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Sun Yat Sen Villa

The Sun Yat Sen Villa (a.k.a Bin Chan House, and Wan Qing Yuan), at 12 Tai Gin Road, off Balestier Road, in the Novena area of the Central Region of Singapore, was named after the prominent Chinese Nationalist Dr Sun Yat Sen (b. 12 November 1866, Zhongshan, Guangdong, China - d. 12 March 1925, Dongcheng, Beijing).

Background
Built in 1880, it was originally the home of wealthy Chinese merchant Boey Chuan Poh, and was once the Southeast Asian headquarters for revolutionary leader, Dr Sun Yat Sen, when the building was owned by Teo Eng Hock (b. 1871 Singapore - d. 1958, Singapore). Dr Sun Yat Sen stayed here for two weeks on his second visit to Singapore, in April 1906, when he formed the local branch of the T'ung Meng Hui (Chinese Revolutionary League). This venue for their meetings plotted the overthrow, and helped end Manchuria's 267 years feudal rule of China, during the Qing Dynasty, and, led to the birth of the Republic of China on 1 January, 1912. These activities discontinued after 1912, and a series of short-lived tenants owned the house. In 1938, six famous merchant-philanthropists donated the villa to the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce for preservation as a historic site. During World War II, it was a Japanese communications centre. After the war, it was the Headquarters of the Singapore branch of the Kuomintang, until its ceased its activities here in 1951. Since then it has been in the care of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The building was declared a National Monument on 28 October 1994.

History
The land the villa stands on what was once part of a 404.7 ha (1000 acres) sugar plantation owned by Joseph Balestier, who went bankrupt in 1848. Ray Tyers' (1976) book, Singapore Then & Now, mentions an original grant of this land to Loh Jun Teck on 19 March 1856 Conveyance No. 47, from The East India Company.

The villa was built sometime in the 1880s, and possibly by its owner, merchant Boey Chuan Poh. It was rumoured to be for his mistress Bin Chan, after whom he named it Bin Chan House. In 1902, the villa was sold to a Mr Lim Ah Siang, a timber merchant for $10,800. Not long after in 1905, the house was acquired by Teochew businessman Teo Eng Hock (b. 1871, Singapore - d. 1959, Hong Kong) and his brother Teo Bah Tan of Beach Road, and bought for their mother Mrs. Teo Lee. It was renamed Wan Qing Yuan Villa or Marn Cheng Yuen (Wan means "evening", Qing means "clear weather", Yuan means "garden"). Teo Eng Hock offered Dr Sun Yat Sen the villa for his Singapore and Southeast Asian base. Dr Sun, a western-trained medical doctor turned revolutionary, had since 1894 wanted an end to Manchuria's rule of the Qing Dynasty in China and to establish a republic in China. On 6 April 1906, during Dr Sun's two week stay here, he formed a branch of the T'ung Meng Hui ("Chinese Revolutionary League") with co-founders Tan Chor Nam (b. 1884 - d. 1971) as chairman, Teo Eng Hock, and his nephew Lim Nee Soon (b. 12 November, 1879 Singapore - d. 20 March 1936, Shanghai, China) and Hsu Tzu Lin, as office bearers. The villa became a focal point of anti-Manchu activities outside of China. Milestone battles were planned right here. A breakthough with the Wuhan Uprising in October 1911, brought about the birth of the Republic of China on 1 January 1912, and Dr Sun Yat Sen was installed as the first President.

Other owners and occupants
After 1912, the Wan Qing Yuan Villa was sold to an Indian merchant who left it unoccupied. It was sold to a Mr Morris Augustin on 25 June 1914. Ray Tyers' book provides us with an interesting list of short-lived tenants that followed:
1917 : Sheriffa Zainah binte Alwee Aljunied.
1918 : Ng Quek Cheng.
1919 : Koh Keng Hai.
1920 : Tan Khye Yong and Syed Ali Zainal Adden bin Mohamed.
1923 : Syed Ahmad bin Mohamed Alsagoff.
1924 : Tan Ah Seng and Tay Yong.
1924 : Nah Kim Choon.
1925 : Tay Yong.
1925  : Chan Siong Heng.
1925 : Woon Siang Leng (54 New Bridge Road).

In 1938, the villa was purchased by a group of six famous merchant-philanthropists, namely Dato Lee Kong Chian, Tan Ean Kim, Chew Hean Swee, Lee Chor Seng, Yeo Kiat Tiow and Lee Chin Tian, and donated to the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) to be preserved as a historical site. It was renovated by Chung & Wong Architects.

During World War II, it became a Japanese communications centre. After the war, the Chinese Nationalist Government renovated the villa and turned it into the Headquarters of the Singapore branch of the Kuomintang, until it ceased its activities here in 1951. After that the villa was managed again by the SCCCI.

In 1965 the building had been restored and turned into a library and museum, and on the centenary of Dr Sun's birthday on 12 November 1966, the villa was opened to the public for free admission. Inside, the life of Dr Sun was traced in photos and watercolors, from his birth in Zhongshan, Guangdong, China, through his creation of a revolutionary organization. In the 1990s, restoration works were carried out to preserve the historic building which would become the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall.

Major restoration
In 1995, encouraged by the then Minister of Information and the Arts, Brigadier-General George Yeo, the SCCCI initiated moves to restore the villa to its former glory. Plans took a while, and blueprints revealed a whopping $7.5-million project cost. On 26 March 2000, a Straits Times headline "Historical villa's very slow face-lift", reported the painfully slow progress on the building's renovation work, due in large part to the difficulties in fund-raising encountered by the SCCCI.

Restoration Funds Raised as at 26 March 2000.
The $5 million collected included donations from the following:
$1.5 million Singapore Totalisator Board
$300,000 Hong Leong Foundation
$200,000 Lee Foundation
1 million renminbi (about S$200,000) the People's Republic of China
$100,000 from sources in Taiwan
$2.5 million from SCCCI fund-raising projects.

The rest of the $2.5 million had to be quicky raised.

Renovations only began on September 2000, led by DP Architects, and was readied for the 135th birthday of Dr Sun Yat Sen, on 6 November, 2001, when the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall, was reopened to the public.

Description
It is a classic colonial Chinese bungalow and a good example of spacious two-storeyed bungalows built by wealthy Chinese back then. It has typical bungalow features which include a projecting porte-cochere (French word for "carport") with a sitting-room above, verandahs with striped chick-blinds, the second-floor ornate cast-iron railings, and first-floor masonry balustrades. The roof is covered with the old style, natural orange-brown V-profile clay tiles. A covered walkway leads to the kitchen and the servants' quarters at the back. The original architect is unknown. 

In 1902, the villa had a land area of 2,601 sq m (28,000 sq ft), but today the land area given by the URA is 3674 sq m (39,550 sq ft). In the 1990s, Brigadier-General George Yeo, in a Straits Times interview said, "It is not just an old building. It is an important icon of our origin. You click on it, and windows to ourselves appear".

Today
After a major restoration, the construction of a new adjacent hall and the revitalisation of the museum, the Sun Yat Sen Villa is now preserved as the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall. On 28 October 1994, being worthy of preservation for its unique historical and architectural significance, the Sun Yat Sen Villa was gazetted as a national monument.



Author
Vernon Cornelius-Takahama, 2001



References 
Edwards, N., & Keys, P. (1996). Singapore: A guide to buildings, streets, places. Singapore: Times Books International.
(Call no.: RSING 915.957 EDW)

Liu, G. (1996). In granite and chunam: The national monuments of Singapore (pp. 218-221). Singapore: Landmark Books.
(Call no.: RSING 725.94095957 LIU)

Turnbull, C. M. (1977). A history of Singapore, 1819-1975 (pp. 110-112, 132-133). Singapore: Oxford University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 TUR)

Tyers, R. K. (1976). Ray Tyers' Singapore: Then and now (pp. 459-462). Singapore: University Education Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 TYE)

Chew, C. T. E., & Lee, E. (Eds.). (1991). A History of Singapore (pp. 68-73). Singapore: Oxford University Press.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 HIS)

Sun shone at this old villa. (2000, April 2). The Straits Times, Review Focus, pp. 52, 53.

Historical villa's very slow face-lift. (2000, March 26). The Straits Times, Home, p. 36.

Restoring it to its former glory. (2000, March 26). The Straits Times.

The information in this article is valid as at 2001 and correct as far as we are able to ascertain from our sources. It is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete history of the subject. Please contact the Library for further reading materials on the topic.

Subject
Architecture and Landscape>>Building Types>>Historic Buildings
Recreation>>Places of interest
Historic buildings--Singapore
Architecture--Conservation and restoration--Singapore
History>>Asia>>Southeast Asia>>Singapore
Arts>>Architecture>>Residential buildings
Law and government>>Culture and community>>Heritage

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