Shih Chung School – 11, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah
The once-stately mansion of Goh Chan Lau, which means “Five-Storey Villa”, was built by the brothers Cheah Tek Soon (Xie Deshun) and Cheah Tek Thye (XieDetai). Cheah Tek Soon’s daughter Cheah Liew Bee (Xie Liumei) was married to Goh Say Eng (Wu Shirong), a fervent supporter of Sun Yat Sen. It was said that Goh Say Eng had persuaded the Cheah family to sell off the villa to financially fuel the revolutionary activities of Sun Yat Sen.
In 1908, the villa passed into the hands of Tye Kee Yoon (Dai Xiyun), the Chinese Consul in Penang, who turned it into the Chinese Consulate. After the 1911 Revolution, his son TyePhey Yuen (Dai Shuyuan) became the first Consul of Republican of China in Penang.
In 1915, the brothers Leong Eng Kean (Liang Enquan) and Leong Yin Kean (Liang Yingquan) rented the upper floor of the bungalow as the premises for the P’iJoo Girls’ School, which was forced to shut down when the Education Bill of 1920 was put into effect.
The Shih Chung Branch School, founded in 1938, occupied these premises until 1994.
Support our efforts – your voice can make a difference! We suggest this short message be sent to the relevant authorities:
“I urge the Penang State Government, local authorities and related agencies to urgently take action to save the Shih Chung School (11, Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah). First established as a five-storey villa (Goh Chan Lau) by the Cheah brothers, the villa was later turned into the Chinese Consulate. Few years later, the Leong brothers rented the upper floor for the P’iJoo Girls’ School but was forced to shut down. This lead to the occurrence of Shih Chung Branch School that was left unoccupied since 1994. Regrettably, the school is in a dilapidated condition.
I would like to register my concern for the need to safeguard Penang’s heritage and to keep alive the soul of our city. I believe that appropriate protection for heritage as well as development guided by respect for community, heritage and environment will improve our quality of life and prosper our local economy.”
Mailing addresses and fax numbers for the authorities are listed on the previous page. You can also email them directly here.
