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About 3km away from Matilda House, through a long and dark stretch of road, is a jetty that connects to the site where the Sook Ching Massacre took place on February 28, 1942. Records state that 400 victims were killed and abandoned on the shoreline of Punggol Beach but some historians believe that the unrecorded numbers could be much higher. Even as recent as 1997, people could find skeletal remains from the mass killing on the beach or in the nearby forests. The area of Punggol is one of the oldest known settlements in Singapore. It existed even before the founding of modern Singapore in 1819. That’s more than 200 years ago. Who knows what secrets are buried beneath the land especially since it’s common for people of that era to dabble in animism and shamanic practices. In the book, Malay Magic, author Walter William Skeat details the beliefs and folklore that was popular in Malay Peninsula during that time. The area of Punggol is one of the oldest known settlements in Singapore. It existed even before the founding of modern Singapore in 1819. The older generation who remembers Singapore during its kampong days still hold onto the memories and the superstitions that were passed on to them. These knowledge are not found online; and you can only listen to them through oral traditions. Sadly, many of these beliefs are slowly being forgotten, and it is easy to understand why such wisdom no longer seems relevant today when everywhere you look are high rise buildings and pristine parks. But just because our eyes cannot see what’s there doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. After all, things like Jinn and the souls of the restless dead are known to be able to anchor themselves in a place for hundreds of years. An elderly woman I spoke to who claims to be a descendant of a family line of practicing shamans recalled the story that her grandmother had told her. Near the spot where Punggol Point is today, there was a very big tree that the kampong residents believe to be the home of an ancient Jinn. Back then this place was not even called Punggol yet. It was known as Tanjong Rangon. Lightning struck the tree one night and all that was left was its stump. People from other kampongs would come to this tree to give offerings. She suggested that was how Punggol got its name. Ponggol in malay means, “a tree stump”. Raymond, 49 years old, recalls the stories that his father told him when he was a teenager. Raymond’s father used to drive the bus service 82, which was one of the only two buses plying the Punggol Jetty route. This was around the late 80s to the early 90s. It was well known amongst the drivers there that the place is unclean. In fact, the drivers pooled their money together to set up an altar near the drivers’ resting point to appease the wandering spirits so that they will not be harmed. There was a story of a new driver who did not believe in such superstitions and scoffed at Raymond’s father’s belief. He went to rest between his shift and when he woke up, he found himself in the forest and couldn’t get out. He kept walking around in circles and came back to the same red altar over and over. It was only after he lit the joss sticks and begged for forgiveness that he managed to see the rest stop. Confession by Meng Meng, a 55 years old property agent, enjoys fishing during his free time. He recalls a fishing experience that left him spooked till today. “I remember this was the time I just finished national service. Bunch of friends and I were looking for jobs but haven’t been able to find any, so during the ba-long-long time (lull period), we would go fishing. Usually the jetty area would be quite crowded, so my buddies and I would go further down the left side to where it's more secluded. It was late in the night, we don’t really know what time it was. The seafood restaurants around the areas were closed already so I think it was probably past midnight. One of our fishing rods caught something and started tugging. The small bell made the ding-ding noise and from the pull of the rod, it seemed like we caught a big one. The more we pulled, the harder the fish fought back. Suddenly we saw something emerging from the water. It was quite dark. We had camping lanterns but it wasn’t enough to illuminate what we had caught. Also, it was quite weird, why would the fish float out of the water. This thing was black and rounded. It raised up of the water slowly. My first thought was that we got our line caught in a floating debris covered in seaweed. But from the way it floated towards us, it seems to be somewhat alive. There’s a difference when something is moving at you and just randomly floating. This thing was moving towards us. When it got closer to us, it floated even higher and this time it was above the water level. That’s when I felt something was very wrong already. I told my friend to drop the rod and run. It was quite weird, why would the fish float out of the water. This thing was black and rounded. It raised up of the water slowly. No one seems to move. Everyone was confused. And that’s when we all heard it. A ear piercing scream. We all heard it same time and we ran. That voice was human sounding but at the same time it was nothing like I have ever heard from a human throat. We just left everything behind and made a dash for the main road. I took a glance backwards and I saw - I know this is going to sound crazy but I know what I saw - I saw a floating head. Just the head. No body. Flying around our fishing spot. Screeching.
We ended up at the small bus terminal area and quickly prayed to the altar there. Our hands were shivering and the fear was very real, but at least here there were more people and we felt safer. I have had strange occurrences during my army days and other fishing sites before but so far, those were just sounds and weird feelings. This was too real. It’s one thing to not be able to see them, but the sight of a flying head is not something I can try to rationalise and lie to myself that it’s an animal. I know what I saw. I can tell the difference between a head and a bird. Because there was really no way to walk back out and our barang barang (equipment and belongings) were still there, we waited till day break before going back. We spoke to some of the regular anglers there and they told us that there’s a reason why no one goes away from the jetty even though there’s a possibility for a better catch there. Flying head sightings were common at that spot. When we eventually went back to our fishing site in the morning, we found our items ransacked and the fishes that we caught all had their heads bitten off. Punggol Point Park looks nothing like what it did before and the forested spot has been cleared out. I actually still go there to fish sometimes, mostly for old times sake. Many people don’t remember what Punggol Point was before but this memory will live with me forever.” Confessions by Yang Guang Yang Guang was an 18 year old student from Singapore Poly when he first ventured into the Matilda House. I was in the photography club and I remember it was quite the norm back then for female models - the rocker and goth chicks type - to take photos in old buildings. Old Changi Hospital was a famous spot and the Matilda House was the other. My coursemate, Jo-An, who needed some photographs for her portfolio asked if I could help and I said okay. Jo-An and I went down after school in the late afternoon, early evening. There was still ample light coming in. While the place did look eerie, to be honest, I was more focused in looking for the best spot to take the photos before we lost the last light. When I was busy snapping away, I just got this funny sense that something is in the room with us and wasn’t happy. You know how sometimes you get to a place and it feels very uncomfortable like you just want to leave? I felt that. The feelings suddenly just came. I wasn’t thinking about anything. I suddenly got the goosebumps and a chill ran through me. It was a strange sensation but not intense enough for me to react hysterically, lah. So I shrugged it off and just continued looking through the viewfinder. I saw Jo-An kept turning and looking over her shoulders acting quite agitated and distracted. I took a few more shots until the film roll ran out then we packed up and left. It was only after we left the place that we talked about what we felt and confirmed each other’s experience. Since nothing major happened, we just brushed it aside and the conversation went back to photography. The horror only came after the photographs had been developed. Some had a tall black shadow figure standing behind Jo-An, right at the spot where she kept turning to look, The batch of film from the final roll of film came out looking very strange. Some were totally black as if a black translucent figure was standing right in front of my cam, some had a tall black shadow figure standing behind Jo-An, right at the spot where she kept turning to look, some photographs looked like it had a handprint across it - clearly visible with the shape of five fingers and a thumb. We were very spooked when we saw that. There are many things that can possibly go wrong especially with film photography but quire frankly the effects that I saw were not something that we can explain away with light seepage and faulty film.
Unfortunately, we were too scared to keep the photographs and negatives and Jo-An suggested we burned them to be safe. None of us wanted to die under mysterious circumstances from having a ghost mark us in photographs. I live in Hougang but my family and I do travel to Punggol very often, especially on weekends. Till today, everytime we pass by Punggol Walk, I will automatically turn to look at the direction of the Matilda House and think back on my past. The memories are still as clear as yesterday. I haven’t shared this story in so many years but since I know you are doing a confessional piece on Matilda House, I feel it’s time I get this off my chest. Thank you, Eugene for listening to my story. Matilda House is one of the oldest houses in Singapore located at Punggol Walk in Punggol. It was built in 1902 by the late Mr Howard Cashin’s father Alexander Cashin, and named after his paternal grandmother - Josephine Matilda Cashin. His grandfather, Joseph Cashin arrived in Singapore in the 1840’s and made his fortune investing in legal opium farms and later in real estate. Cashin Street, next to Bras Basah Complex, was named after him. The Matilda House was a single-storey, tropical-colonial style, sea-front bungalow with four bedrooms, servant-quarters, a horse-stable and a tennis court. A large garden surrounded the home where the Cashins grew various kinds of fruit trees. The Singapore government acquired the land that the Matilda House was on for redevelopment in 1985 and the estate was left abandoned and unoccupied ever since until a residential condominium, A Treasure Trove, was built on the exact grounds in 2015. The façade and interior of the Matilda House were restored and converted into the condominium’s clubhouse. Mr. Howard Cashin who had the chance to see his old home in October of 2002, said he was quite shocked and confessed to being “a little shaken” to see his childhood home at the state it was in. The state that Mr. Cashin was referring to is one that many locals who grew up in the 80s and 90s are familiar with. Due to decades of disuse, The Matilda House looked like a dilapidated haunted house right out of a horror movie which inspired rumours of haunting to spread amongst the local community. Due to decades of disuse, The Matilda House looked like a dilapidated haunted house right out of a horror movie which inspired rumours of haunting to spread amongst the local community. It was known by a few names such as Ghost House, Istana Menanti (The Waiting Palace), but most notable, it is referred to as The White House and is one of the three infamous coloured haunted houses in Singapore’s paranormal folklore. The other two are the Red House and the Blue House, in Pasir Ris and Hill View respectively. One of the popular urban legends is that the place had a very powerful spirit that prevented the place from being torn down. During the redevelopment phase, the land around the area was cleared but the ruins of the Matilda House clearly stood out against a backdrop of brown desolate land. Some of the rumours abound was that there were evil spirits in the house and would kill anyone who entered and disturbed the sanctity of the place. Some even claimed that the place was protected by an ancestral spirit, and likely to be that of its namesake. Naturally it became a haunt for many thrill seekers, budding paranormal investigators and avid photographers. Harrowing ghostly encounters from the White House spread like wildfire with many different variations, each even more dramatic than its predecessors. Matilda House soon developed a reputation as one of the most iconic haunted places in the annals of Singapore’s Paranormal Folklore. According to A Treasure Trove developer, Sim Lian Group, the only reason that they kept the Matilda House as it is was because of the sale agreement that the building must be conserved. It has nothing to do with the rumours, they claimed. A Treasure Trove resident Mr. Saradetch, who was born with the ability to sense spirits, claims that the clubhouse is indeed still haunted and it’s one of the reasons why the lights are never off. However prayers have been done during the development phase and spiritual masters have been brought in to ‘negotiate’ with the entities. However prayers have been done during the development phase and spiritual masters have been brought in to ‘negotiate’ with the entities. Certain promises had to be made to appease the spirits. This No-Haunting Pact will stand for as long as this promise is maintained. Which is fact, and which is fiction? Is the URA’s Conservation story just a convenient cover-up? I guess some secrets will remain a mystery and become fuel for the imaginative mind. There are however some confessions provided to us, first hand, from people who had once dared ventured into the Matilda House and lived to tell the tale. Article written by Eugene Tay The Old Brunei Hostel was built in 1958 and was known as the Asrama Kerajaan Brunei di Singapura (AKBS). Situated on Tanglin Hill the place was also referred to as Tanglin Brunei Hostel. The property has been abandoned since 1983 though the land it sits on is still owned by the Brunei Consulate. All the way up till 2015, the place was "open" to public. By open, we mean that the authorities have not barred the place and anyone can climb over the fence to go in. The few times I went down to explore, I saw film crews, families having picnics, and the usual spook seekers. The problem with such a large crowd is that the road outside the hostel is lined with cars and vans with their engines running and the gaggle of giggling teenage girls. The old green fence has been mended an in its place we have proper metal fence. The building looks dilapidated and defaced (or decorated) with graffities but the lawn is well maintained. A police signage warns you that trespassing is a crime but that did little to deter curious spook seekers to try their luck. I can imagine the neighbours have the local police post number on quick dial. The place looks haunted but is it? Back when we were investigating, we only managed to have an intelligent EMF reading coming from one particular room. It's intelligent in the sense that it could cause a spike on the EMF device on command and move around the room with us. There were no other footages or sightings in other parts of the estate to support a proper haunting. The place felt more peaceful than on the set of USS Halloween Horror Nights. Ever since the place has been shut off from public, it has had minimal disruption from human visitations. Any place left abandoned for too long becomes a home for wandering spirits. A spook seeker sent us a short video footage of a possible Pontianak sighting caught on camera. Video footage submitted by Syafiq Noorman According to Sonny Pereira who is able to see entities, she believes that a family of Jinns have taken residence there and that the figure in the footage is a Jinn that she has met before.
If you have more footages, photographs or stories from Old Brunei Hostel, we would love to hear from you.
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