The 27 conserved bungalows in the Chatsworth Park Conservation Area were built in the 1920s and 1930s. These bungalows were mainly designed in the Art Deco and ‘black and white’ styles, to house expatriate staffs of firms such as the Straits Trading Company, Cable & Wireless, McAlister & Co. and Firestone Rubber Company.
No. 3 Chatsworth bungalow was awarded with the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) Architectural Heritage Award in 1997 for the careful restoration of many key features of the conserved main building. The bungalow was previously listed as the residence of a Mr and Mrs T. J. A. Green in 1938 and was eventually sold in 1979. In 2002, alterations were made for the inclusion of an annex outhouse and swimming pool.
No. 5 Chatsworth bungalow was designed by English architect, Frank W. Brewer, who played a significant role in shaping Singapore’s built heritage. Some of Brewer’s work include the Former Cathay Building and the good class bungalow at 23 Ridout Road. The sensitive renovation works done to the bungalow was recognised and awarded with the URA Architectural Heritage Awards in 2013.
No. 24 Chatsworth bungalow was occupied by the Deutsche Schule Singapore (known as the German European School Singapore today) in 1973. It relocated from a landed house at Jalan Kampong Chantek, where it first started in 1971 with only 6 students. The school was founded to meet the needs of the children of Rollei’s West German executives.
No. 2 Holt Road bungalow is located between Jervois Road and Nathan Road. According to an oral interview with Neill B Aitken, a former employee with McAlister & Co, the properties in Holt Road belonged to Alfred Holt & Company, also known as Straits Steamship. The company established its base in Singapore with Mansfield & Co. Ltd as its agent around 1880s, with managers from both companies having their residences at Holt Road between 1921 and 1933. Today, it is owned by the Federal Government of Malaysia. It is known as Rumah Peranginan Persekutuan (Federal Rest House) and serves as a government vacation retreat for Malaysian government civil servants and retired Malaysian government civil servants.
No. 2 Holt Road bungalow was gazetted on 3 October 1992 for conservation, while the other bungalows were gazetted on 29 November 1991.
Buildings and sites featured on Roots.SG are part of our efforts to raise awareness of our heritage; a listing on Roots.SG does not imply any form of preservation or conservation status, unless it is mentioned in the article. The information in this article is valid as of July 2019 and is not intended to be an exhaustive history of the site/building.
