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Bullock carts

Bullock carts, one of the earliest and most popular modes of transport in the 19th and early 20th century Singapore. They were used for a variety of purposes, such as travelling and transportation of goods. They were phased out slowly with rising levels of traffic and the advent of mechanised transport from 1867 onwards.

History
In the early days of kampongs in Singapore, bullocks with large forehumps and flapping dewlaps were a common sight and often reared. They powered wheeled vehicles that moved up and down cart tracts that would later develop into proper roads. These large two-wheeled vehicles pulled by a pair of bullocks were often hired as freight haulers. The freight included water, hay, coconuts, pineapples and simple furniture when people moved. Kreta Ayer, literally meaning "bullock cart water" in Malay, is a road in Chinatown which draws its name from the bullock and ox carts that used to ply this road carrying water for the early inhabitants of Singapore.

Bullock carts were mostly owned by Tamils, and along with trams, buses, jinrickshaws and horse carriages, they formed the main modes of transport in the early 19th century.

Description
Fittings done to the bullocks include placing a wooden platform with a sturdy tongue between the parallel wheels of the cart to create space for passengers or freight. The driver holding a yoke hitched to the two bullocks on one hand and a thin whip on the other was invariably an Indian with betel juice running from his lips. The ride on bullock carts was usually bumpy. It was a common sight to see street urchins stealing a ride by holding on to bullock carts from behind which would cause the driver to flick these intruders off with his whip angrily.

Bullock carts significantly contributed to the early economic development of Singapore as they were used to move goods at Boat Quay and the Port. Domestic life was also relieved by bullock carts as they transported water drawn from wells in Ang Siang Hill to the people of different ethnic groups in Chinatown. As the water carts plied the street, the water also helped to keep down dust raised by vehicles. At construction sites, bullock carts were used to transport materials such as bricks. Bullock carts were also used in road repairing. A modification of the vehicle, by attaching a lawn mower to the pair of bullocks instead of a cart and with a seat for a driver, allowed the lawn at the racecourse in Farrer Park to be maintained by bullocks. Bullock carts that pulled a large metal roller attached to them were used to level grass on the Padang.

Chinese bullock carts: two-wheelers drawn by water buffaloes with large palm leaves attached to them, were an equally common sight. They not only carried passengers but also vats of soy sauce and all kinds of liquids to be sold to kampong residents. Water buffaloes could be seen grazing on grassy countryside until the fifties when rising levels of road traffic put an end to the use of bullock carts on Singapore roads. As with jinrickshaws and trishaws, bullock carts also began to dwindle with the introduction of mechanised transport in 1867.



Author
Thulaja Naidu Ratnala 



References 
Chan, K. B., & Tong, C. K. (Eds.). (2003). Past times: A social history of Singapore (p. 106). Singapore: Times Editions.
(Call no.: SING 959.57 PAS)

Communities of Singapore: A catalogue of oral history interviews, Part 2: Indians (p. 120). (1994). Singapore: National Archives of Singapore.
(Call no.: SING 959.57 COM)

Dunlop, P. K. G. (2000). Street names of Singapore (pp. 117-118). Singapore: Who's Who Publications.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 DUN)

Liu, G. (1999). Singapore: A pictorial history 1819-2000 (pp. 133, 135). Singapore: Archipelago Press.
(Call no.: SING 959.57 LIU)

Savage, V. R., & Yeoh, B. S. A. (2003). Toponymics: A study of Singapore street names (p. 228). Singapore: Eastern Universities Press.
(Call no.: RSING 915.9570014 SAV)

Singapore Tatler. (1995). Singapore chronicles (p. 163). Hong Kong: Illustrated Magazine.
(Call no.: RSING 959.57 SIN)

Chan, K. S. (2001, August 6). The street sounds of yesteryear. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 4.

Long, S. (1998, January 21). Its History City has bullock carts. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 3.

MRT stations: Get names back on track. (2002, July 28). The Straits Times. 

Steam train here in 1885 and tram in 1905. (1996, October 30). The Straits Times, Life!, p. 3.


Further Readings
Child's play. (1990, June 27). The Straits Times, p. 1.

Wee, L. (1995, September 11). See Singapore of yesteryear in postcards. The Straits Times, Life!, p. 3.

Yap, E. (1988, December 9). Grandfather tales of rickshaws and bullock carts. The Straits Times.


List of Images
The land transport of Singapore: From early times to the present (pp. 25 - 28). (1984). Singapore: Educational Publications Bureau.
(Call no.: SING 779.9388095957 LAN) 

The information in this article is valid as at 2000 and correct as far as we can 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
Commerce and Industry>>Transportation
Commerce and Industry>>Trade
Carriages and carts--Singapore
Transportation--Singapore
Science and technology>>Engineering>>Transportation engineering
People and communities>>Social groups and communities



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