Teluk Anson 1882-1941 Port, Agriculture and Erosion

Teluk Anson: 1882-1941: Port, Agriculture and Erosion
Author(s): Khoo Kay Kim

Source: Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, Vol. 68, No. 2 (269),
SHEPPARD MEMORIAL ISSUE (1995), pp. 33-52
Published by: Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41493644
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PART 2, 1995
Teluk Anson: 1882-1941: Port, Agriculture and Erosion

by Khoo Kay Kim
Prelude
local history, including, a near absence of serious studies on the history of towns,
One without local of history,
withoutthewhich
whichit shortcomings including,
is difficult to gain a properitperspective
is difficultofofsocial,
a nearadministrative
Malaysian to gain absence a historiography proper of serious perspective studies is the of on scant social, the history attention administrative of paid towns, to
and commercial development in the country.
One such neglected town is Teluk Anson (now Teluk Intan) which, since its
foundation, has been one of the larger towns in the country.
It has earned its reputation as the "sinking town" because it has suffered erosion for an
. unknown number of years now. The problem was first noted after the establishment of
British administration in 1874. But fears of major disasters have proved somewhat
unfounded and residents of the town, even now, are reluctant to move to a new site.
Teluk Anson is also known for its "leaning clock tower", often compared to the Leaning
Tower of Pisa. Originally a water tower, built in 1894, to supply water to the town, it, later,
became a clock tower. Until the 1950s, it was possible to walk up to the top from where one is
able to obtain a splendid view of the Perak river as it meanders towards the Straits of Melaka.
In more recent years, Teluk Anson (Teluk Intan) has also been regarded, as Melaka once
was, as a "sleepy hollow" but the existence of about a dozen banks in the town belies this adverse
image. Still, the town has seen little development since independence but it has lost much of the
orderliness and neatness so conspicuous before World War II even though, until then, except in
the heart of the town, wooden houses predominated, including government offices.
Situated in the centre of a vast agricultural area - including Sabak Bernam, a district in
Selangor - producing rubber, coconuts, padi, tobacco, and, in more recent years, palm oil,
hence, catering to a massive agricultural population, the town also has tremendous potential
for developing recreational activities.
The town is within easy reach of the confluence of the Perak and Kinta rivers, to the north;
the Batang Padang flows along the edge of the north-eastern part of the town: three-quarters of
the town is bordered by the Perak river. To the south, about 17 kilometres away is the Bernam
river. And the Straits of Melaka is not much more than about 42 kilometres away by road. A
bridge now spans the Perak river, less than 10 kilometres to the south of the town, leading to
Sitiawan, situated close to Pangkor Island, a renowned holiday resort.
Teluk Anson's disadvantage has been the fact that it is situated about 38 kilometres
from the north-south highway (and now the north-south expressway too). Tucked away in a
corner of Perak, it has always been overshadowed by Taiping, once the capital of Perak,
1 876-1941 , and Ipoh, known before World War II, as the "hub of Malaya".
In 1 982, the name of "Teluk Anson" was officially changed to "Teluk Intan". Teluk
Anson, in 1982, was a century old.
For many years before that, old residents of the town had claimed that the original
name of the town was "Teluk Mak Intan". It derived its name, apparently, from an incident
when a lady bathing in the river lost her diamond {intan) hair-pin.
33
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
In re-naming the town, the then ruler, Sultan Idris ibni Sultan Iskandar Shah, decided
that the word "Mak" ought to be dropped; hence the present name "Teluk Intan".
From local tradition, it appears that Teluk Mak Intan (also referred to in British
documents as "Teluk Melunting" and "Teluk Ma' Hitam") was located roughly where the
old police station (now a disused building) stood. The building originally functioned as a
toll-collecting station after a canal (subsequently refilled and known as Canal Road, now
Jalan Selat) had been cut to shorten the distance between Durian Sebatang and Teluk Anson.
Teluk Anson was typical of many of the towns in Peninsular Malaysia. As a result of
the establishment of British administration, a new site was chosen for the development of a
more modern town. But the new town soon incorporated older existing villages. In the case
of Teluk Anson, these villages were: to the west Pasir Berdamar, to the north-east, Durian
Sebatang, to the east Sungai Nibong and almost parallel to Sungai Nibong, at some distance
from Teluk Anson, was Changkat Jong. To the south of Teluk Anson was Batak Rabit. It is
not known, however, when these villages were founded.
Lower Perak was, traditionally, the centre of the Kingdom (Kerajaan) of Perak,
believed to have been founded in 1 528 by the son of the ruler of Melaka (Sultan Mahmud).
The large majority of the graves of early Perak rulers were located on the east bank of the
Perak river between Kuala Bidor and Bruas.
Perak was never a maritime kingdom. Two of its important ports then were Kota Setia
and Kuala Bidor, both located along the lower portion of the Perak river but about 50
kilometres apart.
Lower Perak before 1874

There is, on the whole, a paucity of information about Lower Perak before 1 874. Capt. James
Low who was involved in helping Perak to stave off Siamese intervention, especially at the
time the Siamese planned and, subsequently, launched their attack on Kedah in 1821,
mentioned that some of the more important tin-producing areas in Perak, in the early 19th
century, were found in Lower Perak, such as Bidor, Batang Padang and Chenderiang. 1
Perak tin, even from the interior (the Kinta, for example), was then exported from
Kuala Bidor. The Laksamana of Perak established his residence there from where he was
able to monitor Perak's export and import trade.
John Anderson, another Englishman, who had a sound knowledge of Perak,
mentioned in his book that the important places along the Perak river, from the sea to about
55 kilometres in the interior were: Palawat, Sirih, Dalang, Pakolit, Tomanda,Simpang
Binjei, Harrowen, Tanjong Putus (possibly close to the present Nova Scotia Estate), Batu
Kubit Jejawi, Dorian (possibly Durian Sebatang), Jelawat, Udang Abu, Kubu, and Matania.2
But apart from the fact that Lower Perak was an important tin-producing and trading
centre and Bandar, located on the opposite bank of the Perak river to Bidor but somewhat
further to the north, which, in the early 19th century, had a sufficiently large Chinese
population to warrant the appointment of a Kapitan China (Tan Ah Hun, a Teochew), there is
very little information on the place.
1 . James Low, "Observations on Perak" Journal of the Indian Archipelago and Eastern Asia, Vol. 4, 1 850,
p. 498.
2. John Anderson, Political and Commercial Considerations relative to the Malayan Peninsula , etc. Prince of
Wales Island, 1 824, pp. 1 74- 1 79.
34
PART 2, 1995
The Establishment of British Administration

When J. W. W.Birch was appointed British Resident in Perak, after the signing of the Pangkor
Engagement (1874), he picked Bandar Baharu, north of Kuala Bidor, and almost opposite
Bandar, as the administrative capital. It was there too that Birch was finally buried after he
was assassinated at Pasir Salak on the same side as Bandar, on November 2, 1 875.
It was no accident that Birch chose Bandar Baharu as the administrative capital. It was
situated practically in the centre of Lower Perak, the heart of the Perak kingdom, and quite
close to Sultan Abdullah (appointed by the British by virtue of the Pangkor Engagement)
whose residence was at Batak Rabit.
Birch's successor was James Guthrie Davidson who had been the Resident in
Selangor. But he was unable to adjust to his new position and soon resigned to return to
Singapore to continue his legal practice. The third Resident, Hugh Low, arrived in 1877. It
was then decided that it was more politic for the British Resident to move away from the
heart of the Perak kingdom where the British had encountered massive Malay hostility.
Throughout his administration in Perak (he retired in 1889), Hugh Low resided at Kuala
Kangsar which became, eventually and remains until today, the royal capital, beginning
from the reign of Sultan Idris (1887-1916).
But Kuala Kangsar was not the administrative capital of Perak. The place chosen was
Taiping, a new town founded after the end of the Larut disturbances which primarily
involved Chinese secret societies, hence it was named Taiping (the "Great Peace).
The shift was determined not merely by the need to move away from the area of Malay
hostility but also the fact that the Larut district had emerged as the leading tin-producing
territory in the Peninsula. Taiping remained Perak's capital until 1941 .3
When Bandar Baharu was the administrative capital, the Assistant Resident of Perak
(Capt. T.C.S. Speedy) was stationed at Larut. After Hugh Low assumed office as the
Resident, Capt. Speedy was moved down to Durian Sebatang. But he soon retired from
service. He was found to be inefficient and extravagant. Of Capt. Speedy and Durian
Sebatang, Low wrote in 1 877:
There is nothing to show for it but a few ditches of a very small size. I went down the
road, it is quite impassable for carts. ... He and I could not quite hit it off about the
proper sites for public buildings and Chinese houses; river view he says will interfere
with the comfort or privacy and outlook of the Residency .... 4
The following is a more graphic description of the town:
The town is so confined a space that some of the streets are only 12 feet wide so that
contagious disease or fire must run freely through the place and the present Residency
is intended to be at Teluk Malunting [Teluk Mak Intan?]. Why was the two also not
ordered to be built there and the greater part of 7000 dollars saved? I will send
Villiepillar [Vellupillay] there and make him make a plan of such a town as might be
built in Teluk Malunting. I would then propose that all the Chinese who have built on
the point at Durian Sebatang should be bound to remove to the more favourable place
.... I would insist on this. The Customs house, the court house, landing jetty and chief
3. For a history of T aiping, see Khoo Kay Kim, Taiping Ibukota Perak , Malaysian Museum Society, Kuala
Lumpur, 1981.
4. See Emily Sadka (ed.), "The Journal of Sir Hugh bow, Perak 1 877" in Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society
Malayan Branch, Vol.27, pt.4, 1955, p. 88.
35
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
police station should be put there at once. I will send the plan and write on the subject
to Singapore as soon as I can ...5
In 1877 and again in 1879, Lieut-Col. Archibald Anson acted as Governor of the
Straits Settlements in the absence of Sir Harry Ord. Anson not only took a great interest in
Low's suggestion but actually drew the plan of the proposed town.
Although a new town was in the pipe-line, Durian Sebatang was to continue to serve as
the principal port in Lower Perak. It was thought then that the journey to and from the
interior could be significantly shortened by the construction of the canal as the Perak river
flows in a loop round Teluk Anson.
Sir Frederick Weld, the new Governor who assumed duty in May 1 880, visited Durian
Sebatang in September 1 881 and reported that:
Map showing the original site of Teluk Anson (Teluk Mak Intan) and the Canal joining
Durian Sebatang with Teluk Anson
5. Ibid.
36
PART 2, 1995
At Durian Sebatang the seat of the Superintendent of Lower Perak, the new canal
approved of by me on my first visit is fast approaching completion and promises to be
a most useful work.6
The construction of the new town at "Teluk Malunting" by 1 881 was nearing completion.
At the meeting of the Perak State Council on March 1 5, 1 881 , Hugh Low suggested that:
... the new Settlement at Telok M' Hitam [sic]... be known as Teluk Anson', in
compliment to General Anson who drew the first plan of the town and took great
interest in its removal from Durian Sebatang. The name Teluk Ma' Hitam has also
been found inconveniently long.
The Original Wharf at Denison Road (Plan 69-4-9, R. T.S. 12/1906, Survey Officer, Perak).
The suggestion was accepted by the State Council and Teluk Anson was born. At that time
the canal was still under construction. In May 1 883, Weld visited Teluk Anson and reported that:
6. Colonial Office Records 273/ 1 09, Sir F. Weld to Lord Kimberly, 2 1 Sept. 1 88 1 .
37
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
On, my return [from Penang] after a break-down caused either by the machinery or the
neglect of the Eurasian Engineer of this small boat [Pilot Fish], I at length reached
Teluk Anson, the head-quarters of Lower Perak about 26 miles [actually at least 30]
from the mouth of the river. As I have not visited it for sometime, I was received with
great demonstration of joy by Malays, [Indians] and Chinese. The change of the Town
site from Durian Sebatang has been quite successful. Many good buildings have been
erected and streets well laid out. The canal, which saves eight miles of river navigation
is likely to be a success and is nearly finished. The hospital is commodious and in good
order, and everything reflects much credit on Mr. Denison, the Superintendent of
Lower Perak.7
Among the earliest official buildings to be erected was the residence of the Collector
and Magistrate (a position which eventually evolved into the modern District Officer), the
court house and a massive building in which were located the government offices. It became
known to the local residents as the house with a thousand pillars (stilts actually). It was
destroyed by fire during the Japanese Occupation. A special feature of the house was that not
a single nail was used. All the joints were neatly fitted together. The building was located
approximately where the present Town Council stands. Also among the earliest buildings
erected in the town were the government dhoby, the hospital, customs house (later used as a
police station) and labour lines along the present Jalan Mahkota which meets Jalan Selat.8
To construct the canal, the British administration had to, with the help of the penghulu,
mobilize local Malays who were each paid 20 cents a day. The construction of the canal,
government buildings and roads were often disrupted by insufficient allocations. The canal
was finally completed on the eve of 1884 and for a few years appeared to have served its
purpose well. But not long after F.A. Swettenham assumed the position of Perak Resident (in
1 889), it was found to be defective; Swettenham reported that:
... it has proved a failure .... The state engineer informs me that the canal works were not
carried out in accordance with his instructions and that the defects are due to this cause ....9
Apparently, because of that, it was dangerous to use the canal. A decision was taken to
fill up the canal. By 1 896, it was reported that "A considerable portion of the canal have been
filled up...."10
The Railway
By 1 896 too the usefulness of the canal had been considerably reduced. In April 1 89 1 , work
on the railway to link the Kinta district, which had by then outstripped the Larut district in tin
production, with Teluk Anson, had begun. The railway was completed in May 1895. The
terminus in Teluk Anson was located near the entrance of the canal (close to the customs
house). The road next to the river was then known as Denison Road (now Jalan Wah Keng
Jooi). Sheds were built there which, according to an official report, "will enable the railway
7. Colonial Office Records 1 73/1 20, Sir F. Weld to Lord Derby, 3 May 1 883.
8. See Khoo Kay Kim, Teluk Anson (T duklntan), Malaysian Museum Journal, Kuala Lumpur, 1 982, 2nd Ed.
(1991), p. 7.
9. Cited by Ahmad Mustafa bin Ismail, 'Bandar T eluk Anson: Satu Kaj i an Mengenai Sejarah Pembangunan
dan Perkembangannya, etc.', Academic Exercise, Dept. of History, Univeristy of Malaya, 1976/77, p. 49.
10. Ibid., p. 54.
38
PART 2, 1995
to compete on better terms with the (Malay) boats which now take delivery of cargo for
Kinta at ships' sides and proceed straight up river, in many cases return laden with tin."11
The railway did not transform the function of Teluk Anson which continued to service
the Kinta district but travelling time between the two places was considerably reduced.
Previously, the Perak and Kinta rivers provided the principal means of transport.
The change in the means of transport, however, significantly affected the Malay
boatmen who used to ply between Teluk Anson and the Kinta district carrying goods to and
fro by their sampan (a form of canoe). But it did not, for at least three more decades, lead to
their demise for they continued to service the numerous Malay villages which lined the
Perak and Kinta rivers, acting primarily as retailers of basic necessities.12
The construction of the Kinta-Lower Perak railway was, in fact, quite eventful. Noel
Denison, the Superintendent of Lower Perak, initially, favoured linking Teluk Anson and Tapah
by tram. A decision, by then, had been made to link Tapah and Ipoh by rail which was part of the
grand scheme to build a line down the western side of the Peninsula joining Prai and Johor Bahru.
But when F.A. Swettenham became the Resident of Perak in 1889, he and Spence
Moss (Engineering Adviser to the Railway Department) recommended to the Governor, Sir
Cecil Clementi Smith, that Tapah and Teluk Anson should be linked by rail rather than tram.
The Governor agreed. The Tapah-Teluk Anson railway was completed in 1893 and the
extension to Ipoh about two years later. 13
The railway did help to add to the importance of the port in Teluk Anson. Singapore's
paper The Straits Times (July 1 9, 1 895), remarked that:
The trade between Teluk Anson and Singapore is increasing gradually and promises
soon to exceed that carried on between Penang and Perak.
Previously, there was little direct trade between Teluk Anson and Singapore. Penang,
which handled Perak's exports and imports, provided the link between the two and Penang
itself, since at least the mid-nineteenth century, had been a commercial dependency of
Singapore.
The growing importance of Teluk Anson is also indicated by the fact that Straits
newspapers began to focus greater attention on the port there. In July 1895, The Straits
Maritime Journal of Penang urged that:
... [there should be] improvements in lighting the approaches to Teluk Anson, and points
out that a light is wanted at Tanjong Hantu, an especially dangerous spot. That journal also
dwells upon the need for additional wharf accommodation at Teluk Anson where, at
present, steamers are, in consequence, often kept lying out in the stream for many hours
before they can come alongside the wharves to discharge or take in caigo. 14
With more steamers calling at Teluk Anson, passenger traffic also increased/It was
reported in 1 899, for example, that:
11. Ibid.. p. 55.

1 2. Malay riverine traders were still found in T eluk Anson in the 1 930s. These traders lived in their boats.
Information obtained from the late Tan Poh Aun, a Chinese community leader, in 1965.
1 3. See Khoo Kay Kim, "Teluk Intan/Teluk Anson dari segi Sejarah" in Omar Farouk Bajunid (ed.), Esei-esei
Budaya dan Sejarah Perak , Kuala Lumpur, 1 989, p. 27.
1 4. See The Straits Times ( 1 9 July 1 895) quoting the Penang paper.
39
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
The steam launch Ban Ho Bee which runs between Pangkor and Teluk Anson three
times a week is a source of much convenience to the Teluk Anson folks beside
supplying them fish. 1 5
Soon work had to be done to improve the jetty for, by 1 903, it was said that:
... six hundred and forty steamers entered the port of Teluk Anson as against 514 in
1 902 while the tonnage increased from 1 30,2 1 3 in 1 902 to 1 58,845 in 1 903. 16
The export of tin from Teluk Anson also increased substantially as evidenced by the
following figures:17
Year Amount of Tin Exported (in piculs) Duty
1908 379,670 $3,385,107.00
This increase was also a reflection of the ex

district which, as mentioned earlier, since the last
Larut as the principal mining area in Perak.
In 1 880, a port had been established to service
the Straits Settlements, Sir Frederick Weld (a
linked by rail (a distance of about 8 miles) to Ta
As a result of the decline of Larut as a minin
principal port of Perak, overshadowing Port W
the gateway to the Kinta district when the north
had been completed by 1 909. It was, however, s
the major agricultural districts in the country.
The Development of Agriculture

By the turn of the 20th century, European plan
Perak. For example, in 1901 , the District Magistr
[An] Estate ... which was but a primitive forest

one of the most promising plantations on the P
Coconuts actually preceded rubber but, in the

planted with rubber and 120 with coconuts. This
Ltd with its headquarters in London and its local a
The Perak Annual Report of 1905 provides a
coconut sector before the expansion of the rub
the report, said:
The area under coconuts in Lower Perak is ab

the establishment of a mill. The output of co
The new coast road will give access to a large t
1 S The Perak Pioneer. 23 Sent. 1 899.
1 6. Cited bv Ahmad Mustafa, od. cit. . d. 78.

1 7. See KJioo Kay Kim, Teluk Anson CT e luk Int an), p. 1 3.
1 8. The Perak Pioneer , 30 March 1 901 .
40
PART 2, 1995
years of waiting, a fair share of Government revenue should be expended on the

development of Lower Perak. The native peasantry is prosperous and readily pays the
full rates demanded. Mr. Lawrence Brown, whose appointment as Inspector of
Coconut Plantations has been an unqualified success, reports that the area under
coconut cultivation in the F.M.S. is about 100,000 acres of which Perak supplies half,
and he places the value thereof at seventeen and a half millions of dollars. He
recommends the construction of roads, bridle paths and sluice gates and is of the
opinion that this form of cultivation is for natives a sound and paying concern. 19
Thereafter, however, the rate of growth of the rubber sector in several of the Peninsular
states was phenomenal. OfLower Perak, the British Resident (E. Birch) said in 1908: "...the
rubber estates have altered the appearance of the district".20 Thousands of hectares of land
were cleared and planted with rubber.
List of Plantations in Lower Perak 1908
1. Sungai Wangi
2. Nova Scotia
3. Rubana
4. Bangan Datoh
5. Sitiawan
6. Strathmashie
7. Selaba
8. Jenderata
9. Batak Rabit
10. Columbia
11. Cicely
12. Ratanui
13. Sabrang
14. Somerset
1 5. Sungai Air Tawar
16. Captain Turner's
17. Tanglin
18. Dettah
19. Captain Daily's
20. Alexandra
21. Eden Hall
22. Castleton
23. Coningsby
Oliver Marks, Re
1 9. See also James C

Malaya 1 786-1921, K
20. The Malay Mail,
41
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
The cultivation of sugar had also begun in Lower Perak by the turn of the 20th century.
In late 1 898, the Straits Sugar Cane Co. had acquired 4400 hectares of land in Lower Perak,
400 hectares of which had been cleared by 1 900 and planted with canes. Modern processing
equipment was also installed and a factory was opened up in late 1 901 . But sugar declined by
1906 and no less than 4500 hectares of land belonging to the Straits Sugar Co. were turned
into rubber estates.21 Indeed, by 1908, there were no less than 23 estates in Lower Perak,
almost all of which were planted with rubber.22
The Population
In the early days of the development of the Malay Peninsula, the presence of the Chettiar in
any new town was an indication that the town was expected to experience increasing
commercial prosperity. In Teluk Anson, they were already there by the close of the 19th
century. And as they were wont to do in other parts of the country, they built a Hindu temple
in Teluk Anson in 1 899. The Perak Pioneer (Sept. 1 6, 1 899), a Taiping paper, remarked:
The Hindus in Lower Perak have reasons to congratulate themselves. A year or two
ago they were without a place of worship. Now they have a temple of their own which
is said to have cost more than $5,000 chiefly raised by the Chettiar community through
the efforts of S.T.Somasundram Chettiar and M.N.Muthukaruppan Chettiar, local
money lenders.
Since then, every year, Hindus from various parts of the districts, many from outside
the district too, have turned up in Teluk Anson / Teluk Intan for the festival known as
Sitraparuvum , to worship the deity, Subramaniam.
However, the Hindu temple is not the oldest temple in the town. The oldest temple is a
Hokkien temple (the Tow Boo Keong Temple) situated just by the side of the river (facing it)
on a road now known as Jalan Berhala (Temple Road).23 It is believed to have been built in
1 886. At the back of the temple was the Hokkien Association.
The earliest Chinese to arrive in this country were traders and they were mostly
Hokkiens. This is evident from the fact that, among the Chinese residing in the port towns
which had emerged before or during the 19th century (among them Melaka, Penang, Klang,
Pekan, Alor Setar, Kuala Trengganu and Kota Bharu in Kelantan), the common dialect used
until today is Hokkien.
In the case of Perak and, to a lesser extent, Selangor, the Hokkiens who settled down in
the two states came over from Penang. They continued to maintain close links with Penang
until the 1950s at least. A large number of these Chinese were Baba and Nyonya
(Straits-born Chinese). Unlike their counterparts in Melaka who no longer spoke Chinese,
these Penang Chinese were Hokkien-speaking.
As Teluk Anson grew, Chinese of other territorial-dialect groups also arrived, in
particular the Cantonese who opened up provision shops or engaged in petty trading.
A Chinese concentration was soon found in the centre of the business section of Teluk
Anson; the Malays continued to reside in the villages which had earlier existed. They were
also found in villages some distance away from Teluk Anson. In Bagan Datoh, Kota Setia
and Sungai Bahru, the Malays planted padi.24
2 1 . See James C. Jackson, op. cit., p. 1 65, 1 73.

22. See list attached.
23. See Khoo Kay Kim, Teluk Anson (T eluk Intan), p. 1 9.
42
PART 2, 1995
Padi planting, however, was not the main occupation of the Malays before the 1 890s.
They plied the rivers as retailers and transported goods between the mining areas and the
port. They also exported attap (roofing material) to Deli, in Sumatra. But their trading
activities declined and some of the Malays, especially after the railway had made its
appearance in Teluk Anson, turned towards agriculture, including the cultivation of fruits.
Padi planting was more popular among the Banjarese who, at this juncture, began to
move into Lower Perak, coming over not directly from their homeland (Banjermasin) but
from Sumatra where many had settled down earlier. Around the turn of the 20th century, the
Banjarese were encouraged to settle at Krian where the State government had initiated a padi
scheme. And, decades later, when the British opened up new padi settlements, after the 1 930
Depression, at Krian again, Sungai Manik (near Teluk Anson) and Tanjong Karang (in
Selangor), the Banjarese were once more recruited.25
But the situation in Lower Perak in the 1890s was, in some ways, more interesting.
The Banjarese were not originally the only ethnic group involved in padi planting. The
Javanese did too, at Bagan Datoh; so did the Tamils and even the Chinese who planted padi
in the area between Teluk Anson and Batak Rabit (which about two decades earlier had been
the residence of Raja/Sultan Abdullah who was later exiled to the Seychelles).26
Most of these early padi planters, however, soon changed their occupation. First, they
were discouraged by the frequent destruction of their crops owing to floods. Secondly, they
found that the soil was more suited to coconuts. This was especially the case at Bagan Datoh
(situated close to the sea).
The Malays were also adept at handicraft. They made mats, baskets and arecanut
containers. Even in the late 1 9th century, there were those who collected jungle produce such
as rattan, damar, getah perca (a form of rubber but distinct from Hevea brasiliensis' etc., for
export. In later years, a sizeable number of Malays were government servants: teachers in
Malay schools, policemen, technicians, clerks, office boys, etc.27
More elaborate mosques, however, were not built at Teluk Anson until the first or
second decade of the 20th century. As in other major towns there were two separate mosques
- one for the Indian Muslims which was located at Ah Cheong Street, and another, built a
little later, at Mahkota Road for the Malays. But surau (smaller places of worship) had long
emerged in various parts of the town; these were used by the Malays.
The large majority of Indians did not stay in the town. They were found in the
numerous plantations in the district. Within the town proper, most of the Indians were
government servants - clerks, teachers, technicians, dressers (or hospital attendants) and
manual workers attached to the Sanitary Board (founded in 1 892) or the P. W.D.
Many of the Indians were Christians (Catholics in particular). The St. Anthony's Church at
Anderson Road was founded earlier than the Methodist Church, built only in 193628 with a
mixed Chinese-Indian following. The Methodist Church was located at Speedy Road. Perhaps
24. Ibid. p.21.

25. The Tanjong Karang scheme took off early after World War II. The Banjarese are also found in large
numbers in Batu Pahat, Johor.
26. It is not clear who these T amils and Chinese were. The T amils who came independently at that time were not
agriculturalists and among the Chinese, the agricultural population concentrated on sugar and tapioca
planting as well as pepper and gambier.
27. This was a common phenomenon in all Peninsular Malaysian towns where there was a cosmopolitan
population.
28. The Malay Tribune, 1 4 Jan. 1 936.
43
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
the oldest of the churches was the St. Luke's (Anglican) Church located at Anderson Road.
This church emerged with the growth of the European population.
The increase in the number of Europeans, owing to the growth of the agricultural
sector, was also indicated by the consecration of the Napier (Freemason) Lodge in Teluk
Afison on March 4, 1910. This was the third Masonic Temple to be consecrated in Perak -
the first was the Perak Jubilee Lodge in Taiping in 1888, followed by the Kinta Lodge in
1907. Even at that time, the Masonic Lodge was usually referred to by the local residents as
"Rumah Hantu" (Ghost House) possibly because Masonic functions were carried out under
a veil of secrecy.29
The Napier Lodge made good progress until the outbreak of World War I when the
younger members of the British community had to return home to serve in the war. By 1 92 1 ,
however, it was active again and, by the middle of January, 1923, the foundation stone was
laid for the construction of a new temple. The building, now in a dilapidated state, has
survived. It is located at the old Batak Rabit Road.30
The three main ethnic groups in the town proper in 1 93 1 3 1 were as follows:
Chinese ... 7,900

Indians ... 3,530
Malays ... 3,062
The total population of the Malays in the district, in 19
addition to:
Javanese ... 9,203

Banjarese ... 4,112
Minangkabau ... 206
Other Sumatrán groups ... 1 ,246
Similarly, the Indian estate population in the district was very l
estate population of 26,584, the ethnic breakdown was as follows:
Indian ... 24,596
Chinese ... 1,003
Malays ... 707
Europeans ... 150
Teluk Anson until the 1930s was the fourth largest town in
found in tin-mining districts. The following figures are illuminati
1921 1931
Ipoh 36,860 53,183
Taiping 21,111 30,070
Kampar 12,325 15,302
Teluk Anson 10,859 14,671
29. Pinang Gazette and Straits Chronicle , 7 Mar. 1910.

10 Ihid 16 Jan 1921
31. The figures given here are based on C.A.Vlieland, British Malaya: A Report on the 1931 Censusando
Certain Problems of Vital Statistics, London, 1932, passim.
44
PART 2, 1995
Schools32
The ethnic composition of the town was naturally reflected by the existence of ethnic
schools. The first modern school to be established in the town, possibly in the late 1 880s or
early 1 890s, was a Malay school the premises of which was, many years later, used by (and
has remained) a Tamil school. It is situated at the Pasir Berdarmar end of Ah Cheong Street,
one of the two main streets running through the town; the other is Market Street. A larger
Malay boys' school was, in 1938, built at Sungai Nibong Road. It was visited by the
Governor (Sir Shenton Thomas) in July 193933. An equally large Malay girls' school had
been founded as early as 1906, situated between Prince Street and King Street. It was within
a stone's throw from the market at one end and the hospital at the other. Both the market and
the hospital have been shifted.
Modern Malay schools emerged earlier than modern English or other vernacular
schools because the British administration was insistent that Malay children should be given
the opportunity to learn their own mother tongue as well as simple mathematics. It was also
felt that Malay children should be taught what is today called "living skills": the boys learnt
handicraft and gardening; the girls, sewing and house-keeping.
Religious (Islamic) education presumably had been available since earlier times.
Certainly it was common for pupils to learn the Quran in the homes of individual teachers.
But, for reasons not clear, a madrasah (a more formally organized Islamic educational
institution), the Madrasah Insaniah , also located at Temple Road, in Teluk Anson, had been
founded by the early 20th century; it was certainly one of the first of its kind in the country.
With the growth of the Chinese population, education for Chinese children was soon
available, also taught, initially, by individual teachers in their own homes and using their
own dialects. The children were required to learn classical texts by rote. This form of
education was still available, in Cantonese, after World War II.
After the Chinese Revolution of 1911, more formal schools were established. There
were three such schools - the Poey Wah, the Wah Kiew and the Chung Wah. It is not clear
whether mandarin was used as the medium of instruction. These three schools later
amalgamated and, on February 12, 1929, the San Min School was born, using mandarin as
the medium of instruction. It has remained the leading Chinese school in Lower Perak.
Tamil education was somewhat neglected for two reasons. The Tamil labour
population in the town was small and Indian children from middle or upper middle class
Indian families preferred to send their children to English schools. Simple Tamil schools
were established in every estate; those who sought English education had to go to the town.
Indeed the first English school to be founded in Teluk Anson, in 1 898, was called the
Anglo-Tamil School. It was soon taken over by the Methodist Episcopal Mission and, as it
received considerable financial support from the Chinese community and the number of
Chinese pupils also soon outnumbered the number of Indian pupils, it became known as the
Anglo-Chinese School34. After the war (1942-1945), a new building was erected close to
Durian Sebatang which became the secondary school and the original school was turned into
a primary school. The name of both the schools was, in 1963, changed to Horley Methodist
School (Primary and Secondary).
32. See Khoo kay Kim, Teluk Anson (T eluk Intan), pp.25-27.
33. Pinang Gazette, 24 July 1 939.
34. See History of English Schools in Perak , Ipoh, 1 958, compiled by E.C. Hicks, pp. 1 6- 1 7.
45
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
It was Rev. W.E. Horley, founder of the Anglo-Chinese School in Kampar, in 1903,
who, in 1904, met the Chinese community in Teluk Anson and solicited their assistance for
the expansion of the original Anglo-Tamil School. As a token of appreciation, the name of
the school was, as mentioned earlier, changed to Anglo-Chinese School. Until 1919, the
school admitted girls as well.
In 1919, Rev Father Coppin of the French Society of Foreign Missionaries opened a
girls' school in Teluk Anson. It was known as the St. Agnes School which, in 1926, was
taken over by the Sisters of the Holy Infant Jesus, Ipoh, and became known as the Convent. It
remained a branch of the Ipoh Convent until 1 939 when Rev. Mother St. Odo arrived to take
charge of the school. From then it existed as a school in its own right35.
Teluk Anson had another English boys' school in 1932 when Rev. Father Bounomey,
the then Vicar, of the Catholic Church, started a school with 10 pupils on the register. The
enrolment increased steadily and when the new Vicar, Rev. Father Edmond, went over from
Ipoh to take charge of the school in 1 937, the enrolment had increased to 4236.
Classes for a few years had to be conducted in the existing church building, the Rev.
Father's house, and in the church bungalow opposite the church. A new school building was
completed in late 1940. It was a two storey brick building, 90 feet long and 33 feet wide,
costing $15,000. There were then 185 children enrolled and the new structure, comprising
six classrooms, was built to accommodate 240 children.
The San Min School also had a new building at this juncture. It was a two-storey plank
structure but considerably larger than the St. Anthony's School. It cost $35,000 and was built
to accommodate 900 pupils. It was ( and still is) situated at Immigration Road. The old
building was located at Market Street.
The Sungai Manik Padi Scheme

Teluk Anson, it must be reiterated, was situated in the heart of a huge agricultural district.
Rubber in the course of the 20th century dwarfed coconut and put sugar out of existence. In
the early 1930s, Malaya, like many parts of the world, suffered its worst economic
depression. Noticing the dire consequences of heavy dependence on an export-oriented
economy, the British administration decided that more concerted efforts should be made to
ensure self-sufficiency in food production. In 1932, the Drainage and Irrigation Department
(D.I.D.) was established to help increase padi production by providing proper irrigation and
drainage37.
Special padi schemes were introduced. Three of the major areas chosen were Krian and
Sungai Manik, both in Perak, as well as Tanjong Karang in Selangor. In Krian (north Perak), a
padi scheme of about 24,000 hectares already existed. It was devised and put into operation, in
1 906, by the Public Works Department, Hydraulics Branch, as far back as 1 906.
The Sungai Manik scheme which was planned to cover 9,600 hectares of land,
involved the employment of 4,000 Malays in felling and burning jungle. Those who carried
out the work were given first claim to the normal allotment of about 2.4 hectares of felled
land for padi-growing and about half a hectare of kampung land for their homestead. It was
first held under Temporary Occupation Licence (T.O.L.) and a permanent title was given
35 IbidriAl
36. The Straits Echo and Times of Malaya, 1 8 June 1 940.

37. Lim Chong Y ah, Economic Development of Modern Malaya , Kuala Lumpur, 1 967, pp. 1 62-
46
PART 2,1 995
after three years. A bonus of RM1 0 per half hectare was also paid to holders who had cleared
and stumped their land within one year of occupation38.
It is interesting to note that the large majority of those who responded to the
government's offer in Sungai Manik, Krian and also Tanjong Karang, were Banjarese who,
in later years, in Perak, were to show an inclination to support the Islamic Party.
With the establishment of the padi scheme, the government also proceeded to
construct a Rice Mill in Teluk Anson. It was situated at Sungai Nibong, practically adjacent
to Sungai Manik, the two areas being connected by a railway bridge, also used by motor cars,
which spans the Bidor River.
Sungei Manik Irrigation Area - F.M.S. Surveys No. 303-1938
38. See The Sunday Tribune, 24 Nov 1 940
47
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
Erosion3
Hugh Low, soon after he assumed office as the new British Resident, visited Lower Perak
and pointed out that erosion was a problem at Teluk Malunting'. Nevertheless, that was the
area he chose to build the new town of Teluk Anson.
By 1901, the problem was considered acute especially after the railway sheds at
Denison Road collapsed. In the Federated Malay States Council Report of 1902 , it was
mentioned that:
... the port of Teluk Anson continues to be unfortunate in the matter of erosion of its
banks on which the Railway goods and passenger stations are situated, a source of
anxiety and expense.
J.E. Spring, a consultant, whose advice was sought, recommended one of two options:
1 . By building a protecting wall at a cost of about half a million dollars, erosion

could be contained and the port could still continue to function.
2. Move the wharf to a safer location where the subsequent development of the
town could take place.
The decision was reached to move the wharf.
The area selected was about 4 kilometres from the town centre along the Batak Rabit
Road. The Federated Malay States Railway was given the task of shifting the wharf because
the railway terminus too had to be shifted as the two had to be close to each other. By 1908,
the Perak Resident (E. W. Birch) reported that:
39. See also KhooKay Kim, Teluk Anson (Teluk Intan), pp. 14-1 6
48
PART 2, 1995
Teluk Anson in more recent times
Although erosion continued to occur at various parts of the town, the residents
remained undaunted and refused to move. The matter, however, received the attention of the
Lower Perak Sanitary Board from time to time. On April 9, 1929, for example, the Board
passed a resolution
Great progress was made with the new railway station and wharves at Teluk Anson.
The site is excellent and the arrangements appear to be very complete ...
The new wharf and railway terminus were officially opened on March 24, 1909. The
new port proved successful and increasingly more ships called at Teluk Anson; the tonnage
increased from 1 52, 1 45 in 1 909 to 266,597 in 1 920. But, hopes that a new town would grow
in the vicinity of the new wharf were unfulfilled. Ten of the original shop lots built at the time
of the opening of the new wharf led to the area popularly referred to by local residents as "the
ten houses".
That the members of the Board, after visiting the river bank at the points where erosion
is going on very rapidly, are of the opinion that the existence of the Town of Teluk
Anson is at stake and that Government should be asked to view the problem as a very
urgent one and decide whether they proposed to take any remedial action, or, on the
other hand, were going to leave Teluk Anson to its fate; Government to make its
decision publicly known40.
40. The Times of Malaya and Planters ' and Miners ' Gazette, 1 0 April 1 929.
49
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
Statements of Goods Traffic Forwarded and Received at Penang, Prai, Teluk Anson,
Port Swettenham & Port Dickson.
Port Year Forwarded by rail Received by rail at
Penang 1934 28,530 34,665

Prai 48,686 37,362
Teluk Anson 64,457 49,789
Port Swettenham 215,784 147,377
Port Dickson
Penang 1936 32,682 50,177

Prai 86,852 54,661
Teluk Anson 104,780 47,287
Port Dickson
Penang 1938 27,845 56,050

Prai 96,679 56,439
TelukAnson 110,632 26,071
Port Dickson
Penang 1940 31,541 95,199

Prai 132,121 72,688
TelukAnson 132,154 58,976
Port Dickson
The matter was con

annual value in the S
But no immediate ac
the possibility of bui
was considered. But
business or residentia
Lim Ewe Cheng, a le
that:
... the Chinese shopkeepers will never willingly move from the water front, ... their
trade depends on access to the river, ... the Hose Road area is an unsuitable business
centre. If the town were destroyed, a new site with river transport would have to be
found42.
No reference, however, was made to the area of the "ten houses".

Official opinion was also against the establishment of a new town which would incur
high expenditure. Indeed, the suggestion was that the existing town ought to be further
developed. According to the Executive Engineer of Lower Perak:
41. Ibid., 30 June 1931.

42. Ibid.
50
PART 2,1 995
There is land in Teluk Anson itself to provide for shop lots for many years to come.
There are now 45 1 shop lots in use, there are 76 lots vacant and there is suitable land
now used as cooly lines etc. which could be used to provide 243 shop lots43.
He pointed out further that the temporary government offices and barracks could be
moved to provide another 200 shop lots.
The Board agreed that there was no shortage of shop lots unless there should be very
rapid erosion of Teluk Anson. And the Executive Engineer's opinion was that, apart from an
unforeseen calamity, there was little or no chance of any considerable part of Teluk Anson
town being eroded in the next 50 years.
The Executive Engineer's opinion proved prophetic. Although erosion has continued
to take place, the greater proportion of the town has remained intact to this day. But the
subject of erosion has been, from time to time, mentioned in the local press. However, there
has been no major calamity.
Concluding Remarks
Teluk Anson was one of the two major port towns on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula
which developed from an urban centre dependent on trade to one servicing a vast
agricultural area. The other was Klang in Selangor.44
While there were similarities between the two, there were also significant differences.
Both were ports which existed before the advent of British administration but their roles
were greatly enhanced after the establishment of British administration. Modern wharves
were constructed and both the ports were linked to major tin-producing districts by rail,
Klang about a decade earlier.
Both were district administrative centres situated in states (Perak and Selangor) which
formed part of the Federated Malay States inaugurated in 1896. Because of their similar
economic roles, the ethnic composition of the population of both towns was similar too -
Malays, Chinese and the presence of a comparatively large Indian population. Many of the
Chinese originated from Penang. Before the completion of the north-south railway, Penang
had very close links with the two ports. But Klang also had close commercial links with
Melaka and Teluk Anson practically none.
In the course of the 20th century, both became royal towns. Klang, like Kuala Kangsar
in Perak, was the official residence of the sultan. Teluk Anson, however, was the official
residence of the Raja Muda (second in the line of succession).
English education was available by the close of the 19th century and the Methodist
Episcopal Church managed schools which were both called Anglo-Chinese School. But the
British administration also founded an English school - the High School - in Klang while
there was no government English school in Teluk Anson until after the country achieved
independence.
While both were situated away from the north-south railway and highway, Klang
enjoyed the advantage of being situated less than 30 kilometres (by road) from Kuala
Lumpur, the federal capital. Teluk Anson was about 75 kilometres (by road) from Ipoh
which, until 1 941 , was not the state capital. As a result, there was constant pressure, since at
43. See Khoo Kay Kim, "Klang District and Town: History and Historical Sources" in Kekal Abadi (Official
Journal of the University of Malaya Library), Vol. 8, No.2, June 1989.
44. Ibid.
51
JMBRAS, VOL. 68
least the mid- 1 930s, to have Lumut, closer to Ipoh, developed into a port. But it received no
support from the federal government which was not in favour of establishing a port on the
west coast of the Malay Peninsula to rival the port in Klang (which became known as Port
Swettenham in 1901 ).
The port of Teluk Anson gradually declined but Port Swettenham, although originally
established as a port to serve the state of Selangor, soon became an international port and this
induced entrepreneurs to establish factories, in the early 1920s and mid- 1930s, for the
canning of pineapples and the manufacture of rubber goods respectively.
As a consequence, the rate of Teluk Anson's development was considerably slower
and since tin brought greater revenue than rubber, it remained, until World War II, only the
fourth largest town in Perak.
Today the plantations still contribute to the economic well-being of the town (hence
the large number of banks). Oil palm, still a very important revenue-earner for Malaysia, is
grown in Lower Perak. Industries have been established too in Langkap about 28 kilometres
(to the north) from Teluk Intan and very close to Sungai Manik. As in the case of Penang, it is
the electronic sector which has received primary attention. Further south, in Hutan
Melintang, about 1 8 kilometres from Teluk Intan, the fishing sector is flourishing; it is one of
the most successful in Malaysia today. But social development in the town has been less
satisfactory. The town has few amenities for leisure activities and some of the fields have
been taken over for commercial development, an increasingly common phenomenon in
Malaysian towns in recent years.
52

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Teluk Anson: 1882-1941: Port, Agriculture and Erosion

Author(s): Khoo Kay Kim

Teluk Anson: 1882-1941: Port, Agriculture and Erosion

Lower Perak before 1874

The Establishment of British Administration

The following is a more graphic description of the town:

11. Ibid.. p. 55.

Year Amount of Tin Exported (in piculs) Duty

1908 379,670 $3,385,107.00

This increase was also a reflection of the ex

The Development of Agriculture

[An] Estate ... which was but a primitive forest

Coconuts actually preceded rubber but, in the

The area under coconuts in Lower Perak is ab

1 S The Perak Pioneer. 23 Sent. 1 899.

1 6. Cited bv Ahmad Mustafa, od. cit. . d. 78.

years of waiting, a fair share of Government revenue should be expended on the

List of Plantations in Lower Perak 1908

1 5. Sungai Air Tawar

16. Captain Turner's

19. Captain Daily's

21. Eden Hall

1 9. See also James C

2 1 . See James C. Jackson, op. cit., p. 1 65, 1 73.

24. Ibid. p.21.

Chinese ... 7,900

Javanese ... 9,203

29. Pinang Gazette and Straits Chronicle , 7 Mar. 1910.

The Sungai Manik Padi Scheme

36. The Straits Echo and Times of Malaya, 1 8 June 1 940.

Sungei Manik Irrigation Area - F.M.S. Surveys No. 303-1938

38. See The Sunday Tribune, 24 Nov 1 940

1 . By building a protecting wall at a cost of about half a million dollars, erosion

Teluk Anson in more recent times

Port Year Forwarded by rail Received by rail at

Penang 1934 28,530 34,665

Penang 1936 32,682 50,177

Penang 1938 27,845 56,050

Penang 1940 31,541 95,199

The matter was con

No reference, however, was made to the area of the "ten houses".

41. Ibid., 30 June 1931.

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