History of
Kampung Morten
Kampung Morten is a traditional Malay village in the middle of Melaka city with an area of 5.02 hectares of land that was opened in 1922. Before the existence of Kampung Morten, there was a village known as Kampung Java whose land was taken for development, the people in the area were forced to move and find another area to settle. One of the village's representatives, Dato' Othman, has gone out looking for an empty site that has not yet been developed. Not long after, Dato' Othman found a site where the village was once just a swamp covered with a forest of Nipah trees on the edge of the Melaka River. (Tok Sidang, 2022). However, the villagers had no capital to start life and build a new home at that time. They also do not have the money to buy the land owned by Abdullah Maarof and Pak Khalil, who agreed to sell the land. So Dato' Othman went out and went looking for financial help. (Jalina, 2022).
Then, the British Land Commissioner Frederick Joseph Morten came at that time and helped provide a Government Special Loan of 10,000 dollars in 1920 on the condition that Dato' Othman became the sole guarantor. With that money, the land in Kampung Morten, which was opened in 1922, was divided into 100 lots and allocated to people who needed to move, especially those who came from the Java Village. This village was explored by Datuk Othman, who was then officially appointed as the Village Head during the establishment of the Village Board in 1922. In the meeting during the establishment of the board, a discussion was held to name the new village.
The proposed names are Kampung Bunga, Tanjung Bunga, and Kampung Morten. However, the most votes chose the name 'Kampung Morten,' which Datuk Othman Md suggested. Nor himself the reason that it was taken in conjunction with the name of Frederick Joseph Morten in memory of the services and efforts of Frederick Joseph Morten until the construction of Kampung Morten. The good thing that Frederick Joseph Morten did was to sign an agreement that the land in Kampung Morten could only be transferred or sold to family members and then to those who lived in Kampung Morten. As a result, Kampung Morten, 99 years old, is now inhabited by about 1000 Malay residents. Kampung Morten is located in the heart of Melaka City, a 15-minute walk to the historic city center, and next to the Melaka River, famous for the Melaka River Cruise.
