Bukit Brown Wayfinder 2 - Our continued efforts to Save Bukit Brown

How time just flew by when the first Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Wayfinder was first launched in November 2017. Guided walks to Bukit Brown that gain traction over the years to raise awareness required lots of time and manpower but having a Wayfinder was an option for visitors to experience Bukit Brown on their own. This idea was not actually new. Back in 2011, the Goh Brothers (Raymond and Charles Goh), started a simplified DIY Trail Guide that actually got me hooked and fascinated with the rich heritage of Bukit Brown.

Being outdoors, the first generation of installed panels faced the elements daily and many were weathered eventually. Some tombs also were hard to maintain as the flora and fauna in Bukit Brown are often as we say "on steroids" - so some tombs began to get overgrown as well. As a community of "loose" volunteers coming from diverse backgrounds, we came together yet again, with Catherine Lim, Bianca Polak and Lee Chyen Yee taking the lead and coordinating back in 2022. Getting confirmation on the success of the grant  (Heritage Grants Scheme by National Heritage Board) on November 2024 was music to our ears and marked an important milestone after facing so much difficulties (that i won't mention) initially. With some donations from previous tours (i remembered doing one with Xu Meibao back in 31 July 2022), it was still not sufficient to cover the cost of panels as the grant is a partial grant. The team leads pressed on with content development for both the physical and digital aspects. Another important deliverable that we thought was important was a Learning Journey Package for schools and the digital content element for engagement. The Learning Journey Package for schools was important to us as other than conducting tours and raising awareness, equipping educators of  Singapore Schools with resources about Bukit Brown rich heritage, the often unwritten stories that don't appear on Singapore History Books, will adds richness in layers to the Singapore Story, whether it is for SG60, SG70 or even SG100. 

As i shared earlier, we are volunteers from different backgrounds and of course opinions, but despite all the difficulties we faced (be it because of differences of opinion, work load, etc.), we managed to come together, remained united with a common mission and voice - to raise awareness of the value of Bukit Brown as a heritage space and green lung worthy of conservation and protection. Our love for food also was another important "glue" that kept us together. In this journey, we re-grouped and even managed to squeeze in the "Bukit Brown Spirit Film Festival" as well. As the months went on, the content was ready and test driving of the Learning Package among selected teachers showed that it was workable. The final hurdle of the Wayfinder 2 project was of course funding. We were still short of funds. Somehow, the spirits moved people and a white knight came to our rescue, in the form of the Tan Ean Kiam Foundation and for that we are grateful. 

Bukit Brown Wayfinder 2 was launched on 12 October 2025 and inviting Minister Desmond Lee to grace the event seemed natural as he was the one that launched the first Wayfinder back in November 2017. We are sincerely grateful for his presence and for accepting the invite. After a short speech by Minister and Catherine, Chyen Yee and I brought Minister on a short tour to experience the Wayfinder and also highlight what is new in this version. Guiding him was a breeze as he put us at ease and was sincerely interested.

Overall, Bukit Brown Wayfinder 2 in my opinion was a success and a labor of love by all things Bukit Brown (atBB). It is an encouragement for us to continue to engage with Government, Educators, civil society and future leaders of Singapore with one common goal - Save Bukit Brown. 

Minster Desmond Lee with the Brownies at the Bukit Brown Wayfinder 2 panel

A well attended launch with Educators and Civil Society listening to Minister Desmond Lee 

Minister Desmond Lee with Brownie Lee Chyen Yee and Peter Pak 

The Bukit Brown Wayfinder panels 

My post won't cover all 32 panels, but i will share how they look like and my youtube shorts will also give you an idea and feel of the Wayfinder. Of all the panels, my favorite addition for now is the tomb of Low Nong Nong  - a pauper tomb. Pauper tombs rarely have voices or stories to tell. But Low Nong Nong's story was known because of his tragic death in a union strike that enables us to share his story and contrast that with the largest tomb in Bukit Brown, the tomb of Ong Sam Leong -directly opposite of Low Nong Nong's.

The panel of Lim Keng Chiew-  scan the QR code for more details

The panel and the tomb 

The tomb and panel of Low Nong Nong - one of the new additions

For immediate release

12th October, 2025

The Bukit BrownWayfinder by all things Bukit Brown

The Bukit Brown Wayfinder, a new self-guided trail of 32 graves with signage covering Hills 1 and 3
of Bukit Brown Cemetery at Lorong Halwa, has been launched.
During the open house this afternoon, about 30 educators from secondary to tertiary institutions
were invited to experience the trail with Guest-of-Honour Minister of Education Desmond Lee.

The profiles reflected along the Wayfinder trail are the collective stories of Singapore’s Chinese
migrant society since the 1800s. These narratives include characters from (indentured
labourers) to (bankers); Christmas Island labourers who mined phosphate and were
employed by the Ong Sam Leong family, who were also pioneers in the mass entertainment
industry with amusement park; (business owners) who owned (bumboats) that ferried goods from the harbour to godowns along the Singapore River; pioneers in education who founded the Nanyang and Singapore Chinese Girls’ Schools; opium kings going head on with a few good men from the abolitionist camp; and the victims and heroes of World War II.

Embedded in all the tomb signage are QR codes that open up to essays about the individuals, with
their stories packed with context and connections to the times lived.

As the terrain of the trail is uneven, the route markers are supplemented with online video
directions to help navigate from one tomb to the next. All the tombs on the Wayfinder are visible
from the road that circumvents Hills 1 and 3.

The starting point is a four-panel storyboard on the concrete platform located at Hill 1. 
It covers 
1) Wayfinder: how to navigate the trail safely; 
2) Heritage: material culture of the tombs, what they
symbolise and how they relate to the rites and rituals practiced; 
3) Habitat: highlights of the species of flora and fauna that are found in the cemetery;
4) History: our migrant story of the Chinese diaspora.

Learning Journey Package for Schools

Bukit Brown is further enriched as an outdoor classroom with a new Learning Journey Package,
which will be made available to teachers to curate meaningful experiences with and for their
students. It has lesson plans, sample worksheets, as well as topics to discuss and debate with a
comprehensive list for further research. The Learning Journey Package leverages on the physical and
digital platforms of the Bukit Brown Way finder.

Background

Today’s Bukit Brown Way finder is a new iteration of the system that was first launched in
November 2017. Out of the 32 tombs featured, 13 are newly added. The additions of the digital
platform and a Learning Journey package for schools are catered to current trends of sharing
information effectively by tapping on social media platforms.
The project has been made possible with a grant from the National Heritage Board, a donation by
the Tan Ean Kiam Foundation and public donations. We are grateful to all who contributed in one
way or another.

About all things Bukit Brown (atBB)

We are a volunteer community who came together in 2012 at the news of the development of
Lornie Highway and have been walking the grounds since. Our projects include two exhibitions, a
book on World War II at Bukit Brown and the Wayfinder in Bukit Brown. We also organise free
public walks that tell the Singapore story through the colourful personalities buried at Bukit Brown.

Instagram launched: https://www.instagram.com/bukitbrownwayfinder/
FB group: Heritage Singapore –Bukit Brown Cemetery
FB page: all things Bukit Brown 
Peatix: https://peatix.com/group/16067?lang=en-sg
Website: bukitbrown.com
Email: a.t.bukitbrown@gmail.com