The New Paper
21 March 2010
S’pore’s oldest grave?

The grave of Fang Shan, which dates
back to 1833.
Story by BRYNA SIM
                                      Photos by CHOO CHWEE HUA, BRYNA SIM
 
TUCKED away in Bukit Brown Chinese Cemetery off Kheam Hock Road, is a long-forgotten grave with a 60cm-high granite headstone. Two empty drink cans that held joss sticks indicate that someone still remembers the final resting place of a man known as Fang Shan. It is on a small hill, amid creeper plants and weeds, one of about a hundred graves in the western section of the cemetery. The red Chinese characters on the weather-worn headstone says Fang Shan died in 1833, some 14 years after Sir Stamford Raffles first landed in Singapore. Historians and history buffs believe this may be the oldest grave in Singapore.

According to the National Archives of Singapore, which keeps burial records, the oldest grave here dates back to 2 Apr 1865, and was at the Bukit Timah Road Old Cemetery, also known as the Kampong Java Cemetery. The National Environment Agency said it was exhumed, together with the other 8,461 graves in the cemetery and the remains reburied at Choa Chu Kang Christian Cemetery in 1970.

There is one other contender for the oldest grave title. In 2006, The Straits Times reported that a tomb dating back to 1842 had been found near the current National University of Singapore law school campus. It contained the remains of Chinese settler Qiu Zheng Zhi. It was then believed to be the "oldest in situ Chinese tomb in Singapore", meaning that it remained at the site where it was first built.

Now, cemetery explorer Raymond Goh, 46, believes the title should go to the grave of Fang Shan. Mr Goh, who stumbled upon the grave in late 2008, said: "Although the Fang tomb is not the oldest in situ tomb here, its dating back to 1833 trumps the 1842 record".
Cemetery explorer Raymond Goh posing by a tomb.
Preserve past

Mr Goh, a pharmacist by day, spends much of his free time researching tombs and cemeteries. The interest began in 2006 after he felt the importance of "preserving the past". He has since found more than 10 graves of Singapore's pioneers. (See infographic.)


Fang Shan's grave is looked after by the Fang Shee Association, a local clan association for those with the surname Fang. According to association secretary Akita Chua, 67, there are no known living descendants of Fang Shan. On the left side of the headstone, it says that the tomb was relocated in 1941. Mr Goh believes that the original location of the grave was at Heng Shan Teng, a cemetery for the Hokkien community around Silat Road in Bukit Merah. However, the association says the grave was moved from a cemetery around the Fort Canning area.

Mr Chua said that since 1962, clan members have been paying their respects to Fang Shan and
other ancestors annually during the Qing Ming festival. "In the past, we used to have to charter a bus during Qing Ming. But fewer than 10 people go these days."
 
The inscriptions on the tomb don't mention his hometown or year of birth, but state he had a son called Fang Li Eng. Mr Chua said Fang Shan, a government official in China, moved here to be a businessman.

His grave is among many other historically significant ones in the Bukit Brown cemetery, which was officially opened on 1 Jan 1922. It stretches across more than 80 hectares and there are about 80,000 graves there now. They were unaffected by the 800 or so exhumations carried out by the Public Works Department in 1965 and 1993.

For now, they remain largely untouched by development. Over the next few weeks, they may get some visitors, who come by to perform the annual Qing Ming rites for their ancestors. After that, all will be quiet again.
'Protect cemetery as it's a historic gem'
PRESERVE the Bukit Brown Chinese Cemetery, say local heritage enthusiasts and cemetery conservationists. This comes after fears that graves at the cemetery would be affected by the construction of the nearby Bukit Brown MRT station at Jalan Mashor. The station is due to be completed this year. A Land Transport Authority spokesman has said that Circle Line work would not affect "any of the graves", although there is some work for the station going on around the cemetery.

An Urban Redevelopment Authority spokesman said that while there are "longer-term plans to develop the Bukit Brown cemetery", including the reserve area next to the cemetery for residential uses, there are no plans to redevelop the place at present. As its fate is hanging in the balance, individuals and groups have expressed the desire for the cemetery to be protected and enhanced permanently.

Dilemma

Dr Kevin Tan, president of the Singapore Heritage Society, hopes it will not end up like the
Bidadari Cemetery. The entire Bidadari cemetery grounds were cleared in January 2006, and while it was initially planned to be a residential estate, the area is now used for recreational and leisure purposes.

Adjunct Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore's Department of History, Mr Kwa Chong Guan, said that there is a constant "dilemma between land use needs and preservation". However, he thinks that the Bukit Brown cemetery has a valid case for preservation. "It's a repository for social memories and a green space. I believe these reasons outweigh urban planning needs," he said.

Mr Kwa is also currently chairman of the National Archives and was formerly the director of the Oral History Centre and the National Museum. He and Dr Ho Hua Chew, chairman of the Nature Society's conservation committee, feel that the cemetery is rich in flora and fauna and is a good exercise location. "If you don't have the traditional 'pantang' (superstitious) inhibitions, the roads in the cemetery are pleasant for strolling and watching birds and butterflies," said Dr Ho.

During The New Paper's visits there, people could be seen walking their dogs, jogging and even taking driving lessons around the cemetery grounds. Dr Ho said that at least 84 species of birds have made the cemetery their home, which makes "the ecological importance of this place immense".

The Singapore Polo Club also uses designated trails at the cemetery for their members to ride their horses. This was permitted by the then Ministry of the Environment in the 1980s. According to the NEA, which now oversees this partnership, this activity does not adversely affect the cemetery grounds as it does not encroach into areas where there are graves.

The presence of many graves of Singapore pioneers also explain why many are so eager for it to be preserved. Dr Tan called the cemetery a "historic gem", where "people can go to learn lessons about the past".
Others such as Miss Tan Beng Luan, who worked at the National Archives for 11 years in its


Oral History Centre, also felt that the graves could teach people about Chinese customs and
culture. "The graves have different styles across the decades, and some show a mixture of culture and religion: Chinese-style graves have Christian crosses on them," she said.

Miss Tan, the principal of Creative O Preschoolers' Bay, considers the cemetery an "interesting open-aired museum". She, Dr Tan, Mr Kwa and Dr Ho are confident that enhancements to the cemetery can come in a variety of ways. Dr Tan felt that proper documentation of the cemetery could be done along with informative booklets or pamphlets, so as to "flesh out" the pioneers' stories. Miss Tan and Mr Kwa also think that signposts to certain prominent graves, as well as maps of the area would help visitors to navigate. Dr Ho even felt that the place could be designated as a cemetery-cum-park.

The Preservation of Monuments Board, which comes under the National Heritage Board, has said that it is possible for the latter "to commemorate the contributions of significant individuals and pioneers through heritage markers and memorials".
(Taken from The New Paper, 23 March 2010)

published on Aug 19 2009 - 14:29
#1: Oldest skyscraper
Depends who you’re talking to. Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary helpfully describes a skyscraper as ‘a very tall building’; in 1939, our first very tall building, The Cathay, was only eight floors high. In 2006, it was sexed up into a modern glass-and-metal beast but retained its original art-deco façade. Our oldest un-renovated skyscraper is technically the old block of the Bank of China Building, built in 1954 with a whopping 18 floors (the new block has 36).

Where: The Cathay (2 Handy Road) & Bank of China Building (4 Battery Road)

#2: Oldest man-made Structure
A wooden bridge marks what’s left of Parit Singapura, the ‘Moat of Singapore’. The moat was mentioned in The Malay Annals (a literary work that traces the origins and descent of Malay royalty), and its existence corroborated by a British map of 1825, which shows along modern Stamford Road an ‘earthen rampart…on the north side of this rampart was a stream’.

Where: Wooden bridge next to Raffles House (Fort Canning Park)

#3: Oldest mall
Founded in 1932, C.K. Tang is the oldest surviving retail business and development in Singapore, although the original establishment was demolished in 1975 to construct the Dynasty Hotel (now the Singapore Marriott Hotel) and shopping complex in its place. It’s hard to imagine this household name began with enterprising hawker Tang Choon Kheng from Swatow, China – popularly known as ‘Curio King’ – peddling his embroidered linen wares all over Singapore. Tang built his business on the humble principles of honesty and integrity.

Where: Tangs (310 & 320 Orchard Road)


C.K. Tang

#4: Oldest example of our State motto
When you enter Victoria Theatre, on the left-hand stairwell landing, our state motto – otherwise known as Majulah Singapura (or ‘Onward Singapore’) – shines through the dust. Zubir Said (who also wrote songs for the 1958 Malay film Blood of Pontianak) used these words as a starting point to compose an anthem that would celebrate Singapore’s conferred city status by King George VI and replace ‘God Save the Queen’.

Where: Victoria Theatre (9 Empress Place)

#5: Oldest Chinese Chamber of Commerce in South-East Asia
The attempt to fuse architectural details like the red colonnades and stone lions with a regular Western edifice renders this building a Far Eastern confusion. However, pay attention to the dragon mural flanking the gateway – the first replica porcelain nine-dragon wall in Singapore. While the original two-storey building was replaced in 1963, the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry stands as a timeless guardian of Chinese customs and business values. During one visit, it even played host to a Sikh wedding ceremony.

Where: Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (47 Hill Street; MRT: City Hall)

#6: Oldest painted façade
The faded Peranakan shophouse at 66 Spottiswoode Park is a quaint anomaly in a row of better-restored neighbours. Though in lacklustre condition, its façade is the oldest surviving one and an original (still intact) to boot – a rarity in these parts. This gem in the rough was only discovered last year when the coat of whitewash that was stupidly painted over it (for reasons unknown) began to chip, hence its excellent preservation. Not much is known about the origin of this piece of history, apart from the fact that it dates back to approximately the 1880s. But the images of three magpies in terracotta red and blue, symbolising love, joy and good fortune, are truly a sight and unexpected treasure to behold.

Where: 66 Spottiswoode Park (MRT: Outram Park)


National Museum of Singapore

#7: Oldest kramat
Bite your tongue and swallow your Kermit jokes – a kramat is a holy Islamic tomb (the word is derived from ‘keramat’, which denotes a kind of miracle-working ability) of a holy Islamic saint. The oldest kramat belongs to Radin Ayu Mas, which translates as the Princess of Golden Beauty. Buried at the foot of Mount Faber, the legend tells the sad story of the brother of a sultan and his marriage to a common palace dancer. When the Sultan finds out, he sets Pangeran’s house on fire in his absence. The mother perishes in the flames, but a child named Radin Mas is rescued. The little princess and her father leave Java for Singapore only to be torn apart once again – in the final chapter of the tragedy, Radin Mas dies in her father’s arms after being accidentally stabbed with a kris (a dagger indigenous to Indonesia) by an evil Tengku (prince).

Where: Mount Faber Road (Tel: 6270 8855 MRT: HarbourFront)

#8: Oldest theatre
While most would assume the Yangtze Theatre – known for its racy and exotic XXX-rated movies – to be the oldest, the Capitol Theatre was erected way before the Yangtze hit puberty (for the record, it was opened in 1977). Built in 1929, the Capitol Theatre, a neo-classical curio, was previously a theatre for rambunctious cabaret performances until the Shaw Brothers turned it into its flagship cinema in 1946. Besides catering to the appetites of cinemagoers, there was also the Capitol Restaurant located in the Blue Room – not a hall for sexual content, but a beautiful function room with high ceilings and a zodiac mosaic that decorated the interior of its dome. The cinema, with its 1,686 seats, gave patrons the choice of gallery, stalls and circle seats. Under the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s list of heritage buildings, the cinema lowered its curtains in 1998 after screening the futuristic thriller Soldier, which starred Kurt Russell.

Where: Junction of North Bridge Road and Stamford Road (MRT: City Hall)

#9: Oldest museum
In colonial days, the National Museum of Singapore was known as the Raffles Library and Museum, a repository for prized zoological, ethnographical and archaeological collections (or conquests) of South-East Asia, most of which have been forwarded on to NUS and other museums abroad. Today, the building, redeveloped at a cost of $132.6 million, includes a stunning glass-clad extension that pays tribute to the island’s nation-building history without neglecting modern art and culture. Do look out for one of its oldest artefacts, the Singapore Stone (currently on display at the Singapore History Gallery). This originally stood as part of a larger boulder at the entrance of the Singapore River and bears the earliest inscription (a variant of an old Sumatran script) found here – a significant relic of this island’s pre-colonial history, which has been variously dated from the 10th to 14th centuries.

Where: National Museum of Singapore (93 Stamford Road)


Capitol Theatre

 

published on Aug 19 2009 - 14:29
#1: Oldest skyscraper
Depends who you’re talking to. Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary helpfully describes a skyscraper as ‘a very tall building’; in 1939, our first very tall building, The Cathay, was only eight floors high. In 2006, it was sexed up into a modern glass-and-metal beast but retained its original art-deco façade. Our oldest un-renovated skyscraper is technically the old block of the Bank of China Building, built in 1954 with a whopping 18 floors (the new block has 36).

Where: The Cathay (2 Handy Road) & Bank of China Building (4 Battery Road)

#2: Oldest man-made Structure
A wooden bridge marks what’s left of Parit Singapura, the ‘Moat of Singapore’. The moat was mentioned in The Malay Annals (a literary work that traces the origins and descent of Malay royalty), and its existence corroborated by a British map of 1825, which shows along modern Stamford Road an ‘earthen rampart…on the north side of this rampart was a stream’.

Where: Wooden bridge next to Raffles House (Fort Canning Park)

#3: Oldest mall
Founded in 1932, C.K. Tang is the oldest surviving retail business and development in Singapore, although the original establishment was demolished in 1975 to construct the Dynasty Hotel (now the Singapore Marriott Hotel) and shopping complex in its place. It’s hard to imagine this household name began with enterprising hawker Tang Choon Kheng from Swatow, China – popularly known as ‘Curio King’ – peddling his embroidered linen wares all over Singapore. Tang built his business on the humble principles of honesty and integrity.

Where: Tangs (310 & 320 Orchard Road)


C.K. Tang

#4: Oldest example of our State motto
When you enter Victoria Theatre, on the left-hand stairwell landing, our state motto – otherwise known as Majulah Singapura (or ‘Onward Singapore’) – shines through the dust. Zubir Said (who also wrote songs for the 1958 Malay film Blood of Pontianak) used these words as a starting point to compose an anthem that would celebrate Singapore’s conferred city status by King George VI and replace ‘God Save the Queen’.

Where: Victoria Theatre (9 Empress Place)

#5: Oldest Chinese Chamber of Commerce in South-East Asia
The attempt to fuse architectural details like the red colonnades and stone lions with a regular Western edifice renders this building a Far Eastern confusion. However, pay attention to the dragon mural flanking the gateway – the first replica porcelain nine-dragon wall in Singapore. While the original two-storey building was replaced in 1963, the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry stands as a timeless guardian of Chinese customs and business values. During one visit, it even played host to a Sikh wedding ceremony.

Where: Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (47 Hill Street; MRT: City Hall)

#6: Oldest painted façade
The faded Peranakan shophouse at 66 Spottiswoode Park is a quaint anomaly in a row of better-restored neighbours. Though in lacklustre condition, its façade is the oldest surviving one and an original (still intact) to boot – a rarity in these parts. This gem in the rough was only discovered last year when the coat of whitewash that was stupidly painted over it (for reasons unknown) began to chip, hence its excellent preservation. Not much is known about the origin of this piece of history, apart from the fact that it dates back to approximately the 1880s. But the images of three magpies in terracotta red and blue, symbolising love, joy and good fortune, are truly a sight and unexpected treasure to behold.

Where: 66 Spottiswoode Park (MRT: Outram Park)


National Museum of Singapore

#7: Oldest kramat
Bite your tongue and swallow your Kermit jokes – a kramat is a holy Islamic tomb (the word is derived from ‘keramat’, which denotes a kind of miracle-working ability) of a holy Islamic saint. The oldest kramat belongs to Radin Ayu Mas, which translates as the Princess of Golden Beauty. Buried at the foot of Mount Faber, the legend tells the sad story of the brother of a sultan and his marriage to a common palace dancer. When the Sultan finds out, he sets Pangeran’s house on fire in his absence. The mother perishes in the flames, but a child named Radin Mas is rescued. The little princess and her father leave Java for Singapore only to be torn apart once again – in the final chapter of the tragedy, Radin Mas dies in her father’s arms after being accidentally stabbed with a kris (a dagger indigenous to Indonesia) by an evil Tengku (prince).

Where: Mount Faber Road (Tel: 6270 8855 MRT: HarbourFront)

#8: Oldest theatre
While most would assume the Yangtze Theatre – known for its racy and exotic XXX-rated movies – to be the oldest, the Capitol Theatre was erected way before the Yangtze hit puberty (for the record, it was opened in 1977). Built in 1929, the Capitol Theatre, a neo-classical curio, was previously a theatre for rambunctious cabaret performances until the Shaw Brothers turned it into its flagship cinema in 1946. Besides catering to the appetites of cinemagoers, there was also the Capitol Restaurant located in the Blue Room – not a hall for sexual content, but a beautiful function room with high ceilings and a zodiac mosaic that decorated the interior of its dome. The cinema, with its 1,686 seats, gave patrons the choice of gallery, stalls and circle seats. Under the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s list of heritage buildings, the cinema lowered its curtains in 1998 after screening the futuristic thriller Soldier, which starred Kurt Russell.

Where: Junction of North Bridge Road and Stamford Road (MRT: City Hall)

#9: Oldest museum
In colonial days, the National Museum of Singapore was known as the Raffles Library and Museum, a repository for prized zoological, ethnographical and archaeological collections (or conquests) of South-East Asia, most of which have been forwarded on to NUS and other museums abroad. Today, the building, redeveloped at a cost of $132.6 million, includes a stunning glass-clad extension that pays tribute to the island’s nation-building history without neglecting modern art and culture. Do look out for one of its oldest artefacts, the Singapore Stone (currently on display at the Singapore History Gallery). This originally stood as part of a larger boulder at the entrance of the Singapore River and bears the earliest inscription (a variant of an old Sumatran script) found here – a significant relic of this island’s pre-colonial history, which has been variously dated from the 10th to 14th centuries.

Where: National Museum of Singapore (93 Stamford Road)


Capitol Theatre

 

Save Our Chinese HeritageMenushare0
The story of the oldest Chinese tombs in Singapore
by kentneo July 28, 2006
Text by Raymond Goh, 24 Sept 2006 

The Tomb of Qiu Zheng Zhi (é‚±æ £ç›´) was built in 1842 (道光壬寅).  He comes from the village of  Hai Teng Province Sin Aun 海澄县新安
He have 4 sons, 3 daughters and one grandson listed.

One of his sons listed in the tombstone Khoo Qin Zhan  (邱睛霑)  donated 5 Dollars in 1854 to rebuilt the Fuk Tak Chi (福德祠), which is a museum now in Telok Ayer Street.
In 1861, he also donated 12 Dollars for the Chui Eng Public School (萃英书院). Now the place is converted to a Thai Restaurant (Bamboo Court). (Source: Singapore Chinese Epigraphs Collections)

Please see the plaque found in Fuk Tak Chi regarding the donation by Khoo. The plaque was erected in 1854 to commenorate the renovation of Fuk Tek Chi temple. One plaque praises the powers of the Tai Pak Gong Diety. The other plaque list the donors to the renovation.  Khoo’s name was on one of the plaques. There was also a plaque erected in 1886 which was a testimony to the dispute between the Hakka Chinese and the Cantonese Chinese.

Now Haizheng Province Sin Aun already was a properous place since the Tang Dynasty Period.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, many clansmen from Sin Aun migrated to Taiwan, Dutch Batavia (now Jakarta) and Malacca with the repeal of the ban on maritime trade by the Manchu government. Since the rise of British power in the Far East, Siam, Burma (Myanmar), Singapore, Malacca, Kedah and Penang had been their favourite choices. Among these places, Penang saw the most Khoo immigrants in the 19th century.

(see migration chart from Khoo Kongsi website)

The Khoos of Khoo Kongsi (丘公祠) from Penang also come from this village 新安 (Sin Aun).

The early pioneers of Singapore that also come from æ–°åžµ is  Khoo Cheng Tiong (é‚±æ £å¿  or é‚±ç¬ƒä¿¡). He was born in 1820 and come to singapore in 1840.  He might be a relative or contempatory of é‚±æ £ç›´, as he and his brothers first two characters are é‚±æ £.

Khoo Cheng Tiong (é‚±æ £å¿ )  is a famous Singapore rice merchant and was the president of  Thong Chia Medial Institution. His 3rd brother Khoo Cheng Cheok é‚±æ £æœ even has a street Cheng Cheok Street (at Tanjong Pagar previously) named after him.

Khoo Cheng Tiong is also the father of Khoo Siok Guan (é‚±è½å› ), the famous scholar poet in Singapore, who started the Tian Nan Press in 1898, was an editor of Sin Chew Jit Poh and died in 1941

The other tomb which is of a couple, the wife of of an Eurasian.  Their daughter is called “Holland”.
The daughter must have married a brother of the Khoo family or very close relative because their descandents share a common name for the first 2 characters:
邱睛. That is why they can be buried at the same area.

————————
Please share your corrections/amendment, additions to this tomb research.

Raymond Goh

Blog at WordPress.com. Theme by Onswipe. View Standard Site
← Seek out the past, with an eye on the …Lessons from the Royal Plaques →
Comments
Back To ArticleNew Comment

Save Our Chinese HeritageMenushare0
The story of the oldest Chinese tombs in Singapore
by kentneo July 28, 2006
Text by Raymond Goh, 24 Sept 2006 

The Tomb of Qiu Zheng Zhi (é‚±æ £ç›´) was built in 1842 (道光壬寅).  He comes from the village of  Hai Teng Province Sin Aun 海澄县新安
He have 4 sons, 3 daughters and one grandson listed.

One of his sons listed in the tombstone Khoo Qin Zhan  (邱睛霑)  donated 5 Dollars in 1854 to rebuilt the Fuk Tak Chi (福德祠), which is a museum now in Telok Ayer Street.
In 1861, he also donated 12 Dollars for the Chui Eng Public School (萃英书院). Now the place is converted to a Thai Restaurant (Bamboo Court). (Source: Singapore Chinese Epigraphs Collections)

Please see the plaque found in Fuk Tak Chi regarding the donation by Khoo. The plaque was erected in 1854 to commenorate the renovation of Fuk Tek Chi temple. One plaque praises the powers of the Tai Pak Gong Diety. The other plaque list the donors to the renovation.  Khoo’s name was on one of the plaques. There was also a plaque erected in 1886 which was a testimony to the dispute between the Hakka Chinese and the Cantonese Chinese.

Now Haizheng Province Sin Aun already was a properous place since the Tang Dynasty Period.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, many clansmen from Sin Aun migrated to Taiwan, Dutch Batavia (now Jakarta) and Malacca with the repeal of the ban on maritime trade by the Manchu government. Since the rise of British power in the Far East, Siam, Burma (Myanmar), Singapore, Malacca, Kedah and Penang had been their favourite choices. Among these places, Penang saw the most Khoo immigrants in the 19th century.

(see migration chart from Khoo Kongsi website)

The Khoos of Khoo Kongsi (丘公祠) from Penang also come from this village 新安 (Sin Aun).

The early pioneers of Singapore that also come from æ–°åžµ is  Khoo Cheng Tiong (é‚±æ £å¿  or é‚±ç¬ƒä¿¡). He was born in 1820 and come to singapore in 1840.  He might be a relative or contempatory of é‚±æ £ç›´, as he and his brothers first two characters are é‚±æ £.

Khoo Cheng Tiong (é‚±æ £å¿ )  is a famous Singapore rice merchant and was the president of  Thong Chia Medial Institution. His 3rd brother Khoo Cheng Cheok é‚±æ £æœ even has a street Cheng Cheok Street (at Tanjong Pagar previously) named after him.

Khoo Cheng Tiong is also the father of Khoo Siok Guan (é‚±è½å› ), the famous scholar poet in Singapore, who started the Tian Nan Press in 1898, was an editor of Sin Chew Jit Poh and died in 1941

The other tomb which is of a couple, the wife of of an Eurasian.  Their daughter is called “Holland”.
The daughter must have married a brother of the Khoo family or very close relative because their descandents share a common name for the first 2 characters:
邱睛. That is why they can be buried at the same area.

————————
Please share your corrections/amendment, additions to this tomb research.

Raymond Goh

Blog at WordPress.com. Theme by Onswipe. View Standard Site
← Seek out the past, with an eye on the …Lessons from the Royal Plaques →
Comments
Back To ArticleNew Comment

Facts of Old Singapore
Revisiting Singapore and the many forgotten scenes and stories of Singapore. We compiled some of the facts of old Singapore.



 

Earliest Christian Cemetery on Fort Canning
A reminder to Singapore that we enjoy a very high degree of health and medical care; in early Singapore many died of malaria and cholera epidemic. The tombstones remind us of those who died at an early age because of these epidemics.The tombstone of ...

History of Old Little India in Singapore
An early settlement of the Indians; earliest was Tanjong Pagar. In November 1822 Stamford Raffles wrote to the Town Committee about 'the proper allotment of the Native division of the town…' About the Chuliah Kampong (Indian village) Raffles wrot ...


History of Old Singapore Chinatown
Early settlement of Chinese Immigrants - locality assigned By Stamford Raffles in 1822; living and working under Extreme conditions they contributed to the Development of Singapore. In November 1822 Stamford Raffles wrote to the Town Committee in ...

How Dhoby Ghaut Got Its Name!
Indian dhobies (laundrymen) in early Singapore washed their laundry in the stream which used to be known as Sungei Bras Basah - a rivulet - that flowed from Orchard Road to the sea. Today it is Stamford Canal. The Chinese called the road beside it 'L ...

How National University of Singapore Got Its Name
Originally Raffles College And later University of Malay, 1949 Then University of Malaya- Singapore Division and University of Singapore and National University of Singapore   Raffles College for Arts and Science founded because of cl ...

Indian Old/Convict Settlement in Singapore
Indian convicts provided labour for early building and road projects in Singapore; they cleared jungles and filled swamps and helped to building among others the St Andrew's Cathedral, the Istana, government offices, early defence works and Horsbugh ...

Singapore’s First Drinkable Water Fountain
First public drinking fountain 'for the use of all nations' The auctioneer John Gemmill donated the public drinking fountain which originally stood in Raffles Place in 1864 but is now relocated in the grounds of the National Museum. The inscr ...

Singapore’s First Transference of Power
The Mosque (previously the reception hall) of the Temenggong Abdul Rahman whose tomb is in the Royal Mausoleum where a Rajah of Pahang, Rhio, and Lingga Empire is also buried. Sir Stamford Raffles returned to Singapore three years after the found ...

Singapore’s Tamil Pioneer, Mr P Govindasamy
Built by Singapore's Tamil Pioneer businessman and philanthropist who believed in investing in Singapore and settling here. P. Govindasamy Pillai built this Wedding Hall. It was officially opened by Inche Yusuf bin Ishak, the Yang di Pertuan Nega ...

The Establishment of the Malay Cultural District, Eunos & Geylang
Muhammad Eunos Abdullah, Chairman 'Kesatuan Melayu Singapura' (Singapore Malay Union) - origins of Malay nationalism in Singapore Muhammad Eunos Abdullah was born in Singapore in 1876. He was the son of a Minangkabau merchant from Sumatra. He stu ...

The Founding of Singapore’s Tamil Schools
Several Tamil Schools were started by individuals, labour unions, religious institution for Tamil children to study Tamil Language and Literature and sustain their Tamil culture and heritage in foreign land. 'The gift of learning is the integrity of ...

 

BOTANICA GARDEN HISTORY

Singapore Botanic Gardens
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


Singapore Botanic Gardens logo, Cyrtostachys palm


Symphony Lake at the Singapore Botanic Gardens


Music was played at this gazebo, known as the Bandstand, in the Singapore Botanic Gardens in the 1930s


Replica of the ancient Lepidodendrons or giant clubmosses at the Evolution Garden


One of the newer attractions is the Saraca Stream in the Tanglin Core area


The lush lawns of Palm Valley are a popular spot for picnics and outdoor concerts


Office Building (Botany Hall 1) at the redeveloped Tanglin Core


Phalaenopsis philippinensis orchid growing in a mist house


A waterfall in the Ginger Gardens


Singapore's first "green roof" at the Green Pavilion


Orchids in the National Orchid Garden
The Singapore Botanic Gardens (Chinese: 新加坡植物园; Malay: Taman Botanik Singapura or Kebun Botani Singapura) is a 74-hectare[1] (183-acre) botanical garden in Singapore. It is half the size of the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew or around one-fifth the size of Central Park in New York. It is the only botanic garden in the world that opens from 5 a.m. to 12 midnight every single day of the year, and does not charge an admission fee, except for the National Orchid Garden. The garden is bordered by Holland Road and Napier Road to the south, Cluny Road to the east, Tyersall Avenue and Cluny Park Road to the west and Bukit Timah Road to the North. The linear distance between the northern and southern ends is around 2.5 km (1.5 miles).
Contents
1 History
2 Attractions
2.1 National Orchid Garden
2.2 Rainforest
2.3 Evolution Garden
2.4 Ginger Garden
2.5 Botany Centre and Tanglin Gate
2.6 Jacob Ballas Children's Garden
2.7 Other attractions
3 Future developments
4 Gallery
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
[edit]History

The first "Botanical and Experimental Garden" in Singapore was established in 1822 on Government Hill at Fort Canning by Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of modern Singapore and a keen naturalist. The Garden's main task was to evaluate for cultivation crops which were of potential economic importance, including those yielding fruits, vegetables, spices and other raw materials. This first Garden closed in 1829.
It was not until 30 years later that the present Singapore Botanic Gardens began in 1859, when the Agri Horticultural Society was granted 32 hectares of land in Tanglin by the colonial government, which had obtained it from the merchant Hoo Ah Kay, known as Whampoa, in exchange for land at Boat Quay.
Laurence Niven was hired as superintendent and landscape designer to turn what were essentially overgrown plantations and a tangle of virgin rainforest into a public park. The layout of the Gardens as it is today is largely based on Niven's design. The Agri Horticultural Society, however, ran out of funds and, in 1874, the colonial government took over the management of the Gardens.
The first rubber seedlings came to the gardens from Kew in 1877. A naturalist, Henry Nicholas Ridley, or Mad Ridley as he was known, became director of the gardens in 1888 and spearheaded rubber cultivation. Successful in his experiments with rubber planting, Ridley convinced planters across Malaya to adopt his methods. The results were astounding; Malaya became the world's number one producer and exporter of natural rubber.[2]
Another achievement was the pioneering of orchid hybridisation by Professor Eric Holttum, director of the Gardens from 1925 to 1949. His techniques led to Singapore being one of the world's top centres of commercial orchid growing. Today it also has the largest collection of tropical plant specimens.
During the Japanese occupation of Singapore from 1942 to 1945, Hidezo Tanakadate (田中館秀三), a professor of geology from Tohoku Imperial University, took over control of the Singapore Botanic Gardens and the Raffles Museum. At the beginning of the occupation, he ensured that no looting occurred in the Gardens and the Museum. Both institutions continued to function as scientific institutions. Holttum and Edred John Henry Corner were interned in the Gardens and instructed to continue their horticultural work. The Gardens was also renamed as Shōnan Botanic Gardens (昭南植物園). Later that year, Dr. Kwan Koriba (郡場寛), a retired professor of botany from the Imperial University of Tokyo, arrived as Director of the Gardens, a post he held until the end of the war.
After the war, the Gardens was handed back to the control of the British. Murray Ross Henderson, curator of the Herbarium before the war, succeeded Holttum as director from 1949 to 1954. Eventually the Gardens played an important role during the "greening Singapore" campaign and Garden City campaign during the early independence years.
[edit]Attractions



Chopin monument, just south of Symphony Lake
[edit]National Orchid Garden
The National Orchid Garden is the main attraction within the Botanic Gardens. Located on the mid-western side of the Garden, the hilly three-hectare site has a collection of more than 1,000 species and 2,000 hybrids of orchids.
Within the Orchid Garden there are a number of attractions such as the following:
Burkill Hall and the VIP Orchid Garden: Burkill Hall is a colonial plantation bungalow built in 1886. It used to be the director's house and was named in honour of the only father and son pair to hold the post of Director of Singapore Botanic Gardens, Isaac and Humphrey Burkill. The ground level serves as an exhibition area, showcasing information on the different hybrids named after VIPs who have visited the garden.
At the back of Burkill Hall is the VIP Orchid Garden with hybrids of some of the VIP orchids on display. Notable ones include Dendrobium Margaret Thatcher, Renantanda Akihito, Dendrobium Masako Kotaishi Hidenka, Dendrobium Elizabeth and Vanda Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Orchidarium: A haven for serious orchids enthusiasts, the Orchidarium houses natural species in a tropical setting.
Tan Hoon Siang Misthouse: Tan Hoon Siang was a descendant of Tan Tock Seng, who was a philanthropist and founder of the Tan Tock Seng Hospital. The misthouse contains a colourful collection of different hybrids. It also has a small collection of fragrant orchids like Vanda Mimi Plamer.
Lady Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad House: Named in honour of its sponsor, the Bromeliad House showcases plants from the Bromeliaceae family, which includes the pineapple. The unique collection of bromeliads on display was acquired from Shelldance Nursery in the United States in 1994.
Coolhouse: The Coolhouse tries to recreate the environment of a tropical highland forest and showcases orchids that are normally only found in the tropical highland areas.
[edit]Rainforest
The Singapore Botanic Gardens has a small tropical rainforest of around six hectares in size, which is older than the gardens itself. The rainforest and its bigger cousin at the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve are located within the Singapore's city limits. Singapore is one of the only two major cities with a tropical rainforest within its city limits, the other being Tijuca Forest in Rio de Janeiro.
[edit]Evolution Garden
The 9.9-hectare (3.7-acre) Evolution Garden is located within the Central Core area of the Gardens. It tells the evolutionary story of plant life on Earth throughout the ages.
[edit]Ginger Garden
Located next to the National Orchid Garden, this one-hectare garden brings together members of the Zingiberaceae family. The garden houses a restaurant called Halia Restaurant. There is also a drop-off point along Tyersall Avenue as well as a waterfall. The garden was officially opened in 2003 and it took over the spot vacated by the previous Orchid Enclosure.
[edit]Botany Centre and Tanglin Gate
The reopened Tanglin Gate has been given a new look. Gone is the old cast iron gate; it now sports a more modern silver colour with a leaf motif as its main design.
The two new blocks of offices and classroom in the upgraded Tanglin Core area are known as the Botany Centre. They house the:
Library of Botany and Horticulture (including the Public Reference Centre);
the Singapore Herbarium;
Orchid Breeding and Micropagation; and
education outreach and workshop classrooms.
The corridors and walkways of the Botany Centre are covered by leaf imprints. There are also a number of wooden carvings scattered around the grounds, and fern-covered vertical walls.
The Green Pavilion is the first "green roof" in Singapore. Weed- and grass-like plants fully cover the pitched roof. It houses the visitor services desk as well as a food court, Inside Green, in its basement.
The offices of former directors, namely Holttum Hall (after Eric Holttum, Director of the Gardens from 1925 to 1949) and Ridley Hall (after Henry Nicholas Ridley, first director of Gardens from 1888 to 1911) were preserved and now serve as the Singapore Botanic Gardens' Directorate and Visitor Management and Operations offices.
[edit]Jacob Ballas Children's Garden
The Children's Garden was named after its main donor Jacob Ballas, a Jewish-Singaporean philanthropist who died in 2004.
Built at a cost of S$7 million (of which $99 million was donated by the Jacob Ballas Trust and sponsors), it is located at the quieter northern end of the Botanic Gardens. It has its own visitor centre with a café. It opened on Children's Day, 1 October 2007. The National Parks Board claims it is Asia's first children's garden. There are play areas like the Water Play area, a small playground, tree-houses with slides, and a maze. There are also interactive exhibits that teach how photosynthesis takes place, and a mini-garden that showcases how plants may be used to make dyes and beverages, or as herbs.
At the Children's Garden Visitor Centre there is a sculpture by the Israeli artist Zodok Ben-David. Named Mystree, it was commissioned by the Yad Vashem museum in 2010. From a distance, the sculpture looks like a tree but a closer inspection reveals 500 human figures.
Although it is part of the Botanic Garden, the Children's Garden has its own entrance along Bukit Timah Road.
[edit]Other attractions
Tropical plants line the bank of the Saraca Stream as it meanders its way down a small hill. The main highlights of the stream walk are the Yellow Saraca trees (Saraca cauliflora) and Red Saraca (Saraca declinata). Other attractions include the Palm Valley, Bandstand area, Sun Garden and Sundial Garden.
The Botanic Gardens has three lakes, namely Symphony Lake, Eco-Lake and Swan Lake. The Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage on Symphony Lake occasionally has free concerts on weekends. Notable performers include the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Singapore Chinese Orchestra. On 10 October 2008,[3] a statue of the composer Frédéric Chopin was unveiled just south of Symphony Lake.
The headquarters of the National Parks Board is located within the grounds of the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Eateries within the garden include Au Jardin Les Amis, a French fine-dining restaurant in a colonial bungalow; Café Les Amis, a café at the Visitor Centre; and Halia Restaurant, a restaurant at the Ginger Garden. There are also gift shops for visitors.
Singapore's national agency in biodiversity-related issues, the National Biodiversity Centre, is also located within the grounds of the gardens.
[edit]Future developments

Botanic Gardens MRT Station will be located at the northwestern part of the Bukit Timah Core area of the Gardens. The station is part of the Circle Line, and is due to open in 2010. It will be an interchange station for the proposed Downtown Line's Bukit Timah Section. With the opening of the station, getting to the Gardens using public transportation will be far more convenient.
During the launch of the Children's Garden, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Parks Board mentioned that the Singapore Botanic Gardens will be expanded to include another 11 hectares of land. The land was previously occupied by the Singapore Management University. The Board also revealed that it would spend some $30 million to build five thematic gardens on the newly acquired land. The first garden will be the Healing Garden, expected to open by the first half of 2010. The other four will be the Fragrant Garden, Terrace Garden, Foliage Valley and Ethnobotany Garden. However, if past projects are any indication, these projects may not open on time. For example, the Botany Centre and Tanglin Redevelopment was supposed to open by 2005 but did not open till 2006. The Children's Garden was supposed to be completed by 2006 but did not open till October 2007.


Eco-lake at the Bukit Timah Core of the Singapore Botanic Gardens
[edit]Gallery


The Tembusu tree (Faraea fragrans) featured on the reverse of the Singaporean five-dollar bill at Lawn E, Singapore Botanic Gardens



Dendrobium Margaret Thatcher



The Yuen-Peng McNeice Bromeliad Collection



Dendrobium Bae Yong Jun, an orchid cultivar named after the South Korean actor



Vanda Miss Joaquim, the national flower of Singapore



Cygnus atratus in the Eco-Lake



The Sun Garden (formerly known as the Sun Rockery)



Flight of Swans sculpture installed in May 2006 at Swan Lake



The Botany Centre Blocks, with a view of Calophyllum inophyllum and one of the wooden sculptures dotted around the complex.



Orchids



Ginger

[edit]See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Singapore Botanic Gardens
List of botanical gardens
List of parks in Singapore
Penang Botanic Gardens, a botanic garden in Penang, Malaysia with a similar history.
Tourism in Singapore
[edit]References

^ "Singapore Botanic Gardens: Upcoming Attractions". Singapore Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
^ Cornelius-Takahama, Vernon (29 March 2001), Sir Henry Nicholas Ridley, Singapore: National Library Board Singapore
^ The Unveiling Ceremony of a Monument to Frederic Chopin & Inaugural Concert by NAFA Orchestra, The Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Singapore, 5 October 2008, retrieved 4 June 2010
National Heritage Board (2002), Singapore's 100 Historic Places, Archipelago Press, ISBN 981-4068-23-3
Singapore Botanic Gardens (1989), "Visions of Delight - The Singapore Botanic Gardens through the ages", by Bonnie Tinsley, Tien Wah Press, Singapore, ISBN 9971-88-2503-5
[edit]External links

Singapore Botanic Gardens - Official site
Uniquely Singapore website
National Parks Board website
Virtual Reality preview of the Singapore Botanic Gardens
National Biodiversity Centre, Singapore
v · d · eMajor Tourist Attractions in Singapore
WRS Parks
Singapore Zoo · Night Safari · Jurong Bird Park · River Safari (U/C)
Integrated Resorts
Resorts World Sentosa · Marina Bay Sands
Amusement Parks
Escape Theme Park · Haw Par Villa · Sentosa · Wild Wild Wet · Resorts World Sentosa (Universal Studios Singapore · Equarius Water Park (U/C))
Oceanariums
Underwater World · Marine Life Park (U/C)
Museums
Asian Civilisations Museum · Baba House · Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum · Changi Museum · Fort Siloso · Images of Singapore · Malay Heritage Centre · Malay Village · National Museum of Singapore · Old Ford Motor Factory · Peranakan Museum · Raffles Hotel · Reflections at Bukit Chandu · Science Centre Singapore · Singapore Discovery Centre · Singapore Philatelic Museum · Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall · The Battle Box · Maritime Xperiential Museum (U/C) · ArtScience Museum
Nature Parks
Bukit Timah Nature Reserve · Singapore Botanic Gardens · Gardens by the Bay (U/C) · Pulau Ubin (Chek Jawa) · Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve · Central Catchment Nature Reserve · Labrador Nature Reserve · HortPark · Chinese Garden · Japanese Garden
Monuments
Bukit Batok Memorial · Civilian War Memorial · The Cenotaph · Early Founders Memorial Stone · Former Indian National Army Monument · Japanese Cemetery Park · Kranji War Memorial · Raffles' Landing Site · SGH War Memorial
Others
Merlion · Orchard Road · Singapore River · Singapore Flyer · Marina Barrage · Clifford Pier · The Helix Bridge
Singapore Tourism Board
Coordinates: 1.3151°N 103.8162°E
Categories: 1859 establishments | Botanical gardens in Singapore | Parks in Singapore | Tanglin | Visitor attractions in Singapore