The Helena May main building

The Helena May main building is a declared monument of Hong Kong and a membership club located in the district on Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. The present day building structure remains largely unchanged from its original building structure from 1914.

History

The building was built in 1914 and officially opened on September 12, 1916 by Lady May, daughter of Lieutenant General George Digby Barker, British Commanding Officer in China and Hong Kong from 1890 to 1895, as a respite for unaccompanied women arriving in Hong Kong. Lady May eventually married Sir Francis Henry May, of no blood relation to herself, who would become Governor of Hong Kong in 1912.

During the Second World War, the building was occupied by and later requisitioned by the Royal Air Force at the end of the war until 1947.

In 1985, The Helena May started accepting the women of all nationalities as residents.