1912-1920   History of Ipoh, The Federated Malay States and the World  

IPOH

·         On  1 June 1892 a fire broke out and destroyed over half the town and the damage was estimated at $100,000 Straits Dollars. After the fire, it gave planners the opportunity to lay out the streets in a more orderly grid pattern and the town was rebuilt, in time with the second tin rush and vast numbers of people, especially Chinese miners descended upoh Ipoh transforming it into a business and social centre which become known as the “CITY OF MILLIONAIRES”

·         Between 1905 and 1914, Yau Tet Shin expanded the town across the Kinta River. He had built 216 houses in this “New Town” of Ipoh by 1908, including a theatre and food market.

·         Ipoh’s population was also increasing from 23,978 in 1911 to 27,500 in 1914 and by that time the town was beginning to take on its current appearance.

·         The town continued to grow rapidly, as a result of tin mining and rubber production in the surrounding region throughout the 1920′s and 1930′s. 

Ipoh  1894 from "When Tin Was King" by Ho Tak Ming

Kampung Paloh, the core of the future city of Ipoh (1887)
Source : WTWK by Ho Tak Ming

Panglima Street circa 1887
Source: WTWK by Ho Tak Ming

Ipoh circa 1887
Source WTWK by Ho Tak Ming

THE FEDERATED MALAY STATES 

·         

      The evolution of the Federated Malay States into the future Malaya was already in progress.

·         Among the Lasallians who were to play a key role in the evolution of Malayan nationalism were  Tun Leong Yew Koh and John Thivy.

·         Educated at St Xavier’s Institution, Penang, Tun Leong Yew  Koh  established a close rapport with other Lasallian schools and he was one of the most  eloquent beneficiaries of a Lasallian education. He became President of the Malayan Chinese Association  and served as Minister of Justice in the post-Merdeka Cabinet. He was also appointed later as the Governor of Melaka.

·          John Thivy , founder of the Malayan Indian Congress, was educated at St.Michael’s  Institution. He was appointed Malaya’s first Ambassador to Italy . The two personalities  cited above  represent a  vast array of national figures  from  Lasallian schools who would play a key role in helping build a new consciousness of a wider Malayan nationalism 

  THE WORLD  

·         This period of the school’s existence was memorable for two historic events – the First World War and the World Influenza Epidemic of 1918. The World War broke out in August 4, 1914 when the boys were having their Mid-summer Holidays, School work was little affected. Other than subscribing to the War Fund, seeing War Pictures and hearing occasionally sensational war news, the boys did not feel that a war was shaking the Empire of its very foundation. The Armistice was signed on November 11, 1918, and on the following day the boys of St. Michael’s with those of the other two English schools paraded round the town. There were great rejoicing on Peace Day in June, 1919: inter-school sports, night processions, cash gifts and commemoration medals made the day memorable to all. France’s Day was celebrated on 14^th July, 1919.

·         In October, 1918, the great Influenza epidemic that had been ravaging many parts of the world struck Malaya with ravaging telling effect. School was first closed at noon on 4^th October owing to the poor attendance and remained closed until November 11. Fortunately, there were no fatal cases among the pupils or the staff, but work was seriously affected.

·         (From Mr Lip Seng Onn’s article in “The Michaelian 1940”)

·         World History Fact File:

               World War (1914-18)  pitted Germany and Austro Hungary against Britain,France and Russia. It was the heyday of extreme nationalism.Here in  the FMS, schools like St Michael’s were already preparing children for  a plural  society where children of various ethnic groups would be welded together to share a common national future.

              Even in these years, the Lasallian schools were preparing children to rise above narrow ethnic and faith  confines  to think  of themselves as global citizens with Malayan roots. 

·         The people of Kinta ,in particular the Chinese, gave generously to the British war effort, and by 1918 had contributed to the formation of a squadron of planes and to the buying of two tanks for that purpose.The squadron of planes was a gift from the FMS as a whole.One of the tanks was presented by Towkay Eu Tong Sen;the other raised by public subscription amongst the Chinese of Kinta.