Song Chit Neo (Lao Sua )

Madam Song Chit Neo is the second wife of Mr Chia Leong Chuan, head shroff of the Merchantile Bank. Mr Chia Leong Chuan, if you have read my earlier article is the father of Mr Chia Hood Theam and Chia Hood Sang.

Madam Song Chit Neo  (Mrs Chia Leong Chuan)
Listed in the tomb shoulder is "In Memory of Madam Song Chit Neo" and  listed is her daughter's name; Chia Lim Neo, Grandsons; Ong Swee Chew, Ong Swee Gam, Ong Swee Hock, Ong Swee Chiang and grand daughter, Ong Swee Neo.
Tomb shoulder of Madam Song Chit Neo
Death
Madam Song Chit Neo (Mrs. Chia Leong Chuan) passed away at the age of 63 on January 23, 1921 at 1:15 am. She passed away at "Woodsville" off Serangoon Road, the residence of her daughter, Mrs Ong Teck Lim (Madam Chia Lim Neo).

Family 
Daughter: Chia Lim Neo (Mrs Ong Teck Lim )
In 1913, the Anglo-Chinese School received a donation of $3,000 to established 3 scholarships in the Senior Cambridge and Seventh Standard named after Ong Teck Lim, an old boy of the school. The donation was given by his widow, Nonya Chia Lim Neo in fulfilment of her husband wishes to help poor chinese boy who would otherwise be unable to continue in school.
Madam Chia Lim Neo (Mrs Ong Teck Lim)
source: National Archives
Ong Teck Lim was a Justice of Peace and Municipal Commissioner (appointed in 1906). His cousin is Ong Kim Wee, a merchant from Malacca. Both were honored in a ceremony held in 1921 were Mr Seow Poh Leng, Manager of the Ho Hong Bank on behalf of the ACS old boys unveiled the portraits of the late Ong Teck Lim and Ong Kim Wee.

Ong Teck Lim also donated to Raffles and St. Joseph Institution and the scholarship's were also named after him. After the death of Mr. Ong Teck Lim, Chia Lim Neo, of St. Thomas Walk, bought over Woodsville (a freehold property of 18 acres off Serangoon Road) for $100,000 in 1920.

Kiong Choon Guan was a recipient of the Ong Teck Lim scholarship in 1916

Grandson: Ong Swee Chew
Ong Swee Chew, the eldest son of the late Mr Ong Teck Lim married Miss Tan Siew Hay Neo, the second daughter of Mr Tan Chin Cheng. The wedding took place in the Ong Swee Chew's residence in Woodsville on September 9, 1921. However in August 1922, they were separated and Ong Swee Chew place a notice in the papers that Miss Tan Siew Hay Neo was no longer under his protection having left the house without consent.

Grandson: Ong Swee Gam 
There was a notice of Mr Ong Swee Gam, the second son of the late Mr Ong Teck Lim leaving for London to take up his profession in medicine in March 1922.

Grandson: Ong Swee Chiang
Ong Swee Chiang left for Europe in 1929 to study law. On May 17, 1930 in London, Mr Ong Swee Chiang, the youngest son of the late Mr Ong Teck Lim and Mrs Ong Teck Lim married Miss Gaw Bee Neo, youngest daughter of Mr and Mrs Gaw Khek Khiam of 15 Newton Road. (Gaw Khek Kiam is the managing director of Ho Ho Biscuit, first established by Chew Boon Lay)

Unique elephant statute

Phoneix

Location
The tomb of Song Chit Neo is located in Lao Sua, in the jungle very close to PIE Whitley Road /Stevens Road 600m sign. Lao Sua is also sometimes referred as Greater Bukit Brown.


References
Untitled. (1913, April 26). Weekly Sun, page 6
Untitled. (1920, April 23). The Straits Times
Death. (1921, January 28). The Singapore Free Press, page 6
Announcement. (1921, September 6). The Straits Times, page 8
ACS Old Boys. (1921, August 13). The Singapore Free Press, page 7
Announcement. (1922, March 25). The Straits Times, page 8
Social and Personal. (1929, February 28). The Straits Times, page 8
Marriage. (1930, June 25). The Singapore Free Press, page 1

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