Biography

Tan Tock Seng was a Singaporean merchant and philanthropist. Born in Malacca in 1798 to an immigrant Fukien (Hokkien) father and Hokkien Peranakan mother, Tan rose from humble origins. In 1819, Tan moved to Singapore to sell fruit, vegetable and fowl. He worked diligently and was able to set up a shop in Boat Quay and became a notable business.

Through a joint business in land speculation with J. H. Whitehead of Shaw, Whitehead & Co., Tan eventually became a wealthy businessman. His landed properties included 50 acres of land where the railway station at Tanjong Pagar is located, and the plot of land from the Padang to High Street and Tank Road. He also owned a block of shop houses at Ellenborough Building and a 14-acre fruit plantation opposite the St Andrew's Mission Hospital.

Tan Tock Seng died in 1850 at the age of 52, after catching an unknown disease.