Goh Siew Tin

Introduction

Goh Siew Tin (吴寿珍, also known as 吴世奇; 1854–1909) was the first president of the General Chinese Trade Affairs Association in 1906 and again in 1908. He was its vice-president in 1907, before the establishment was renamed the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce in 1917. Goh was born in Singapore and was the second-generation owner of Chop Ann Hoe (万安号), a tin, timber and export business that was set up by his father who had migrated from Fujian, China to Singapore. In 1898, Goh was appointed as a committee member of Poh Leung Kuk, an establishment that protected women and children. Goh was also the first chairman of the founding school board of Tao Nan School in 1906, which was then known as Dao Nan Xue Tang (道南学堂), one of the schools set up by the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan.

Selected books on Goh Siew Tin

• 柯木林. (主编). [Ke, M. L. (Ed.).] (1995). 《新华历史人物列传》 [Who’s who in the Chinese community of Singapore]. 新加坡: 教育出版公司, p. 62. Call no.: RSING 959.570092 WHO-[HIS]. This book contains the biographies of 1,175 Chinese personalities in Singapore, covering the period from 1819 to 1990. Each biography contains information on the birth and death dates, dialect group, occupation and affiliated organisations of the Chinese personality. Goh Siew Tin’s biography is also included.

• 方百成 & 杜南发. (编委主任). [Fang, B. C. & Du, N. F. (Ed.).] (2012). 《世界福建名人录, 新加坡编》 [Prominent figures of the world Fujian communities: Singapore]. 新加坡: 新加坡福建会馆, p. 106. Call no.: RSING 920.05957 PRO This book contains the biographies of 155 Chinese Hokkien personalities in Singapore from 1819 to 2012. Goh Siew Tin’s biography is also included.

• 颜清湟 [Yan, Q.H.]. (1980). 《从历史角度看海外华人社会变革》 [The development of Overseas Chinese Communities from a historical perspective]. 新加坡 : 新加坡青年书局, 2007. Call no.: RSING 959.004951 YQH, pp. 116,150, 466. This is an analysis of the historical development of the Chinese communities in Southeast Asia and Singapore. It also covers the development of Chinese commerce, which includes the formation of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, with Goh Siew Tin as its first president.

Selected Newspapers articles on Goh Siew Tin

• Chinese Chamber of Commerce for Singapore. (1906, April 2). The Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser, p. 2. Retrieved from NewspaperSG. This is a report on the inaugural meeting of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, which was held on 31 March 1906. A temporary committee, of which Goh Siew Tin was a part, was formed to lay the matter of the formation of the institution to the colonial government.

• Funeral of Mr. Goh Siew Tin. (1909, March 4). The Straits Times, p. 7. Retrieved from NewspaperSG. This is a report on the passing of Goh Siew Tin, which includes information about him, his business and his son.

• 杨进发 [Yang, J. F.]. (1982, June 28). 道南学校之创办与发展. 《星洲日报》 [Xingzhou Ribao]. p. 33. Retrieved from NewspaperSG. This article traces the founding of Tao Nan School by Hokkien businessmen, as well as highlights Goh Siew Tin as the first president of Tao Nan’s founding school board.

• 一得. (1992, March 7). 寿珍公后人何在？. 《联合早报》 [Lianhe Zaobao]. p. 33. Retrieved from NewspaperSG. This is an article about one of Goh Siew Tin’s descendants from China looking for his relative in Singapore in 1992. The writer also shared some of Goh’s sons’ personal accounts.