I was at Kusu recently, and saw this plaque explaining about Da Bo Gong
It is interesting to me is the date 1923 and the mention of Chia Cheng Ho.
Obviously it must have followed the English plaque on the right
What is interesting is why they did not follow the plaque in the middle, Fu Shan Gong Rebuilt Notice (which is the temple name for Kusu Da Bo Gong), but they followed the other "Extended by" sign?
It specified that the rebuilt date was 1909, and list the donors together with how the money was spent.
One of the donors was Ong Sam Leong (who lay buried at the biggest grave in Bukit Brown)
Enlarged plaque showing the Chinese year and the donors including Ong Sam Leong:
This plaque also shows 1909 (should not be 1969)
If you look at Kusu in 1969 (before the redevelopment in 1975) you would clearly see
the head of the tortoise where the temple lies. The view was taken from the small hill where
the kramat is, which is the tortoise body.
Following Victor's previous interviews with Mdm Sim and my interview, it seems that it was her ancestors who built the temple.
(She claimed it was 300 years old)
It all started when Tua Pek Gong entered into her ancestor who was a fisherman (5 generations ago) who told him that He wanted to stay in Kusu.
5 generation from Mdm Sim would put the age of the temple in the mid 1800's (rough estimation).
We also know that Cheong Hong Lim successfully petitioned the then colonial government in 1875 to stop further burials in Peak Island (old name for Kusu,
at that time Kusu was used a a burial place for the quarantine death in St John's Island)
It seems that there are still 2 graves left behind (but were now camflouged by plants plot when the diggers were afraid to dig out the graves.
(Mdm Sim point the approx location but was afraid to reveal further, but a Bangladesh worker identify the 2 graves without hesitation.
The plant plots concealing the graves below. You can still find joss sticks occasionally there
I have checked other records, including infopedia and Singapore Encyclopedia, all show 1923 and contribution
by Chia Cheng Hoe. Could they have ignore the other plaques ?