BiblioAsia

Carving Cultural Imprints The Hui’an in Singapore

A group of contractor­s from Hui’an county in China were responsibl­e for building some of Singapore’s iconic landmarks. Athanasios Tsakonas has the story.

In the heart of Geylang, along a nonde‐ script lane inhabited by an assortment of clan associatio­ns, guild houses and Chinese temples, an unusual, grey‐ stone‐ clad boundary wall greets the casual observer. This masonry “canvas” is adorned with striking sculptured reliefs of what appears to be a bygone period out of China.

Upon closer observatio­n, the art‐ work reveals a carefully choreograp­hed narrative presenting the cultural identity of the occupants of the premises behind, the Singapore Hui An Associatio­n (新加坡惠安公会). A Hokkien (Fujian) clan asso‐ ciation that traces its origins to 1924,1 its present members are descended from immigrants who hailed from Hui’an, a county today under the jurisdicti­on of Quanzhou in China’s Fujian province.

Taking centre stage on this wall is an image depicting a flotilla of traditiona­l tri‐ masted Fujian junks with a radiating sun in the background (see above). The fore‐ ground depicts a man and woman grappling with a woven basket brimming with fish. Occupying the full height of the wall, the scene symbolises the virtue of honest toil that marks the seafaring people of Hui’an who have enjoyed a deep connection with the sea for centuries and prospered from it. It also evokes the trading activity that occurred in the port city of Quanzhou, one of the starting points of the historic maritime silk route. A close examinatio­n of the relief reveals a more detailed history and narrative of the Hui’an people.

To the immediate lei of the central image of the man and woman is an oblique representa­tion of a mul ti ‐ pier stone bridge, upon which stands a formally garbed official. This is Luoyang Bridge (洛阳桥), recognised as one of the four

2 ancient bridges in China, and the man on it is its designer and builder, Cai Xiang (蔡襄, 1012–67), chief of Quanzhou prefecture,

Athanasios Tsakonas is a practising architect with degrees from the University of Adelaide and National University of Singapore. His book, In Honour of War Heroes: Colin St Clair Oakes and the Design of Kranji War Memorial, was published by Marshall Cavendish Editions in 2020. He is currently based in Melbourne, Australia.

who was also a renowned calligraph­er, structural engineer and poet. Spanning 1,200 metres, with 46 ship‐shaped piers supporting its stone structure, the Luoy‐ ang Bridge’s rai foundation­s were rein‐ forced through the innovative breeding of oysters alongside, whose liquid secretion aided the binding of the footstones and thus solidified its base.

This bridge is significan­t as it is believed to be the first stone beam bridge constructe­d in China using a living organism to reinforce its structure. Further along the full span of this boundary wall, other structures are prominentl­y depicted such as Mengjia Qingshan Temple (艋舺青山宮) in Wanhua District in Taipei, the Jingfeng

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Temple (净峰寺) and Chongwu ancient city wall (崇武城墙) in Hui’an, a mosque in

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Baiqi Xiang (百崎乡) in Hui’an, and a scene of Hui’an women constructi­ng a dam.

Other buildings featured on the wall include the East Hui’an Overseas Chinese Hospital (惠安县惠东华侨医院) and Fujian Hui’an Kai Cheng Vocational Secondary School (福建惠安开成职业中专­学校), both of which were constructe­d thanks to donations by Hui’an philanthro­pists from Singapore.

Unveiled on 17 November 2012, this wall measuring almost 12 metres by 1.8 metres was the culminatio­n of an endeavour that had commenced over a year before. It had become apparent to the associatio­n’s leaders that there was a growing disconnect between their efforts to sustain the traditions and ancestral links to the “homeland”, and the younger generation who are born and bred in Singapore.

The commi /ee decided that an expression of the key elements of the Hui’an identity could be transposed onto a physical wall fronting their premises. This would provide both a reminder and intro‐ duction to the rich history of the Hui’an community, reinforcin­g their roots and cultural identity in China and throughout the overseas diaspora.

Given that stone carving in Hui’an has a history of over 1,600 years and is listed as one of the national intangible cultural heritages of China, the commi/ee agreed to engage a sculptor from Hui’an and use granite from the county to create this relief. Tellingly, it was then lei to the appointed sculptor, Wang Xiangrong (王向荣), himself a fiih‐generation artist and stone mason, to propose the key elements to the diorama.

In all, the carvings on the wall show how the building and constructi­on indus‐ try was instrument­al in shaping and moulding the identity of the Hui’an crais‐ men who came to Singapore in search of greener pastures.

Arrival of the Hui’an People

Located along China’s southeaste­rn coast of Fujian province, between Quanzhou and Meizhou Bay, Hui’an has come under differ‐ ent administra­tive jurisdicti­ons throughout its history. During the Sui dynasty (581– 618), Hui’an belonged to Nan’an county. In the ensuing Tang dynasty (618–907), it was handed over to Jinjiang county. In 981, Hui’an separated from Jinjiang and estab‐ lished itself as a separate county, before merging with Jinjiang, Tong’an, Nan’an and Anxi into the modern‐day prefecture‐level city of Quanzhou.

Whereas Quanzhou was connected to the internal China hinterland through its early trade networks, it was during the Song (960–1279) and Yuan (1279–1368) dynasties that this city would become an important centre for internatio­nal com‐ merce, which also facilitate­d extensive con‐ tact with foreign cultures and merchants. To promote trade, Quanzhou’s internal infrastruc­ture was greatly improved with roads, bridges and associated works.

This constructi­on programme not only necessitat­ed a great investment by the authoritie­s but also brought with it the need for large numbers of highly qualified architects, engineers and tradespeop­le. At the same time, on account of Hui’an’s vast repositori­es of granite, the stone industry flourished, with thousands of masons involved in stone‐cung and carv‐ ing for such public utilities as gateways, sanctuarie­s and pagodas.

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Thanks to Quanzhou’s deep‐sea port, establishe­d trade routes and the overseas networks created by the Chi‐ nese diaspora, these stone commoditie­s would subsequent­ly find their way to and across Southeast Asia. According to Claudine Salmon and Myra Sidharta in their essay, “The Manufactur­e of Chinese Gravestone­s in Indonesia”, it was the need for ballast on the sailing ships that provided the economic case for transpor ting stone from Hui’an to Southeast Asia. Both plentiful and inex‐ pensive, these stone ballasts (壓船石; yachuan shi; literally “stones that keep the ship down”) would be exchanged along the journey’s various ports with an equivalent weight in commoditie­s and goods for the return leg.

Both raw stone and carved slabs for tombstones, graves and temples also made their way across the South China Sea, bring‐ ing not only the products but also stamping the reputation of the Hui’an people for their quality material and workmanshi­p. It was a prelude to the human capital that eventually arrived in the region in general and, Singapore in particular.

Following the arrival of Stamford Raffles in 1819 and the establishm­ent of a British trading port thereaier, the early Chinese migration to Singapore was predominan­tly drawn from the Straits areas and southern China. Significan­t migration from Quanzhou would only commence from the late 19th through to the beginning of the 20th centuries.

Arriving later, along with migrant groups from Fuzhou, Putian and Fuqing, the people from Hui’an would find that what profitable industries were available in Singapore had already been taken up by others so they initially se/led as coolies (indentured labourers) doing back‐break‐ ing work. Those who came from coastal northern Hui’an and were accustomed to the sea and fishing, made their home on large bumboats by the Singapore, Rochor and Kallang rivers, navigating between them and the coast for their livelihood­s. Others worked as rickshaw pullers or as labourers in the constructi­on, mining and agricultur­e sectors in exchange for three meals a day.

Before the Hui An Associatio­n was founded in Singapore in 1924, early Hui’an immigrants sought out and received help from their fellow clansmen who had arrived before them. Their most pressing needs were finding accommodat­ion and employ‐ ment. Most lived in shophouses in the Tanjong Pagar area comprising Craig Road, Tras Street, Duxton Hill and Duxton Road in lodgings known colloquial­ly as coolie keng (估里间; gu li jian). Here, dozens of men would be crammed into tiny, compart‐ mentalised and windowless rooms – most without running water or proper sanitation – sleeping on tiered wooden bunk beds that were also shared. Despite the deplorable living conditions, these lodgings kept the new migrants together and afforded them some form of protection.

Faced with isolation, alliances between fellow Hui’an men would form, mostly through membership in secret societies or triad associatio­ns. In the case of the Craig Road and Duxton Hill areas, where the Hui’an migrants worked mainly as rickshaw pullers, membership was allied under the surnames of Ho, Chang and Chuang.

For those Hui’an migrants with masonry or carpentry skills or who had valuable trade experience back home, Sin‐ gapore’s buoyant building and constructi­on industry provided them with a myriad of opportunit­ies. They began as subcontrac‐ tors to more establishe­d entities before expanding their operations and becoming main contractor­s, inevitably encroachin­g into the domain of establishe­d European contractor­s.

Many European firms took advantage of this situation by subcontrac­ting to these Chinese companies. In many cases, the European firms would retain their names as principal contractor­s and supervise the work through their appointed resident engi‐ neers. In light of Japan’s growing military might, the British authoritie­s saw the need to further strengthen Singapore’s defences, with opportunit­ies arising in building as well as upgrading new and existing military camps and associated defence facilities. In turn, this productive period in building and constructi­on work would help to elevate the reputation of these pioneering Hui’an contractor­s in Singapore.

Notable Hui’an Contractor­s Soh Mah Eng

Alighting from his car on 31 March 1922 to the backdrop of curious onlookers at the Esplanade (now Padang) and a guard of honour consisting of 100 former ser‐ vicemen, the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) inspected this ceremonial guard before making his way to the foot

of the war memorial, which was erected to honour 124 men from Singapore who had died in action in Europe during World War I. Delivering a speech extolling the virtues of bravery and sacrifice displayed by those men being commemorat­ed, he proceeded to push a small bu/on on the dais. With that action, a large Union Jack, fully draped over the structure, pulled away to reveal the new Cenotaph.

Following a short dedication by the Bishop of Singapore and the sounding of the last post and reveille, the prince, accompanie­d by Governor of the Straits Se/lements Laurence Guillemard, greeted the invited dignitarie­s, which included the monument’s lauded architect Denis Santry of architectu­ral firm Swan & Maclaren. Among that gathered company of Singapore’s building fraternity was Soh Mah Eng (苏马英), the contractor for the monument. The prince cordially shook his hand and even offered a few words of gratitude. It was fing recognitio­n for this Hui’an native who had migrated to Singapore some 20 years earlier and subsequent­ly through his company, Chin

Hup Heng & Co., became a pioneer in the island’s infrastruc­ture developmen­t.

Modelled aier the Whitehall Ceno‐ taph in London, the 18‐metre‐tall Singa‐ pore Cenotaph, raised on a plinth, would be entirely constructe­d of local granite. Bronze tablets inscribed with the names of the fallen adorn its face. Given its national significan­ce, the quality of its finish was expected to be of the highest standard. The British colonial government, well aware of Hui’an’s reputation with stone and already familiar with Soh’s ear‐ lier work on Anderson Bridge, appointed him as the builder to undertake the main building works.

Finding himself short of manpower soon aier commencing, Soh appealed to the authoritie­s for additional labour and was allowed to recruit more than 200 skilled masons from his hometown village of Sukeng in Hui’an. The Cenotaph was thus successful­ly completed on schedule. What is more significan­t, though, is that the memorial helped cement the Hui’an community’s reputation for constructi­on work in Singapore and provided the island with a future generation of skilled stone craismen as well.

Before long, fellow Hui’an natives such as Chia Eng Say, Chia Lay Phor, Ho Bock Kee, Zhuang Yuming, Lee Chwee Kim, Chng Gim Huat and Ong Chwee Kow to name but a few, would follow in Soh’s footsteps and make a name for themselves. These men would be responsibl­e for some of the most signifi‐

cant landmarks in Singapore and Malaya. Furthermor­e they did not confine them‐ selves to the constructi­on industry, soon diversifyi­ng into industries such as quarry‐ ing, rubber, tin mining, steel, trading and developmen­t.

Chia Eng Say

Among the most prominent in this group is Chia Eng Say (谢荣西). Born in 1881 in Hui’an, Chia first moved with his father to Sumatra at the age of 11 and then to Singapore at the turn of the 20th century. He initially establishe­d himself in the import‐export business before moving into constructi­on and, in par ticular, the stone industry.

Chia owned several quarries in Bukit Timah, Mandai and Pulau Ubin. Granite extracted from Chia Eng Say Granite was used for the foundation of the Supreme Court building, the Naval Base at Sem‐ bawang as well as the Causeway, where he was a major subcontrac­tor to Messrs Topham, Jones & Railton of London, which had been awarded the construc‐ tion contract.

Other notable projects to his name include the China Building (which became the headquarte­rs of the Over‐ sea‐ Chinese Banking Corporatio­n aier the merger of the Oversea‐ Chinese Bank and the Chinese Commercial Bank in 1932) on Chulia Street, along with numerous schools and private residentia­l estates in both Singapore and Penang. Such was his prominence within the local construc tion industry that the track in Bukit Timah upon which his quarry was located would be named Chia Eng Say Road. (This road was later expunged but the name was subsequent­ly resurrecte­d; today Chia Eng Say Road lives on in Upper Bukit Timah, just fronting The Rail Mall. 21)

It was in education that Chia would make his most important contributi­on. In 1929, he was appointed as the main contractor for the Chinese Industrial and Commercial Continuati­on School (南洋工商补习学校) on Outram Road at York Hill. A decade later, Chia would join with fellow philanthro­pists to build Chung Cheng High School on Kim Yan Road in 1939,23 making it one of the largest schools in Singapore and Malaya at the time. Sadly, on the final day of the Imperial Japanese Army’s invasion of Sin‐ gapore in February 1942, Chia would be caught in a crossfire between Japanese and Australian troops along Geylang Lorong 31 and mortally wounded.

Chia Lay Phor

Whereas Soh Mah Eng and Chia Eng Say arrived as children in Singapore and learnt their trade through their fathers, the same could not be said of Chia Lay Phor (谢荔圃), the nephew of Chia Eng Say. Hailing from the western Hui’an town of Huangtangz­hen, Chia came from a well‐ to‐do family where his grandfathe­r owned a cloth dyeing business. This enabled him to be one of the privileged few in Hui’an to have received an education and be trained as a teacher. Although most Hui’an males emigrated because of the poverty and lack of opportunit­ies back home, Chia’s motive differed markedly.

Unfortunat­ely, Chia’s ability to write le/ers and maintain accounts also became the source of his problems: he had been kidnapped twice by bandits who wanted him to work for them. Needless to say, this was not a tenable propositio­n so he migrated to Singapore as a 24‐year‐old. He immediatel­y went to work at Chia Eng Say’s constructi­on company, Chia Eng Kee Chan, rising to the post of general manager and overseeing projects in Malaya and Singapore.

Eventually branching off, he became a contractor for the Public Works Depart‐ ment. The younger Chia’s added engineer‐ ing skills saw him involved in numerous heavy infrastruc­ture projects for the British authoritie­s. These include the levelling of Kampong Silat Hill for the Singapore Improvemen­t Trust’s housing developmen­t scheme in 1948, and the new taxiways and extension of the runway at Kallang Airport a year later. His most significan­t accomplish­ment, though, and that which accorded him the most pro‐ fessional recognitio­n within the industry occurred just prior to World War II.

Between 1937 and 1940, while still working for his uncle, Chia Lay Phor oversaw his largest and most extensive constructi­on project: building the 356‐bed British Military Hospital (now Alexandra Hospital). Chia Eng Kee Chan had been appointed as the main subcontrac­tor for Dobb & Co. and the War Department. The hospital was equipped with medical, surgi‐ cal and officer wards as well as ancillary buildings comprising a barracks block, a laboratory, a mortuary and living quarters for staff and their families.

Ho Bock Kee

Born in 1905 in the small village of Fengqi in Wangchuan town in Hui’an county, Ho Bock Kee (何穆基) was the eldest of four children. His father was a carpenter while his mother was a housewife. Although daily life in a small rural community was hard and poverty was an everyday reality, his early exposure to carpentry and Hui’an’s economy centred around construc tion would prove invaluable. Unlike the impoverish­ed and unskilled Chinese immigrants who ended up as indentured labour in Southeast Asia, Ho arrived in Singapore in 1929 as a quali‐ fied carpenter.

Initially subcontrac ting his labour to other builders working on numerous army camps and military facilities across the island, the Japanese Occupation (1942–45) saw Ho resorting to slipping in and out of Malaya undertakin­g odd jobs to survive. It was the post‐war demand for reconstruc­tion that provided him with the impetus and opportunit­y to venture into main contractin­g.

Capitalisi­ng on the opportunit­y, Ho establishe­d his own constructi­on company – beginning where he lei off before the war – repairing and rebuilding old army camps and bases as well as those used for internment. An invaluable listing on the preferred contractor panel for the Public Works Department soon followed, and over the next 30 years, Ho Bock Kee Construc tion was awarded numerous public and private contracts, including a Ngee Ann Kongsi school on Balestier Road (1965), Singapore Television Studio Centre

at Caldeco/ Hill (1966), Bedok Reforma‐ tive Training Centre (1961), Mount Vernon Crematoriu­m (1962) and the National Library building on Stamford Road (1960).

As a main contractor, Ho’s most internatio­nally recognised work was the Singapore Memorial at the Kranji War Cemetery. Officially unveiled on 2 March 1957 by the Singapore Governor Robert Black and a/ending internatio­nal dignitarie­s, the event was broadcast throughout the Commonweal­th to an extensive overseas audience. Designed by the British architect Colin St Clair Oakes, the memorial was built to resemble an aeroplane with its 22‐metre central pylon and wing‐shaped roof supported by 12 stone‐clad pillars. The names of over 24,000 casualties without known graves are inscribed on the pillars. Memorial services are held at the cemetery every year on Remembranc­e Day (11 November), as well as ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day on 25 April.

By the late 1980s, the Hui’an constructi­on community in Singapore accounted for almost 50 enterprise­s, excluding those in the region. By now, the Hui An Associa‐ tion had expanded to include representa‐ tion throughout most of Malaysia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, the Philippine­s, Indonesia and greater China. These pan‐asian cul‐ tural ties led to further opportunit­ies for a new generation of industry pioneers.

This story of the enterprisi­ng and intrepid Hui’an people and their contri‐ butions both within and outside China is an inspiring one. It was with this in mind that the sculptured wall fronting the Singapore Hui An Associatio­n at Lorong 29 Geylang was commission­ed. It is both an icon of the success that Hui’an immigrants have achieved over‐

Leaving a Legacy

seas as well as an enduring symbol of their contributi­ons to the Chinese homeland – as evidenced by depictions of the aforementi­oned Fujian Hui’an Kai Cheng Vocational Secondary School and East Hui’an Overseas Chinese Hospital.

The images carved on the stone wall and the memories they recall of the homeland also serve another purpose, as captured by the Greek word nostos, which means “homecoming”. In ancient Greek literature, it describes an epic hero returning home by sea. The term − first recounted in Homer’s The Odyssey − refers not merely to the physical return of the hero but to his elevated identity and status upon arriving home. In a similar way, the Hui’an stone frieze depicts the journey of an enlightene­d culture to Southeast Asia and its eventual return back home.

The author acknowledg­es the generous research and translatio­n assistance from Joseph Chia (谢福崧) and Teo Seng Yeong (张成雄) of the Singapore Hui An Associatio­n, Fiona Lim and Yoke Lin Wong.