Showing posts with label old KL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label old KL. Show all posts
Monday, 21 May 2018
Friday, 9 November 2012
Old pictures of KL
Down memory lane KL......it does not seem so long ago
(Thanks to SK for the contribution)
The Bok House was an old mansion on Jalan Ampang built in 1926 and completed in 1929 for a local millionaire, Chua Cheng Bok. In the 1960s and up until its closure in 2001, the mansion housed an upscale restaurant called the Le Coq d'Or (The Golden Cockerel). Part of the original millionaires row, Bok House was probably one of the most visible yet least remembered relic of early KL.
You will never guess or recognise this 1966 road...
Car is turning down towards Jalan Pudu from Jalan Bukit Bintang (next to former Pavilion cinema ..NOT present day Pavilion mall). Tung Shing Hospital is down farther right after the row of shop houses. The popular pre 60s Kum Leng Chinese restaurant is on top left next to cluster of trees. Ongoing digging of roads were a common occurrence even back in the 60s.
Farther up from the Pudu area is Peel Road ( Jalan Peel ) - photo circa 1950s. This was the main trunk road leading out of KL to the Southern part of the country pre 70s before the Loke Yew Highway and Seremban Highway were constructed.
A very very sad and unfortunate chapter of Malaysian history .. the May 13th 1969 racial riots. All Malaysians must unite to ensure this episode of our National history will never allow to happen again.
Photo shows the aftermath of the rampage at Campbell Road ( Jalan Dang Wangi ) before the left turning into Kampung Baru ( Jalan Raja Abdullah )
Newly completed Federal Highway with the EPF building still in the progress of being built at the junction with Jalan Gasing 1962.
Long before Ampang Park, Sungai Wang, BB Plaza or the newest Pavilion shopping malls .. the colonial "Prestigious" shopping places were Whileaway Laidlam, John Little's and Robinson's Dept Store located at Mountbatten Road ( Jalan Tun Perak ) which managed to stay in business till the 1970s (photo) with the top 2 floors being converted into a Chinese restaurant and night club.
A few MBS alumni worked at P&A dept of Tan Choong Motors, the sole agent / distributor of Datsun ( Nissan ) vehicles circa 1950s. Not a very popular Japanese vehicle brand then ...Now known as Edaran Tan Choong, its Head office / show room is still based at Jalan Ipoh since its founding from the early 50s
View from the steps leading up to MBS.
Sultan Street Railway Station signage is clearly displayed on the roof of the station. Directly in front of the station is Foch Avenue.
Front facade of Sultan Street Railway Station circa 1950s.
On the right next to the station was the infamous lane with the steps leading up to Wesley Methodist Church and MBS. Cheong Kee coffee shop (a half way watering hole for the pre1970s students ) was situated next to the lane.
The Jalan Sultan railway station was archived at more than a century old as evidenced on the timeline date of this photo. There was no Jalan Pudu yet and China town area was probably serviced by bullock tracks .
MBS was not located on Petaling Hill yet ( the present site ) and was sited in some shop houses around Kuala Lumpur Municipality.
1960s High Street - Jalan Tun HS Lee.
On left is the main office of Eu Yan San, the long established Chinese Medical Hall.. still at the same site today. Farther down the road is the Bangkok Bank.
One of the last ( if not the last ) 1920s era, Yoke Woo Hin Restaurant is (almost) as old as Sultan Street. Serves old Cantonese tradition cuisine including the annual festive dumplings, moon cakes, dim sum and char siew low wanton meen daily from 5am till late afternoon. Still popular and patronised by China town old timers (but has since closed).
Down the steps of MBS Wesley Methodist Church :
Petaling Street looking towards Foch Avenue ( Jalan Cheng Lock ) early 1950s.
Building in front ( now 6 floors ) is Hakka Fui Chew Association. Present day Kota Raya Complex is next to it on the right. Road on left is (was ) the very popular Cross Street, present Day Jalan Silang, with the Tai Tai ( Chinese rich ladies ) of the 50s - 70s era consisting of mainly Chinese gold smith shops. Some of the shops are still in business today, but facing competition from shopping malls and complex based gold smith shops.
Farther away from MBS : Bukit Bintang Park aka BB Park
This site used to be Hollywood Park way back in the 1930s. Back then, this part of town was considered the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. It was for precisely this reason that Pudu Prison (popularly called Pudu Jail) was built in 1895. Hollywood Park was later acquired by movie giants of the day, Shaw Brothers. It was upgraded to BB Park with a carnival-like setting: there were cabarets and dance halls, cinemas, stage shows, restaurants, game stalls and even a boxing ring! BB Park’s fortunes started to decline with the rising popularity of television and radio. It was closed in the early 1970s and redeveloped into Sungei Wang Plaza.
(Thanks to SK for the contribution)
Car is turning down towards Jalan Pudu from Jalan Bukit Bintang (next to former Pavilion cinema ..NOT present day Pavilion mall). Tung Shing Hospital is down farther right after the row of shop houses. The popular pre 60s Kum Leng Chinese restaurant is on top left next to cluster of trees. Ongoing digging of roads were a common occurrence even back in the 60s.
Photo shows the aftermath of the rampage at Campbell Road ( Jalan Dang Wangi ) before the left turning into Kampung Baru ( Jalan Raja Abdullah )
Sultan Street Railway Station signage is clearly displayed on the roof of the station. Directly in front of the station is Foch Avenue.
Front facade of Sultan Street Railway Station circa 1950s.
On the right next to the station was the infamous lane with the steps leading up to Wesley Methodist Church and MBS. Cheong Kee coffee shop (a half way watering hole for the pre1970s students ) was situated next to the lane.
MBS was not located on Petaling Hill yet ( the present site ) and was sited in some shop houses around Kuala Lumpur Municipality.
On left is the main office of Eu Yan San, the long established Chinese Medical Hall.. still at the same site today. Farther down the road is the Bangkok Bank.
Petaling Street looking towards Foch Avenue ( Jalan Cheng Lock ) early 1950s.
Building in front ( now 6 floors ) is Hakka Fui Chew Association. Present day Kota Raya Complex is next to it on the right. Road on left is (was ) the very popular Cross Street, present Day Jalan Silang, with the Tai Tai ( Chinese rich ladies ) of the 50s - 70s era consisting of mainly Chinese gold smith shops. Some of the shops are still in business today, but facing competition from shopping malls and complex based gold smith shops.
This site used to be Hollywood Park way back in the 1930s. Back then, this part of town was considered the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. It was for precisely this reason that Pudu Prison (popularly called Pudu Jail) was built in 1895. Hollywood Park was later acquired by movie giants of the day, Shaw Brothers. It was upgraded to BB Park with a carnival-like setting: there were cabarets and dance halls, cinemas, stage shows, restaurants, game stalls and even a boxing ring! BB Park’s fortunes started to decline with the rising popularity of television and radio. It was closed in the early 1970s and redeveloped into Sungei Wang Plaza.
Monday, 6 August 2012
Old Pix - Kuala Lumpur
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| Kuala Lumpur 1880 |
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| Kuala Lumpur 1880 |
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| Kuala Lumpur World War 2 |
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| Kuala Lumpur |
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| KL 1960 |
Monday, 7 November 2011
Traders and shopowners have become good friends over the years (Star)
Thursday August 25, 2011
By YIP YOKE TENG
teng@thestar.com.my
Photos by LOW LAY PHON
Naina Mohamed took out a black and white photograph kept carefully between the pages of his thick accounts book. The stall with a wooden rack fitted to the wall was neatly lined with toiletries, cigarette packs and books, much like how it is today. A young Indian boy manned the stall, sitting at the very location Naina sits every day.
At first glance, the boy in the photograph looked like a young Naina but he was quick to point out that it was his father in the picture.
If there is anyone who is most familiar with the day-to-day life in Jalan Sultan for the past decades, it is none other than Naina who mans his bookstand attached to the 83-year-old Hotel Lok Ann from Monday to Saturday, and watched how the face of Jalan Sultan changed bit by bit.The bookstand has been there since 1955. Naina’s father took over the business from a friend and they had never left the spot since then.
He narrated how the place had changed from a bustling but dust-free area plied by tricycles to a perpetually congested hub now.
He had witnessed some of the major events in the country’s history, including the funeral of Botak Chin at the nearby Chik Shin Tong funeral parlour amid a strong police presence.
“I have spent my whole life here. This stall helped my father raise me and my siblings and helped me raise my three children who are now successful in their careers. All my friends are here and I meet interesting people every day who come to visit Chinatown, this is my life,” said the 56-year-old who speaks fluent Cantonese.He said he could not sleep well in the past weeks knowing that the pre-war buildings in Jalan Sultan had to make way for the Klang Valley MRT project, adding that a small stall like his would surely be washed away by the waves of development.
He is now grinning from ear to ear, upon learning that the building had been saved from the bulldozers following a meeting between MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek and the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).
“All of us are very happy, the traders and shopowners here are very close friends. We really do not want to be separated from each other,” he said.
Dr Chua, who brought the good news to all on Tuesday, said the decision not to demolish the buildings was important to maintain the identity of Chinatown.
“The area is also an important tourist and historical landmark in Kuala Lumpur,” he said after leading a delegation of Jalan Sultan traders to meet SPAD.
Fashion accessory wholesaler Daniel Wong, who is one of the three who heads the committee of traders and shopowners in Jalan Sultan affected by the project, said they were delighted that the government had heard the people and saw the value in these heritage buildings.
However, he said the committee hoped an official letter could be released to nullify the Form E issued under the Land Acquisition Act 1960 and to ensure that the acquisition of the buildings would not happen.
“We feel relieved that the government had taken the people’s voices into consideration but we need assurance as we still feel threatened by the powerful Land Acquisition Act,” he said, adding that they needed to learn about the project’s engineering plans and hoped that the stronger buildings would not need to be vacated.
By YIP YOKE TENG
teng@thestar.com.my
Photos by LOW LAY PHON
Naina Mohamed took out a black and white photograph kept carefully between the pages of his thick accounts book. The stall with a wooden rack fitted to the wall was neatly lined with toiletries, cigarette packs and books, much like how it is today. A young Indian boy manned the stall, sitting at the very location Naina sits every day.
At first glance, the boy in the photograph looked like a young Naina but he was quick to point out that it was his father in the picture.
If there is anyone who is most familiar with the day-to-day life in Jalan Sultan for the past decades, it is none other than Naina who mans his bookstand attached to the 83-year-old Hotel Lok Ann from Monday to Saturday, and watched how the face of Jalan Sultan changed bit by bit.The bookstand has been there since 1955. Naina’s father took over the business from a friend and they had never left the spot since then.
He narrated how the place had changed from a bustling but dust-free area plied by tricycles to a perpetually congested hub now.
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| Naina Mohamed manning his bookstand in Jalan Sultan. – By LOW LAY PHON / The Star |
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| Rich history: Ng showing old photos of Yan Keng |
He had witnessed some of the major events in the country’s history, including the funeral of Botak Chin at the nearby Chik Shin Tong funeral parlour amid a strong police presence.
“I have spent my whole life here. This stall helped my father raise me and my siblings and helped me raise my three children who are now successful in their careers. All my friends are here and I meet interesting people every day who come to visit Chinatown, this is my life,” said the 56-year-old who speaks fluent Cantonese.
He is now grinning from ear to ear, upon learning that the building had been saved from the bulldozers following a meeting between MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek and the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).
“All of us are very happy, the traders and shopowners here are very close friends. We really do not want to be separated from each other,” he said.
Dr Chua, who brought the good news to all on Tuesday, said the decision not to demolish the buildings was important to maintain the identity of Chinatown.
“The area is also an important tourist and historical landmark in Kuala Lumpur,” he said after leading a delegation of Jalan Sultan traders to meet SPAD.
Fashion accessory wholesaler Daniel Wong, who is one of the three who heads the committee of traders and shopowners in Jalan Sultan affected by the project, said they were delighted that the government had heard the people and saw the value in these heritage buildings.
However, he said the committee hoped an official letter could be released to nullify the Form E issued under the Land Acquisition Act 1960 and to ensure that the acquisition of the buildings would not happen.
“We feel relieved that the government had taken the people’s voices into consideration but we need assurance as we still feel threatened by the powerful Land Acquisition Act,” he said, adding that they needed to learn about the project’s engineering plans and hoped that the stronger buildings would not need to be vacated.
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| Saved from demolition: An aerial view of the popular Jalan Sultan. |
“Also, we hope that the government would compensate the traders and owners on the loss suffered during the period of six months they have to be moved or more if there is a delay,” he added.
The Selangor Yan Keng Benevolent Dramatic Association’s secretary-general Ng Siak Wing and Lok Ann Hotel’s operator Stephen Yong had expressed gratitude that the old buildings would remain intact during and after the MRT project’s construction.
“Yan Keng was formed in 1920 but the building was already there when we moved in. It is a priceless structure of more than 100 years and we cannot afford to lose it.
“We are very relieved that the government sees its value and has saved it even while development moves on,” he said.
Yong, who had invested a handsome sum in refurbishing the interior of Lok Ann for the comfort of backpackers, echoed Wong’s concerns.
The Selangor Yan Keng Benevolent Dramatic Association’s secretary-general Ng Siak Wing and Lok Ann Hotel’s operator Stephen Yong had expressed gratitude that the old buildings would remain intact during and after the MRT project’s construction.
“Yan Keng was formed in 1920 but the building was already there when we moved in. It is a priceless structure of more than 100 years and we cannot afford to lose it.
“We are very relieved that the government sees its value and has saved it even while development moves on,” he said.
Yong, who had invested a handsome sum in refurbishing the interior of Lok Ann for the comfort of backpackers, echoed Wong’s concerns.
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