Bukit Brown Cemetery

In spite of being abandoned, the Bukit Brown Cemetery is a popular spot among locals and tourists alike. Originally established in the early 20th century as a private burial ground for Chinese clans, this extensive space was named after George Henry Brown, the first owner of the land on which the cemetery stands today. In 1919, the acquired land was passed onto the hands of the municipal authorities after the Chinese communities of Singapore started demanding a municipal cemetery for them. After the inauguration of the Bukit Brown Cemetery, it was managed by See Tiong Wah and Tan Kheam Hock as a public burial ground. By the early months of 1929, about forty percent of the total officially Chinese burials were housed in this cemetery.

The Bukit Brown Cemetery stopped serving as a burial ground since 1973. In the month of February 2012, Minister Tan Juan-Chin had announced that 5000 graves were to make way for the development of a new four-way lane that was supposed to cut through the cemetery. A month later, the number of graves that were supposed to be exhumed came down from 5000 to 3746. In 2015, the cast iron gates at the mouth of the beautiful Bukit Brown Cemetery were removed in order to be refurbished and reinstalled at the entrance of a new access road which lies in close proximity to the original location. At present, a separate shelter houses the deities that were previously located beside the cast iron gates. The cemetery is a popular spot among nature enthusiasts owing to the various species of flora and fauna thriving here.