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Mar 25, 2011

3D Blog - Tanjong Pagar (Then and Now)

Tanjong Pagar C1888. Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Tanjong Pagar C1920. Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)


On this 3D blog about Tanjong Pagar since 1888 of the photos especially the landmark of the Jinrikisha Station on various stages of changes at Tanjong Pagar for 123 years.

Over the century, Tanjong Pagar has emphasised on communication and transportation in the central area of Singapore. The Port of Singapore on its wharves for entrepot trade for shipping, the railway station and Jinrickshaw Station.

This blog on Jinrickshaw Station heritage reminds me of my first visit to the San Francisco Cable Cars , the obsolete transportation at the Fishermanswharf website here . While the merciless mode of transportation was used by horses in San Francisco in the early days, the rickshaws were by the human pullers in Singapore.

Nowadays, public transport in Singapore such as MRT,buses, taxis, lorries, coaches, etc are vehicle driven, not rickshaws which depended on legs and arms by footwork manpower.

The Singapore Mass Rapid Transport (SMRT) today is "Moving People, Enhancing Lives", not "pulling people and horses, damaging lives of homo sapiens and equine species" in years yonder.

For many years, Tanjong Pagar, located between the docks and the town, was an enclave for the thousands of Chinese and Indian dock workers who had migrated to Singapore from the mid nineteenth century. With all the traffic between the docks and the town, Tanjong Pagar was also lucrative ground for rickshaw pullers awaiting clients. So prevalent was their presence that in 1904, the government established a Jinricksha Station at the junction of Tanjong Pagar Road and Neil Road.

From the time the docks began operations in 1864, land values in Tanjong Pagar rose, attracting wealthy Chinese and Arab traders to buy real estate there.

The proliferation of impoverished workers led to overcrowding, pollution and social problems such as opium smoking and prostitution. Tanjong Pagar generally deteriorated into an inner city ghetto. By World War II, Tanjong Pagar was a predominantly working class Hokkien area with an Indian minority.

In the mid-1980s, Tanjong Pagar became the first area in Singapore to be gazetted under the government's conservation plan. When the conservation project was completed, many of the area's shophouses were restored to their original appearance. But although a few traces of the old Tanjong Pagar remain — an old swimming pool, the odd street cobbler — the face of Tanjong Pagar has changed. Today, Tanjong Pagar has become a fashionable district, filled with thriving businesses, cafés, bars and restaurants. (Source: Wikipedia Singapore).

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Situated at the junction of Neil Road and Tanjong Pagar Road, the Jinrikisha Station is Singapore's last reminder of the once ubiquitous rickshaw. Rickshaws were small, light-weight carts with springs and large wheels. The rickshaw puller worked two shafts protruding from the front of the rickshaw and ran between them. The rickshaw was first imported from Shanghai to Singapore in 1880 and by 1888, a Jinricksha Department was set up to register and license each rickshaw. By the end of the 19th century, there were about 1,000 rickshaw owners in Singapore. The demand for rickshaws was so great that Japan began manufacturing cheaper versions.

The Jinrikisha Station was built from 1903 to 1904. Its location was ideal for catering to customers from the nearby Tanjong Pagar Docks and the adjacent thoroughfare that led from the docks to the town. By 1919, there were 9,000 rickshaws manned by 20,000 rickshaw pullers working in shifts.

The life of a rickshaw puller was harsh. Most could not afford to own a rickshaw and had to rent one. Rickshaw pullers lived in cramped cubicles in shophouses in Chinatown and earnings were meagre. To ease their heartaches as well as their overworked bodies, many turned to opium. Until 1904, all the rickshaws were two-seaters, which were heavy and often used to transport whole families and commercial goods; the weight was almost unbearable for the rickshaw pullers.

In 1911, the government tried to ban the two-seater rickshaw, but opposition delayed the passing of this law for another three years. However, when it was finally implemented, it proved ineffective. Fortunately, the single-seater soon emerged as the more popular rickshaw and the two-seater faded into disuse.

Rickshaws were gradually replaced by other means of transport: the trishaw, the electric tram, the bus and the car. After World War II (1942-1945), they were phased out by government legislation and the once familiar sight of rickshaws and rickshaw pullers disappeared forever from the streets of Singapore

At one time the Jinrikisha Station was used as a family planning clinic. In 1987 it was one of the first buildings in Tanjong Pagar restored by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). It was refurbished into a shopping and recreational centre. There are a seafood restaurant, shops, offices and nightclubs in the present building. (Source: Wikipedia Singapore)

Same place. Different times. Different infrastructure. Remaking of Tanjong Pagar...Time changes with the modern times. Experiment the third dimension how we feel for the same place at different times at day and night through this journalistic photography blog.


Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)



Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archive Singapore (NAS)


Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

Source: National Archives of Singapore (NAS)

More about Jinrickshaw at "Modes Of Road Transportation In Singapore In The 1930s - The Rickshaw" blog by Victor Koo here and the book "Horse-powered & Man-powered Transport: a philatelic excursion by Dr Tan Wee Kiat, Victor Koo and Noel Hidalgo Tan here .

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