Tracing KL’s roots through photos, maps, anecdotes

Mariana (right) delivering her talk on Kuala Lumpur in its developing years.

VISITORS to Taman Tugu had the good fortune to listen to history told by experts who shared their knowledge of the origins of Kuala Lumpur starting from as early as the 1800s.

The “Friends of Taman Tugu” session was held at Taman Tugu Nursery where its People Library concept treats speakers as human “books”, who share their expertise on a given topic.

The outdoor event hosted six speakers who shared their insights accompanied by historical photographs and maps of Kuala Lumpur while delving into the personalities who founded and developed the city such as Kapitan Yap Ah Loy, Sutan Puasa, Raja Abdullah and Sir Frank Swettenham.

Mariana Isa from Heritage Output Lab talked about the development of Kuala Lumpur as a city by piecing together five panoramic photos from Leiden University, in the Netherlands.

“We now have photographic evidence of Kuala Lumpur in its developing years in high resolution, giving an insight into the streets, people and even animals during that period,” she said.

Sharing the process behind creating a single panoramic photo, Mariana said she “stitched” together two photos to make one photo.

“Four separate photos make one panorama scene. From that, streets and river views can be traced from a panoramic angle, which helps us better understand the evolution of our city.

“We can even see people riding boats and how they went up to the upper levels of the banks.

“It is a past that no one can tell us about,” she said.

Similarly, architect John Koh, whose talk was titled “The Crown Jewel”, spoke on the importance of understanding the location of the heart of the nation.

“It is important to review history not only in its written form, but through what we have seen and the stories behind them.

“We need to ask ourselves, who started this idea, and why this choice in location.

“Nowadays, we have so many new developments. For instance, take LaLaport mall which is now the site of the former Pudu Jail.

“Hence, understanding where the heart of Kuala Lumpur began is where our history started.

“It took many different people, along with their respective responsibilities and contributions, to lead this city to become the capital and to where it is today,” said Koh.

Attendee Michelle Yap, 48, said she applauded events like this which were free and held in public spaces.

“Such events need more publicity. It is important for young people to listen to and appreciate people like our speakers who can provide such information to learn from before it is too late.”

“For most of us, our eyes are drawn towards moving forward, but knowing where we come from will cultivate a sense of belonging and identity.

“It is also important to develop a desire to recognise our forefathers and their contributions,” she added.

For their next event, People Library invites the public to join them for their Merdeka Special: Stories From Our Founding Fathers to celebrate Independence Day and Hari Malaysia which will be held on Sept 4 from 9am-12pm at Taman Tugu Nursery.

Guest speakers scheduled to attend include the descendants of Tunku Abdul Rahman, Tun Tan Cheng Lock, Tun V. T. Sambathan, Tun Temenggong Jugah, and Tun Dr Ismail Rahman, who will be sharing their personal stories of their childhood years with these patriotic personalities.

For details, visit the Friends of Taman Tugu social media pages or www.tamantugu.my.