A Rider To The Past

Find out the history of Singapore, and its development becoming the Singapore of today, Know the backstory of Singapore’s Heritage sites

Kee Zhen YuanTD05 1201759F

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Are You able to identify the buildings and monuments shown in the pictures?

A Ride to the Past 2

Content

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Heritage Trails

Singapore River Trail

Civic District Trail 1


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34 Biblography

How to get there.


This book is a History timeline of Singapore as well as its important heritage sites, Present images taken are self generated, while old pictures are found through the the

webs and Singapore Books along with the body text used. This book hopes to encourgae families to find the sites and to find out more of the past of Singapore and their heritage.



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Start Here

Singapore River Tail



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After seeing the Brief History of Singapore and now have a look outside, you may nowticed that those style of build are not so often seen anymore as most of the build had been demolished to make way for modern building which are those you see today.

The next section would be to show you some of these building as well as monuments that have survived through the time and still exist till this day. These building themselves has a lot of backstory in them and large historical value in them.

All these three trails are located very close to each other in the CBD area and going through the sites on foot would not take long.


These bridges that span through the Singapore River.The first Bridge was build to solve a problem of transportation the bridge was called Cavenagh Bridge, later as Singapore grew bigger and became a Crown colony of Britain, river congestion soon became a problem thus more brides were

build to solve it such as Ord Bridge and the Coleman Bridge Most of the bridges built still exist today. These Bridges still exits along with some newer bridges build during the 1990s. take your family and Just walk along the Singapore River and you are bound to find some of them.

Question

Ord BridgeClemenceau BridgeAlkaff BridgeCavenagh Bridge

What Year were the Bridges in the Picture built?

Ord: ________ Clemen: ________ Alfaff: _________ Caven: _________


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1964 to present

The park was first designed as an emblem for the Singapore Tourism Board in 1964 and on 15 September 1972, the park was officially opened at an installation ceremony of the statue, officiated by then Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Lee Kuan Yew. The original statue of the Merlion used to stand at the mouth of the Singapore River. The statue was made from November 1971 to August 1972 by the late Singapore sculptor, Mr Lim Nang Seng, it measures 8.6 metres high and weighs 70 tons. Upon the completion of Esplanade Bridge, the view of the statue was blocked from the Marina Bay Waterfront. The statue was moved to its current location on April 23, 2002 and was finished on April 25 where it is now located adjacent to the famous hotel One Fullerton.

On February 28, 2009, the Merlion statue was struck by lightning. Repairs works to the statue took till the end of March, although the Merlion itself resumed spouting water on 18 March 2009.


10A Ride to the Past

The Fullerton (1928), also know as the General Post Office in the past is now a five-star luxury hotel located near the mouth of the Singapore River called The Fullerton Hotel.In the last days before Britain’s surrender to Japan in 1942, the building was used as a hospital, with makeshift operation rooms for wounded British soldiers. During the Japanese Occupation of Singapore, Governor Sir Shenton Thomas and Lady Thomas sought refuge in the sleeping quarters of the Singapore Club. The Fullerton Building was also where General Percival discussed with Sir Shenton the possibility of surrendering Singapore to the Japanese.Subsequently, Fullerton Building became the headquarters of the Japanese military administration in Singapore.

RedevelopmentIn 1997, Sino Land (Hong Kong) Company Ltd, a sister company of Far East Organization, acquired the Fullerton Building from the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It spent close to another S$300 million converting Fullerton Building into a hotel and building the two-storey commercial complex One Fullerton opposite Fullerton Road. Renovation works on the Fullerton Building were completed on 8 December 2000. The Fullerton Hotel Singapore was officially opened by then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 1 January 2001.


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Clarke Quay was named after Sir Andrew Clarke, Singapore’s second Governor and Governor of the Straits Settlements from 1873 to 1875, Clarke Quay is also the name of a road along the quay, Clarke Street, located next to Clarke Quay, was officially named in 1896, and was originally two streets known simply as East Street and West Street in north Kampong Malacca. Similar to Clarke Quay, Clarke Street has since been converted into a pedestrian mall.Present Day Presently, five blocks of restored warehouses house various restaurants and nightclubs. There are also moored Chinese junks that have been refurbished into floating pubs and restaurants. The Cannery is one of the anchor tenants of the place. There are over 5 different concepts in one block


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Boat Quay is a historical quay in Singapore It was the busiest part of the old Port of Singapore, Because the south of the river here resembles the belly of a carp, which according to Chinese belief is where wealth and prosperity lay, many shophouses were built, crowded into the area. In 1986, the Urban Redevelopment Authority announced plans to conserve Boat Quay as part of a master plan for

conserving the whole of the Singapore River and its environs. The two- and three-storey shophouse in that area, with their characteristic five-foot way beneath projecting upper floors, were preserved and transformed into new businesses. The shophouses and godowns along the river bank were restored in the 1990s and are now bustling shops, restaurants and bars.


A Ride to the Past 1414A Ride to the Past

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Formally known as Empress Place and Government Offices. The first civic buildings were planned here in Sir Stamford Raffles’ day. Originally intended to be a courthouse, the Empress Place Building instead became offices for the government departments located in the adjacent Maxwell’s House, later the old Parliament House. The Empress Place Building was used by government departments until the late 1980s. In the late 1980s, plans were made to convert Empress Place Building into a museum. Extensive restoration began, culminating in the opening of the Empress Place Museum on 7 April 1989 by the then Second Deputy Prime Minister Ong Teng Cheong.On September 16, 2006, the Museum officially launched its new logo with a new slogan The Asian Civilisations Museum - Where Asian Cultures Come Alive!. This new logo reflects the museum’s unique location by the historic Singapore River, the source and origin of Singapore multi-cultural society, which the ACM presents in its collection. The brown reflected image also alludes to the museum as a place for reflection, while the vibrant orange is an invigorating colour which represents activity and energy.




What is it?Urban planning in Singapore has its beginnings in the 1820s, when Sir Stamford Raffles implemented a land-use plan later known as the Raffles Town Plan. However, for most of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, Singapore’s physical growth was haphazard and largely unregulated

In 1822, Raffles initiated a comprehensive town plan to guide the allocation of land in the principal town to ensure that its physical growth followed an orderly pattern. This became known as the Raffles Town Plan. Among its key features were a grid layout for the road network and a clear segregation of residential communities by ethnic group. A separate area called Commercial Square was designated for commercial activities and another area was zoned for government functions. Raffles Place, which was formerly Commercial Square, and the street pattern of the city centre today are evidence of this colonial legacy.

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This location is the place where Raffles visited and landed on Singapore for the first time.The site is denoted by a statue of Sir Stamford Raffles and is located on the north bank of the Singapore River. The present polymarble statue was unveiled in 1972 which was made from plaster casts from the original 1887

figure that currently stands opposite Victoria Concert Halls. And on the Plague it says: “On this historic site, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles first landed in Singapore on 28th January 1819, and with genius and perception changed the destiny of Singapore from an obscure fishing village to a great seaport and modern metropolis.”


A Ride to the Past 1818A Ride to the Past


This building was first known as Old Hill Street Police Station. Since the building was erected, it has been said to have bad feng shui by the Chinese people. The traders enjoyed prosperous trading until then because of the shape in the area which resembled the peh toh, the Chinese New Year fish which was symbolic for good fortune. The Old Hill Street Police Station building is the site of Singapore’s first jail. The Hill Street Police Station and Barracks was opened, In addition to the standard facilities for a police station, there were living quarters for policemen and their families. During the Japanese Occupation, Hill Street Police Station was

used by the Kempeitai as a holding area for prisoners and some say, as torture chambers. After the war, it reverted to being a police station. The Arms and Explosives Branch of the Police Department operated there from 1949 to 1981. In 1934, Today, it is used by the Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) and other associated departments and statutory boards, including the National Arts Council, the National Heritage Board and the Media Development Authority.The Old Hill Street Police Station building was gazetted as a national monument on 18 December 1998.

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The hill was recorded as Bukit Larangan prior to the arrival of Stamford Raffles in 1819, which means “Forbidden Hill” in Malay Although small in size, it has the highest elevation within walking distance to the city’s civic district in Downtown Core. It is also a popular venue for music shows and concerts. By late 1859, increased security concerns led to the hill taking on a military role with the demolition of the governor’s residence, and the building of a fort with an arms store, barracks and a hospital. The fort was named Fort Canning after Viscount Charles John Canning.Fort Canning Today Now a park overlooking Orchard Road and set in the heart of the Civic and Cultural District of Singapore, Fort Canning offers ta variety of recreational activities, historical, educational, entertainment and cultural experiences.



Built in 1943, the Esplanade Park is one of the oldest in Singapore. Many historical landmarks are located at the Esplanade Park, which include the Queen Elizabeth Walk, the former Indian National Army Monument site, The Cenotaph, the Tan Kim Seng Fountain, and the Lim Bo Seng Memorial

Former Indian National Army Monument

This monument does not exist as it was demolished by the British when they retook Singapore from the Japanese. It was removed to erase all traces of rebellion against British imperial authority to prevent seeds of the dea of a revolutionary socialist liberation force from spreading into the vestiges of British colonies

QuestionFind out which year these Monuments were build and unveiled?

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The Cenotaph A memorial for the 124 British soldiers born or resident in Singapore who gave their lives in World War I, with a second dedication added in remembrance of those who died in World War II.The memorial was completed and was unveiled on 31 March that year by the young Prince Edward of Wales, later Duke of Windsor and King Edward VIII, during his Asia-Pacific tour.

Lim Bo Seng Memorial A memorial of the War Hero Lim Bo Seng and one of the leaders of Force 136 an anti-Japanese organization.He was captured by the Japanese and died in capativity on 29 June 1944. After the Japanese surrendered.A memorial service for Lim was held at the Tong Teh Library of the Kuomintang Association in Singapore and is regarded as a War Hero

Queen Elizabeth Walk Today, refers to the stretch of promenade by Marina Bay within the Esplanade Park. The Satay Club has moved to Clarke Quay and become a tourist attraction. The sea view at the walk, however, is now obscured by both the Esplanade Theatres on the Bay and the vehicular Esplanade Bridge. Despite this, Queen Elizabeth Walk is still a pleasant stretch.

Tan Kim Seng Tan came to Singapore where he made a fortune as a trader and amassed a large fortune in his lifetime. Knowned for his acts of charity, One of Tan’s best-known donations was the sum of S$13,000 in 1857 towards building Singapore’s first public waterworks to ensure a better freshwater supply to the town. The Tan Kim Seng Fountain was erected by the Municipal Commissioners to commemorate Tan’s donation.


Civic District Trail I

Built in memory of the civilians killed and massacred during the Japanese occupation of Singapore during World War II, the Civilian War Memorial sits on serene parkland. During the Japanese Empire’s occupation of Singapore during the Pacific War, thousands of ethnic Chinese were killed in an effort to remove anti-Japanese elements in Singapore.Official estimates range between 25,000 and 50,000. In February 1962. On March 13, 1963, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew set aside a plot of land at Beach Road for the building of a memorial dedicated to the civilians killed in World War II. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCC) set up a fund committee that was later enlarged to include all ethnic groups due to good response from the community. With the support of the government and contributions from the public, construction of the memorial was able to start. On February 15, 1967, the Civilian War Memorial was officially unveiled by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who laid a wreath at the memorial.Every year on February 15 a memorial service is held at the Civilian War Memorial to remember the victims of the war.

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The Old Parliament House, now known as the Arts House at the Old Parliament, is a building in Singapore. It is currently a multi-disciplinary arts venue which plays host to art exhibitions and concerts. The building was formerly home to the Parliament of Singapore from 1965 to 1999, when it moved to an adjacent new building. Built in 1827, the Old Parliament House is the oldest existing government building in Singapore.The Arts House at the Old Parliament opened in 2004 as an arts and heritage centre. The old building was restored, and the furnishings and the design were preserved. The Chambers were converted into a function room where music performances could be held. Art exhibitions and other functions are also regularly held at the gallery, which has Tuscan style-columns and cornices.



Civic District Trail I

The Dalhousie Obelisk was built to commemorate the second visit to Singapore, in February 1850, of the Marquis of Dalhousie, who was the Governor-General of India from 1848 to 1856. He was accompanied by his wife, the Marchioness, and the objective of the visit was to consider the reduction of administrative expenditure.However, prominent merchants and traders,

who felt that Singapore’s infrastructure was not keeping pace with its economic development, wanted Dalhousie to exert his influence in their favour. To win over Dalhousie, they renamed the pier by which he came ashore Dalhousie Ghaut and marked it with a commemorative obelisk. The memorial was also built to remind succeeding merchants of the benefits of free trade.

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In 1905, planning for Central Fire Station began under the supervision of the Fire Brigade superintendent, Montague Pett. The station was completed in 1908. Central Fire Station had four portable water pumps. Nonetheless, even this basic setting was a huge improvement then what exist Superintendent Pett fought for improved working conditions and initiated fire safety measures in public buildings. Standards of operations rose to a professional level and the degree of fire-related damage fell significantly. The handing over of the fire service to Pett and the setting up of Central Fire Station was a welcome and much needed

change. From that time, the Fire Brigade has consistently grown and improved. It became so invaluable that during the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese retained British firemen in their jobs, who were thus spared incarceration.The Central Fire Station was gazetted as a national monument on 18 December 1998.Tour Visitors about the civil defence’s progression in Singapore through the years, displaying antique firefighting equipment. There are customised interactive stations for a close-up experience of what fire fighters and rescuers meets on a mission



This is the former courthouse of the Supreme Court of Singapore, before it moved out of the building and commenced operations in the new building on 20 June 2005. It was the last structure in the style of classical architecture to be built in the former British colony. It is planned to become an arts and cultural centre in future, with plans to refurbish the building. On 1 April 1937, the original foundation stone of the Old Supreme Court Building, was laid by the Governor of the Straits Settlements, Sir Shenton Whitelegge Thomas. Buried beneath the stone, is a time capsule containing six Singaporean newspapers dated 31 March 1937, and a handful of coins of the Straits Settlements. The capsule is not due to be retrieved until the year 3000. The Old Supreme Court Building, together with the adjacent City Hall, was slated be converted into the National Art Gallery of Singapore by 2012.

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The Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall is a complex of two buildings and a clock tower joined together by a common corridor On 6 February 1919, which marked the century of Singapore’s founding, a statue of Stamford Raffles was moved from the Padang to the front of the memorial hall. In the lead up to World War II, the memorial hall was used as a hospital for victims of bombing raids by the Japanese forces before their successful occupation of the colony. During the occupation, the buildings escaped major physical damage, although the colonnade was destroyed, and Raffles’s statue moved to the National Museum. At the end of the war, the statue was returned to its original site in 1946. In 1947. In 1954, the memorial hall underwent renovations and on 21 November, it was the venue where the People’s Action Party was founded. The town hall was also internally restructured to allow air-conditioning and soundproofing to be added. It was reopened as the Victoria Theatre. In 1979, the memorial hall was renovated again to accommodate the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO), upon which it was renamed as the Victoria Concert Hall. The Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall was gazetted as a national monument on 14 February 1992.



In Civic District Trail 2, the area is filled with many different chruch, some of these have existed for a long period of time, and some may even existed since the founding of Singapore. Here are the church that had been built long ago in the past and have a large historical value

American Church —was erected thanks to the funding of small local American and many non Christian Asian Merchant. On the church grounds are the parsonage and the Memorial Garden to Armenians. The parsonage, a two-storey bungalow, was built in 1905. The last Armenian parish priest left in the late 1930s, and with the dwindling Armenian population in Singapore, a successor was never appointed. Armenian and Eastern Orthodox services were held occasionally

Question

What is the name of each Church? Tick the Coloured Box

Tick the Coloured Box

Saint Andrew’s Cathedral The original Saint Andrew’s Church was built from 1835 to 1836. The second Church of Saint Andrew was in 1842. Rumours of unhappy spirits and damage caused by two lightning strikes in 1845 and 1849 resulted in its closure in 1852 and subsequent demolition in 1855 for the first churchTo cut costs, Indian convict labour was used, as it was for many buildings of those day. In 1942, during the war with the Japanese, cathedral served as an emergency hospital

CHIJMES—is a historic building complex in Singapore, which began life as a Catholic convent It was used as a Catholic convent for 132 years, The chapel, now a multi-purpose hall, is known as CHIJMES Hall and Caldwell House, now an art gallery, have both been gazetted as national monuments. The complex has been restored for commercial purposes as a dining, shopping and entertainment centre with ethnic restaurants, shops and a function hall, providing a backdrop for musicals, recitals, theatrical performances and weddings.



The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd is the oldest Roman Catholic church in Singapore.By the end of the 1830s, the chapel had become too small. Bishop Jean-Paul-Hilaire-Michel Courvezy, Vicar Apostolic of Siam, considered extending the chapel but was persuaded by the newly arrived Parish Priest, Father Jean-Marie Beurel, to keep the site for a school and to build a church elsewhere, After turning down the first offer and accepting the second one.In 1888, the church was elevated to the status of cathedral when the Diocese of Malacca was revived.During World War II, the Cathedral was used as an emergency hospital.The Cathedral of the Good Shepherd was gazetted a national monument on 6 July 1973.


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Raffles Hotel is a colonial-style hotel in Singapore. It was established by two Armenian brothers from Persia—Martin and Tigran Sarkies—in 1887. The current main building of Raffles Hotel was completed in 1899.The hotel continued to expand over the years with the addition of wings, a verandah, a ballroom, a bar and a billiards room, and further buildings and rooms. During World War II, Raffles Hotel was renamed Syonan Ryokan incorporating Syonan (“Light of the South”), the Japanese name for occupied Singapore, and ryokan, the name for a traditional Japanese inn. At the end of the war, the hotel was used as a transit camp for prisoners of war. In 1987, the Singapore government declared the hotel a National Monument. It re-opened on 16 September 1991; while the hotel was restored to the grand style of its heyday in 1915, significant changes were made. All rooms were converted to suites with teak-wood floors, handmade carpets, and 14-foot ceilings. The storied Long Bar, where the Singapore Sling cocktail drink was invented.The hotel also houses the Raffles Hotel Museum, which displays the rich history of the hotel. The museum was created after a well-orchestrated heritage search by a public relations consultant. People from all over the world returned items and memorabilia of their stay at the ‘grand lady of the Far East’; photographs, silver and china items, postcards and menus as well as old and rare editions of the works of the famous writers who stayed there. These items are displayed in the museum along with photographs of its famous guests and visitors.



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The National Museum of Singapore is a national museum in Singapore and the oldest museum in Singapore. Its history dates back to 1849 when it was started as a section of a library at Singapore Institution. After several relocations, the Museum was relocated to its permanent site at Stamford Road at the Museum Planning Area in 1887. The museum was established in 1849 by the then Singapore Institution Committee. It was called the Raffles Library and Museum and it exhibited items of historical and archeological value in Singapore and Asia. The museum was part of an establishment of a public repository of knowledge of Malayan

in a school, museum and library For a brief period between 1993 and March 2006, it was known as the Singapore History Museum, before reverting back to its previous name. The Museum underwent a three-and-a-half-year restoration and reopened on December 2, 2006, with the Singapore History Gallery opening on December 8 of the same year.The revamped National Museum was officially opened by former President of Singapore S R Nathan and Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Lee Boon Yang on 7 December 2006.

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The Singapore Art Museum contains the national art collection of Singapore. It has a collection of 7,750 pieces of Singaporean and Southeast Asian modern and contemporary art, and has an expanding collection of new Asian and international contemporary art. The museum, then known as the Fine Arts Museum, was borne out of a project by the National Museum to set up a five-museum precinct in the city SAM’s galleries feature paintings, sculptures, and installations from its permanent collection of Singapore and Southeast Asian modern and contemporary art as well as touring renowned shows like the Masterpieces from the Guggenheim Museum: Scientist, Inventor, Artist. The museum has hosted a series of travelling exhibitions since its opening, including those featuring works by Liu Kang, Leonardo Da Vinci, Chen Chong Swee, Fan Chang Tien, Lim Tze Peng and Chen Wen Hsi. Notable exhibitions have included the Singapore Biennale 2011: Open House, Negotiating Home, History and Nation, Lee Wen: Lucid Dreams in the Reverie of the Real, Cities Here and Now: Paintings and Installation Works by Lu Hao.



Thank you for reading, A Ride to the Past, Singapore’s Origin

Information, Text and Past images are soucred from,

Web:

Wikipedia.org

Books:

Singapore Landmarks, Pugalenthi Sr

Historic Building of Singapore,Edwin Lee

In Granite and Chunam: The National Mounments of Singapore,Gretchen Liu

Singapore: A Piciorial History,Gretchen Liu

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11. Raffles Landing Site 10.Cavenagh Bridge9. The Fullerton Hotel 8. Merlion Park 7. Raffles’ Town Plan 6. Boat Quay 5. Elgin Bridge 4. Coleman Bridge3. Clarke Quay 2. Read Bridge1. Ord Bridge

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Civic District Trail

1 Raffles’ Landing Site2 Asian Civilisation3 Victoria Theatre 4 Dalhousie Obelisk5 Lim Bo Seng Memorial6 Cenotaph7 Esplanade Park8 Tan Kim Seng Fountain10 Civilian War Memorial12 The Old Supreme Court13 The Arts House

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1 Asian Civilisation2 Victoria Theatre3 Parliament House4 Dalhousie Obelisk5 The Esplanade6 Singapore Art Museum7 National Museum 8 Fort Canning Park

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A Rider To The Past

Documents

past of singapore

singapore books

history timeline of

brief history of singapore

important heritage sites

book hopes

old pictures

present images