Penang has always had a mystical charm over many who have ventured to its shores. Sadly some of this charm has been lost due to the rapid development and modernization that goes hand in hand with a developing economy and scarcity of land.
Straits Properties would like to take a moment to pause and reflect on what made Penang so attractive to people of all walks of life, race and religious beliefs. In this post we will be going through the history of Penang through time by publishing authentic photographs which helps to remind us of the rich heritage we share and the need to blend future development with our rich historical past.
Enjoy.
George Town was founded in 1786 by Captain Francis Light, a trader for the British East India Company, as base for the company in the Malay States. He obtained the island of Penang from the Sultan of Kedah and built Fort Cornwallis on the north-eastern corner of the island. The fort became the nexus of a growing trading post and the island's population reached 12,000 by 1804. The town was built on swampy land that had to be cleared of vegetation, levelled and filled. The original commercial town was laid out between Light Street, Beach Street (then running close to the seashore), Malabar Street (subsequently called Chulia Street) and Pitt Street (now called Masjid Kapitan Keling Street).
At the turn of the 19th century, the northern section of Beach Street and the adjacent Bishop's Street were the ‘high street’ where the ‘modern’ European emporium and stores selling imported merchandise were situated.
Over the years immigrants from all over the world made Penang their home. Though many of them no longer impose a felt presence today, their memory lives on in place names such as Burma Road, Rangoon Road, Siam Road, Armenian Street, Acheen Street, Gottlieb Road, and Katz Street, and the Jewish Cemetery.
Owing to its long colonial history, many British colonial buildings can still be seen today. Such buildings include the City Hall, the Town Hall, the Eastern and Oriental Hotel, the Old Court House, Suffolk House built upon the pepper estate established by the first lieutenant for the island Francis Light and built by W.E.Phillips and subsequently used by governors until 1836 when it fell into private hands.
"History cannot give us a program for the future, but it can give us a fuller understanding of ourselves, and of our common humanity, so that we can better face the future."
Robert Penn Warren
