We've tried to ensure the information displayed here is as accurate as possible. Should there be any inaccuracies, we would be grateful if you could let us know at info@ipohworld.org . All images and content are copyright.
(Please click on the thumbnail for a bigger image.)
A Brief History Of F Towkay Chung Thye Phin
These three pictures show Chung Thye Phin progressively aging. While we have no precise dates the first image is c1907 when he was a member of the Perak State Council. As he passed away in 1935, the others are believed to be c1925.
Chung Thye Phin was born 28 Sep 1879 in Kota, Taiping, Perak, Malaya. He received his education at the St. Xavier's, Penang. Upon leaving school, he was initiated into his father's tin mining business. Born in the Federated Malay States, in 1902 he was granted a certificate of naturalisation by the Straits Government, making him a British citizen.
He as a Tseng Lung Hakka, son of Kapitan Chung Keng Kwee, the Hai San chief during the Larut tin wars. Chung Thye Phin JP was a Federal Councillor, Perak State Councillor, member of the Perak Chinese Advisory Board, and the last Kapitan China of Perak. In 1925, he co-founded the first Chinese limited liability company, the Toh Allang Chinese Tin Company in Perak and printed his own money for use in his mines. He was a keen motorist and owner of prize-winning racehorses.
His former mansion in Ipoh now houses the Kinta Medical Centre and it was he who presented the Taiping Lake Gardens, formerly one of his mines until the tin ran out, to the Perak State Government.
He was also joint owner of “Forest Lodge”, the finest private residence in Ipoh at the beginning of the 21st century, on Gopeng Road. It was initially built jointly by him in partnership with Eu Tong Sen n, two of the most prolific tycoons in Ipoh,
There is a road in Ipoh as well as one in Taiping named in his honour.
To read more about Chung Thye Phin's Building in Ipoh, click here.