Source 1: A photograph of an Indian family living in a straw house beside the Kallang River in 1930s.

Indian coolies who came to Singapore, worked in plantations, factories, and trading ports.

Reference:

Hsu, C. (2020, June 26). An album of rare photos: From Chinese coolies to Singaporeans. ThinkChina. Retrieved from https://www.thinkchina.sg/album-rare-photos-chinese-coolies-singaporeans

Source 2: A rare photograph of the interior of the 49 market street kittangi (Chettiars) in the 1960s, with a traditional set-up quite similar to those back in the late 1800s. 

Reference:

National Archives of Singapore (1960s).  20050000648 - 0056. Photo Accession number 2006-004610-NC

Source 3: A photograph of Rochore Market in Singapore during the 19th century.

Reference:

National Archives of Singapore (1930s).  ROCHORE MARKET, SINGAPORE. Photo Accession number 31523

Source 4: The daily life of an Indian potter in early 20th century Singapore.

The Indian potter does not aspire to modernise his offspring by education or any other means, but early in life he starts his child in the moulding of chatties, pots and jars. In addition to pottery the Indian craftsman in clay also excels in the field of sculpture and toy making – all out of clay. The gods that look down from pedestals and walls in Hindu temples are also the works of the super-skilled Indian potter. 

There are no imposing chimneys or huge kilns to be seen at these primitive works. Beside their living huts which house their wives and children, run long straggling attap roofed sheds. All around will be seen beautifully made earthenware of different patterns, shapes and sizes.

Reference:

Morning Tribune (1936, April 25). Indian Potteries In Singapore.  Morning Tribune (Singapore), Retrieved from http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/morningtribune19360425-1.2.47

Source 5: A photograph depicting an Indian pottery at Geylang District during the 19th century Singapore.

Reference:

Morning Tribune (1936, April 25). Indian Potteries In Singapore.  Morning Tribune (Singapore),  Retrieved from http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/morningtribune19360425-1.2.47

Source 6: A postcard of Indian laundry men or dhobies in Singapore, 1900s.

Reference:

National Archives of Singapore (1900s). INDIAN WASHMEN, SINGAPORE. Slide number S22354 

Source 7: An image of migrant Indian washermen (or dhobies) washing laundry in a stream in the vicinity of Dhoby Ghaut, Stamford Canal, by the current YMCA. 

Reference:

Tan, G (2018, September 14). Orchard Road: How A Quiet, Hilly Valley Became An Epicenter of Luxury Retail. The New York Times Style Magazine: Singapore. Retrieved from https://tsingapore.com/article/orchard-road-how-quiet-hilly-valley-became-epicenter-luxury-retail

Source 8: An extract of the life of an Indian dhobi in the 1930s Singapore.

Back in the 1930s, Narayanan Narayanan’s parents paid around Rs5 to a washerman, or dhobi, in Singapore for doing their laundry. “He used to come to our Newton Road house every Sunday morning and collect the week’s laundry, which he slung over his shoulders,” recalled the 90-year-old Singaporean of Indian origin.

“The naming of the MRT station as Dhoby Ghaut is an attempt to mark out what was once the key occupational group in the area,” said Rajesh Rai, associate professor at National University of Singapore and author of Indians in Singapore 1819-1945. “The first dhobi settlement was at a part of a freshwater stream that is more or less exactly where the Dhoby Ghaut MRT station is.”

Reference:

Garg, G (2018, July 9). How on Earth did a glitzy part of Singapore get the name Dhoby Ghaut? Scroll.In, Retrieved from https://scroll.in/magazine/880679/how-on-earth-did-a-glitzy-part-of-singapore-get-the-name-dhoby-ghaut

© 2023 Bedok South Secondary School. All rights reserved.