Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club



Singapore Infopedia

The Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club is a community club for the Bawean Malay community. Established officially in 1932, the club served as a communal home for Baweanese immigrants until the 1960s. Originally located at 64 Club Street, it moved to Telok Ayer Hong Lim Green Community Centre at 20 Upper Pickering Street in 2000.The original pondok building on Club Street was designated a historic site by the National Heritage Board in 2000.

Baweanese migrants
In the early 19th century, Baweanese migrants began arriving in large numbers from Pulau Bawean, an island north of Java and south of Kalimantan, Indonesia, in search of economic opportunities.2


In Singapore, the Baweanese stayed in pondok or lodges in areas such as Minto Road, Kampong Java and Everton.3 Besides serving as shelters for new immigrants, these pondok were also institutions of communal support and welfare for the Baweanese community.4 One such pondok was the Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club on Club Street, which housed up to 200 Baweanese residents at its peak.5

Pondok system
Pondok, or ponthuk, means “hut” in Malay, but has taken on the meaning of a communal home or, in the case of the Baweanese community in Singapore, a shophouse that functions as a lodging house similar to a Chinese clan, or kongsi.6


The pondok on Club Street was a typical large three-storey, prewar shophouse divided into several cubicles for different families, with shared kitchen and toilet facilities. The bedrooms on the upper floors were reserved for married couples, while the lower floor was for children and unmarried adults who slept on wooden platforms. Over time, the pondok became overcrowded as the number of Baweanese immigrants increased.7

The pondok system was based on fictive kinship, in which members came from the same kelurahan or group of villages back in Bawean, and the upholding of a community or gotong-royong spirit. Residents living in the same pondok were close-knit. They supported new immigrants by helping them to settle down, adapt to life in Singapore and look for employment. As a result, Baweanese migrants were often found in the same type of jobs, usually as drivers or gardeners. If they became unemployed or incurred debts, members of the community would provide financial assistance.8

Each pondok had a chief called the Pak Lurah, who took charge of the welfare of the pondok’s residents as well as financial and religious matters. He also dispensed advice on matters relating to daily life. The residents of each pondok were governed by cultural norms, which helped to maintain peace and harmonious living. These norms were recorded by Abdullah Baginda in his 1967 Intisari journal article, “Our Baweanese People”.9

History
The Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club is said to have started before 1914 as Pondok Desa Gelam in Chinatown. Founded for Baweanese migrants from the Desa Gelam (Gelam district) on Bawean Island, it was officially registered on 4 April 1932 as Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club.10

As a Malay-centred communal facility in a predominantly Chinese area, the Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club symbolised racial coexistence and harmony. During the 1945 racial riotspondok residents were protected from Malayan Communist Party guerrillas and Chinese triad members by their Chinese neighbours. They were accorded the same protection during the 1964 racial riots.11

With the relocation of pondok residents to public housing units built by the Housing and Development Board in the 1960s, the pondok ceased to serve as a communal home. It evolved into a community club that organised educational, social and recreational activities for members and non-members.12 In 1969, membership was extended beyond the Baweanese community to all Singapore residents. By the 1980s, club membership had exceeded 700.13

In 2000, the club was relocated to Telok Ayer Hong Lim Green Community Centre on Upper Pickering Street. The pondok’s last resident who moved out at the end of 1999 was Suki Sitri, who had lived at the club for 60 years.14 In 2000, the original pondok building on Club Street was declared a historic site by the National Heritage Board and underwent restoration. The club on Upper Pickering Street continued to organise recreational activities such as arts, cultural, sports and wellness programmes.15



Author
Nuradilah Ramlan




References
1. Siti Andrianie, “Singapore’s Last Pondok Named a Historic Site,” Straits Times, 31 January 2000, 42. (From NewspaperSG)

2. Abdullah Baginda, “Our Baweanese People,” Intisari 2, no. 4 (1967), 26–27. (Call no. RCLOS 959.5005 INT)
3. Mohd Gani Ahmad and Ismail Pantek, “Erti Pondok Berbeza Ikut Tempat Dan Zaman,” Berita Harian, 10 October 2006, 8; “Work on Bridge: Traffic Plan,” Straits Times, 10 February 1962, 4; “Pondok People Still Here after 5 Decades,” New Paper, 17 August 1989, 6. (From NewspaperSG)
4. Mardiana Abu Bakar, “The Baweanese Retain Their Pondok Spirit,” Straits Times, 19 October 1987, 18. (From NewspaperSG)
5. Andrianie, “Singapore’s Last Pondok.”
6. Mafoot Simon, “Showtime, to Lure Ponthuk Young,” Straits Times, 20 November 1997, 18; “Pondok People Still Here”; Suhaili Osman and Muhammad Qazim Abdul Karim, “Laobe: Changing Times: Baweanese Heritage & Culture in Singapore,” BeMuse 7, no. 3 (July–September 2014), 24–25. (Call no. RSING 950 B)
7. Osman and Abdul Karim, “Laobe,” 24–25; “Historic Home,” New Paper, 31 January 2000, 7. (From NewspaperSG)
8. Baginda, “Baweanese People,” 29–30, 36–37.
9. Baginda, “Baweanese People,” 29–31, 33, 36–40.
10. Andrianie, “Singapore’s Last Pondok”; UntitledSingapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser (1884–1942), 23 April 1932, 7. (From NewspaperSG)
11. National Archives of Singapore, “Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club,” Treasures of Time no. 3 (March 2000): 9. (Call no. RSING 959.57 TT-[HIS])
12. Andrianie, “Singapore’s Last Pondok.”
13. “Club That Pays a Member’s Fines,” Straits Times, 5 March 1984, 7. (From NewspaperSG)
14. Farid Hamzah, “Sejarah Pondok Gelam Diabadi,” Berita Harian, 10 November 1999, 3. (From NewspaperSG)
15. Andrianie, “Singapore’s Last Pondok”; National Archives of Singapore, “Pondok Peranakan Gelam Club,” 9.



Further resources
Sundusia Rosdi, ed., Masyarakat Bawean Singapura: La-A-Obe (Singapore: Persatuan Bawean Singapura, 2015). (Call no. Malay RSING 305.8009598 MAS)


Suki bin Sitri, oral history interview by Zaleha Osman, 15 August 2000, MP3 audio, Reel/Discs 1–3,  National Archives of Singapore (accession no. 002401).



The information in this article is valid as of March 2024 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. 

 


Rights Statement

The information on this page and any images that appear here may be used for private research and study purposes only. They may not be copied, altered or amended in any way without first gaining the permission of the copyright holder.

More to Explore

Urban planning framework in Singapore

ARTICLE

Urban planning in Singapore aims to optimise the use of the country’s scarce land resources for the diverse needs of both current and future generations of residents. It involves allocating land for competing uses such as housing, commerce, industry, parks, transport, recreation and defence, as well as determining the development...

Mount Faber

ARTICLE

Mount Faber is located in the Bukit Merah area in the central region of Singapore. Standing at 106 m above sea level, it was originally known as Telok Blangah Hill. It was renamed Mount Faber in July 1845 after Charles Edward Faber of the Madras Engineers, who built a narrow...

Somapah

ARTICLE

Located off Changi Road at the 10th milestone, Somapah was a residential area centred on the Somapah estate, which was also known as Somapah Village. The area was named after Indian landowner Hunmah Somapah. Although Somapah Road still exists, the villagers have since been resettled and the area redeveloped into...

Centenary Day

ARTICLE

Centenary Day was celebrated on 6 February 1919 to commemorate 100 years since Singapore’s founding by Stamford Raffles. On 6 February 1819, Raffles signed the treaty that allowed the British East India Company to set up a trading post in Singapore. The Centenary Day saw celebrations held by each major...

Benjamin Sheares Bridge

ARTICLE

The Benjamin Sheares Bridge is a 1.8-kilometre-long stretch of highway that forms part of the East Coast Parkway, linking the Keppel Road/Shenton Way junction to Marina Centre. Named in honour of the second president of Singapore Benjamin Sheares, the bridge spans the Kallang Basin and the Singapore River. The S$109.8-million...

Bukit Brown Municipal Cemetery

ARTICLE

The Bukit Brown Municipal Cemetery was established to serve the burial needs of the Chinese community. Officially opened on 1 January 1922, it operated for more than half a century before its closure in 1973. The cemetery was previously a section of a 211-acre plot of land, belonging to the...

Mount Pleasant

ARTICLE

Mount Pleasant is an area located in the central region of Singapore bounded by Thomson Road, the Pan Island Expressway (PIE), Bukit Brown Cemetery and Andrew Road. It is named after a hill located within its boundaries. The colonial government acquired the area in 1920 to build accommodation for high-ranking...

Alkaff Mansion

ARTICLE

Alkaff Mansion is a 19th century colonial bungalow located on a hill at 10 Telok Blangah Green. Built in 1918 by a member of the prominent Alkaff family as a weekend house, it became known for hosting high society parties in the 1930s. The mansion once served as...

Balestier

ARTICLE

Located in the central region of Singapore, Balestier refers to the area around Balestier Road that runs between Thomson and Serangoon roads. Balestier was first developed as a sugarcane plantation in the mid-19th century by American Joseph Balestier. Wealthy individuals and families began moving into the area from the late...

Marina Barrage

ARTICLE

Marina Barrage is a government-commissioned dam built across the mouth of Marina Channel to create Singapore’s 15th reservoir, Marina Reservoir. Officially opened on 31 October 2008, it separates the water in Marina Basin from the seawater. It has been considered an engineering marvel because of its magnitude and complexity, and...