Ann Siang Hill, Singapore
Copyright © Timothy Tye.
Ann Siang Hill
Ann Siang Hill is one of the small hills along the coastal areas of Singapore's Chinatown. Collectively, these hills are known as Telok Ayer Hills, named after the bay that was once there, and includes Ann Siang Hill, Mount Wallich and Mount Erskine. Mount Wallich and Mount Erskine were levelled in the 1890s to use as landfill when the Telok Ayer Basin was reclaimed. Only Ann Siang Hill was left standing.
Ann Siang Hill had changed name twice. It was originally called Scott's Hill, after Charles Scott who owned a clove and nutmeg plantation there. Ownership passed to John Gemmill, and the hill was renamed Gemmill Hill. In 1894, it was sold to Chia Ann Siang, a wealthy Malacca-born landowner, and once again the name changed, to Ann Siang Hill. It remains Ann Siang Hill to this day.
