Kallang Park 1960s

I have many black and white photographs taken about half a decade ago. Occasionally I looked at them and reminescence of the happy days I had with my children when they were very young. I came across the photos taken at Kallang Park in early 1960. It was a park barren of buildings except for the children's playground. Going to the park was by your own transport as there was no bus service going to the park then.

Among the play areas was a wading pool for children to play in the water. It was later filled up with sand and became a sand pit. Children built sand castles and imaginery monuments. Other play things were sea-saws, swings, slides and merry-go-rounds. In addition there were colourful tunnels for children to play hide and seek. All the play areas were near each other and children moved easily from one to the other.

Today the landscape at Kallang Park has been transformed into a sports complex plus entertainment places and food outlets. Soon the famous 'Kallang Roar' National Stadium will make way for the Singapore Sports Hub.


Kallang Park looking towards the Old Airport Road HDB estates



This swing was for younger children. It had a seat with safety bars all round.



This guy broke the safety rule by standing on the swing. The swings for older children are on the background to the left.



Wading pool turned into a sand pit



Colourful hide and seek tunnel



My family at the merry-go-round

The slide is on the opposite side

Play areas in the background

Charlee The Puppet

Charlee, the puppet was born more than 50 years ago. The first time I met him was during my honey moon with my wife, way back in the spring of 1962 on board the ship MV Vietnam sailing from Singapor to Saigon, HongKong, Japan and back the same way. He was introduced to the passengers after a magic show by the late Mr Khoo Teng Eng. Among the passengers was the then Singapore Minister of Education, Mr Yong Nyuk Lin and his wife. Charlee was very humorous and entertaining. He was one guy who never grow old and has the same handsome face today. Through Charlee, my wife and I came to know the magician and ventriloquist, the late Mr Khoo Teng Eng. They were on their 'second honey moon'. Our friendship blossomed after returning to Singapore. On one occasion a mutual friend arrived from Hong Kong. Charlee was introduced to him. After the introduction cheeky Charlee stole a kiss from my wife! So, ladies beware of Charlie the cassanova and do not let cheeky Charlee get too close unless you want to be kissed. I do not know where he is now. Anyway, I hope he continues to make people happy with his humour and wise talks.



French boat MV Vietnam at Saigon port



The late Mr Khoo Teng Eng and his magic show.
At centre: Mr & Mrs Yong Nyuk Lin



Charlee was introduced to a mutual friend from Hong Kong.




Cheeky Charlee stole a kiss from my wife.




Saying farewell to the host.

Fire At Kampong Eunos

Map of Kampong Eunos



Kampong Eunos fire site in February 1963
Picture from the National Archives of Singapore

The original Kampong Eunos was a Malay resettlement in Kaki Bukit area at Jalan Eunos. My Kampong Eunos then was a Chinese village bounded by Changi Road/Lorong Marican/Jalan Yasin/Jalan Eunos forming a rectangle. A sign post 'Kampong Eunos' stood by the roadside between No 279 and 283 Changi Road showed the way to the kampong.

The kampong had a coffee shop for the villagers to socialise, a provision shop with a stall extension selling perishable food such as vegetables and fish and a Chinese temple to provide spiritual need. There were a few other shops in between. For products not available at the shops the housewives made their way to the nearby markets at Changi Road and Joo Chiat Road now replaced by Joo Chiat Complex. Diagonally opposite the temple was a 2 storey timber building Chinese school. Behind it was a cluster of attap huts. Further into the kampong was a coffee powder factory. In February 1963, a few attap huts situated nearer to Changi Road was on fire. The burnt area was acquired by the authority and a community centre was built. The building is now home to many artists.

Another access to the kampong was from Lorong Sarina. It was originally a foot path leading to a vegetable farm between Lorong Marican and the path. In the second half of 1950 the landscape changed due to housing developments in the area. Lorong Sarina, an earth road was built to provide an access from Changi Road to Jalan Yasin. There was a mixed of Chinese and Malay population in this part of the kampong.

Malay friends came for a visit during Chinese New Year

People in the kampong were very friendly and knew their neighbours by name. I had a Malay neighbour a few doors away. My mother would baby sit for her 3 months old son, each time she went to the polyclinic. The child called my mother 'mak' (mother in Malay). On festival day such as Chinese New Year and Hari Raya Aidilfitri, we visited each other's home.

We owned a black and white television set and children from the neighbourhood came to watch the programme every evenings.

In the morning, mobil hawkers on wheels came with vegetables, fish and pork. Besides marketing it was also the time for housewives to socialise and gossips. The men socialised by playing mahjong with the neighbours especially on week-ends. I had fond memory of the Magnolia fresh milk/ice cream vendor. He'd come in his mini van and I loved to eat his sandwich ice cream with chocolate flavour. Another favourite hawker was the Indonesian satay man. He never over burn the satay and the beef was succulent.

Today, Kampong Eunos has been transformed and become smaller. The terraced house where I lived and the land nearby had been acquired by the Government for the building of Sim's Avenue East and MRT line. Condominiums sprouted out facing Sim's Avenue East. Kampong Eunos is no longer a kampong.

A mobile hawker on wheels.

Housewives meet and chat

The dirt road also act as a playground for the children.

My children

Two good neighbours

A kampong beauty

My brother and our neighbours playing mahjong

Our black and white television set

Kampong wedding

The wedding entourage

Chong Pang Village 1959

Cattle roam freely at Sembawang Road in the 50s and 60s
Above a cow was resting on the roadside at Chong Pang Village

Chong Pang village is so different now compared to 5 decades ago. Recently, I came across a few photos posted by hyacinthus in her blog. It is no longer a village with attap or corrugated iron roofs. The whole landmark has changed beyond recognition. Life within a small community then was more leisurely and the villagers knew almost all their neighbours. It reminded me of the days when our team chose Chong Pang village for our village report. The field works was part of our diploma course.

The wet market was off the main road and hawker stalls overflowed onto the market concourse. Most of the stalls were operated by illegal hawkers. At that time, Singapore was self sufficient in meat and market produce with some imported from the neighbouring countries. Housewives looked their best in sarong kabaya and Chinese samfoo for their marketing.

After the marketing hours, refuse could be seen all over the place. Picture above showed a daily rated worker cleaning the area. People like him helped to keep our environment clean.

In late 1950s the first Mayor of Singapore introduced public standpipes to most of the villages in the rural areas. Villagers were so used to getting free water from public standpipes that they continued to do so even when their homes had piped-in water supply.

Villagers walked quite a distance to the main road to take public transport to work and to school. In the picture, the centre house had attap roof whereas the neighbours on either side had upgraded to corrugated iron roof.

The village had a sago factory. Notice the unhygienic way of drying sago flour in the open.

One of the private clinic in the village. The doctor parked his car on the shop's pavement as there was no proper parking lot fronting his shop.

Mobile clinic from the Ministry of Health for the poor or was it an X-ray vehicle as TB then was the No 1 killer disease.

The Morris Oxford on Sembawang Road, was going towards Nee Soon. Most motor vehicles at that time were British, European and American made. Japanese car was not yet introduced to the population.

Picnic at Changi Beach

Picnic at Changi Point beach on 4th August 1951

I was in secondary one, and during the August holidays the first thing in our minds was to orgainise a picnic but we ended having 2 picnics in the same month.

A group photo for all boys and girls

We played horse riding in the sea.

The fun was to push the other 'rider' into the water.

Notice the the 'kelong' or fishing stake on the upper

left of the photo. I have not been to Changi beach

for a long time, so I do not know if any 'kelong' is left.

We played games and the loser had to play a forfeit.

The guy above lost in the game and

had to put on the lipstick on his lips.

The lady in the photo was very popular.

All the guys who had to perform forfeit chose her as

his partner.

The couple was not kissing because there was

something in between. Maybe they were biting

an apple or ? The person in the centre was holding

the thing to prevent it from dropping.

Then it was her turn to perform the forfeit.

Can you believe this? The couple were

next door neighbours and they did not know

each other existed until they met at the picnic.

A fairy tale story always had a happy ending.

They married and lived happily ever after.

The girls were all from the same class performing a pyramid.

Two of the girls were twin. Try to spot them.

1, 2, 3, cheese!

Another group photo. This time they were in the water.

The guy named Mahmood 4th from the left was a

TV comdian before. He died a few years ago.

Pinic at Changi Point beach on 25th August 1951

Many of the boys and girls who came to our picnic on 4th August

asked us to organise another one. We were happy to oblige.

All girls group photo.

A group photo for all.

A group photo for guys.

Mahmood was standing 5th from right.

Hey! What were you all watching?

Wish I can remember.

Look! They were enjoying and laughing

at the happening in front of them.

I cannot recollect as it took place more

than half a decade ago.

There were bushes at

Changi beach then. Love birds liked to go there

at night as it was breezy and dark.

I wonder whether the bushes are still there.

Picnic At Pasir Ris beach 1st August 1955

I finished school in 1954 and started work in early 1955. But, the spirit of getting together and having fun continued after leaving school. So, a group of friends organised another picnic at Pasir Ris on 1st Aug 1955.
We went to picnic at Pasir Ris on a lorry. We did not have the luxury of an aircon bus like today. But, we had a very good time singing and laughing together
as the lorry journeyed on.
Pasir Ris then was a coconut plantation as shown in the photo background. There was a brick wall between the plantation and the beach to prevent soil erosion.











Smile, you are on condid camera!!!















Tea dance was a craze in the 1950s. All youths wanted to learn dancing. Learning at the dance studio was expensive. So, friends taught one another.
No dance floor? Anywhere would do as in this photo.
The young girl was learning to dance from the older girl . Others watched and tried to remember the steps.

The group photo was for girls only.

Another group photo for girls only?

Where were all the guys? Perhaps they were dancing at Pasir Ris Hotel.

There they were! Crowding at the lorry in the background.

Group photo for girls only.