Ways Done in the Past - Public Toilets

Public toilet at Chulia Street in 1970

Where to look for public toilets in Singapore in the early days?

One public toilet I remember as a child in 1950 when my mother brought me to visit my grandmother at Phillip Street, Singapore.  It was located near the former OCBC Building and the present United Overseas Bank Head Office. The toilet was demolished many years ago.

The above archived photos of  the public toilet at Chulia Street (as with other photos on this blog with the courtesy of the National Archives of Singapore with acknowledgement and thanks).

This blog topic was triggered by my memories in the young days that whenever I went to town with my mother to look for toilet, I said to her in Hokkien, "gua ai pang jeoh" (I need to pass urine). She would just say "khi long kow pang jeoh"  (go and pass urine in the longkang).  I had to rush to the nearest drain to pass water ("perte d'urine" in French), This may be impolite or no manners to speak in this way. But it was a 6 year-old child talking to her mother in 1953 just like that in Hokkien ; )

The drain at the Chulia Street would most likely lead to the nearby Singapore River.  I remember the Chulia Street public toilet was located beside a bus terminus of  Hock Lee bus number 4 which ply between Tiong Bahru Road and Chulia Street.

The Hock Lee Amalgamated Bus at Tiong Bahru  c1956

 In the olden days, the public toilets were used free of charge.

Do we know how the "Limbo Rock Dance" was invented?



In 1963, Chubby Checker, the man who made the Twist famous released a song called “Limbo Rock”.

A guy installed a pay toilet to recoup some of his lost business and invented the "Limbo Rock Dance", as somebody said.

Lets take a look at some public toilets in town and the kampongs in the 1960s  as shown on this blog.

Public toilet at Clarke Quay c1970

On the left of the photo a public toilet in the market place c1965

A toilet in the kampong in 1980 "Please do not throw too much"...

A toilet at Kampong Melayu in 1985 to be under urban development

A kampong toilet at Punggol farm house in 1988

Another kampong toilet at Punggol farm house in 1988

Photo of a kampong toilet with the "nightsoil carrier " using the bucket system in Singapore in the 1950s.