The heritage trail in Teluk Intan, with the theme ‘colonial port’, highlights the many structures that were built as the town developed.
TAKE a leisurely walk along the Teluk Intan town centre and you will find yourself following a heritage trail dotted with colonial buildings, old shophouses with dying trades as well as streets that show the influence of cultures and the people who contributed to the town’s history.
Named the Colonial Port of Teluk Intan Trail by the Perak Heritage Society, the heritage walk reveals in depth, the history, culture and heritage of this charming old town.
Perak Heartland
Formerly known as Teluk Anson, Teluk Intan was the “heartland of the Perak Kingdom” and it was here that Perak’s rulers held court from 1528 until Kuala Kangsar became the Royal Town in 1877.
Historically, it was the port for Kinta from the 1870s to 1880s and up to the early 20th Century, with jetties at Durian Sebatang and Batak Rabit. Archibald Edward Harbord Anson, the last Lieutenant Governor of Penang, who drew the plan of the town in 1882, had named it Teluk Anson after himself.
It was once the largest of Malaya’s minor ports, with regular steamer services to Penang and Singapore. In 1903, Teluk Anson was known as “our great Southern Port”. Its decline came after the expansion of the railway line north and south of Tapah Road in 1909.
Legend of Mak Intan
Teluk Anson was renamed Teluk Intan (Diamond Bay) in 1981 just before its centenary. The name comes from Teluk Mak Intan, one of the oldest settlements in the area.
According to a legend, Mak Intan, a Mandailing cloth merchant, founded the settlement. She was frolicking in the bay when she lost a diamond hairpin but she had staked her territory.
Walk The Walk
The Colonial Port Heritage Walk covers the District Courthouse, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, Post Office, Police Station, Leaning Clock Tower, Sri Thandayuthapani Temple, Hock Soon Keong Temple, Methodist Episcopal Church, Church of Saint Anthony, Horley Methodist Primary School and Masjid Batak Rabit.
The single-storey Police Station facing the river is the oldest historical building here. Its high pitched roof resembles a fort. It was once used as a Custom house and later a police station.
The Post Office is of pre-World War II architecture, incorporating the 3-3-3 and 3-4-3 windows in rhythm design. The modern post-war interpretation of classicism lies in the building of Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.
The District Courthouse, built as a church during the 1890s, is no longer in use. But despite modern extensions, its original facade is retained.
The highlight of the trail is a visit to the must-see landmark, the Leaning Clock Tower. The three-storey circular brick structure was built in 1885 to house the town’s water tank. There are seven tiers of fringe roofs, a timber post-and-bracket structure that gives the tower its pagoda-like appearance – an impression further reinforced by the use of Chinese half-round tiles and green glazed grilles like balcony railings above the roofs. The clock was installed in 1894.
Another interesting landmark is the Sri Thandayuthapani Temple (1899), founded by the Chettiar community. Their past presence was an indication of the commercial potential of Teluk Intan. The temple, dedicated to Lord Murugan, comprises of decorative elements, fine plaster sculptures, garbagraham (sanctuary) of the main deity and vimana (sculpted tower with figurines of deities).
The first Chinese settlers were Penang Hokkiens who built the Hock Soon Keong temple in 1883. The roof ridge with beautifully decorated upturned eaves is characteristically Hokkien.
Built in 1936, the Methodist Episcopal Church (Tamil Methodist Church) founded by the Anglo-Tamil School, has an impressive marble plaque at the entrance, simple embellishments in repetitious ventilation slots and trefoil arches.
Next is the Church of Saint Anthony (1894), a three-storey porte cochere tower topped with an elegant steeple. The simple cross plan of the church can be easily seen.
Horley Methodist Primary School, founded in 1898, was the first English school. The final stop is Masjid Batak Rabit, designed after the 15th Century Masjid Agung at Demak Java and early 18th Century Masjid Kg Laut, Kelantan.
