Located off the southern coast of mainland Singapore, Sentosa (Isle of Tranquillity) was initially known as Pulau Blakang Mati (Island Behind Death). Starting from the 1880s, the island was an important British military base with a number of forts built on it to protect the southern shipping lanes. In 1970, the island was renamed Sentosa following a naming contest organised by the Singapore Tourist Promotion Board (STPB). The development of the island into a tourist and recreation resort came under the management of the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC), which was formed in 1972.In 1980, the STPB announced plans for a second round of development to attract more visitors to Sentosa. New projects planned included a $16 million monorail system (top left) and a new $14.5 million ferry terminal (centre) to improve the island’s transport infrastructure. Subsequently, plans were also made to upgrade existing attractions to keep them attractive to visitors. One of these was the Sentosa Wax Museum, which was earmarked for an $8.4 million revamp that involved the relocation of the Surrender Chambers exhibit to a new wing of the museum (top right). Except for the new ferry terminal, which began operations in 1987, most of the other projects were completed by the mid 1980s.
