Listing (not article) of Businesses in the Market Street Area, 1975

Chulia Street (Kling Street till 1921)

Chulia Street is where the native area begins – from the junction of Bonham street. The Indians were almost exclusively Chulia Tamil Muslims. There were both Indian and Chinese shops.

Singapore River side:

Bonham building– right at the corner opposite Standard Chartered bank. This was a 3 storey colonial building (where UOB plaza 2 is today). It had mostly lawyers, auditors and other professional firms as well as the United Chinese Bank (today’s UOB ). There were a number of Indian professionals working in law firms, agency houses, etc. This building was rebuilt in 1973.

Then came about 10+ shop houses and some of the businesses were:

· Second Chance tailors – Bonham building ground floor, Tamil Muslim

· Woollen & Textiles Pte Ltd, Milady Textiles - Tamil Muslim

· Cheong & Co. - Sail & Flag makers, Chinese

· SS Abdul Jabbar – ???, Tamil Muslim

· Krishna Stationers – Indian Tamils

· DasaradasVeerappanChettiar – TOTO ticket distribution

· A Latiff Brothers – pharmacy/perfumes, Tamil Muslim

· Zayfast – pharmacy, Gujerati (??)

· JitendraVanilal& Co – Importers and exporters, Gujerati

· BS Mohideen& Co (#28) – stationers, Tamil Muslim

· Ghulam Stationers – stationery, Tamil Muslims

· Chinese shophouses– tailors, Chinese

· RM AllapitchayMaricar – money changer – corner but facing market street, Tamil Muslim

· Mustafa tea stall – Mustaq Ahmed’s father used to sell hot tea in the evenings at corner here. This was not a permanent shop but a push cart/pole mobile stall.

Raffles Place Side:

Series of about 10 shophouses as follows:

· Wako & Co – at the corner of Raffles Place – Dining accessories, Chinese

· Everbright Opticians – spectacles, Chinese

· Shipchandlers– ship supply,Chinese

· Kamaluddin& Co – Ship chandlers,Tamil Muslim

· ASM Dawood - – Ship chandlers,Tamil Muslim

· Bee Chow – tailors (very famous & expensive), Chinese

· Wahab& Co – Ship Chandlers, Tamil Muslim (now in Bras Basah complex 2nd floor)

· Liang Brothers – electrical appliances, Chinese

· Eber & Tan - ???, Chinese

· Corner of market street Amar Petti Kadai – convenience shop (like 7-11), Tamil Muslim

Market Street

A good mix of ethnicities. The end closer to Chulia street transitions from Tamil Muslims to Chettiars. And gradually transitions to mostly Gujaratis and North Indians towards Malacca street. Interspersed were Indian Tamils. It was about 70/30 – Indian/Chinese. At Boat Quay it was Chinese, as one moves towards Chulia Street the street becomes overwhelmingly Indian. From the middle of Market Street past the Kittangis, some Chinese businesses intermingle and at where it meets Cecil street it becomes mostly Chinese. A few Indian businesses sprawl into Telok Ayer, Cecil and Cross streets and peter out into Chinatown.

Between Singapore River and Chulia street:

Chinatown side:

Godowns face the Singapore river

# 16 & 18 – MohdMaulana Ali Mosque – converted shophouses became a mosque in 1950s

# 22 Sena& Co. – sharebroking firm – Sinhalese Buddhists

Raffle Place Side:

# 3 Lunch Home – till 1942 run by Mukkani Krishna Iyer; very popular. It was hit in the first bombing of Raffles Place. Closed down after that.

Opposite mosque’s (#16 & 18) were:

· Tailor shops – Tamil Muslims

· Another branch of Naina Mohamed & Son’s Pharmacy, Tamil Muslim

· NainaMohd & Sons - provision shop – Tamil Muslim

· Perfume shop - perfumes, Pakistani

· Abdul Rahim– money changers and stationers, Tamil Muslims

· RE Mohammed Kassim – money changers, Tamil Muslims

# Corner of Chulia Street KM Allahpitchay Maricar- money changer, Tamil Muslim

Between Chulia Street and Cecil Street:

Chinatown Side:

# 28 & 30 Corner of Chulia Street was Bank of Singapore (a striking 4 storey building with a resident Sikh jaga)

# 36 Kittangi – financing, Chettiars

# 38 Kittangi – financing, Chettiars

# 40?? Panakchand – commodity traders, Hindu Gujarati

# 42??Ranchordas&Purushottam– commodity traders, Gujarati (moved from Malacca st in 1972)

# 44?? K Syed Mohamed Provision Shop (Anarkali&Ponni rice wholesalers today), Tamil Muslim

#46 Sikh Provision shop??

#48 ??

# 48A ?? Jumabhoy& Sons branch (2nd or 3rd floor) commodity traders, Gujarati Khoja Muslims

# 50 Hira Singh – Provision shop, Sikh (Gyan's Singh’s brother)

# 50A/B – Sisindia Shipping Co – Indian shipping co, upstairs Chettiar private kittangi

# 50 O RamasamyNadar provision/toddy shop (among richest Tamils before WW2)

# 52 Sugar company - Chinese

# 54 Kittangi– financing, Chettiars

# 56 Sugar company - Chinese (same owner as #52)

Side lane

# 62 Bapulal & Co - commodity traders, Gujarati

# ?? Lal Singh – sports equipment, Sikh

# ?? Boon Teck - ??, Chinese

# ?? Odeon barber shop - barber ground floor, Indian Tamil /2nd floor Indian goldsmiths

# ?? Flour & curry mill – mill ground floor Indian Tamils; canteen upstairs – Indian Tamil

# ?? Parasuram Brothers- commodity traders, Gujarati

# 66 Harbans& Co–provision shop, Sikh

# ?? Himat Singh – provision shop, Sikh

# ?? Ranjit Singh – Provision shop, Sikh

Telok Ayer cuts here at the junction a few Indian shops spill into Telok Ayer including:

# 7 Noor Mohd& Co.- provisions shop, Tamil Muslim

# ?? Adriano ?? – Rattan shop, Ceylonese Catholics

After the junction mostly Chinese shop houses.

Corner – Chinese coffee shop and charcoal seller (likely rebuilt into a modern 4 storey office building in the 60s or 70s as Indo-Commercial Building- 4 storey)

# ?? P Govindasamy Pillai had upto 5 shop houses here. In the 60s or 70s he vacated and moved out to Serangoon Road. These shop houses were then tenanted by mostly Chinese businesses.

# ?? DF Rasulbhai- commodity traders, Hindu Gujarati

# ?? Tian Bee Pte Ltd – wholesalers of Frankincense, Chinese

# Tee Jik Sen – wholesalers of Frankincense, Chinese

# 84 Gandilal& Sons- commodity traders, Gujarati

# 86 Robert Wee & Co. – sharebrokers, Chinese

# 96 Chan Sze On & Co. – auditors, Chinese

#100 Kay Hian& Co.– sharebrokers, Chinese

# ?? Deepak Trading- commodity traders, Hindu Gujarati

# ?? Tai Keng Rubber Merchants - Chinese

# ?? Sean & Co – Share brokers ??, Chinese

# ?? Panakchand- commodity traders, Hindu Gujarati

Raffles Place Side:

Corner with Chulia street - Amar convenience shop, Tamil Muslim

# 35 Indian clothes shop – Tamil Hindu/Muslim

# 37 Malayan Stationery – Tamil Muslim

# 37A (upstairs) Kittangis – financing, ThiruppaturPillais (not Chettiars)

# 39 Cambridge Tailor shop – Chinese

# 41 Frankincense shop – Chinese

Side Lane – lots of food stalls – Sultan tea stall, Karim bhai biryani

# 43/45 Pacific Union & Co. – trading firm, Chinese

# 47 Kittangi – financing, Chettiars

# 49 Kittangi- – financing, Chettiars(Subbiah Lakshmanan lived here)

# 51 Nalam Store – saree shop, Tamil Muslim

# 51A (upstairs) Murugesan& G Raman– lawyers – Tamil Muslims

# 53 India Coffee House – banana leaf café – Indian Tamils

# 55 Bombed out plot from WW2

# 57,59,61 Tat Lee Iron & Rolling mills (later became Tat Lee Bank)

#???

# 67 Kittangi – financing, Chettiars