Tour guide extraordinaire Geraldene Lowe offers an early settler’s view of Chinatown.
Way back in the early 1800s – after Sir Stamford Raffles arrived in Singapore – the British divided up the Lion City and created the first town plan for their new settlement using the rivers as a guide. Rochore River was a boundary between the Malay area of Kampong Gelam and what we now refer to as Little India, while Singapore River separated the Colonial Area around the Padang from Chinatown to the south.
Most people think of Chinatown as the Cantonese Area of Temple Street and Smith Street. But Chinatown actually comprises a larger area up to Keppel Harbour and inland to Tiong Bahru. This was sub-divided into different Chinese dialect groups and by far the largest ethnic group were the Hokkiens, who settled along the old coastline of Telok Ayer and Amoy Streets. Hakkas predominated in Tanjong Pagar, whilst in Boat Quay the Teochews clustered around the famous Wak Hai Cheng Beo Temple on the shoreline at Philip Street – now six blocks inland!
But Chinatown was never just an area for the Chinese. Tanjong Pagar was originally home to Malay fishing villages. And Indians later worked at the port and on the railways, built roads and kept buffalo for transport and milk. In fact, Cross Street was once called Kampong Susu or Milk Village. The Javanese and Boyans worked as syces – tending to horses for Horse & Carriage, which provided transport for army and police barracks, hospitals and plantations. They also worked in shipyards building ships and made rattan fenders for the harbour trade.
Although there are only one and half hills in Chinatown today, there were once seven. Mounts Bonham, Palmer, Wallich, Duxton, Erskine and Gemmil were European plantations of nutmeg, cloves, pepper and pineapples, until the Colonials retired to Europe. They then disappeared and were used to reclaim land in front of Telok Ayer Street – the coastline until 1843. Along the coastline of Telok Ayer Street there were 12 different places of worship, as the first thing early migrants did upon stepping ashore was to thank the Gods for their safe arrival. Travelling in those days was no easy feat, due to the prevailing winds. From November to February the North East monsoons would bring junks from China, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand and the South West monsoons would provide return passage from May to June. Similarly, those travelling from Europe, Africa, the Middle East and India would arrive mid-year and would have to wait until the year’s end to return.
New arrivals would visit the Chinese Methodist church, Hindu Kuil, Parsi shrine, one of four mosques, the synagogue on Synagogue Street or one of many Chinese temples or shrines along the shore. After prayers, they’d visit Amoy Street or Kling Street to find lodgings, or would sometimes camp in the grounds of the temples. Not wanting to face the terrible journey home, many early migrants jumped ship and stayed. As the colony developed, extra workers were brought in from China, India and Indonesia as indentured labourers and were required to work for one or two years in order to pay for their passage. You can still find some of the lodging houses where they lived on Pagoda Street, near the "Slave Market" – as Trengganu Street was once called.
Just like any other town, traditional trades developed in different streets. China Street was the centre of bakeries and noodle makers, Club Street was home to wood carvers who created deities for temples and household shrines. Pagoda Street was home to more than 40 tailors and Temple Street was the spot for household pots and tin-smiths. If you needed a haircut, you only had to visit one of Chinatown’s back lanes, where barbers would set up a mirror and chair. Sago Lane was the street of funeral parlours and related trades. You’d find coffin makers, floral wreaths, paper effigies and places where you could dye your clothes black – as the traditional mourning period was for three years!
The casual visitor may think Chinatown has been modernised, upgraded and lost most of its old charm. But venture down the back streets and side laneways to escape the tourist route. You’ll still find the real Singapore here – especially in February as the Chinese community celebrates the Lunar New Year.
Join one of Heritage Guide Geraldene Lowe's famous tours and explore Chinatown, Tiong Bahru, the Singapore River, Lion City churches and other historical and interesting areas of Singapore. Contact Geraldene at 6737 5250 or Diana Chua at 9489 1999, or email geraldenestours@hotmail.com to find out more. A cost of $25 covers temple donations and snacks with any further proceeds donated to charity.
Posted on Feb 07
