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A compendium of history made possible by many

This is a project steeped in history. The Singapore Bicentennial, more than just a commemoration of 200 years since Raffles’ landing, is an exploration of Singapore’s evolution over a span of 700 years. It brings forth many stories, photos and artefacts that were previously unheard of, untold or unseen. In essence, it is a new way of approaching our history – a new historical narrative of this “young” nation.

Weaving together the richness of Singapore’s past was no easy feat. For one, it entailed roping in various partners, organisations and private artists to help piece together a long tapestry of history. For another, it was an undertaking in archival research to ensure accuracy across all touchpoints, so as to ground this new historical narrative with facts and research.

Key partners and organisations

Without the help of partners, agencies, organisations and individuals locally and overseas, this rich collection of history would not have been possible.

For instance, the National Library Board (NLB), through their wide range of programmes and collections on Singapore and regional content, has helped cultivate knowledge sharing and encourage appreciation of Singapore’s history. Their digitisation and presentation of archival materials such as HistorySG, PictureSG and NewspaperSG has formed an invaluable knowledge repository. Infopedia, a free electronic resource of articles has also been crucial in distilling topics such as Singapore’s history, culture, landscape and thinking, such that new products may be built upon these for further proliferation.

The National Archives of Singapore (NAS), which oversees the collection, preservation and management of public and private archival records, have been pivotal in sharing photographs, oral history interviews as well as audio-visual materials to deepen our understanding in the complexities of Singapore’s past. Furthermore, the NAS has an “Archives Online” platform that contains useful pictorial references of Singapore in yesteryears.

Singapore Press Holdings have also opened up their archives of news print as well as broadcast footage on the first few National Day Parades since Singapore’s independence in 1965. Likewise, MediaCorp has provided precious archival broadcast footage for this bicentennial commemoration.

Further afield, the British Library, which has a collection of over 170 million items from every age of written civilisation, has shared archived images for this shared reflection of our history. The Imperial War Museum and Australian War Memorial have also contributed photos from the wartime experience in Singapore during World War II to the project.

From these rich repositories, collections and also private expertise, the Singapore Bicentennial was able to produce a wide range of content and programmes. These include:

  • The Bicentennial Experience at Fort Canning Centre
  • The Arrivals
  • The Bicentennial Film
  • Find Your Place in History
  • Our series of eBooks, short films and articles
  • 700years.sg Interactive Book
  • And the entire suite of social media content on our Facebook, Instagram and YouTube pages

Once again, the Singapore Bicentennial Office would like to take this opportunity to thank the following partners, organisations and individuals for their contributions to this unique commemoration of history:

  • Alexander Turnbull Library Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Allen Goh Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Andrew Tan Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Anthony Wharton Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Arthur Scurry Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Association of British Malaya Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Australian War Memorial
  • Boden-Kloss Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Bridget Choy Wai Fong Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Chang Ker Chiu Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Collection of the National Library, Singapore
  • Dutch National Archives
  • Edward William Newell Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Gretchen Liu Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Han Chou Yuan Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Hor Kwok Kin Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Imperial War Museum
  • Kouo Shang-Wei Collection, National Library, Singapore
  • Landmark Books
  • Lee Brothers Studio Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Lee Kip Lin Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Lee Kip Lin Collection, National Library, Singapore
  • Lim Chong Hsien Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Lim Choo Sye Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Lim Kheng Chye Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Margaret Tan Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Masjlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS) Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Mediacorp
  • Ministry of Information and the Arts Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Mohd Amin Bin Kadarisman Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Morgan Betty Bassett Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Mrs J A Bennett Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • National Archives of Singapore
  • National Library Board, Singapore
  • National Museum of Singapore
  • Paul Piollet Collection, National Library, Singapore
  • Registered Tourist Guides Association of Singapore Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Ronni Pinsler Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Royal Commonwealth Society Library Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV)
  • Royal Tropical Institute Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Singapore Federation of Chinese Clan Associations Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Singapore Press Holdings
  • Singapore Press Holdings Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Singapore Sports Council Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Singapore Tourism Promotion Board Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Singapore Then & Now, Ray Tyers, Landmark Books, 2018
  • Sng Chye Kay Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Spaarnestad Photo
  • Sulaiman Bin Haji Siraj Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Survey Department, Singapore Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Tang Kian Cheong, National Library, Singapore
  • Terry Wright Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • Tessa Mitchell Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • The Agnes Joaquim Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore
  • The British Library
  • Singapore Police Force

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