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Rex Panorama No.2 (Set 2) - Brewster Road Bridge (Previously Known As Birch Bridge)
This panoramic photograph by Rex Photo Studio, shows the Brewster Road Bridge. This is from the second set panoramas by the studion.
The bridge was built in 1907 to cope with additional traffic between New Town (which Yau Tet Shin commenced building in 1907) and Old Town of Ipoh. Locally it was known then as "The bridge that went nowhere" as New Town did not exist. In 1932, the bridge was upgraded with a row of cast iron street lamps to light the crossing at night. After WWII, about a hundred "bridge- dwellers of Ipoh" made their homes from cardboard under the Hugh Low Bridge and Birch Bridge. Initially, the bridge was officially named Birch Bridge after the British Resident of Perak, E W Birch which, by 1950, was changed to Brewster Road Bridge due to the unpopularity of the name Birch, who, as the First Resident of Perak, J W W Birch, was assassinated by the Malays.
Beside the bridge on the river bank, there is a famous Chinese temple, dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy, this is the second oldest Chinese temple in Ipoh, with a bell dating from 1878. The temple itself is believed to date from 1890.
To read more about Towkay Yau Tet Shin, click here.
To read more about the Bridge Dwellers and the Slums of Ipoh, click here.
To read more about E W Birch click here.
To read more about J W W Birch click here.
To read more about The Goddess of Mercy Temple, click here.
To go to the next panorama, click here.