When Coney Island, also known as Pulau Serangoon, was opened to the public on 10 October 2015, most are more interested and eager to spot the lonely Brahman bull that has roamed the tiny island for many years. Few, however, are aware that there is another lonely “figure” which has stood on the island for decades. It is the Haw Par Beach Villa, located at the mangrove area in the central part of Coney Island.
Coney Island
In history, two Singapore islands have been given the name of Coney Island – Pulau Satumu and Pulau Serangoon. The former, also called Pulau Setumu, is situated in the south-western side of Singapore and is home to the historic Raffles Lighthouse.
The name Coney Island did not restrict to the outlying islands. Probably influenced by the popularity of New York’s world-famous Coney Island, the name had been commonly used by the local entrepreneurs. In 1947, a proposed holiday resort by the sea at Tanjong Balai, off Jurong Road, was named Coney Island. The Happy World Amusement Park, in 1949, also planned to introduce a miniature Coney Island entertainment centre between Geylang Road and Serangoon Road.
Haw Par Island
Before the fifties, Pulau Serangoon was known instead as Haw Par Island. It was then owned by the prominent Burmese-born Aw brothers, Aw Boon Haw (1882-1954) and Aw Boon Par (1888-1944), who built a huge business empire with their trademark Tiger Balm ointment.
In 1937, Aw Boon Haw built his beach villa on Pulau Serangoon after purchasing the island. At their peak, the Aw family owned many properties in Singapore, including the famous Haw Par Villa, the Haw Par Mansion and the Jade House. During the Japanese Occupation, many of the Aw family’s properties were heavily damaged. The destroyed villa and the death of his beloved brother affected Aw Boon Haw badly. He passed away in 1954 on his return trip to Hong Kong.
By the eighties, Haw Par Villa was handed to the Singapore Tourism Board whereas the Jade House at Nassim Road was demolished. As for Haw Par Island, Aw Boon Haw sold it after the war to a local Indian businessman named Ghulam Mahmood. It was, by then, a popular spot for picnicking and organised water sports.
The Island’s Development
In 1950, Ghulam Mahmood planned to invest $100,000 to convert Haw Par Island into a holiday resort island. Calling the isle “Coney Island”, Ghulam Mahmood wanted it to be specially catered for the working and middle class people, where they could enjoy various facilities used for swimming, boating, fishing, skating and other indoor and outdoor activities. He also visioned the island to have restaurants, bars, dance halls as well as cottages for honeymoon couples. The proposal, however, did not work out well.
Over the years, the 32-acre (approximate 13 hectares) island changed ownerships several times. It was owned by a Thai businessman in the early seventies, who tried to sell it off at $1 million without success. In 1974, Coney Island and its foreshores were reclaimed and expanded by the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) in a $20-million project, which also included the construction of a bridge between the island and the mainland. The planned conversion of the island into a recreational centre, however, came to nothing.
The Beach Villa
Designed in Modern architectural style, likely by Ho Kwang Yew, a leading architect during the 1930s, the beach villa consisted of a main building and a service block that occupied 600 square metres and 100 square metres respectively. The main building was built with a central hall and an open veranda that surrounded the house. At one corner, there was a water well, presumably to supply fresh water to the occupants.
For many years, Coney Island was only accessible from Punggol and Changi Points. It was a popular destination among the locals for fishing, swimming, bird-watching, water-skiing, picnicking and camping activities. Hence, it was no surprise that the Haw Par Beach Villa was once a haunting topic among the picnickers and campers. The stories ended when the island was closed in the late nineties during the Punggol 21 development, when its size doubled to 50 hectares through land reclamations.
As for the beach villa, it remains forgotten until recently, when Coney Island opens up to the public once more.
Published: 01 November 2015
Remember Singapore 
Fantastic story… Been so many time to Coney Island but the path always sign “No Entries..”
Thank you for the beautiful write-up.
Just hope that they don’t really go ahead to build expensive waterfront housing in the island
Thank you so much for posting this wonderful article and the photographs, my father was stationed at RAF Changi 1963-1965 and I have one specific memory of the villa on the island. We were on the beach with some family friends (two parents and their four children) and they decided to swim out to the island, I persuaded my Mum and Dad that I should be allowed to go with them even though I was the youngest in the group. I was the eldest of our family so my parents agreed to me going but they remained on the beach to look after my brothers. The swim out was easy and coming ashore in the mangrove swamp was really exciting (at six years old I knew about the sea snakes but was not worried) it was even more exciting exploring the villa, we did not see the bull that day. Exploring over we started the swim back but the tide had come in and the distance was much greater, I became very tired and had to hang onto the father’s neck with one of his children and he rescued us back to the shore, luckily he was a strong enough swimmer. I remember feeling a little scared when I started to get tired but it all rather added to the excitement of the day. I never managed to get back to the island but it remained one of my most magical childhood memories.
hi i was wondering whether the beach villa will be hard to locate? since they dont put it in the map. I’m doing school project and i would really like to visit this building. Thank you
From what I have read it is very unsafe now and has been cordoned off. If you join a guided tour you may see more of it.
Hi Jovian, yep I’d also suggest you sign up for the guided tour organized by the National Parks Board, such as this one (held in November, but they will have more such tours in 2016):
https://www.nparks.gov.sg/activities/events-and-workshops/2015/11/coney-island-guided-tour-21nov
Coney Island cow dies
12 October 2016
Channel NewsAsia
A free-roaming Brahman bull on Coney Island Park, fondly referred to as Coney Island cow, has died, the National Parks Board (NParks) announced on Wednesday (Oct 12).
It could not be revived after it was sedated for blood and fecal samples to be taken during its annual health check by veterinarians on Sep 28.
“Health checks are necessary for the cow’s own wellbeing and for public health reasons, for example, to prevent the spread of diseases between animals and humans. Given its large size, sedating the cow was a standard procedure to ensure the safety of all personnel involved,” NParks said.
It added that post-mortem investigations by AVA have concluded and the results show that the cow had chronic underlying illnesses, and that it likely died of heart and lung complications while sedated.
“The cow was a recognisable part of Coney Island Park and will be missed,” NParks stated. According to the NParks website, the cow’s presence on the island “remains a mystery”.
“The cow may have wandered in from Punggol or Lorong Halus. It was only noticed after the dam crossings were built,” said NParks, adding that there were no reports of missing cows.
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/coney-island-cow-dies/3200104.html
A nice homage to the Coney Island cow…
MAS unveils 2021 Year of the Ox coins, which feature Coney Island where bull roamed
19 November 2020
The Straits Times
Collectors can now pre-order the 2021 Year of the Ox coins.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) unveiled the limited-edition coins on Thursday (Nov 19).
The coins will be sold by The Singapore Mint, with the last day of pre-orders on Dec 20.
Coins that are oversubscribed will be allocated by balloting, said the MAS.
The 2021 coin features an ox against the backdrop of Coney Island Park, which the MAS described as “one of Singapore’s ecologically sustainable parks with rich biodiversity”.
The obverse of each coin bears the Singapore coat of arms with the year 2021.
A famed but elusive Brahman bull once roamed Coney Island until its death in September 2016.
How the bull found its way onto the island – connected by two bridges to Punggol Promenade and Pasir Ris Coast Industrial Park 6 – has remained a mystery.
The National Parks Board first found it while in the process of setting up the 50ha Coney Island Park that opened to the public in October 2015.
There will be 10 versions of the Year of the Ox coin that will be issued on Jan 1, 2021.
Each coin comprises different metallic compositions, shapes and minting relief effects, said the MAS.
The rarest of the 10 is the five troy oz Gold Proof Coin, made with 999.9 fine gold with a face value of $200 in a round shape with a diameter of 60mm.
A hundred pieces of the coin will be available.
All the coins, except the most common nickel-plated zinc proof-like coin, will come with a serialised certificate of authenticity.
Special premium sets comprising various coin combinations will also be on sale.
The individual coins cost between $25 and $19,998 each, while the sets cost between $248 and $20,588.
The 2021 Year of the Ox coins are the fifth issue in the Singapore Fourth Chinese Almanac Coin Series, which are being issued over 12 years between 2017 and 2028.
The MAS said in 2017 that each year’s issue will depict a zodiac animal in a park or natural landscape setting in Singapore.
2017’s Year of the Rooster coins featured the animal in Kampong Buangkok, while 2018’s Year of the Dog coins featured a dog in Singapore Botanic Gardens.
In the 2019 series, a boar was featured against a Pulau Ubin backdrop, and 2020’s issue had a rat against the backdrop of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.
Those hoping to purchase the 2021 coins may visit http://www.singaporemint.com or call The Singapore Mint on 6566-2626, 6895-0288, 6222-2486 or 6336-2878.
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/mas-unveils-2021-year-of-the-ox-coins-which-feature-coney-island-where-bull-roamed
Hey guys there is way you guys can enter this building. When you reach the main gate where there is a info about the building, you guys have to jump off the platform to the left and walk to the back and there is a big hole you guys can just prone in. But take note, if your body is big, high chance you might not get in with a little force but the skinny will have no problem but your shirt will be dirty as you will lie down on the dirt. Watch out for bats tho, theres a lot of em’.