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Punggol Zoo

Singapore Zoological Gardens and Bird Park
William Lawrence Soma Basapa with his pet Bengal tiger, Apay, at Punggol Zoo.
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1°24′42.9″N 103°54′42.0″E / 1.411917°N 103.911667°E / 1.411917; 103.911667
Date opened1928
Date closed1942
LocationPunggol, Singapore
Land area10 hectares (100,000 m2)
No. of animals200
OwnerWilliam Lawrence Soma Basapa
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The Punggol Zoo, formally Singapore Zoological Gardens and Bird Park,[1] was a former animal collection in Singapore from 1928 to 1942.[2] Founded by Singaporean-Indian land owner William Lawrence Soma Basapa, the name comes from the location on an 11-hectare site on Punggol Road, possibly near Sungei Dekar (now called Coney Channel).[3] The zoo persisted until just before the Japanese occupation of Singapore during World War II.[2]

History

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Originally located on 549 Serangoon Road before a move to larger 10-ha plot near the Punggol seafront in 1928 to accommodate large number of both animals and visitors,[4] the collection included 200 animals, including a Bengal tiger named Apay,[5] seals, polar bears, chimpanzees, spectacled monkeys, Shetland ponies, zebras, a black leopard, Malayan tapirs, and orangutans, as well as 2,000 birds.[2] Albert Einstein likely visited the zoo at 549 Serangoon Road in 1922 while on a fundraising trip for the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.[6][1] The zoo was also visited and described by international correspondent Sir Percival Phillips.[7] A python-wrestling scene in the 1935 exploitation film Forbidden Adventure[a] starring English actor M. H. Kenyon-Slade and directed by George M. Merrick, was reportedly filmed at the Punggol Zoo.[1][8][9][10] The zoo was offficially granted a licence by the Singapore Rural Board in 1937.

The zoo was forced to close in 1942 when "British moved their forces to the north of Singapore in anticipation of invading Japanese forces. Basapa was given 24 hours to relocate his animals and birds. The time-frame was too tight so the British took the land, released the birds and shot the rest."[6] Another account says, "The dangerous varieties of animals were killed, while harmless ones were released into the forest."[5] Remember Singapore states, "Identifying the Punggol end as a potential landing site for the Japanese invaders, the British forces wanted to make use of the Ponggol Zoo as a defensive ground...After the fall of Singapore, the Japanese confiscated Basapa's power generators and steel cages, using the site to store their supplies and ammunition."[4] Reginald Burton, in his memoir of "personal experiences as a captain in the 4th Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment, captured by the Japanese after the fall of Singapore in 1942,"[11] describes encountering a zebra released from the zoo. He wrote, "Punggol Point...had been shelled and there was nobody to care for the animals, so when the 5th Suffolks took up their position they released what animals they found there, at least giving them a chance of survival."[12]

During the Japanese Occupation of Singapore, the generators and steel cages were removed and the land converted into an ordnance storage and the site of a mess by the Imperial Japanese Army.

Basapa died in 1943. By the end of the Japanese Occupation of Sinagpore, the cages and structures that had been left intact were flattened and the grounds levelled by bulldozers. The estate was enclosed by fences and became a depository for Japanese ammunition and explosives, which were subsequently picked up by lighters and disposed at sea.

In 1948, the land which was inherited by estate trustees after Basapa's death, was sold to a private investor.[13]

The site currently a part of the Punggol Promenade.

Notes

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  1. ^ This film seemingly went by several alternate titles including Angkor, Forbidden Adventure in Angkor, Beyond Shanghai (UK), Inyaah, The Jungle Goddess, Jungle Virgin, Strange Adventures, The Virgin of Sarawak and Dyak.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Gopal, Nalina (July–September 2013). "Finding Basapa - In search of a pioneer and his story". Be Muse. 6 (2). Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b c Teng, Sharon (14 March 2016). "Punggol Zoo". Singapore Infopedia. Singapore National Library Board. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  3. ^ nickyeo (18 September 2013). "Discovering Punggol Zoo". The Lion Raw. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b RemSG (19 March 2012). "A Forgotten Past – A Zoo at Punggol". Remember Singapore. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  5. ^ a b Sin, Yuen. "Blog To Express: Our Forgotten Zoo". Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  6. ^ a b Migration (6 April 2013). "Ponggol Zoo: Singapore's first zoo rated 'wonderful' by Einstein". The Straits Times. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  7. ^ Seah, Shawn Li Song (17 September 2020). My Father's Kampung: A History Of Aukang And Punggol. World Scientific. pp. 42–44. ISBN 978-981-12-2670-0.
  8. ^ "punggol zoo". THE HUNTER. 10 January 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  9. ^ "Forbidden Adventure - The Grindhouse Cinema Database". www.grindhousedatabase.com. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Forbidden Adventure". prod-www.tcm.com. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  11. ^ Burton, Reginald (1963). The road to three pagodas. London: Macdonald – via catalogue.nla.gov.au.
  12. ^ Burton, Reginald (19 June 2010). Railway of Hell: War, Captivity and Forced Labour at the Arms of the Japanese. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-78340-049-2., originally published as The Road to Three Pagodas, United Kingdom: Macdonald, 1963.
  13. ^ "Punggol Zoo". www.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
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