Kuantan,  Malaysia,  Pahang,  TRAVEL/HOLIDAYS

Sungai Lembing Museum, Kuantan, Pahang

February 10, 2013 /

My husband got some work to do at Sungai Lembing Museum last December and as he knows that I am very much interested in covering my birth state, Pahang, he said I can tag along. So off we went to Kuantan with our son sleeping at the backseat. It was 7am, he was not ready to wake up just yet. It was school holiday so I was not so strict about it.

We reached Kuantan around 11am with a stop along the highway to get our breakfast.

Sungai Lembing Museum

Sungai Lembing Museum is one great looking museum. Being a fan of architecture, I thought this building is very interesting as it has the British verticular colonial architecture features. The uniqueness of this museum lies in the fact that it used to be a residency of mine officer working with The Pahang Corporation Limited (1887-1906) and Pahang Consolidated Company Corporation Limited also known as PCCL (1906-1986).

bungalow

The Sungai Lembing Museum was built to re-live the glorious days of Sungai Lembing as Pahang’s richest manufacturer of tin. Once, this city was even dubbed the Malay States’ very own El-Dorado as it was here that a special settlement for British officers was located. The town was built in the 1880s when the Pahang Consolidated Company Limited was given a 77-year lease to mine the area. In the 1940s, about 1,400 people worked in the mine. The tin mine were closed in 1986 due to high operational costs and low yields.

We went inside the museum and as the ground floor is still under renovation, we went up to the first floor gallery to see the collection. The gallery is divided into 7 segments; Tin Mining History, Geology and Geomorphology, Mining Arcade, Mining Memoir, Mining Economy and Tin Mining Method and Tools/Clothing. The arrangement of this museum is according to historical chronology so that visitor will understand the history better.

Let’s go through some of the exhibits I captured from the gallery:

baker
A poster that shows (from top) a factory building at Sungai Lembing, V.B.C. Baker, the General Manager of PCCL and his sister Nona Baker and a row of senior officers and their wives, 1941. 

History
Information about tin mining history.

Mining-Info
My son reading about mines before I call him to pose for the camera. 

tray
Trays made of wood used to pan ore.

exhibits
From top; iron chisel, oxygen tank and tin ore barrel.

typewriter
Manual typewriter at the PCCL administration office, circa 1940s – 1950s.

tunnl-lamp
Tunnel lamp.

These and many more at the first floor gallery. I am hoping that you take your children here to learn more about Sungai Lembing history. And I also hope that by the time you visit, the ground floor is ready to greet its visitors.

Here are some useful information you need to know before planning your visit here:

Visiting Hours: 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
Admission: Free
Address: The Headquarters of The Department of Museums Malaysia (East Coast Region), Sungai Lembing, 26200 Pahang
Contact: Tel : +609 541 2377 / 2378, Fax : +609 541 2377

Take the chance to visit nearby attractions like Pelangi Waterfall and Gua Charas after the visit to the museum. Or….if you are up to it, visit the actual Sungai Lembing Mines and experience the living museum. I’ll cover the latter soon. Didn’t get to visit waterfall and cave though. Some other time perhaps. Cuti-cuti Malaysia lagi nanti.

yassin on mini mox
Yassin on mini mox. This mini mox was the main vehicle to carry four people at a time from the office building to the mine area.

 

 

 

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