Raffles Place: Then and Now
Go back to Singapore's pre-skyscraper days.
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Tay Suan Chiang
RAFFLES PLACE HAS been Singapore's commercial district for nearly 200 years. Beyond the skyscrapers, it's hard to think of this bustling river-facing financial microcosm as a bucolic hill before it was leveled in 1822 under the Singapore Town Plan to build up trade and commerce.
It was aptly named Commercial Square, housing banks and trade agencies. In 1858, it was renamed Raffles Place and eventually became home to godowns, shophouses, and medical halls.
This was also where two English brothers John and Martin Little set up John Little & Co. Later in the 1960s, Raffles Place boasted the oldest department store in Singapore. This was in the 1960s, when it boasted an underground carpark and rooftop garden complete with fountains and a flower clock. What was once a popular stomping ground for local families now sees commuters rushing back and forth as Raffles Place MRT station.
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