The Story of Bukit Pasoh

Pages of History . By Simon Monteiro . Partner of Dr Julian Davison – www.thesingaporeshophouse.com

Attached Below are 3 Historical Pages that form the Land Deed No. 3 . I went to do the research with the government’s department to get this old but important historical records .

If you read , William Napier executed as administrator of Coleman and this document gave the rights of this 20 acres to William Napier and his wife , the widow of Coleman. Its interesting to know that he had the idea of doing a palatial house there, if he did it will be a great architecture gem of Singapore.

Yet with this 3 pages of Historical Provenance I am happy to let the every owners know that George D. Coleman bought this great land and shophouses that they own now was part of his land and his provenance will live on.....

The story behind Bukit Pasoh area is interesting and if you own any shophouses in this area , you will notice that when you buy the Title Searches from the goverment's database , you will see that the shophouses are all stated Grant 3. you will see that the original grant for the land is Grant No 3. Dated 13th November 1858.

Looking at this area of Bukit Pasoh known as Indenture Grant 3 for about 20 acres which is bounded by Kreta Ayer Road all the way to Cantonment Road. We see a sad story of a great man who wanted to built a palatial residence at Bukit Pasoh but due to his sudden death this did not happen. His wife married Coleman’s best friend Wiliam Napier.

Who is George D. Coleman ? He was the first Architect of Singapore.

About Coleman.

Born in Drocheda, Ireland, Singapore’s first architect, George D. Coleman, arrived in Singapore in June 1822.[1] His earliest project was the design of a Residency House for Sir Stamford Raffles.[2] In 1833, Coleman was appointed Government Superintendent of Public Works.[3] He built many Palladian-style houses that were adapted to suit the tropics, and set the fashion for Singapore’s colonial architecture.[4] Coleman was also involved in land reclamation[5] and surveys of Singapore. His surveys of the island resulted in the printing of the first comprehensive map of the town and environs of Singapore in 1836.[6] Coleman Street, where his house stood, as well as Coleman Bridge, were named after him.[7] The Armenian Church[8] at Hill Street and Caldwell House at the former Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus at Victoria Street[9] are among the few remaining examples of buildings designed by Coleman. Examples of his work that have been demolished include the original Raffles Institution campus[10] and the first building of the former Church of St Andrew (now know as St Andrew’s Cathedral).[11]

Coleman was also a publisher. He teamed up with William Napier and Edward Boustead to establish the newspaper, The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser. The first issue of this newspaper was published in October 1835.[12] Coleman left Singapore in 1841.[13] He returned in 1843 with his wife,[14] succumbed to a fever and died in 1844.[15] Coleman is buried in the old cemetery on Fort Canning Hill

Lets us talk about William Napier. The First Law Agent...

His wife married his best friend William Napier who is the first law agent of Singapore.

At least two of Macvey Napier's sons lived in Singapore in its early days. David Skene Napier, a merchant, was one of the first magistrates appointed by Sir Stamford Raffles in 1823.

Prior to follow in to Singapore after his brother, William Napier had a daughter, Catherine Napier on 1829, by a Eurasian woman from Malacca.

In 1831, Napier arrived in Singapore and was appointed as Singapore's first law agent in 1833.[1] He was also one of the four founders of the Singapore Free Press in 1 October 1835, and edited that weekly newspaper until 1846, when he returned to the United Kingdom for health reasons.

In 1844, he married Maria Frances Vernon, the widow of architect George Coleman and adopted her son, George Vernon Coleman, who would died at sea on board of HMS Maeander in 1848 at age 4. They soon had a daughter in 1846, Maria J Napier.

William Napier had befriended James Brooke in Singapore and, on being appointed Governor of the new British colony of Labuan in 1847, Brooke chose him to be his deputy as Lieutenant-Governor.

Napier had an infant son with Maria in 1847, James Brooke Napier, but he died at sea in 17 February 1848 at the very young age of 5 months old. The infant James Brooke Napier was commemorated by the largest monument on the Old Christian Cemetery at the Government Hill, Singapore.

In 1848, William Napier's daughter, Catherine Napier, met Hugh Low, the Colonial Secretary to Labuan, on the sea-voyage from England to Labuan to establish the new government: they were married, en route, in Singapore.[2] They had a son Hugh "Hugo" Brooke Low on 1849 and a daughter Catherine "Kitty" Elizabeth Low on 1850. The marriage was ended with the death of Catherine Napier from fever in Labuan on 1851.

Brooke summarily dismissed Napier of his position in 1851 for alleged misconduct. Napier remained in Singapore as Attorney.[3] Napier was also a legal adviser to Temenggong Abu Bakar of Johor from 1855 to 1857.

William Napier had since retired "from the East" in 1857 and returned to England, his house which was built in Tyersall on 1854, was advertised for sale by Boustead & Co on March 1857. Napier and his wife Maria Frances Vernon had two more sons, Robert J. Napier in 1860, and Harry B. Napier in 1861.

Napier became the first Chairman of the Straits Settlements Association, set up in London in 1868.[4]

William Napier had since died in England on 1879.

The Napier Road was commemorated on 1853 in honor of Napier for his accomplishments and contributions in Singapore. The Tyersall Road and Tyersall Avenue (a renamed Garden Road) was named in 1890 and 1924 respectively after his long demolished Tyersall House. The name Tanglin was believed to be derived from the Chinese name of his former Tyersall estate as Tang Leng which his house was once built on.

This research I done on this area is for my great love for Coleman and I have always admire Coleman as our first Architect of Singapore and I also feel sad for his wife , she was only 21 when she lost Coleman and became a widow. A young widow and its her blessing to have William Napier to fall in love with her (Maria Frances Vernon ) and marry Coleman's best friend.

If you like what I am doing please go to www.thesingaporeshophouse.com and come regularly to my linkedin as I will post great stories of Singapore Architectural and Land History.

Also please tell your friends about us Dr Julian Davison and Simon Monteiro, we are partnering to create value in our Singapore Shophouses that we love and we want you to connect us to someone who loves Heritage and want to own a piece of history..

My speciality is helping investors understand the Singapore Shophouse and also those who like hospitality , I have a few shophouses that are converted to boutique hotels.

I have a few Boutique Hotels that are shophouses converted and its an amazing asset to own as a work of architecture art . Its really the Colonial Art Form in Architecture. With Dr Julian Davison provenance , you have an asset that will appreciate with time and also give you the status of owning Singapore Icon - The Singapore Shophouse.

We have heritage assets from $6 Million to $150 Million Singapore Dollars. We also have a few curated specially by Dr Julian Davison who feels that there are one of the few best with great heritage provenance and the owners who are selling them like to do it discreetly.

Please drop me an email and put Confidential Buy as the heading and we will call you for our Curated List Assets. Email me at [email protected]

www.thesingaporeshophouse.com

Have a look at the Grant 3 Dated 1858

Take a read of the 3 Pages of the Grant 3 and you will be amaze what historical facts can make you understand Singapore's Past Better...