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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 with the label cemetery

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Notice of Exhumation - Unidentified Coffins uncovered near Bukit Timah Road

December 03, 2025

bukit timah cemetery exhumation

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Jewish Cemetery at Choa Chu Kang Singapore

November 18, 2024

cemetery Choa Chu Kang Jewish Cemetery

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The end of former St. John's Church Cemetery at the Old Jurong Road

February 09, 2023

cemetery Old Jurong Road St. Andrew's Church Mission

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St. John's Church - The "almost" forgotten Church at Old Jurong Road

November 27, 2021

11 milestone Jurong cemetery Church Hong Ka Old Jurong Road St. Andrew's Church Mission

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Qing Ming in Ubin Island (April 10, 2016)

cemetery qingming ubin

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Bukit Brown Iron Wrought Gates refurbished, columns relocated

October 10, 2015

Bukit Brown cemetery

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Newspaper mentions of the Rojak Librarian (2014)

September 24, 2014

Bukit Brown cemetery newspaper mentions

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Bukit Brown945
Hill 3343
Hill 1191
Hill 4173
Died Young169
decorative tiles159
Block 3 Div D138
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Rojak Librarian (Peter Pak): Advocate for Conservation of Bukit Brown Cemetery. Heritage and Nature Enthusiast.

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Resource Guide on Bukit Brown

History from the Hills (2013)

Newspaper mentions (2014)

Newspaper mentions (2017)

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

Newspaper mentions(2022)

Grave Matters-The Greater Bukit Brown(2023)

Newspaper mentions(2024)

Newspaper mentions(2024)

Newspaper mentions(2025)

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

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Lim Teow Nam's daughter (Bukit Brown)

The english words on the headstone, Lim Teow Nam's daughter caught my eye. With a marble and decorative tiles below, i suspect this is a tomb of a girl who died young. Checking the burial registrar, Lim Bi Soon passed away at the age of 2 on 2 February 1929. Lim Teow Nam's baby daughter died young but her tomb is one of the few that at least carries her parent's (in this case her father name). Although i can't find any information about her father, Lim Teow Nam, I have seen a number of children tombs which don't even carry their parent's name making it almost impossible to trace the family. Example of such tombs include; Teo Soon Lam , Teo Hock Leng , Tan Kai How , Master Eddie Chan Sin Chuan and others. Baby Lim Bi Soon - Lim Teow Nam's daughter Location of tomb Block 2 Division F, plot 141

Brothers buried side-by-side (Bukit Brown)

I was exploring Bukit Brown during Qingming (aka Tomb-Sweeping day) to observe the traditional practice as well as to suss out stories from descendants who visit Bukit Brown. I had the good fortune of meeting Mr. Chew Hay Teck (89 years old) who was born in 1935 to a family of 9 or 10 siblings. He and his family were in Bukit Brown for Qingming. Mr. Chew Hay Teck came across to me as a sprightly gentlemen and after a brief introduction, he shared with me that he is visiting his two brothers who are buried side by side and has been doing so every Qing Ming. His eldest brother (who he refers to as Tai Cheong) was one of the early civilian victims killed by the Japanese bombing of Singapore when the bomb hit their family home in Chin Swee Road. Fortunately, the rest of the family members including Chew Hay Teck (who was only 7 years old then) did not share the same fate when the roof collapsed and killed his eldest brother. The other plot without a headstone lies his 3rd or 4th broth...

Notice of Exhumation - Unidentified Coffins uncovered near Bukit Timah Road

In the Classified Section under Notices - a Land Transport Authority (LTA) - Notice of Exhumation caught my eye. The content informed that unidentified coffins were uncovered during an ongoing construction near Bukit Timah Road. Notice of Exhumation - Unidentified Coffins near Bukit Timah (source: The Straits Times, 3 December 2025) Based on the location found, it is very likely the Christian Cemetery at Bukit Timah. This Christian Cemetery was opened for burials after the "Old Christian Cemetery" in Fort Canning was closed for burials. Using the NUS Historical Maps of Singapore reinforces my theory as you can see the overlay between today's map vs a map from 1932. The site that the unidentified coffin was found is likely the location were LTA is digging for the North South Corridor, which is on the grounds of the former Kampong Java Park . (Refer to the red dot), which i learn subsequently is likely to be on the Catholic Section of the Bukit Timah Christian Cemetery. ...

Jewish Cemetery at Choa Chu Kang Singapore

This is my blog experience of my visit to the Jewish Cemetery in Choa Chu Kang on 17 November 2024. The visit was made possible via My Community Festival - My Last Journey. During this tour i learned a lot from Rabbi Nissim Zawdy (a young Rabbi from The Chesed-El Synagogue at Oxley Rise River Valley). During our visit Rabbi Nissim eloquently and patiently explained to us the story of the Jewish Community in Singapore, the Jewish Cemeteries that exist as well as finally the Jewish funeral rites and practices in Singapore. He also answered many curious questions that we may have about the Jewish customs and rites. Disclaimer: If there is any mistakes in my interpretation, it is solely by me and not associated to Rabbi Nissim nor the volunteer guides of MyCommunity. At the entrance of the Jewish Cemetery in Choa Chu Kang, i am greeted by a sign in Hebrew. Curious to understand what it was trying to say, i used AI to interpret it for me. The plaque with the Hebrew text at the entrance...

Teo Soon Lam (Bukit Brown)

Teo Soon Lam was born on 9 March 1941 and passed away on 10 September 1941. His tomb is rare as it as a huge ceramic photo of him. From the burial registrar, Teo Soon Lam was listed as Hokkien and his age, 6 months old. From the photo i can make two possible bangles on his hand - maybe jade bangles ? and what looks like his pacifier ! Baby Teo Soon Lam Teo Soon Lam, 6 months old -passed away on 10 September 1941 Location of tomb Block 5 Section C, plot 18 Close-by his tomb is another tomb of Tan Kai How who died young at 4 years old . Teo Soon Lam tomb in Bukit Brown 20240220

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...

Mrs. Lee Peck Choo nee Tay Geok Lin (Bukit Brown)

Mrs. Lee Peck Choo nee Madam Tay Geok Lin passed away at the age of 33 on 1 July 1934. Mrs. Lee Peck Choo nee Madam Tan Geok Lin Mr. Lee Peck Choo, a dispensary clerk drawing a salary of $45 a month, in his public examination said his liabilities were $6,020 to eight creditors. His bankruptcy was due to the failure of a dispensary he started with 4 partners in 1930. In March 1931, the dispensary closed down with loses of over $4,000. From the below article from 1931, you can see the defendants include Lee Peck Choo and his wife Tay Geok Lin whose business assets was eventually sold in a Sheriff's Sale. Did Mr. Lee Peck Choo recover from his bankruptcy ? What happen to him ? I am not sure for now. Location of tomb Block 3 Section C, plot 56 Damaged tomb of Mrs. Lee Peck Choo nee Tay Geok Lin

Lim Loh (Bukit Brown)

Lim Loh (also known as Lim Chee Gee),born in Nan Ann, Fujian Province was a famous architect, building contractor and brick-maker that was responsible for the building of Victoria Memorial Hall, Parliament House (old Parliament House) and Goodwood Park Hotel. He had offices in 31,Upper Macau Street and a business called Chop Teng Seng Hin at No 4 Telok Ayer Street. He owned a rubber plantation where he built 3 bungalows for his family to stay and owned Royal Johore Tin Mining Co. shares as well as Godowns in Raffles Square. In summary, he was famous in his own right for being a "towkay" and an industrialist responsible for iconic buildings of Singapore, but people today remember more the deeds of his son, Lim Boh Seng. Lim Loh Lim Loh vs "Daily Advertiser" In a very well known libel case, Lim Loh successfully sued Daily Advertiser for $5000 and retraction and apology in 1894 for an article the Daily Advertiser wrote in March 30th about an incident involving...

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...

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...

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