek Kong Village built in 1957 housed married members of the Shek Kong Camp. Its location on the slope of Lui Kung Tin causes confusion about Shek Kong.
Even after the British military’s departure a Nepalese Gurkha community remained in the area. Some later moved to other areas. A pottery burial jar from the Tang dynasty has been found in Shek Kong. This provides evidence of a very old history. Shek Kong is a place of contrasts. It is a place where ancient history meets modern military aviation. It shows how a village became an airfield, and a refugee camp became a modern base. Shek Kong offers a layered view of Hong Kong’s past and present.