Village named after a kind tin miner

A signboard (left) at the entrance to Kampung Baru Lim Tan in Ulu Kinta.

THE impending eviction from their homes gave them sleepless nights.

Squatting on a piece of land in Ulu Kinta where tin mining works would soon begin, the 40 poor families had no place to seek shelter.

But luck was on their side because as the eviction date drew near, tin miner Lim Tan came to their aid.

He not only relocated them to a place nearby, but also helped them build their new houses.

This was 40 years ago.

The grateful villagers named their home Kampung Lim Tan in recognition of his kindness.

“We cannot imagine our fate had it not been for Lim Tan,” said villager Kok Beng.

Now in his late 60s, Kok was originally from Kampung Baru Tanjung Rambutan about 2km away before his family shifted to the squatter area in 1969.

“My uncle had a coffeeshop in the squatter area.

This coffeeshop at the entrance to Kampung Baru Lim Tan has a long and interesting story. 

“There were many tin mine workers there and his coffeeshop business was booming,” said Kok, who together with his siblings, helped out at the shop.

His parents worked as vegetable farmers.

Kok said the coffeeshop business continued to flourish after they shifted to Kampung Lim Tan, which is just across the main road from the tin mines.

“Our coffeeshop would be open as early at 5am until past midnight.

“The mine workers would come for breakfast at the crack of dawn followed by lunch and tea breaks. They played mahjong after dinner until past midnight.

“They loved to gather at our shop,” recalled Kok of the old days.

But everything changed after the tin market crashed in 1985.

The area became very quiet and many mine workers who lost their jobs went elsewhere to look for work.

Despite the slow business, Kok and his siblings took over the coffeeshop from his uncle in 1996.

Kok Beng (left) from Kampung Baru Lim Tan and his friend Keok Mun Choong having a chat at Kok’s coffeeshop in the village. 

Today, Kok and his brother run the business as their other siblings married and settled down outside the village here.

Kok, who is unmarried, has 10 brothers and sisters.

He continues to stay upstairs in the double-storey shophouse.

He is the family’s third generation in Malaysia, his grandparents emigrated from China to the then Malaya.

Kok said there were about 40 houses in Kampung Baru Lim Tan and the villagers obtained a 99-year title for their properties in 1993.

Many of the youths relocated to big cities like Kuala Lumpur and Singapore for job opportunities since the 1980s and the village became a greying community.

Kok is among the few who has stayed put.

“This place is windy and cool compared to big towns and cities.

“The water here is also cooler,” said Kok, obviously proud and very attached to the place he calls home.

More importantly, he is happy with life in the village.

He continues to operate the coffeeshop every day and his customers come for breakfast, lunch and tea breaks and many of them comprise construction workers and odd job workers.