Jackson Plan. History Walk of Singapore Food & Architectural Heritage

Image credit: Wikipedia

In 1822, Lieutenant Philip Jackson drew up a Singapore town plan according to Stamford Raffles' instructions. The resulting Plan of the Town of Singapore is also known as the Jackson Plan or Raffles Town Plan.

It is amazing that taking a walk in Singapore today (2020) we can still see the unmistakeable imprint of the Jackson Plan, drawn up just 3 years after Raffles first stepped foot on Singapore in 1819.



Before leaving Singapore in 1819, Raffles left instructions on his town plan with William Farquhar, the first British Resident and Commandant of Singapore. When he returned in 1822, Raffles was displeased that Farquhar had not followed his plan.

So, Raffles set up a town committee comprising Alexander Laurie Johnston (a merchant), George Bonham (civil servant), Captain Charles Edward Davis of the Bengal Native Infantry, and Lieutenant Philip Jackson of the Bengal Artillery.



Broadly, the drawn up plan had administrative, commercial, and ethnic zones (or enclaves). John Crawfurd succeeded William Farquhar as Resident and Commandant in 1823, and began work shaping Singapore's development faithfully according to the Raffles Town Plan.

First thing first, Singapore River at the heart of it all. There will be a "Public Quay" on the south bank backed with a row of "Mercantile Establishments" right behind it.

Boat Quay 1930. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Boat Quay was opened for business in the 1820s with a row of shops and godowns behind it. By the 1860s, Boat Quay was handling ¾ of Singapore's trade.

Boat Quay today (I shot this, today afternoon). The bumboats were gone since 1983 after the container port at Pasir Panjang opened. They cleaned up the river which was like an open sewer with the constant stench of rotten eggs and rotting meat hanging in the air. Now they conduct water sports in the river. The century old shophouses were gazetted as heritage buildings for conservation. They were restored and re-opened in 1995 as glitzy bars, pubs, restaurants and cafes. Boat Quay is now an upmarket entertainment and dining hub catering to tourists. Singapore's food heritage isn't represented here today.

Just to the west of the "Public Quay" is "Commercial Square". There used to be a hill here. In 1822, the hill was flattened on Raffles' orders to fill up the swamp fronting the south bank and make embankments for the "Public Quay".

Commercial Square 1900. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

The flattened hill area developed into the thriving "Commercial Square".

Commercial Square was renamed Raffles Place and this is how it looks like today (29 Jun 2020). All that remains of Commercial Square are 2 facades now used for entrances to Raffles MRT (subway) station.

Just to the east of the Singapore River would be the Town Hall buildings.

Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

The Singapore Town Hall in 1940. Dalhousie Obelisk (foreground, left), Empress Lawn, Victoria Theatre and Memorial Hall (with clock tower, was former Town Hall), Supreme Court (with dome), Singapore Cricket Club (centre, right) and the Cathay Building (background, right). In the foreground right is Anderson Bridge spanning the Singapore River.

Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

The "Open Space" became the Padang which means big field in Malay, with the Supreme Court in the background. This "Open Field" witnessed many historic events - the Japanese army paraded here, so did the Indian National Army, the Japanese surrender was signed here, and Singapore celebrated its most memorable national day parades here.

One of the features of the Jackson Plan is the ethnic zones or enclaves. From west to east, Raffles settled the Chinese, Europeans, Indians, Malays and Arabs in their respective zones. Within these ethnic enclaves, the respective communities would take care of their own affairs with limited oversight from the British authorities. Needless to say, these zones are no long too clear today after years of living together happily in a true melting pot of cultures and heritage.

But, it is still possible today, to take a fascinating culinary journey from west to east or east to west, walking and tasting the roots of Singapore's multicultural food heritage

(There are infinite numbers of options and ways to do this historical food walk, so this is only just one illustrative example to give you an idea. There are so many, many other ways to do this in my mind now, even day and night walks are different. A happy problem 😄 )

Let's go. For this post, I am doing a day walk from west to east. It'll just take half a day at a leisurely pace.

Starting at the Jackson Plan's "Chinese Campong" which is around Teluk Ayer - today's Chinatown.

Smith Street 1959. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Smith Street was the good food headquarters of Chinatown, known then as 牛车水 which literally means "water carrying bullock carts" because drinking water was ferried around town from the well using bullock drawn carts. In Malay, Chinatown was known as Kreta Ayer.

History of Chinatown food

In 1983, all Smith Street hawkers and those from surrounding areas were cleared off the streets and moved into Chinatown Complex food centre. With nearly 200 food stalls, this is Singapore's largest hawker centre.

Heng Ji chicken rice

It's been nearly 40 years, most of the original Smith Street hawkers have already retired. But, we still have remnants of the original food stalls like Heng Ji chicken rice, Pang Ji sak kei ma, 115 Chinese dessert, Lian He Ben Ji Claypot chicken rice, Yuet Loi, Cooked Food & Clay Pot, etc.

As Kreta Ayer is a Cantonese enclave, most of the oldest stalls in Chinatown Complex serve Cantonese dishes. Yes, inside the "Chinese Campong" there are sub-enclaves like Teochews at Boat Quay, Tew Chew Street, Ellenborough Street etc, and Hokkiens at China Street, Hokien Street, Amoy Street etc.

Hawker Chan before Michelin knew him

The most famous stall here is a relatively new one, Hawker Chan soya sauce chicken, because it was the first hawker stall in the world that was awarded a Michelin Star, back in 2016.

History of Maxwell Food Centre

Alternatively, we can start at Maxwell Food Centre - on the Jackson Plan it is the "Chinese Burial Ground" but it has come a long way from that. Today, Maxwell Food Centre is one of Singapore's most popular hawker centres, even though it is not a large one.

Most of the hawkers came from the Hokkien enclave of Hokien Street, China Street etc. Some of the original stalls still here include the lowly but historic rickshaw noodles, Fuzhou oyster cake, Heng Heng ondeh ondeh, Tian Tian chicken rice, etc.

Hong Lim Food Centre - Curry Chicken mee central of Singapore

A good place to start in "Chinese Campong" is Hong Lim Food Centre. You can check out Outram Park char kway teow, Hill Street Tai Wah pork noodles, Teo Heng Teochew porridge, Dong Fang Hong seafood soup, etc.

A Noodle Story

Another good place to start in "Chinese Campong" is Amoy Street food centre.

Now, we take a walk eastwards which takes us to Lau Pa Sat. It's the "Markets" in the Jackson Plan which is by the sea. There are three editions of "Markets".

Teluk Ayer Market in 1847. Image credit: Wikipedia

The first edition was a wooden seaside structure built in 1824 in accordance with the Jackson Plan. It housed the fish market which was originally at the south bank of the Singapore River (where Boat Quay is today).

Ten years later in 1834, the wooden market was replaced by the Teluk Ayer Market (i.e. edition two). In the picture above of the Teluk Ayer Market dated 1847, the first edition of the "Markets" was still visible in the background.

From 1879 to 1897 and 1910 to 1932, Teluk Ayer Bay was filled up by two Teluk Ayer Reclamation Projects. Soil taken from flattening Mount Wallich, Mount Palmer and Mount Erskine were used to fill up Teluk Ayer Bay. If you ever wondered how some road names at Shenton Way came about - they were hills that no longer exist today.

Lau Pa Sat 1950. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

In 1894, a new market made of iron was built on land reclaimed by the first Teluk Ayer Reclamation Project - this is the third edition of Teluk Ayer Market.

Known to locals as Lau Pa Sat 老巴刹 which literally means Old Market in Chinese, it was a fresh produce market and street food haven. Inside it was a labyrinth of market and food stalls - dark, humid, with paddles of dirty run off water here, there, everywhere on bare cement floors.

Lau Pa Sat in the 1990s. Image credit: Wikipedia

Lau Pa Sat was closed for restoration in the late-1980s and re-opened in 1991 as a food court.

Lau Pa Sat in 2018. Image credit: Wikipedia

Since then, Lau Pa Sat went through several restorations and makeovers. Food wise, it never reclaimed the atmosphere, flavours and aromas of its heydays, but it is still a good place for a coffee stop. Take your time to admire the lovingly restored Victorian era ironworks, and reminisce about or imagine its old, dark, wet and dingy market and food stall days.

After Lau Pa Sat, we head east passing Boat Quay, cross the Singapore River via Cavenagh Bridge, pass the Town Hall and stop at the Jackson Plan's European Town.

Saint Andrew's Cathedral in 1950. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus in 1903. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Several churches and schools were built in European Town. Today, some are re-purposed into museums and others, entertainment hubs.

Image credit: Wikipedia

For example, Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus (CHIJ) has been converted to an entertainment hub of upmarket bars, pubs, restaurants and cafes. It was rebranded CHIJMES -  the added MES has no meaning except to make the name sound like "chimes". You can stop here for drinks or dinner as most businesses at CHIJMES open in the evening but there is no heritage Singapore food here.

Raffles Hotel 1925. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Raffles Hotel built in 1887 is right at the eastern edge of European Town.

When you continue east from Raffles Hotel you will come to three streets - Seah Street, Purvis Street, and Middle Road. You are in the Hainanese enclave.

Of all the Chinese provincial language groups, the Hainanese were the last group to arrive in British Malaya as Haikou port (in Hainan) was opened for travel only in 1870. By that time, the Hokkien, Teochew, and Cantonese were already well entrenched in their respective enclaves and also trades.

With no room for them west of the Singapore River, the Hainanese latecomers set themselves up across the river in "no man's land" between European Town and Arab Campong.

As all professions and trades were jealously guarded domains of respective provincial language groups, the Hainanese were left with working as domestic servants, cooks, waiters, bartenders, and seamen. Despite the initial disadvantaged start, the Hainanese thrived against all odds.

The Hainanese gifted Singapore many legacies, especially in our cuisine. Examples of Hainanese Singapore dishes are Hainanese chicken rice, Hainanese curry rice, and Hainanese Western food. They also created the iconic Hainanese kopitiam culture featuring the trinity of kopi (coffee), kaya toast and soft boiled eggs.

Singapore Sling. Image credit: Wikipedia

On a hot day, you might want to cool off at Raffles Hotel's Long Bar with an iconic Singapore Sling created by Hainanese bartender Ngiam Tong Boon 嚴崇文 in 1915.

Yet Con Chicken Rice

The iconic Singapore Hainanese chicken rice is founded here on these streets. The first Hainanese chicken rice hawker plied Middle Road, Purvis Street and Seah Street with 2 baskets on a bamboo pole across his shoulders before setting up his hawker stall in a coffee shop in Purvis Street in the 1940s.

Check out Yet Con. It was also founded in the 1940s and is the oldest existing chicken rice shop in Singapore (how cool is that?). You may have had better tasting chicken rice but Yet Con is historic and may not be around that much longer.

Chin Chin Eating House

Check out also Yet Con's neighbour at Purvis Street - Chin Chin Eating House. You can try their Hainanese chicken rice or their Hainanese style pork chop with signature crushed biscuit batter and Hainanese style brown sauce.

Walking further east, we will soon arrive at the Arab Campong, Bugis Campong, Sultan's Palace and the Sultan Mosque.

Istana Kampung Glam 1982. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

Istana Kampung Glam was the residence of the Sultan of Johor. First constructed in 1819 by Sultan Hussain Shah, it was rebuilt and expanded in 1843 by his son Sultan Iskandar Ali Shah.

Image credit: Wikipedia

Today, the former palace houses the Malay Heritage Centre.

Sultan Mosque in the 1940s. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore

The Sultan Mosque was built in 1826 by Sultan Hussain Shah of the Johor Sultanate (when Singapore was its capital).

The area surrounding the Sultan's palace and Sultan Mosque was designated in the Jackson Plan as the Muslim enclave flanked by the Arab and Bugis Campong.



The Bugis originally from Sulawesi in Indonesia arrived in Singapore in 1820, just a year after Raffles. They were fleeing from Dutch control and Singapore Resident William Farquhar welcome them. The Bugis brought goods and trade networks to Singapore, and were an ally against the Dutch.

The Muslim enclave of the Jackson Plan is a haven of Halal Muslim cuisine brought to Singapore by Arab and Indonesia traders, as well as Singapore Malay food.

Warong Nasi Pariaman

There are many nasi padang shops here serving the iconic Indonesian dish. It is a good place to taste beef rendang.

There are many ways to explore Singapore's architectural and culinary heritage using the visionary Jackson Plan as a guide. I have just shared but one example as an illustration. This walking tour is very flexible with so many good food to eat, beautiful buildings to explore, and fascinating facts about Singapore to know in a fun way.

I will share more in the future but first let me go eat at more places one by one 😋 

👆 Get to know Singapore through its food. Image credit: Wikipedia

Date: 30 Jun 2020