Mueang Samut Songkhram (, ) is the capital district ('' amphoe mueang'') of

Samut Songkhram province Samut Songkhram (, ) is one of the central Provinces of Thailand, provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighbouring provinces are (from the south clockwise) Phetchaburi province, Phetchaburi, Ratchaburi province, Ratchaburi and Samut Sakhon pr ...

, central

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

History

The district was established in 1897, then named Lom Thuan and controlled by Monthon Ratchaburi. In 1900 the district office was moved to a temple area in Ban Prok. The district was named accordingly in 1917. The office was moved again to Mae Klong camp, Mae Klong Subdistrict, and at the same time the name changed to Mae Klong in 1925. In accordance with governmental policy that the capital district name should be the same as the provincial name, Mae Klong district was renamed "Mueang Samut Songkhram" in 1938. Since 1964 the district office is in Tambon Mae Klong. Thai local people still call Mueang Samut Songkhram by its old name Mae Klong.

Geography

The district is on the shore of the

Bay of Bangkok The Bay of Bangkok (, , , sometimes informally อ่าวตัว ก), also known as the Bight of Bangkok, is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Thailand, roughly extending from Hua Hin District to the west and Sattahip District to the e ...

, at the mouth of the

Mae Klong River The Mae Klong (, , ), sometimes spelled Meklong, is a river in western Thailand. The river begins in Kanchanaburi Province and flows across Ratchaburi Province and Samut Songkhram Province. Course The origin of the river is in Kanchanaburi to ...

. Neighboring districts are (from the south clockwise) Ban Laem

Phetchaburi province Phetchaburi (, ) or Phet Buri () is one of the western or central Provinces of Thailand, provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ratchaburi province, Ratchaburi, Samut Songkhram province, Samut So ...

, Amphawa, and Bang Khonthi of Samut Songkhram, and Ban Phaeo and Mueang Samut Sakhon of

Samut Sakhon province Samut Sakhon (, ) is one of the central provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand, located along the coast of the Gulf of Thailand. In 2024, it had a population of 590,867, and an area of 866 km², making it the 43rd most populated province whilst b ...

. Off the coast are the sandbanks of Don Hoi Lot famous for its endemic shell population of ''

Solen regularis Solen may refer to: * Solen, Ancient Greek name for the Thamirabarani River * Solen, North Dakota * ''Solen'' (bivalve), a genus of molluscs in family Solenidae * ''Solen'' (ship), a Swedish galleon * Solen Désert-Mariller Solen Désert-Marille ...

''. The site has been listed as a

Ramsar wetland The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...

since 2001.

Administration

Central government

The district is divided into 11 subdistricts (''

tambon ''Tambon'' (, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district (''amphoe'') and province ('' changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 ''khwaeng'' of Bangkok, whi ...

s''), which are further subdivided into 87 villages (''

muban Muban (; , ) is the lowest Administrative divisions of Thailand, administrative sub-division of Thailand. Usually translated as 'village' and sometimes as 'hamlet (place), hamlet', they are a subdivision of a tambon (subdistrict). , there were 74 ...

s'').

Local government

As of December 2023 there are: two municipalities (''

thesaban Thesaban (, , , Pali: desapāla (protector of region) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' ...

''), of which

Samut Songkhram Samut Songkhram (Pronunciation) is a city in Western Thailand region, the capital of Samut Songkhram province, a route to the south of Thailand. It is from Bangkok and has a population of 25,623 people as of 2023. Toponymy The word "samut" ori ...

itself has town status (''

thesaban mueang Thesaban (, , , Pali: desapāla (protector of region) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' ...

'') and covers subdistrict Mae Klong and Bang Chakreng is a subdistrict municipality (''

thesaban tambon Thesaban (, , , Pali, Pali: desapāla (protector of region) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesa ...

''). There are further nine subdistrict administrative organizations - SAO (''ongkan borihan suan tambon - o bo to'').

Healthcare

Hospital

There is

general hospital ''General Hospital'' (often abbreviated as ''GH'') is an American daytime television soap opera created by Frank and Doris Hursley which has been broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC since April 1, 1963. Originally a half-hour seria ...

in Samut Songkhram with 282 beds.

Health promoting hospitals

There are total nineteen health-promoting hospitals in the district, of which; one in Ban Prok and Thai Hat, two in Ban Khan Taek, Ban Kaew, Laem Yai, Khlong Khoen, Khlong Khon, Nang Takhian and Bang Chakreng, three in Lat Yai.

Religion

There are forty-three

Theravada ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhi ...

Buddhist temples in the district.
One in Laem Yai, two in Bang Kaew, Thai Hat and Bang Chakreng, three in Nang Takhian, four in Khlong Khoen, five in Lat yai, six in Mae Klong, Ban Prok and Khlong Khon and ten in Bang Khan Taek.

Economy

Some people are fishermen or work in the twelve fish and seafood processing factories: * Three in Mae Klong subdistrict * Two in Ban Khan Taek subdistrict * Four in Bang Kaew subdistrict * Three in Bang Chakreng subdistrict

References

Mueang Samut Songkhram {{SamutSongkhram-geo-stub