亡女蘇千紅 My deceased baby Soh Chian Hong
But there is a problem. Maybe the grave is gone, esp since that area is affected by the highway and only a few X series war time graves are available Undaunted, the tomb seekers went to Blk 4 C near the new highway to look. By matching the tomb one by one, yes the tomb X163 in between two small trees. The tomb would not have a tomb marker as there are 4 babies buried inside including Chian Hong. But we are sure as we can match plot by plot the other tombs with the names. We have found the final resting place of the 15 month old baby !
A letter written by a father detailing the death of his baby girl during the early months of war torn Singapore. When she died on Sep 20, 1942, the funeral parlor handled the burial on their behalf.
More than 80 years later, a descendant found the letter detailing the father's regret of not knowing the resting place of the baby ....
The letter
亡女
五月間移居同街廿六號萬德興樓上·
五月廿ハ日昭南特别市衛生部為防患未然，曽普遍施種牛痘，妻子已知，迳赴公立醫院施行免费注射，而獲得種痘證明書。
九月廿日下午七時千紅天殤，生於民卅年六月廿九日下午二時半，迄兹已十五个月，當日经殯儀館代為埋葬，誠憾事也。迨後在房内發現有死鼠，臭不堪聞，同住小孩亦有丧生者·壕推測此可能属於鼠疫傳染所致，隨即搬往盒巴珍珠街四十五號，日就嬉战不慎，以致跌断右臂，後經舁往竹脚醫院施治，幸獲復榮·店有三関月·再搬山芭祖在亨得中律七四，二號，錄蔭遂在家中設洗墨池学塾。
一九四三民卅二年事略
English Translation:
Death of My Daughter
In May, we moved to the upper floor of Wan De Xing Building, No. 26 on the same street.
On the 28th of May, the Shonan Special Municipality Health Department, to prevent potential disasters, had widely administered smallpox vaccinations. My wife, upon learning of this, directly went to the public hospital for a free injection and obtained a vaccination certificate.
On the afternoon of September 20th at 7 o’clock, Qian Hong passed away prematurely. She was born on the afternoon of June 29th in the 30th year of the Republic (at 2:30 PM), and up to now had been fifteen months old. On that day, the funeral parlor handled the burial on our behalf—a truly regrettable matter. Afterward, dead rats were discovered in the room, emitting an unbearable stench, and other children living together also died. I speculate that this may have been caused by the transmission of the plague, so we immediately moved to No. 45 Pearl Street in Hou Ba. During daily play, [a child] carelessly fell and broke their right arm; they were then carried to the Choo Kiah Hospital for treatment and fortunately recovered fully. We lived there for three months. Then we moved again to No. 72, Henderson Road in Serangoon, where Lu Yin subsequently set up the Xi Mo Chi Academy in the home.
Summary in 1943 (32nd Year of the Republic)
Born 6.29.2942
15 months old mean the date of death of 9.20.1942 is correct
Baby name : 蘇千紅 Soh Chian Hong (pinyin)
A tomb request fulfilled !
I studied the letter. Based on the description of the death and the details of how her death was handled, the best bet would be that the baby might be buried in Bukit Brown although it might be in the trenches. A look at the burial register, yes it is there ! buried with 3 other babies in plot no Blk 4V X163
But there is a problem. Maybe the grave is gone, esp since that area is affected by the highway and only a few X series war time graves are available Undaunted, the tomb seekers went to Blk 4 C near the new highway to look. By matching the tomb one by one, yes the tomb X163 in between two small trees. The tomb would not have a tomb marker as there are 4 babies buried inside including Chian Hong. But we are sure as we can match plot by plot the other tombs with the names. We have found the final resting place of the 15 month old baby !
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