For those interested to know what was on that piece of land before it became the Singapore Polytechnic in 1971.

There are only 2 buildings from the 1950s era that are still on the Poly grounds. Anybody has pictures of those buildings in the modern era?

http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/4047/singpoly1950sgx1.th.jpg (http://img181.imageshack.us/my.php?image=singpoly1950sgx1.jpg)

I can't make out anything from the picture but I guess one of those building would be the Alumni clubhouse at the MRT side.

Click on the picture, it opens a bigger version.

The straight road in front is DOVER Road
On the left would be the future SingTEL Tower.

I can't make out anything from the picture but I guess one of those building would be the Alumni clubhouse at the MRT side.

The building labeled "MOR Block" (what does it stand for by the way?) is now a building holding the recreational facilities of the Poly. Like gaming centres, photography studios, kareoke rooms, pool rooms, bathing facilities, etc. This building had been greatly renovated, with the corridor facing Dover Road removed, the balustrades blocked out and windows installed.

http://picas.nhb.gov.sg/picas/data/tn_pcd/19980006919-8262-3202-2128/img0064.jpg

The building callled "Sergeants' Mess" is now the childcare centre, formerly the alumni clubhouse. Has an uncanny reputation to be haunted. There's a water tower at the top of the hill, not sure if it's original though.

http://www.kinderland.com.sg/images/sp1.jpg

MOR = Malay Other Ranks. For a time many malays worked in the British Military. The Chinese too mainly in the signals unit but many did not join the SAF when the British left in 1971.

The water tower was an original part of the camp. Do you have the modern day picture.

The hills in the background would later be carved out to form Commonwealth Avenue (the present MRT track). The church St John's Church is to the extreme right of my picture. The church dates back to the 1950s. The condo next to the church was the Pasir Panjang War Cemetery for British Servicemen (only Gurkhas) were buried there during the 1960s.

Do you know why it was haunted? It was because of deaths suffered during the Indonesian Confrontation between 1963 and 1966. A detachment of the unit at Dover Road was sent to Sarawak.



The building labeled "MOR Block" (what does it stand for by the way?) is now a building holding the recreational facilities of the Poly. Like gaming centres, photography studios, kareoke rooms, pool rooms, bathing facilities, etc. This building had been greatly renovated, with the corridor facing Dover Road removed, the balustrades blocked out and windows installed.

http://picas.nhb.gov.sg/picas/data/tn_pcd/19980006919-8262-3202-2128/img0064.jpg

The building callled "Sergeants' Mess" is now the childcare centre, formerly the alumni clubhouse. Has an uncanny reputation to be haunted. There's a water tower at the top of the hill, not sure if it's original though.

http://www.kinderland.com.sg/images/sp1.jpg

MOR = Malay Other Ranks. For a time many malays worked in the British Military. The Chinese too mainly in the signals unit but many did not join the SAF when the British left in 1971.

The water tower was an original part of the camp. Do you have the modern day picture.

The hills in the background would later be carved out to form Commonwealth Avenue (the present MRT track). The church St John's Church is to the extreme right of my picture. The church dates back to the 1950s. The condo next to the church was the Pasir Panjang War Cemetery for British Servicemen (only Gurkhas) were buried there during the 1960s.

Do you know why it was haunted? It was because of deaths suffered during the Indonesian Confrontation between 1963 and 1966. A detachment of the unit at Dover Road was sent to Sarawak.

Will try to take photos of it soon. :)

Here's what MOR Block looks like now. Now called simply as T11A or Moberly Block. Even the stone balustrades at the rear corridor, red clay tile roof and the rear toilet block is still there. There are 2 external stairs at the rear. Have you been to Princess Mary Barracks before?

http://www.sp.edu.sg/SPweb/ShowBinary/BEA%20Repository/images/news/Oct06/24102006_Moberly

Oh my, what happened at the Sergeant's Mess?! The hillock is still very wooded with mature trees and thick vegetation. The Alumi moved out of this building in the late 1990s to a huge building beside the sports centre. It's now occupied by Kinderland Childcare, functions as a public childcare centre, beside being for the staff.

What happened at the Sergeant's Mess?! Why did people die there?

I think something's happening to the old Sergeant's Mess, might be under demolition or renovation!!! :eek:

YIKES!!!!!!!!!!!

http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/4275/oldchildcare2dg5.jpg

http://img467.imageshack.us/img467/9048/oldchildcareyb0.jpg

It was still looking fine few weeks ago!!!!!!!!!!

what are they going to build on the site?

It was still fine a week ago, and still half there on sunday morning at 2am. On monday afternoon totally gone!!!

demolition can be fast, the Short Street flats are looking shorter today too. Imagine the noise for residents in the area!

Demolition to me came as a total shock... it's a historic building and no announcement was made, not even in school website. Gone too is the old watertank and soon, the Main Lecture Theatre 2 (MLT2). :cry:

Demolition to me came as a total shock... it's a historic building and no announcement was made, not even in school website. Gone too is the old watertank and soon, the Main Lecture Theatre 2 (MLT2). :cry:

Hey you also from SP?

Hey you also from SP?

Ya...

Sigh... I thought these 2 buildings are 'preserved' by SP! I didn't even have a photo of the old childcare and water tower!!! :cry::cry::cry:

Ya...

Sigh... I thought these 2 buildings are 'preserved' by SP! I didn't even have a photo of the old childcare and water tower!!! :cry::cry::cry:

I didn't see those buildings before, what course are you in?

I didn't see those buildings before, what course are you in?

The Childcare and watertower are at the peak of the hill.
MLT2 is on the slope of the hill, think the seats are following the gradient of the slope.

The hill? Beside T1A, behind Library. ;)

I'm in Cliff's course. :lol:

The Childcare and watertower are at the peak of the hill.
MLT2 is on the slope of the hill, think the seats are following the gradient of the slope.

The hill? Beside T1A, behind Library. ;)

I'm in Cliff's course. :lol:

Wah good sia, archi! I can take archi but my parents prefer me to take business so I'm in business admin..

And the business block is on the top of the hill, which means I am climbing the hill daily. Is that MLT 2 near the main library?

Wah good sia, archi! I can take archi but my parents prefer me to take business so I'm in business admin..

And the business block is on the top of the hill, which means I am climbing the hill daily. Is that MLT 2 near the main library?

lol... archi stressful sia. Need to be independent.

Yup, the hill behind Main Library, beside Mcdonalds. From Dover MRT, it appears as a uh, hill suddenly smack inbetween buildings.:lol:

lol... archi stressful sia. Need to be independent.

Yup, the hill behind Main Library, beside Mcdonalds. From Dover MRT, it appears as a uh, hill suddenly smack inbetween buildings.:lol:

Oh, hell hill, near macdonals sia, so good. I will have to climb up and down to get to foodcourt 4..

SMIT student here!:)

Old army barracks now a hip hangout for students

13 May 08

Colonial building on S'pore Polytechnic campus revamped at a cost of $1m

http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20080512/ST_IMAGES_SUMBARRACKS-KV3.jpg

http://www.straitstimes.com/STI/STIMEDIA/image/20080512/ST_IMAGES_SUMBARRACKS.jpg

A FORMER home of British and Malayan soldiers has been converted into a hip hangout for students of the Singapore Polytechnic's Dover Road campus.
Called Moberly, the old barracks, refurbished at a cost of over $1 million, is the last colonial building on the campus.

The building's original facade is the only thing that has been retained; its interior space has been revamped and reconfigured to accommodate a LAN gaming room, music studios and a study area.

A former British soldier in town for the official launch of the student hub last week said: 'I'm sure the old soldiers would love it! I'm glad they didn't knock it down.'

Fond memories came flooding back for the now 70-year-old Barry Hardy as he toured the place, which was his home for six months in 1963, eight years before the British armed forces pulled out of Singapore.

It was not a hard posting. Even back then, the facility was modern and comfortable, compared to tents. It had ceiling fans and mosquito nets were not needed.

Mr Hardy recalled: 'We had a boot boy to clean our boots, polish the brass and make the beds, a man to do our laundry and an old, very shy Chinese lady to do our mending.'

Singapore Polytechnic began occupying the 33ha Princess Mary Barracks in 1971, when its Shenton Way campus could no longer hold its growing student intake.

The polytechnic demolished most of the colonial buildings there, save for Moberly, which housed the Civil Engineering and Building Department and the School of Nautical Studies.

In the late 1990s, it was renovated and used for co-curricular activities and student camps.

The idea to convert it into a student hub was thus a natural progression from that, said Mr Liew Beng Keong, director of the department of student and alumni affairs at the polytechnic.

To connect current users of the place to history, a museum has been set up in Moberly to display memorabilia like old trophies, teaching aids and historical documents donated by alumni and former staff members. Military insignia donated by former soldiers also take pride of place.

Moberly is fast becoming a hangout for the students.

Nick Koh, 19 and in his third year in the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, plays pool there thrice a week.

He said: 'When we are stressed or tired, we come by here to chill out with friends.'


By Sumathi V. Selvaretnam

Sigh. The other barracks blocks and the old water tower was torn down last year :(

Was there anything special about the old water tower?

Its a pity there arent many pics of this location. In fact...never seen it in any book on old photos of Singapore.

Never fear Rafflescity. Go down to Loyang Way, after Selarang Park Road. I think this could be the only surviving concrete-type water tower in Singapore. I might be wrong because this was a remnant from the days of the British Military forces in Singapore - before 1971.

Generally if the area had low water pressure, then you need one of those storage structures. The civilian version is metal-type and was built by Hume Industries, a company acquired by Hong leong way back in the 1970s.




Was there anything special about the old water tower?

Its a pity there arent many pics of this location. In fact...never seen it in any book on old photos of Singapore.

The water tower belonged to the Princess Mary Barracks complex. It's as old as the camp. Sadly it was demolished, and before I have the time to even bring down my cam, the whole building was gone (in less than 3 days).

Never fear Rafflescity. Go down to Loyang Way, after Selarang Park Road. I think this could be the only surviving concrete-type water tower in Singapore. I might be wrong because this was a remnant from the days of the British Military forces in Singapore - before 1971.


Is it a standalone structure or is it part of a larger complex of old buildings and is it accessible for taking pictures? Glad to know that one of its type is still around (whatever it may look like)...

I think it's visible from the road. Its part of the DRC now i think

Anyone knows when Princess Mary Barracks was established?

Early 1950s

Anyone knows when Princess Mary Barracks was established?

Ah, so it never saw action in WW2.

Demolition of the Childcare Centre, MLT2 and Water Tower also came as a shock to me. I can say it took a few years before reality started to sink in...

I was away at internship when the demolition occurred, so imagine my reaction when I returned to SP one fine day and discovered... no MLT2! No Childcare Centre!! :eek2:

A few months ago I emailed SP Feedback office to suggest making a commemorative book of the old Childcare Centre etc from old archival photos, since it was the second-last oldest building on the grounds. No reply till now. :ohno:

I daresay my SP DMIT Club *may* have some photos of the Childcare Centre before it was demolished, taken during camps around 2003-06. I did play a game there as a camper, but blindfolded =| I regretted not exploring the place whilst it was still around... :cry:

Demolition of the Childcare Centre, MLT2 and Water Tower also came as a shock to me. I can say it took a few years before reality started to sink in...

I was away at internship when the demolition occurred, so imagine my reaction when I returned to SP one fine day and discovered... no MLT2! No Childcare Centre!! :eek2:

A few months ago I emailed SP Feedback office to suggest making a commemorative book of the old Childcare Centre etc from old archival photos, since it was the second-last oldest building on the grounds. No reply till now. :ohno:

I daresay my SP DMIT Club *may* have some photos of the Childcare Centre before it was demolished, taken during camps around 2003-06. I did play a game there as a camper, but blindfolded =| I regretted not exploring the place whilst it was still around... :cry:

I was from SP too. The whole place was leveled in less than 2 weeks!

Now SP has a lot of developments in the oldest part of the school (which is the T1-T11 area, built in the 1970s). In the greenery between t6 and t7 will soon be a study area, most of the old trees there have been cut down. Between t5 and t4, also another study area. I think the current management are very eager to turn every patch of land into something new for the school... =\ they've already turned the grass patch in front of the Admin into a library extension...

As for the MLT2 and childcare centre, I'll have a look at the SP concert band old photos. During the orientation camp of 2006 we used the childcare centre as sleeping bunks. At that time I wasn't so adventurous, I'm afraid to say, so I just slept the whole night. Uneventful... And for a short period we used MLT2 as a temporary band room whilst ours was undergoing renovation.

SP is forever undergoing redevelopment somewhere. The addition of a amphitheatre at Moberly is good. But the skate park at the Plaza is not very good. Should place it somewhere else I feel. Safety.

SP has the greenest campus. Unlike others like NYP (feels very cold), SP has so much greenery. But indeed I feel many areas are underutilised. Making every space a lively space is not the solution. Some simple landscaping works, some paths and gazebos would be adequate.

The demolition of the old Childcare is uncalled for. The new additions could had been built around the old building.

Agreed on the greenery. I look forward to the new study areas at T6 and T5. Hope they don't turn on the lights 24/7 and waste electricity (how to be "green" like that? =P) Looking at old photos of SP, I saw how short the plants were at W13 area there. Today so tall, at night walking through that road without lighting takes a lot of guts... W13 somemore o.o The skate park is just for visibility and advertising for the campus i feel... could have been placed elsewhere...

However, I feel the Childcare centre was demolished because otherwise the other half of T11A (aka the hamster wheel building) wouldn't have enough space. They cut the hill in half. If you try and visualise the original location of the childcare centre, half of it would be floating in mid-air! They *had* to level the hill to make space for T11B. MLT 2 was right in the middle of it, so it had to go as well. I suppose the water tower had to go also, since I don't see what use it would be unless they wanted to make a water feature out of it...

One solution was not to 100% mirror the first hamsterwheel. to create a building which can be built on the hill slope without cutting into it. I believe if they are willing, a balance can be achieved :(

Sounds possible. But the MLT2 still had to go. I think the demolition of MLT2 isn't an issue here, but the Childcare centre. MLT2 *was* quite old. But it was the second-last original MLT. The last one today would be MLT1. If I'm not wrong, MLT 3-7 were demolished many years ago to make way for the convention centre. Oh well, everything's gone now.

The most I could do when I last visited the site of the Childcare was to figure out where the water tower stood. If I'm not wrong, it's in a clearing behind the current innoVillage where there are two benches.. Also, they cut two paths down through the forest: one to T1A (McD), one to T11B. The topography of the area was still retained somewhat.

It's been more than a year, and today I wish to give some updates on the development in Singapore Polytechnic. It's going to be chaotic for the next several years; the demolition of MLT2 and the Childcare Centre was only the tip of the iceberg.

MLT 1 is gone now, and with it the last standalone lecture theatre in SP. Previously we lamented the loss of MLT 2; now with MLT 1 gone to history, the only 'MLTs' left are 8-12 at the Business Block areas. But they aren't standalone buildings; MLT 12 joins T20 and 21 together, while MLTs 8-11 are clumped together with T19.

FC1 is also gone with MLT 1. It was the last standalone, low-rise foodcourt in SP. The only remaining low-rise foodcourt now is FC4, sitting between T17 and T18.

Taking up the space occupied by MLT 1 and FC1 will be a new School of Design block, ready around 2014-15.

In another part of the campus, the Sports Hall and Squash / Basketball Courts have been razed to the ground, making way for a new development (I'm not sure when it will be ready though). The Tennis courts are gone, with construction taking place at their site. Temporary basketball courts have been built in the Quadrangle beside FC3.

I think the next building to go would be DSD (formerly known as SAA). I'm not sure when it will happen, but perhaps not anytime soon, with all the construction going on.

There is a billboard with the map of SP and proposed future developments, standing beside T12/12A facing the Convention Centre. You may have a look at it to see the extent of development in the coming years.

^^ Thanks for the updates. :)

My old poly, Ngee Ann, is also undergoing a lot of development. It feels very different right now.