MacPherson, Singapore

MacPherson is a neighbourhood located in Geylang in the Central Region of Singapore. Its location roughly corresponds to the similarly titled subzone of Macpherson in the Geylang Planning Area and is approximately sandwiched between the neighbourhoods of Aljunied and Paya Lebar.[1][2] MacPherson largely consists of a small public housing estate centered on Circuit Road and an industrial area. The Pelton Canal runs through the neighbourhood, separating the private housing estate off MacPherson Road, and the Housing Development Board flats along Circuit Road. The neighbourhood is served by the Circle MRT Line and Downtown Line at MacPherson MRT station and Mattar MRT station. The member of parliament for MacPherson SMC is Tin Pei Ling. It is served by MacPherson Community Club, operated by the People's Association with Residents' Committee (RCs)[3] and Neighbourhood Committees (NCs)[4] scattered around the entire neighbourhood. They organise various programmes for residents to interact and promote community involvement.

MacPherson
neighbourhood
Name transcription(s)
 • Chinese麦波申
 • Pinyinmàibōshēn
 • MalayMacPherson
 • Tamilமக்பெர்சொன்
Circuit Road, MacPherson.
CountrySingapore
Planning areaGeylang Planning Area
SubzoneMacPherson Subzone

The Ministry of Education has a total of 4 mainstream Primary and Secondary Schools in MacPherson, Singapore.[5] They are Geylang Methodist School (Primary), Geylang Methodist School (Secondary), Canossa Catholic Primary School, and St. Margaret's Primary School, which is temporarily relocated here for improvements work to be conducted on their old campus. There is also a school for special needs students, called Canossian School.[6]

Parks and recreational facilities are distributed around the neighbourhood,[5] with the main park being the Pelton Park Connector,[7] which stretches the entire distance from Balam Road to Paya Lebar Way. There are also larger parks such as the Aljunied Park[8] located near the neighbourhood.

The neighbourhood is served by the Geylang Polyclinic,[9] operated by the National Healthcare Group. There are also many private general practitioners in the heartlands, located below the HDB flats.

The nearest shopping malls are 18 Tai Seng, Paya Lebar Square, and Paya Lebar Quarter. The majority of the shopping options here in MacPherson are located in the markets or along the HDB shophouses.[10]

Many residents in MacPherson are elderly,[11] as a result, the majority of facilities are wheelchair and elderly-friendly. There are multiple built-to-order HDB housing development newly constructed, such as MacPherson Spring and other developments such as MacPherson Weave, where construction is still in progress.

The neighbourhood is served by religious sites such as churches, temples and mosques. They include Trinity Christian Centre, Grace Baptist Church, Sallim Mattar Mosque and Huang Lao Xian Shi Temple.[5] These religious organisations often have charity extensions and are actively serving the needy in the MacPherson neighbourhood.

Hawker Food Culture

A distinctive identity of MacPherson, Singapore, is the hawker food culture. The neighbourhood's hawker centres are often featured and patronised by Singaporean Media and Food Bloggers.[12][13][14][15][16][17] The 5 large hawker centres[5] located in MacPherson encompasses the entire neighbourhood. To cater to the diversity of races and religions in MacPherson, Singapore, they serve Singaporean cuisine originating from various cuisines, such as Chinese, Malay, Indian and Eurasian cuisine. Most notably, the hawker centres that have been featured by the media[17] and the news are 79 and 79A Circuit Road Hawker Centre, as well as the two-storey complex located at 80 Circuit Road Food Centre. The majority of the hawker stall owners are elderly and prepare their food in the traditional styles, due to the demographics of MacPherson, the cost of food has been kept low for more to afford. However, there is a trend of newer hawkers,[18] typically of a younger age, starting out their first hawker stall selling international cuisine, such as Thai Cuisine[19] and Japanese Cuisine.[20]

Etymology

Formerly called Jalan Klapa, MacPherson Road was named after Lieutenant Colonel Ronald MacPherson (1817-1869).

MacPherson served in the China War of 1841 and was appointed Staff Officer to the Artillery in the Straits in 1843. He succeeded Colonel H. Man as Executive Engineer and Superintendent of Convicts and Resident Councillor, Malacca in 1855 and 1857 respectively. He had been active in forming a local volunteer corps at the outbreak of the Crimean War and was appointed First Captain Commandment of the Singapore Volunteer Rifle Corps formed in 1854. When the first Municipal Act came into operation in 1856, he became an ex officio member of the Commission, becoming President on three later occasions. He was appointed the first Colonial Secretary when the Straits Settlements became a Crown Colony in 1867.

MacPherson designed the current St Andrew's Cathedral along the lines of Netley Abbey in England and built it in six years using Indian convict labour. Completed in 1862, the cathedral is considered one of the finest specimens of ecclesiastical architecture in the east. On the cathedral grounds, the architect is commemorated in a memorial called the MacPherson Memorial Monument. He was buried in the old Bukit Timah Road Christian Cemetery, which has since been landscaped and made into a park.

The name Macpherson -- or MacPherson or McPherson, according to different spellings -- comes from the Gaelic Mac a' phearsain and means 'Son of the parson'. For some old folks it was called Persiaran Keliling.[21]

References
  1. Rachel Oh (18 August 2016). "Keeping the stories of MacPherson alive". The Straits Times.
  2. "URA SPACE". Urban Redevelopment Authority.
  3. "Residents' Committees | People's Association". www.pa.gov.sg. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  4. "Neighbourhood Committees | People's Association". www.pa.gov.sg. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  5. "MacPherson". OpenStreetMap. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  6. "Home". Canossian School (Singapore). Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  7. "Recreational Connectivity". National Parks Board. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  8. "Parks and Nature Reserves". National Parks Board. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  9. "National Healthcare Group Polyclinics". www.nhgp.com.sg. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  10. "HDB | Shops and Offices". www.hdb.gov.sg. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  11. "MacPherson (Subzone, Singapore) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  12. "8 Hidden Makan Gems in MacPherson Even People Living In The Area Might Not Know Exist". Goody Feed. 2019-04-29. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  13. "8 Macpherson Archives". ieatishootipost. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  14. "Food Showdown: 89 Carrot Cake VS U Fried Carrot Cake In MacPherson". SETHLUI.com. 2019-08-05. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  15. Ang, Chiara (2017-12-26). "9 Macpherson Food Places From $3 Worth The Food Coma After Lunch". EatBook.sg - New Singapore Restaurant and Street Food Ideas & Recommendations. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  16. Liu, Maisie (2019-08-28). "Tai Seng Food Guide – 29 Hidden Food Gems in Tai Seng / Ubi / Macpherson". Miss Tam Chiak. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  17. Loh, Ruth Xiu. "MacPherson: The unexpected foodie paradise".
  18. "New Generation of Singaporean Hawkers". www.visitsingapore.com. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  19. "Where to eat: 10 best cheap Thai hawker stalls in SG for a thai-rrific time". SETHLUI.com. 2021-10-11. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  20. Zhi, Choo Hui (2017-05-18). "10 Japanese Stalls In Singapore Kopitiams For Cheap & Highly-Rated Dishes". TheSmartLocal - Singapore's Leading Travel and Lifestyle Portal. Retrieved 2021-12-04.
  21. Victor R Savage, Brenda S A Yeoh (2003). Toponymics - A Study of Singapore Street Names. Eastern Universities Press. ISBN 981-210-205-1.

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