Tan Che Sang

Tan Sang (1763 — 2 April 1835), better known as Tan Che Sang, was a pioneering merchant in Singapore.

Early life
Tan was born in Fujian in 1763.

Career
He left Fujian 1778 and went to Riau. He then moved to Penang, where he stayed for 10 years, after which he left for Malacca, where he first met William Farquhar. In 1819, he and several merchants left for the newly established settlement on the island of Singapore in 1819. When he arrived, he purchased a warehouse on High Street from Farquhar, who was the Resident of Singapore, and became an agent for Chinese junks. He later moved his warehouse to Commercial Square. He also acquired several sites near the square for his business. He encouraged Chinese immigration by offering to stand surety for newcomers who wished to obtain goods on credit. According to Sir Song Ong Siang, it was said that Tan "used to boast that he wielded so much influence over the Chinese section that any day he said the word he could empty the place of all the Europeans." According to historian Yen Ching-hwang, he was "probably powerful in the underworld".

Personal life and death
Tan was reputed to have been a miser and a gambler. He was alleged to have unsuccessfully attempted to curb his gambling addiction by cutting off the first joint of one of his little fingers. Historian Constance Mary Turnbull wrote that Tan "had no social contact with the ruling community, and was a strange, withdrawn man, an inveterate gambler obsessed with making money, and reputed to sleep with his money chests in his bedroom." He built a house in Kampong Glam, which he sold to a Mr. Ker. The house was later sold to Christian Baumgarten.

Tan died on 2 April 1835. His funeral, which was attended by somewhere around 10,000 to 15,000 people, was held on 13 April. Following his death, several of his descendants were embroiled in major lawsuits over his legacy. He was the first Chinese name mentioned in Charles Burton Buckley's An Anecdotal History of Old Times in Singapore.