Great World Amusement Park was one of the three “Worlds” that lighted up Singapore’s nightlife in the 1950s and 1960s. Although it closed in 1964, cinemas, cabaret and restaurants continued operations at the park until 1978. Today, the site is occupied by Great ...
New World Park was the first of three renowned amusement parks (or the three “worlds”) that wooed Singapore night crowds from the 1920s to the ’60s. Opened on 1 August 1923, the park was located at Jalan Besar. In its heyday, New World Park had open-air cinemas, ...
Opened in 1947, Beauty World was a popular market and shopping destination in Singapore during the 1960s. Located at the junction between Upper Bukit Timah Road and Jalan Jurong Kechil, the market comprised over a hundred stalls that sold all kinds of daily necessities ...
Gay World was one of three amusement parks built in Singapore before World War II and around which Singapore’s nightlife revolved from the 1920s to the ’60s. The other two were New World and Great World. Gay World was a popular entertainment joint before the advent ...
Fort Canning Hill, previously known as Bukit Larangan and Government Hill, is 156 ft high and located at the junction of Canning Rise and Fort Canning Road. It has been a landmark since Singapore’s earliest recorded history. In the 14th century, it was likely the ...
Strikes and other forms of labour unrest were common in 1950s Singapore. The year 1955 saw 57 cases of labour unrest involving bus company workers, including the Hock Lee bus workers’ strike and riot. That same year, bus workers of the Singapore Traction Company ...
Launched by then prime minister Goh Chok Tong at the National Stadium on 3 October 1993, the Great Singapore Workout is a fitness routine that formed part of the month-long National Healthy Lifestyle Programme. The workout is a specially designed low-impact aerobic ...
The Lian Yak Building, which housed Hotel New World, collapsed on 15 March 1986 due to structural defects and poor-quality construction. The collapse left 33 people dead, and was considered one of the worst disasters in post-war Singapore. A rescue operation involving ...
The Battle of Singapore was fought from 8 to 15 February 1942 between Allied (mainly British Commonwealth) and Japanese forces. The first Japanese troops landed in Singapore via the northwestern coastline on 8 February 1942. After a week of intense fighting, the ...
The Tanglin Barracks was built by George Chancellor Collyer in 1861 for European troops. The barracks served the British garrison infantry battalion until the fall of Singapore in 1942. After the war, it was home to the General Headquarters of the Far East Land ...
Selarang Barracks was built between 1936 and 1938 to house an infantry battalion. During the Japanese Occupation (1942–45), it was used by the Japanese Imperial Army to hold Australian and British prisoners-of-war (POWs). It is also the site of the infamous Selarang ...
Getai (歌台), which literally means “song stage” in Chinese, is believed to have originated during the Japanese Occupation at the New World Amusement Park. It became a popular form of mass entertainment in the 1950s with getai established at various amusement parks. ...
Tomoyuki Yamashita (b. 8 November 1885, Osugi Mura, Shikoku, Japan–d. 23 February 1946, Manila, Philippines), was the Army Commander of the 25th Army that captured Malaya and Singapore during World War II. The capture was the most decisive victory of the East over ...
The Kempeitai was Japan’s military police force in its occupied territories during World War II (1942–45). Specially trained in interrogation methods, the Kempeitai’s task was to crush all resistance to Japanese military rule, with the powers to arrest and extract ...
The Bukit Batok Memorial, which consisted of the Syonan Chureito and British Memorial Cross, was built during the Japanese Occupation to honour dead soldiers of the Japanese and British forces. Located at Bukit Batok Hilltop (present Bukit Batok Nature Park) in ...
Kent Ridge Park is a 47-hectare public park located in southwestern Singapore, on Vigilante Drive off South Buona Vista Road. Situated between the Singapore Science Park and the National University of Singapore, the park honours the duchess and duke of Kent. Bukit ...
The British Military Hospital (BMH) was established in 1938 by the British Armed Forces, serving as the principal hospital for the British in the Far East during World War II. At the time of its opening, it was considered “the most up-to-date and one of the largest ...
A tropical oasis in the heart of Orchard Road, the Istana Park was officially opened on 6 September 1996. It is bordered by Orchard Road, Penang Road, Penang Lane and Buyong Road. The 1.3-hectare Istana Park is a landmark situated opposite The Istana, Singapore’s ...
Shenton Thomas Whitelegge Thomas (Sir) (b. 10 October 1879, London, England–d. 15 January 1962, London, England), more popularly known as Sir Shenton Thomas, was the last Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Straits Settlements and High Commissioner of the Federated ...
Located at 51 Canning Rise, the Fort Canning Bunker (now known as The Battlebox) was built between 1936 and 1941 to serve as a command centre for the Malaya Command, which oversaw British military operations in Malaya during World War II. On 15 February 1942, it ...