Community Involvement of Chinese Immigrants

Tan Tock Seng (Born: 1798, Malacca, Malaysia. Death: 24 February 1850, Singapore) was an entrepreneur and philanthropist of Hokkien descent.

Tan started out as a humble vegetable seller and rose to become one of Singapore's most eminent philanthropists and a leader of the Chinese community. He was the first Asian to be appointed Justice of the Peace. In 1844, he helped set up a hospital for the poor which now bears his name.

Tan made generous contributions to charity. He was known to take care of burial expenses for destitute Chinese. His most famous philanthropic gesture was the donation of $5,000 towards the building of the Chinese Pauper Hospital (later renamed Tan Tock Seng Hospital) in 1844 at Pearl's Hill. The building designed by government surveyor J. T. Thomson. 

Although it was completed at the end of 1846, the building was operated as a hospital only from 1849 onwards as the government had used it as a temporary convict jail. Tan also founded the Thian Hock Keng Temple at Telok Ayer Street, Singapore's oldest temple and the centre of worship for the Hokkien community.

Tan was the first Asian to be made Justice of the Peace by then Governor William J. Butterworth. His role in helping the early Chinese immigrants settle disputes earned him the title “Captain of the Chinese”.

Gan Eng Seng alias Yen Hsi K’un (Born: 1844, Malacca, Malaysia. Death: 9 September 1899, Singapore) was a Chinese ethnic leader, labour contractor, and a landed proprietor of early Singapore who contributed considerably to charities as well as hospitals and schools. He was held in high esteem, particularly for his integrity, by the partners of Guthrie and Company, where he worked faithfully for most of his life. Gan Eng Seng was also a founding member of the Ee Hoe Hean Club, a clubhouse for Chinese millionaires that was first set up at Duxton Hill.

The 1892 Tan Tock Seng Hospital annual report records Gan’s generous gift of a freehold property at Rochor. By this time, Gan was already a prominent figure in the community, noted for his social work. Among his charitable accomplishments was the establishment of the Anglo-Chinese Free School in one of his Tanjong Pagar shophouses in 1885. The school moved into a new single-storey building at Telok Ayer Street in 1893, and was officially opened by then Governor Sir Clementi Smith. 

It was later named Gan Eng Seng School. Gan was far-sighted in his dream to build a school for the poor that taught both English and Chinese. The Anglo-Chinese Free School is reportedly the only school in the colony set up by the Chinese for the teaching of English in addition to their own language. In response to the shortage of schools and hospitals for the poor in Chinatown, he also donated money for free clinics and other public amenities.

Tan Kah Kee (Born: 21 October 1874, Jimei, Tong’an, Quanzhou, Fujian, China. Death: 12 August 1961, Beijing, China) was a prominent Chinese businessman and philanthropist, nicknamed the “Henry Ford of Malaya”. He contributed extensively to the financing of schools and establishment of well-planned clusters of educational institutions, both in Singapore and China, but was better known as a Chinese nationalist who was keen in achieving China’s salvation through education and modernisation.

Tan contributed to various educational endeavours. In Singapore, he helped to set up schools like Tao Nan, Ai Tong, Nan Chiau Girls’ and Chong Hock Girls’. In 1918, he led the movement to found the first Chinese secondary school in Singapore, Nanyang Chinese High School, located at Bukit Timah Road. He also donated large sums of money to two English-medium institutions, Anglo-Chinese School and Raffles College.

Tan was a founding member of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce, established in 1906. His appointment as president of the clan association, Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan, further enhanced his position as a leader of the Hokkien community in Singapore. However, he encouraged all dialect groups to unite and join forces when it came to rendering support for China, and executing community reforms such as eradicating opium addiction, improving housing and personal hygiene, and shortening the duration of funeral wakes. Tan was also a social activist during tumultuous times, aiding relief efforts such as the Fujian and Guangdong Flood Relief Fund, and was closely associated with the Tong Meng Hui or Chinese Revolutionary Alliance (predecessor of the Kuomintang) and the nationalist movement.

Lim Peng Siang (Born: 1872, Fujian, China. Death: 1944, Singapore) was a Chinese merchant who made significant contributions to Singapore’s economic and social developments in the early 1900s. He was a prominent leader of the Chinese community and held key positions in a number of public and private companies. He founded Ho Hong Co. and was a co-founder of the Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC). Besides serving as president of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce (SCCC), Lim was also a long-standing member of the Chinese Advisory Board and the Hong Kong Fujian Chamber of Commerce. For his contributions and service to the public, Lim was made a justice of the peace.

A philanthropist, Lim contributed time and money to charity through donations and engaging in fundraising activities. He also recognised the importance of education in the growth and development of Singapore’s posterity. In 1902, following a parliamentary motion by Walter John Napier, a member of the Legislative Council, for a better and more efficient secondary education in Singapore, Lim donated $60,000 as funds for future scholarships.

On 21 August 1915, Lim and Lee Choon Guan donated a battle plane (Malaya No. 6, also known as the “Choon Guan Peng Siang”) in support of the British army during World War I. Lim also raised money for the war through various fundraising channels.