Singapore Storeroom
Singapore Storeroom is an online museum dedicated to preserving the memory of the mundane life on the island city.
This is an ongoing project that we hope that you can help us with. We hope to update the collection every 2-3 months, but we need your help.
There is nothing too trivial to archive; each minute item tells its own story; a story that is part in the collective memory of those who call the port city home.
Simply click on the links to the left of this screen or the thumbnails below to help us remember. Or better still, contact us if you have something you feel we should archive.
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National Service
Compulsory military conscription was first introduced on the island in 1952. The move sparked widespread resistance, especially from Chinese Middle School students, cumulating in the 1954 National Service Riots. This early conscription card was sourced from a trash bin at...
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Singapore Fair 1976
Singapore was already an established free trade port by the time of its independence in 1965. But the island lacked natural resources that could enable it to be self-sufficient. Jurong Industrial Park was already established in 1964, and the first...
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Civil Defence – Fire Safety
An example of an early booklet educating the public about fire safety. As early as in the mid-1850s, Singapore's first Fire Committee was formed following a devastating fire at Kling Street on 7 November 1855. This early brochure bears the...
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Speak Mandarin Campaign
The following pictures show a 1980s Speak Mandarin Campaign booklet. The campaign was first initiated in 1979 to encourage Singaporeans to speak Mandarin in place of the various dialects such as Hokkien, Teochew, Cantonese etc. Interestingly enough, this booklet was...
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Vocational Industrial and Training Board Handbook
Featured is a handbook text (circa 1986) used at Vocational Industrial and Training Board, an earlier incarnation of the post-secondary school system, Institute of Technical Education. Following independence in 1965, the Singapore’s main concern was employment for its citizens. Emphasis...
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Military Badges
"I remember enlisting in 1998, my girlfriend came with me and my family to Nee Soon Camp where I was to start my Basic Military Training. By the time I was commissioned from the Officer Cadet School a year later,...
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Colonial Passport
"I think I came across the document by chance after my father passed away in 1982. Once it was no longer valid during the Japanese Occupation during World War II, it must simply have been put away, and remained out...
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Colony Birth Certificate
"This comes from an old friend who is not too perturbed by his age. I'd just obtained the birth certificate for my daughter who was born in February 2012, and couldn't help but notice the difference..." - Char-Maine Tan
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Colonial Badges
A collection of badges during colonial times. For those who are interested: "Let Singapore Flourish" was the English version of "Majulah Singapura".
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KTM Railway Lock
"This used to be the lock for the electric generator room just next to the hotel storeroom and kitchen. The chief electrician, who also happened to be hylam (slang for Hainanese and their perceived pedantic nature), gave this to me...
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Shaw Brothers Fork
We are not quite sure what this is... But we believe it is a commemorative item for the Shaw Brothers' cinemas that still grace the island today. If you have any more information, please contact us. As an interesting side...
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Corporate Badges
We believe that these are the corporate badges of a company that was based in Singapore. Any information you have will be helpful, so do contact us if you know anything.
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Personal Banking
Singapore has one of the highest rates of savings in the world. While schemes like the Central Provident Fund may remain controversial to some, the steps taken by the everyday man to save a little of what he makes, are...
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Everyday Receipts
What does what we spend on tell us? And how different is the cost of living across the decades? Maybe these pictures can give us a clue.
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Public Transport
"Bus ticket: This could have defined our identity as a nation. Unfortunately, an entire generation of Singaporeans have never learned the art of rolling or folding a bus ticket into a julienne, and then finding a suitable space to slot it...
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Postal Service
A 1962 old postal receipt with an advertisement for gift cards. We encourage anyone who has the cards that were being advertised to come forward and share them with everyone.
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Food, Drinks & Tobacco
"Sinalco – Longing for this lovely drink… that slightly sprinkling, tangy taste. Miss it. Nowadays when we drink (sometimes) Kickapoo, it reminds us of Sinalco. R C Cola – Did not like it. Tried to create a taste between Coca-Cola...
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Gig Posters
"Pest Infested, Sweet Charity have always been mentioned as some of the more popular bands in the history of Singapore music. I found these posters lying by the refuse bin in Little India where I was spending my time taking...
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Western Union Band
Western Union Band was a popular Singaporean band whose song "Sausolito" was a hit. The band was a mix of Indian, Chinese, Malays... in fact, many bands during the early 1970s were of a mixed racial makeup. The Western Union...
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Zircon Lounge
The original band of X'Ho (Chris Ho), now a radio DJ. Zircon Lounge was one of the pioneers of the Singapore local music scene.
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Music Rental and Studios
Old newspapers and stubs showing jam studios of the late 1970s as well as equipment rental services. An interesting note is that one of the companies advertised here, "Groovemaker", was featured as a sponsor for a gig at the National...
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Movies and Cinemas
“Roxy Theatre 11am show, morning only 50 cts, early 1960s poor young school boys, but still more expensive than Mee Goreng which was 20 cts. Usual show was $1.50. Movies were a luxury, the average Singaporean earned only a hundred...
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Night Cabaret
"Great World Cabaret – (There was) a raised platform for dancing, with some girls sitting nearby for hire to dance. At one side, there was a small stall selling drinks and tidbits. This stall was run by Christine’s (my wife’s)...
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Horse Racing
Horse racing magazines from the 1980s, both the English and Chinese versions. We found the pictures of the old Turf Club at Bukit Timah as well as vintage beer ads particularly interesting. The Chinese version even has a comic strip...
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Photography as Hobby
Paper holders for negatives and prints that were given when you processed your film at the studio. Circa 1959. "Ilford – think of Kodak films and the old fashioned way of bringing the negatives down to a studio to develop...
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Old Pocket Calendars
Old pocket calendars depicting an unknown starlet. Circa late 1950s – early 1960s. Do contact us if you have any information about the items.
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Arsenal VS Red Star (Belgrade) 1977
Arsenal played against Serbian team, Red Star, in Singapore at the National Stadium in 1977. Here are the pictures of the tickets for school children sponsored by Japanese retail chain store, Metro.
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Rugby Team
"The Rugby Club might have to do with a 28th Brigade British Army Unit that arrived here in 1962 to deal with the Brunei rebellion. They flew in overnight. The Navy arrived at Sembawang with large cruisers and our High...
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National Stadium Badge
An old badge depicting Singapore's former National Stadium, circa unknown. "I was present when they demolished the National Stadium. I just can't believe I didn't take any pictures when I was on-site." - Kenny Png
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1950s Chinese Textbook
"I think this is the textbook I used in Primary 6 (PSLE) class in 1960. I was in an English stream primary school where the teaching was in English. Chinese was taught as a subject using this textbook. The same...
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ECA Badges
We hope these badges can jog some of your personal school memories. Do contact us if you have any recollections to share.
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Library Cards
"Pink library cards (L-folds), and card catalogues... I've always had an affinity for the national libraries, right from about Primary 3 or so. Not that I liked reading – too many words, too little time. But libraries were a great...
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Report Cards
“The most harrowing thing was having to bring back a report card to the parents. It didn't matter if you got 90/100 or 60/100... What was more important was... Were you in the top ten ranking in class??” - Calvin...
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School Souvenirs
Remember your school's founder's day? Or some sports event where you got souvenirs... this starts our collection. If you have something you want to show here, do contact us.
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Income Tax
We would love to find out what was the income tax rate for individuals in the early 1970s, but for now, all we have is a receipt from 1972.
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School Fees
Receipts for school fees from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, way before GIRO was introduced.
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Action Theatre
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Art Festivals
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Art, Words And Installation
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Dance And Movement
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Dick Lee’s Musicals
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Singapore Repertory Theatre
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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The Necessary Stage
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Theatre Practice
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Theatreworks
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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Ticket Stubs
"Armies can put nations to the sword with the force of violence, Politicians can fool the masses with a twist of words and Pandemics can unravel the fabric of society.. but nothing can move the Spirit like a touch of Imagination." -...
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