Weld Quay, George Town, Penang (14 November 2012)


B. Melayu

Weld Quay (Malay: Pengkalan Weld; Penang Hokkien: Sin3 Hai1kni3 Kay1 新海墘街 , lit: "New Coastal Street"/Cun3thau2 船頭 , lit: "Harbour"; Tamil: Kitange Tehru கிடங்கு தெரு , lit: "Warehouse Street") is a coastal road on the east side of George Town. It was built at the turn of the 20th century, following the land reclamation of the eastern shore that took place between 1883 and 1889 that created a new coastal land for a deeper port. The reclamation cost $526,107 and was a monumental undertaking during its time. Weld Quay was named after Sir Frederick Weld, the Governor of the Straits Settlements from 1880 to 1887 who was instrumental in the land reclamation and port expansion project. Weld Road in Kuala Lumpur (now known as Jalan Raja Chulan) and Weld Road in Singapore were both named after him too.

The laying out of Weld Quay completes the land reclamation, creating new land which developed into the Chinese Trades Neighbourhood, an area of wholesalers and Chinese warehouses. The neighbourhood provided jobs for labourers and stevedores who developed their own living quarters, today known as the Clan Jetties.

Walking down Weld Quay from Swettenham Pier, one passes through buildings representative of a particularly boisterous period in the history of George Town. Between the junction of Downing Street and China Street Ghaut are mostly European trading houses, the majority of which are still standing today.

After China Street Ghaut, the character changes to one that is distinctly Chinese and working class. Many of the plots have been redeveloped into modern high-rises. This was before the inscription of George Town as a World Heritage Site, and height limit put into place.

Sporadically located along the modern buildings are old warehouses, called godowns, from the time when cargo was brought from the piers for temporary storage. On this southern stretch of Weld Quay, and on its off-shoot streets, you find various trades connected to the harbour, such as boat engine repair, anchor making, and so on. There is a huge concentration of automobile repair shops as well. The road narrows to accommodate the various pushcarts of the itinerant hawkers, only to widen again when Weld Quay spills into Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway.

Weld Quay was known as kitengi teru meaning "warehouse street" in Tamil. According to the book, The Chulia in Penang, it was called Padahu Thurai in Tamil meaning "boat yard"1. In Penang Hokkien, it is simply called Cun3 Thau2 [tsun-thau] meaning pier, jetty or harbour.

Videos of Weld Quay and vicinity

Map of Weld Quay

Eateries along Weld Quay

  1. CF Hawker Centre (GPS: 5.41303, 100.33928)
  2. Feng Yi Dumplings (GPS: 5.41041, 100.33599)

Hotels on Weld Quay

  1. My Chew Jetty Vacation Home (GPS: 5.41239, 100.33976)
  2. Royale Chulan Penang (GPS: 5.41686, 100.34391)

Sights in and around Weld Quay

  1. Made In Penang Interactive Museum (Behn Meyer Building, a historical building) (GPS: 5.41664, 100.3439)
  2. Penang Amazing World Studios (Schiffmann Herr Building) (GPS: 5.41682, 100.34399)

Sights along Weld Quay

  1. Bangunan Tuanku Syed Putra (historical building) (GPS: 5.41746, 100.34413)
  2. Behr Building (historical building) (GPS: 5.4162, 100.34369)
  3. Boustead Building (historical building, now The Royale Bintang Hotel) (GPS: 5.41699, 100.34405)
  4. Clan Jetties (GPS: 5.41239, 100.33976)
  5. Church Street Pier (GPS: 5.41545, 100.34386)
  6. Malayan Railway Building (GPS: 5.41565, 100.34245)
  7. Paterson Simons Building (historical building) (GPS: 5.41545, 100.343)
  8. Schmidt Küstermann Building (historical building) (GPS: 5.41644, 100.34381)
  9. Tanjung City Marina (GPS: 5.41527, 100.34329)
  10. Wisma Yeap Chor Ee (historical building) (GPS: 5.41513, 100.3424)

Temples along Weld Quay

  1. Hean Boo Thean Temple (GPS: 5.40957, 100.33844)

Public Transport Hubs on Weld Quay

  1. Pengkalan Raja Tun Uda (GPS: 5.41326, 100.3428)
  2. Swettenham Pier (GPS: 5.41904, 100.34546)
  3. Weld Quay Bus Terminal (GPS: 5.41418, 100.34193)

Petrol stations on Weld Quay

  1. Shell Weld Quay (GPS: 5.41318, 100.34036)

Residential buildings on Weld Quay

  1. Taman Harbour View (GPS: 5.41041, 100.33599)

Commercial buildings on Weld Quay

  1. Malaysia Saw Khaw Lean (Heah) Building (GPS: 5.412, 100.33743)
  2. Wisma Oh Kongsi (GPS: 5.41216, 100.33773)

Businesses on Weld Quay

Buildings under construction on Weld Quay

  1. The Rice Miller (GPS: 5.41541, 100.34287)

Updates on Weld Quay

28 December, 2019
The Star reports that a RM1 billion project called Eastern Seafront Development will create a public promenade at Weld Quay, from Swettenham Pier to Tanjung City Marina.

Street Numbering of Weld Quay

The buildings along Weld Quay are originally numbered from north to south in sequence, on the western side of the street, as the eastern side has only the harbour, piers and waterfront. Later, when the eastern side of Weld Quay also contained properties, their addresses are assigned an "A" corresponding to the address on the opposite side of the street.

Buildings on Weld Quay (14 November 2012)


The southern end of Weld Quay, and the start of the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway (29 November 2012)

Getting to Weld Quay

You can reach Weld Quay by taking the Rapid Penang Free Shuttle Bus to Station No. 1 (Pengkalan Weld). In fact, the main bus terminal for Penang Island is located at Weld Quay, within easy reach of the ferry.

Aerial view of Weld Quay (6 February 2013)

References

  1. Khoo Salma Nasution, The Chulia in Penang (Areca Books, 2014, p.14)

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Hello and thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy and my hobby is in describing places so that I can share the information with the general public. My website has become the go to site for a lot of people including students, teachers, journalists, etc. whenever they seek information on places, particularly those in Malaysia and Singapore. I have been doing this since 5 January 2003, for over twenty years already. You can read about me at Discover Timothy. By now I have compiled information on thousands of places, mostly in Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore, and I continue to add more almost every day. My goal is to describe every street in every town in Malaysia and Singapore.

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