This is a view of the village that was established by the Bugis from Sulawesi. It was located between the Rochor and Kallang rivers on the eastern side of Singapore in the 1820s. An 1835 map of Singapore by George Drumgoole Coleman shows the village and a road called Kampong Bugis. Every year, Bugis traders traversed the archipelago between June and November, buying local produce such as edible seaweed, birds’ nests, tortoiseshell, gambier, shark fins, rattan, spices and sandalwood. At the end of their voyage, they would come to Singapore with their cargo which they would sell to the Chinese merchants. These merchants would store the goods in godowns along the Singapore River, to await shipment to other parts of the world. These traders made full use of Singapore’s strategic location.
