Guthrie & Co.’s history began in 1823 when a partnership was established between Alexander Guthrie and Thomas Talbot Harrington, a family friend. First located in a rented godown on Hill Street, the company sold British goods to the European and Chinese communities ...

Behn, Meyer & Co. was established in Singapore on 1 November 1840 as a partnership between two Germans, Theodor August Behn and Valentin Lorenz Meyer. In its initial years, the firm traded in tropical produce such as coconut oil, pepper, camphor and rattan, but ...

Gan Eng Seng alias Yen Hsi K’un (b. 1844, Malacca, Malaysia–d. 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 ...

Sandilands Buttery and Co. Ltd. was one of the earliest British trading firms established in Malaya. Established in Penang in 1854–55, it was founded by Scottish merchant adventurers George MacFarlane Sandilands and Francis Currie Lorrain, and originally named ...

The famous colonial architectural firm Swan & Maclaren had its beginnings in 1887 as Swan & Lermit. It is considered to be one of the pioneer architectural firms in Singapore. Archibald Swan and Alfred Lermit, started Swan & Lermit, but the latter left the partnership ...

McAlister & Co. was founded in 1857 by two Scots: Alexander McAlister and James Parker Niven, who saw the opportunity to set up a trading partnership in Singapore. During its initial years, the partnership was involved in general trade and Australian pearling. ...

Tan Lark Sye (陈六使) (b. 1897, Tong An County, Fujian, China–d. 1972, Singapore) was the founder of Aik Hoe Rubber Company, a rubber exporting firm. He was also chairman of the Hokkien Huay Kuan and the founder of the former Nanyang University (Nantah).

Walter John Napier (b. 10 July 1857, Alderly Lodge, Cheshire, England-d. 14 February 1945) was joint founder of the law firm Drew & Napier, and Attorney-General of the Straits Settlements from 1907 to 1909, during which he was responsible for introducing a new ...

Kim Seng Road was named after well-known Peranakan philanthropist and businessman Tan Kim Seng, who also founded the firm Kim Seng & Company. The street gained Tan’s name as he contributed financially to the building of the thoroughfare. Kim Seng Constituency also ...

Built in 1909 by the Alkaff family, one of three prominent Arab property owners in Singapore at the time, Alkaff Arcade was designed by Donald McLeod Craik of architectural firm Swan and MacLaren. Known for its unique Moorish style, particularly its two onion domes ...

Sat Pal Khattar (b. 22 November 1942, Bhera, India–) is a prominent lawyer, businessman and Indian community leader. He founded Khattar Wong & Partners, one of the largest law firms in Singapore, and is the chairman of Khattar Holdings, a private investment firm. ...

Wesley Methodist Church is located at 5 Fort Canning Road, in the Museum precinct of the Central Region in Singapore. Originally called the Methodist Episcopal Church, it was the first Methodist Church in Singapore, and was renamed Wesley Methodist Church in 1910. ...

CYC is a clothing firm best known for its custom-made shirts and corporate wear. Founded as CYC Shanghai Shirt Company in 1935, it became a leader in Singapore’s shirt industry and attracted customers from Malaysia and Indonesia during its heyday. Now known as ...

Founded on 1 April 1906 as C. F. F. Wearne & Company, the firm was renamed Wearne Brothers Limited (WBL) on 26 November 1912 when it became a public listed company. It had initially specialised in automobile trade, but later diversified into heavy machinery and ...

Robert Carr Woods, Senior (b. 31 July 1816, England–d. 16 March 1875, Singapore), popularly known as Robin, was the first editor of The Straits Times. Besides guiding the publication through its difficult early years, he also improved the Bukit Timah cemetery, ...

Lim Nee Soon (b. 12 November 1879, Singapore–d. 20 March 1936, Shanghai, China) was a planter and general merchant. Upon the completion of his studies in Singapore, Lim worked for various firms until 1911 when he founded his own company, Lim Nee Soon & Co. A rubber ...

Daren Shiau Vee Lung (b. 1971, Singapore–) is a writer, lawyer and an environmental activist. He won the Singapore Literature Prize Commendation Award in 1998 for his debut novel, Heartland. Shiau also received the National Arts Council’s Young Artist Award in ...

Madeleine Lee Suh Shin (b.1962), is an award-winning investment manager and poet. She has more than 30 years of experience in managing public and private equities, and has worked for the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, Chase Manhattan Bank, and ...

Kenneth Michael Byrne (b. 13 May 1913, Singapore–d. 14 May 1990, Singapore), or K. M. Byrne, was Singapore’s first minister for labour and law. He was one of nine ministers who made up the first cabinet of the People’s Action Party (PAP) government, which was also ...

Nissim Nassim Adis (b. 17 May 1857, Howrah, India–d. 5 September 1927, Mussoorie, India) was a well-known Jewish businessman who arrived in Singapore in 1893. He was the proprietor of Hotel de L’Europe and the head of Adis & Co., a stock broking firm. He was also ...