Loh Kah Seng – 20 Years Interviewing Singaporeans Part 1 | Chronicles of Old Singapore

Welcome to Chronicles of Old Singapore. I reflect on my oral history work spanning 20 years, beginning with leprosy survivors in 2005 and victims of the 1961 Bukit Ho Swee fire to recent interviews with shopkeepers of Chinatown and TCM physicians. Looking at two very different interviews with leprosy survivors, I discuss how ordinary people offer additional voices to the Singapore Story and new ways of writing history from below. Part 1 | https://youtu.be/Jiv_MWbrawU Part 2 | https://youtu.be/gmfrpn7e1B4 00:00 Introduction 00:57 Voice of the Singapore Story 02:41 3 Questions 03:05 Rise of Oral History 05:53 Early Projects 09:00 Recent Projects 10:50 The Leprosy Interviews 12:29 The New Silra Home 14:44 Joseph Tan 18:52 Lim Ah Hin 22:39 Conclusion I’m Dr Loh KS, the people’s historian. I’m interested in the history of Singapore and the lives of its people. In Chronicles of Old Singapore, I speak to people about their memories of Singapore before it became a global city today. We discuss three topics: 1. People and places. 2. Change and continuity. 3. The importance of heritage. As a historian, I try to stay true to the oral history method on a video format and social media platform. I let the interviewee speak, as the ‘voice of the past’ as Paul Thompson put it. No clickbait, no BS, no posturing. The aim is to canvas a wide range of voices on various aspects of Singapore history and heritage – physical, social, cultural, economic. Do like the video, share your memories below and subscribe to the channel for future episodes. Write to lohkahseng@chroniclesresearch.com if you have any of these stories to share: • Old places or kampongs. • Communities – their way of life & culture. • Childhood & schools. • Work or business. Support Chronicles of Old Singapore on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ChroniclesofOldSingapore Follow the channel on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61551786759344 Spotify: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/loh-ks TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lks992002 Chronicles of Old Singapore is also the name of my research consultancy on the history of Singapore: https://www.chroniclesresearch.com/ Caveat: this is above all a podcast based on personal memory. As has been well-documented in oral history, memory is not always reliable and what is recalled here should not be taken as fact. However, as Alessandro Portelli noted, the subjectivity of oral history is also its great strength, and what is inaccurately remembered may point to how deeply meaningful the past is to people. #singaporehistory #memory #heritage #nostalgia #oralhistory #socialhistory #history #singapore