The name of this historic building is temple house. My husband, Trevor, came across this wonderful find by chance when researching the railways of Singapore in the old days, and the tracks they leave which are now turned into hiking trails. Temple House is decorated like a temple, with the curved roof. The house has wonderful stories to match the ornate exterior and extraordinary interior. It was a millionaire's home which was given to the station master when a new railway line cut across the corner of the millionaire's land, right in front of his gorgeous house.
Today you can see the beautifully restored roofline and front, just across the pretty park of greenery which houses one of the exits of Dhoby Ghaut station in the centre of busy Singapore.
The three gold symbols above the doorway announce that this beautiful building belongs to, or belonged to, an important government official.
The man who built the house, over a period of three years, had made his money from selling silk and buying property. This is just one of the wonderful edifices associated with him. On Clarke Quay you can still see another grand building he once owned. Temple House, after he left, was occupied by the station master, and a girls' school, and the Salvation Army. As late as the 1960s his descendants were still contesting in court regarding their share of his huge inheritance.
Look at the little horses and animal figures along the roof. The story goes that they relate to the year of the horse. Which year of the horse. We are still working out, because there are several years of the horse, different kinds of horses, this kind of horse, and that kind of horse.
If you step inside the door to the reception, you will be able to see through the glass beyond the lily pond which contains fish. Before stepping inside for the first time, my husband was already taken with the building, whose grand design he had seen in the National Archives (a branch of the public library). He gained access to old floor plans by writing to the library and telling them about the book he was researching.
On entertain the building, he learned from the helpful lady on reception that the Temple House is now private property, part of a global university, which is an offshoot of many others with HQ in London, England and other places. Students who have access to this beautiful building are very lucky. We needed a letter of inquiry, and to present the credentials of my husband and myself in advance to make an appointment and to gain access to the inside. You can now benefit from the photos we took, as well as the stories we heard from the very knowledgeable man in charge who has detailed knowledge of the current building and its history.
Useful websites
For my husband Trevor's photos and text from May 2021see
https://www.facebook.com/trevorsharot
The story of the house in Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Tan_Yeok_Nee
The life story of the house owner, from the National Library of Singapore
Tan Hiok Nee (b.1827- d.1902, Chaozhou, China) alias Tan Yeok Nee.
https://web.archive.org/web/20111008035843/http://infopedia.nl.sg/articles/SIP_1118_2010-07-08.html
About the Author
Angela Lansbury B A Hons is the author of ten books by regular publishers plus another ten self-published books.
About Angela The Speaker & Trainer
Angela Lansbury is a teacher of English and other languages to Toastmasters clubs and businesses.
Angela has several blogs speeches, comedy and song writing and organizing, writing intermittently, but writes almost daily on these three:
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