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Rojak Librarian

The Rojak Librarian is a blog that covers a range of topics related to Singapore's history, culture, and heritage. I wrote many articles on Bukit Brown, exploring the cemetery's past and present, the lives of the early pioneers buried there and the social and cultural significance of the site. I also cover about nature and birdwatching.

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Showing posts from May, 2026

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Rojak Librarian (Peter Pak): Advocate for Conservation of Bukit Brown Cemetery. Heritage and Nature Enthusiast.

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The Stories Behind: Birdwatcher turned grave hunter reunites families with forgotten tombs of their ancestors(2022)

Newspaper mentions(2025)

Newspaper mentions(2024)

Newspaper mentions(2024)

Grave Matters-The Greater Bukit Brown(2023)

Newspaper mentions(2022)

Tuesday Report (2018) 星期二特写 | 行脚。发现第4集：武吉布朗之旅

Newspaper mentions (2017)

History from the Hills (2013)

Newspaper mentions (2014)

Resource Guide on Bukit Brown

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Popular Post

Soh Koon Eng remembered (Bukit Brown)

On 8 December 1941 at around four in the morning, the first bombs were dropped on Singapore. 61 people died and more than 700 were injured. By late January 1942, Singapore was already under constant attack by Japanese planes and an estimated 150-200 people was said to have died each day as direct result of the constant air harassment. Soh Koon Eng, 19 years old It was 27 January 1942, the air-raid siren was already becoming a frightening yet familiar sound and the population under blitz braced itself for further devastation. A young 19 year old girl by the name of Soh Koon Eng was at a friends place in Lorong 18, off Geylang Road when the siren went off. She decided to hurry home to her house at no 28, Lorong 20, despite her friend telling her to wait for the "all-clear". Soh Koon Eng (photo courtesy of Geraldine Soh) Miss Soh Koon Eng did manage to get home and sought shelter under the altar table of their family /ancestral temple together with the rest of the fami...

Gan Eng Seng and family (Bukit Brown)

Gan Eng Seng was born in Malacca ( Melaka) in 1844. His Great Grandparents came from Sam-Toh, Fukien province. Born third in a family of 5, he had two elder sisters, Gan Gin Neo and Gan Guat Neo. He was the eldest son. His younger brother was Gan Eng Chye followed by the youngest sister, Gan Guan Neo. Born poor, he still was able to received some education, giving him the ability to read and write simple English. His father died when he was 16 years old. He then left for Singapore and was involved initially in a nutmeg business in a small scale. He went on to served under Guthrie and Co. Gan Eng Seng Chief Campradore, Gutherie and Co. Thomas Scott, a partner of Gutherie, offered Gan Eng Seng a job in the godown at Coller Quay as a clerk and it was there he climbed up the ranks, from an Assistant Storekeeper to Chief Storekeeper and finally the Chief Campradore of Guthrie and Company after 13 years of service. He was the Chief Compradore for 25 years till he died in 1899. ...

Tan Swee Hoe and family (Batu Pahat)

Sometime back in August 2012, i wrote an article about Tan Swee Hoe who is buried in Bukit Brown . Tan Swee Hoe came to Singapore as a young boy and worked his way up, eventually becoming one of founders of Ho Hong Bank, and later a director of Overseas Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) after it merged with it. He was also for two terms, the president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Batu Pahat, shareholder of Ho Aik Steamships. Tan Swee Hoe was a member of the Council of State, Johore and received a title S.M.J (Setia Mahkota Johore) from the government of Johore in 1929 for his contributions. He owned several property in Singapore and Batu Pahat. Tan Swee Hoe In January 2014, i was fortunate to make a trip with like minded friends to Batu Pahat to visit one of the properties he owned as well as a temple he contributed too and finally the grave of his son. Tan Swee Hoe's mansion First on my wishlist was Tan Swee Hoe's mansion on 160 Jalan Kluang, Batu Paha...

Kamala Circus - The Great Indian Circus visits Singapore

I heard about the Tai Thean Kew circus from my involvement with Bukit Brown and during one my tours on the Queenstown Heritage Trail , i was told of another Indian circus troupe that existed in the late 1950's and 1960's. Recently, while curating ideas for a Bukit Brown tour on Pioneers of Early Entertainment, i came across a travelling circus troupe by the name of Kamala Circus. Kamala Circus (source: NewspaperSG) Kamala Circus was reputed to be the largest travelling show in the Far East. It boasted over 100 Indian artist and featured acts such as the flying trapeze act, the "Globe of Death" motor cycle act by two young girls, a 30 foot leap by a motorcyclist and the "cat" act. It claims over 300 tons of equipment and animals which include 16 horses, 8 Ceylon baby elephants, an African lion and 2 lionesses, 2 tiger cubs and 3 Indian mountain goats. It came to Singapore in 1947 from India via Ceylon and performed for a month before touring around th...

Woodneuk House - a palace in ruins

Forgotten to many is an abandoned house, a palace or Istana of sorts to the Sultan of Johore. The house is known as simply Woodneuk house. There was another house or palace that resided in the grounds previously. It was called Tyersall house or Istana Tyersall and people often confused Tyersall house vs Woodneuk house because of its proximity. Hopefully my article below helps clear this confusion and also help share what i have learned (or in my case, still learning) about the heritage value of this building and it's rich historical past. Tyersall House ( Istana Tyersall) Originally a country house, it was owned by Mr. William Napier and built in 1854. Sitting on 67 acres of land, it was put up for sale in 1857 and ownership transferred to the Sultan of Johore. It was rebuilt on a larger scale by 1892. Sultan Abu Bakar threw a party or ball, marking its reopening on January 15, 1895. The roof of the new house was said to have a distinct red tiled roof. The map below provides c...

Tan Swee Hoe mansion in Batu Pahat

The status of Tan Swee Hoe's mansion at 160 Jalan Kluang, Batu Pahat was finally revealed! The mansion that was once owned by Tan Swee Hoe's descendants was sold and the rumors circulating at one point of time was it was going to be demolished. In fact various readers of my blog sent me pictures of the mansion after it was sold where the rooftop of the building and the interiors was completely stripped. Tan Swee Hoe's mansion (minus the roof) Well it was finally revealed in various Malaysian papers ( Sin Chew Daily , Johor China Press ) that it was purchased by His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar, the Sultan of Johor. It was reported in the papers that the Sultan of Johor plans to restore the building and turn it into a Heritage Centre featuring the artefacts of the Johor Chinese community as well as as artefacts from China as a strong symbol to reaffirm the long relationship between the Johor Sultanate and China. About Tan Swee Hoe Tan Swee Hoe Ta...

Khoo Kay Hian (Bukit Brown)

During the rubber boom of the 1910, Khoo Kay Hian / Khoo Kay Hean was well positioned and made money as a rubber broker based in The Arcade. He went on to be the founder of one of the best known stock broking firm in Singapore bearing his namesake, Kay Hian and Co in 1921. He was also a committee member of the Singapore Sharebrokers' Association (this was before it became the Singapore Stock Exchange). Throughout his career, he held various positions and they included: Assistant Secretary of the Ee Hoe Hean Club (1918) ; Management Committee of the Garden Club (1920) Chinese Lantern Procession (1922), Joint Honorary Secretary together with Lim Kee Cheok. (Lim Chwee Chian was the Chairman) and also Committee member of the Singapore Chinese Girls School (1925). He contributed to various causes and some of them include: Kampong Martin Relief Fund (1916), Chinese Halifax Relief Fund (1917), Sir Arthur Young's Portrait Fund (1919), St Andrew's Hospital Building (1920), Nanyang U...

Mrs. Teo Boon Gan nee Madam Goh Choon Neo (Lao Sua)

Madam Goh Choon Neo passed away on 24 March 1967 at the age of 75 years old. She is the wife of the late Mr. Teo Boon Gan. From the tomb, the name of her children are; Son: Teo Beng Siang, Teo Beng Hai Daughter: Teo Molly Adopted Sons; Goh Guinea, Goh Sunny Grandsons: Teo Soon Hock, Teo Soon Eng, Teo Soon Chye The tomb of Madam Goh Choon Neo was one of the many we were looking for. The request for the tomb of Madam Goh Choon Neo was a request from G.T. Lye way back in 2024 when he asked Raymond Goh to help find Madam Goh Choon Neo. The information provided - her sons are Charlie Teo Beng Siang, Georgie Teo Beng Hai and and daughter, Molly Teo. She passed away on March 1967. We been searching since that time based on the clue provided that it is along Kheam Hock Road and up hill. Finally today, through sheer luck we found it. The name all matches. Madam Goh Choon Neo nee Mrs. Teo Boon Gan Possible Connections [Note: This are unconfirm connections based on assumptions of connectio...

Qing Ming with the descendants of Tan Tock Seng (2026)

I am fortunate to yet again to meet Roney Tan and other Tan Tock Seng clan members who were carrying out their annual tradition of visiting and paying respects to their ancestors, Tan Tock Seng , Tan Kim Ching , Tan Boo Liat , Tan Wi Yan , Mrs. Tan Wi Yan this year. Again this time around, i managed to catch them at the tomb of Tan Boo Liat (son of Tan Soon Toh, grandson of Tan Kim Ching and great grandson of Tan Tock Seng) at Bukit Brown. Yet again, there was big group with multi-generation presence showing that the Qing Ming traditions have been clearly passed on from generation to generation. I also do believe that Roney Tan of course played the biggest role in organising this event and keeping this tradition strong and alive. The last time i met them paying respects was in 2024 and in 2022 . My chance meeting in 2024 was especially special for me because after Bukit Brown, i accompanied Roney to also visit Tan ...

A kidnap bid foiled in the Shaw family - Bukit Brown connection

This week's news was abuzz with first, the passing of Sir Run Run Shaw (CBE, GBM), the legendary movie mogul. He died on January 7, 2014, aged 107. He is survived by 2 sons ( Shaw Vee Meng, Shaw Vee Chung, Harold ), 2 daughters (Dorothy Shaw, Violet Shaw ) , 2 daughter-in-laws ( Josephine Kho, Diana Wee) and many grand and great grandchildren. His wife was Lady Lily Shaw (deceased ) and years after his first wife passing married Madam Mona Fong. The second news that captivated many Singaporean's was the kidnap attempt of a 79 year old woman, Madam Eng Lai Poh. She is the mother of Mr Lim Hock Chee, Chief Executive of public listed company Sheng Siong, a supermarket chain. The ransom sought by the kidnappers was $20 million. Mr. Lim Hock Chee called the police who helped tracked down the kidnappers and caught the suspects. Bukit Brown connection to Shaw and kidnapping You may be wondering how this week's two story is related to Bukit Brown? Rewind back to October...

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Heritage in S'pore and M'sia

All things Bukit Brown
Singapore Tombstones Epigraphic Materials 新加坡墓碑铭集录
Bukit Brown Cemetery
Bukit Brown Trails
Burial Registrar
Bukit Brown Documentation of Graves
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Historic Chinese Architecture in Singapore
Our Bedok Kampong House
Good morning yesterday
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Overseas Chinese in the British Empire

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Nature in S'pore and M'sia

Focus Ubin
National Parks(Singapore)
Mangrove Flora and fauna of Sg Buloh
Bukit Timah Nature Reserve-Wildlife Singapore
Online guide to Chek Jawa, Ubin

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