Suffolk House, Penang

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In Penang, Malaysia, the Suffolk House refers to two early residences located in George Town, Penang, on the banks of the Air Itam River. The earliest of the two mansions is notable for its association with Francis Light, believed to have used the mansion as his residence in Penang. Following Light's death in 1794, a newer Suffolk House (also known as the Residency) replaced the original house, assuming multiple roles and was later neglected before it is in the process of restoration.

The mansion and the estate it was build on, the Suffolk Estate, is allegedly named after Suffolk county, Light's home county in East Anglia.

1 History
2 Dispute of construction and ownership
3 Architecture
4 References

[edit] History

[edit] Service to colonial Britain

The original Suffolk House was constructed by Francis Light over land once owned by him as his pepper estate, serving as the home of his family up to his death in 1794. After Light's death, the original house was replaced by a second Suffolk House, built by the subsequent governor of Penang, William Edward Phillips, following his purchase of the land from Light's former partner, Scott.

The mansion subsequently served as the residence of several more early governors for a century, including William Edward Phillips' father-in-law, Governor Bannerman, amongst other Governors of Penang and the Governors of the Straits Settlements. The mansion also served as a venue for social and official functions.

During the 1810s and 1820s, the mansion was a Goverment House that assumed the role as a meeting place for critical political discussions, including, most notably, discussions with Stamford Raffles regarding the founding of Singapore.

[edit] Service to the Methodist Boys' School

The mansion was later purchased by a planter, and eventually became part of a local Methodist Boys' School, when it was purchased by Reverend Peach for $20,000 in 1929. At one point, the school planned to build a new building over the grounds of the Suffolk House, but settled to simply renovate the existing mansion after the Great Depression put the project and hold and the school failed to raise sufficient funds for the new building. A school building was still built near the mansion.

During the mansion's service for the school, the building assumed various roles through its 46 years of service. In 1931, Standard Six students were transfered into the building, before the entire Primary School (Standards 1-6) eventually moved into it in 1945. World War II saw the building temporarily occupied by the Japanese administration. A dental clinic was later added into the building in 1953, and it also served as a canteen until 1975. The building's rapid deterioration was noted since the 1950s, and in 1975, the building was declared unsafe and was vacated. Between then and its restoration in the 2000s, the building's roof and upper floor had collapse.

[edit] Restoration

Since 1961, campaigning has existed to restore the mansion. Through the years, various efforts to restore the house were hampered by complications, including problematic land transfers and waning interest. In 1993, the Penang Heritage Trust conducted a structural studies and stabilisation works on the buildings with assistance from the SACON Heritage Unit, an organisation based in South Australia (Adelaide, the capital of South Australia, was surveyed and laid out by Francis Light's son, William Light). The Suffolk House Committee was also formed by Penang's state government.

In 2000, the Methodist Boys' School was given a neighboring plot of land from the state government in exchange for the property containing the Suffolk House. Restoration work sponsored by the Penang Heritage Trust could then begin, with the roof repaired and restored beginning November 2000 with funding by the state government, followed by the rest of the building from 2004 onwards, aided by donations from HSBC (of RM 2.5 million) and various parties. An estimated RM 5 million was needed to restore and refit the mansion.

Restoration works are still underway on the mansion, and the restored building is due to be unveiled in early 2007. The mansion is planned to be put to multiple uses, as an art gallery for early paintings of Penang and a themed venue.

[edit] Dispute of construction and ownership

The first owners of the Suffolk House remains disputed by two quarters, which either claimed that the house was constructed in the early 1790s for Light, or constructed in 1809 for the subsequent governor of Penang, William Edward Phillips, about 15 years after Light's death.

Historian F. G. Stevens, one of the main authorities on the early development of Penang, pointed out in a 1929 article "A Contribution to the Early History of Prince of Wales Island" that the road leading to the house from Air Itam Road was only "lined out but not made" in 1807, discounting the possibility that the house could have been built before then.

Meanwhile, Light's will indicates that he bequeathed his wife, Martina Rozells, "the pepper gardens with my garden house, plantations and all the land by me cleared in that part of this island called Suffolk...", referring to either the house or estate, indicating that either or both assets already existed when Light passed away.

[edit] Architecture

The original house was simply a humble timber-and-attap garden house, fashioned in an Anglo-Indian Garden House style, a style formerly common in British India. The current Suffolk House is a detached double-storey building of Euro-Indian Georgian styling.

The present building's first floor is primarily held up by pairs of colonnades, totaling 78 columns inside and out, spanning the verandah, and the front and rear of the interiors. The ground floor is surrounded by walls with a series of arched doors, and is primarily supported by the outer and inner walls of the building. Wooden beams support the first floor and roof.