THINK about history and heritage in Penang and the first location that comes to mind is the Unesco World Heritage site of George Town on the island.

But some areas on the mainland – such as Nibong Tebal in south Seberang Perai – have equally rich histories.

And thanks to a community initiative, this has now come to light.

The Nibong Tebal Cultural Heritage Project took six months to document the town’s stories, traditions and places.

From its quaint old town to colonial-era estates, riverside fishing villages and vast padi plantations, there were countless narratives to be uncovered.

The aim was to give locals and tourists alike a better appreciation of the area’s tangible and intangible cultural heritage assets, and ensure they were not lost to time.

Project members recording oral history over drinks with community leaders of Nibong Tebal at an eatery along the Sungai Udang Jetty.

The project was done by Penang Arts Education Society (Arts-ED) in partnership with Think City and the Finance Ministry, and funded by the Seberang Perai Small Town Grant Programme.

Project manager and community connector Chen Yoke Pin said their six-member team started work in November 2024.

They had in-depth dialogues with local residents at places like the Sungai Udang and Sungai Acheh fishing villages, the former Caledonia Estate and Nibong Tebal Old Town.

The team also did extensive research, scouring through archival sources and old photographs to outline a comprehensive history of the town located near the Perak border.

This culminated in the production of an illustrated booklet titled “Navigating the Legacies of Nibong Tebal” containing a cultural assets map and historical timeline, which are available in Bahasa Malaysia, English and Chinese at various community hubs across the district.

There is also a website and digital version of the booklet.

The booklet, “Navigating the Legacies of Nibong Tebal” is available in Bahasa Malaysia, English and Chinese.

These were launched in a ceremony at a cafe presided over by Jawi assemblyman H’ng Mooi Lye.

During the event, Chen said they initially looked at various towns across north and south Seberang Perai to carry out the project, but ultimately settled on Nibong Tebal as there was much less documentation done.

“Many people only know the place as a destination for seafood and other cuisines, as well as certain places of interest.

“But we wanted to highlight the deeper historical and cultural heritage of the place and tell a more holistic story that few outside the local community knew,” added Chen.

Project coordinator and researcher Amanda Chin said much of the town’s history had not been properly documented in official accounts or photographs.

“Most of what we could find were little pieces of information, usually from colonial sources, which we had to carefully piece together.

“A lot of the local stories were only passed down as oral history so we had to speak with many people to learn about these things and make sense of it all.

South Seberang Perai eco-tourism council members briefing Chin (centre) on the Old Kwong Hock Keong Temple’s history.

“This often proved challenging as there were missing parts.

“We had to take great care to represent the place well,” Chin said, adding that the locals were appreciative of their efforts to celebrate the area’s heritage.

Chen said, “They were very enthusiastic in sharing their cherished memories about growing up and living here.

“The materials we produced are not merely data but a testament to a participatory process that strengthened people’s sense of ownership and collective identity related to Nibong Tebal.”

Origins of the town

According to the team’s findings, Nibong Tebal can trace its origins back to around 1700 with early Malay settlers who practised subsistence farming and fishing.

It was originally called Kerian due to its location on the northern bank of Sungai Kerian, before acquiring the present moniker due to the Nibong palm that grew abundantly in the area.

Among the Chinese immigrants who started coming in the 1790s were Teochews who engaged in sugarcane farming and called the place Ko-Heng-Kang, which later evolved into Ko-Ean, a term still in use today.

The turn of the century saw the British acquiring Penang island (then Prince of Wales island) and Seberang Perai (then Province Wellesley) from the Kedah Sultanate.

Chin said the colonialists further developed the sugarcane infrastructure and mechanised processing to meet demand, which led to the founding of the Nibong Tebal Old Town around a jetty along Sungai Kerian in the 1830s for collection and distribution of agricultural goods.

By the 1850s, the British also brought in Tamils from India to work in the plantations.

This gave rise to “sugar kings” like the Ramsden family who owned Penang Sugar Estates Ltd, and Chinese towkays like Khaw Boo Aun, who also dabbled in tobacco.

Following the redelineation of the Province Wellesley-Perak border with the Pangkor Treaty of 1874, padi farming also took hold.

The river remained the main artery for transportation of people and goods until 1902 when the railway line between Perai and Bukit Mertajam was linked to Perak’s network.

Plantations largely transitioned from sugarcane farming to rubber around 1913 due to the rubber boom.

The next growth spurt came around the 1930s.

“Many businessmen set up offices, warehouses or services such as laundries and barber shops along new roads like Jalan Atas, Lorong Boo Aun, Jalan Baru and Jalan Pintu Sepuluh in the old town.

“This was a catalyst for rapid expansion,” Chin said.

During the Malayan Emergency in the aftermath of World War II, anti-colonial sentiment persuaded the British to sell their plantations to locals.

It all came to a head with the 1948 murder of the last Ramsden heir at Caledonia House on Byram Estate – better known as the 99 Door Mansion – a crime which still remains unsolved.

This, coupled with the mansion’s use as a torture chamber by Japanese soldiers during the war, gave rise to legends of hauntings and unexplained phenomena.

Following Malayan independence, a local administration was formed, with V. Veerappen elected as the first MP of south Seberang Perai.

In the 1980s, economic diversification schemes saw the establishment of oil palm plantations, inland fisheries, industrial parks and new residential and commercial developments alongside improved roads, bridges and rail lines, accelerating its modernisation.

Today, Nibong Tebal has a population of about 40,000.

Enduring legacies

Chen said the booklet, map and website list 13 tangible legacies and six intangible legacies, which are split between urban and rural Nibong Tebal.

Tangible ones include the Old Kwong Hock Keong Temple, established in 1866 by Chinese settlers to worship Taoist deity Tua Pek Kong and Sri Sithi Vinayagar Devasthanam built by the Hindu community in 1924.

There is also the Annai Arulmigu Maha Mariamman Temple, which commemorates its patron deity every March with a fire-walking festival and chariot procession.

The Tanjung Berembang River Crossing, once home to a sampan service costing half a cent, is also highlighted alongside the Old Town Jetty that has today become a recreational hub for pleasure cruises, angling and firefly viewing.

Agricultural entries include the Sungai Acheh padi fields and the oil palm plantations that were set up in the 1990s.

The Sungai Udang Boardwalk and Sungai Udang Jetty, which are home to traditional fishing communities, are indispensable to the story much like the Nibong Tebal Old Town, which is still the centre of commercial activity.

In addition to the myths around the 99 Door Mansion, another intangible legacy is the Sungai Udang Tsunami Miracle.

“A group of older residents told us how, during the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 2004, huge waves parted just before reaching one particular village.

“It left it almost untouched while other nearby villages suffered some damage with mooring docks destroyed and dozens of boats overturned.

“They attribute this miracle to the protection offered by Machor, the guardian of seafarers.

“After seeing fish behaving erratically, a temple elder advised that they should pray and make offerings, which they did for three nights,” Chin revealed.

Chiming in, Chen said this account showed how some stories remain relatively obscure beyond the immediate vicinity.

“Luckily, we were able to capture it in writing and through our illustrations,” she added.

Elderly residents of the area also fondly recall the “Bridges Over the River Kerian” – which were a railway bridge and steel arched bridge built in 1900 and 1925, respectively.

The British intentionally blew them up in an unsuccessful effort to thwart the Japanese army’s advance down the peninsula following their invasion of Malaya in December 1941.

The annual Vinayagar Chaturthi celebration at the Sri Sithi Vinayagar Devasthanam is also mentioned, along with Pekan Selasa at Sungai Acheh which operates every Tuesday morning.

For locals, the latter has long been the highlight of the week and their one-stop centre to shop for daily needs.

Lastly, is the Traditional Padi Farming at Sungai Acheh, where farmers use a cooperative practice called berderau to lighten the workload.

They take turns working each other’s fields, which also fosters a spirit of community.

Chen feels the small town charm is alive and well in places like Nibong Tebal, where everybody seems to know each other.

“They welcomed us in their dinner tables, homes and lives without hesitation or judgement,” she added.

H’ng, who is also Penang local government, town and country planning committee chairman, said the cultural values, collective memories and local wisdom of small towns like Nibong Tebal could inform future planning.

“Urban planning should not only focus on physical structures or habitable zones, but also preserve the soul and identity of a place.

“By mapping both tangible and intangible cultural heritage, this project allows us to reconnect with our cultural roots and preserve local history,” he said in his speech at the launch of the booklet.

Looking forward, Chen said Arts-ED was open to collaborate with more local entities to map and share such stories, to ensure they are told not by outsiders but the community itself.

Also present for the launch were Seberang Perai City Council (MBSP) Department of Sustainable Development director Normaira Abdul Rahman and ThinkCity’s Seberang Perai Small Town Grant Programme officer Khairuddin Darwazi.

The public can obtain the physical booklet at H’ng’s service centre, as well as that of Nibong Tebal MP Fadhlina Sidek and Sungai Acheh assemblyman Rashidi Zinol.

It is also available at the Penang 2030 Centre @ C-Mart Nibong Tebal, South Seberang Perai Land and District Office, Firefly Jetty Cafe (Jalan Pasar Lama), Old Kwong Hock Keong Temple (Jalan Nuri), Sri Sithi Vinayagar Devasthanam (Jalan Ooi Kar Seng), Chop Chuan Guan (Jalan Pengkalan Rawa), Lim Aik Chew Curry Prawn (Tanjung Berembang), Enew Enterprise (Jia Zhen) in Jalan Atas.

To download a digital copy, go to www.arts-ed.my/nibong-tebal.