ORAL HISTORY OF THE LIVE TURTLE AND TORTOISE MUSEUM OF SINGAPORE

This brief story of the formation of the Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum of Singapore, established in 2000 by Danny Tan (1938–2015) and his daughter Connie Tan, is based on a series of oral history interviews and archival research conducted by a multidisciplinary research team at Nanyang Technological University in 2017. As with many oral histories of a highly personal nature, the aim here was not to produce an analysis of the museum site, but rather document the stories of those whose lives were intertwined with it. Oral history interviews with Connie Tan were conducted over a period of five months (March – July 2017), and the interview transcripts will be archived at Nanyang Technological University Library at the completion of our project. 

Oral History Video

The video shown here reflects footage taken on June 28th, 2017 of Connie Tan and her teenage son, Jedd, after completion of the oral history interview process. Significant past events, stories and memories gleaned through the original interview transcripts are presented through this video in order to introduce the audience to the Singapore Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum and provide a preview of the research findings and stories made accessible through oral history. The short film introduces the history of the museum, Connie’s love for the turtles, and how closely the two are intertwined to her and her father’s lives. The film also depicts Connie highlighting some heart-wrenching moments over the past several years while at the museum as well as sharing some of her future plans. The students who worked on this project hoped that this video can help raise awareness about the existence and initiatives of the turtle museum.

To view the original source, please visit this link.

From childhood pets to public exhibition

It all began with a little girl of six years old whose love for turtles and tortoises grew too big to keep under her bed. Not allowed to keep cats or dogs, Connie Tan would secretly buy and collect various types of turtles and tortoises (also known as “chelonians” among experts) from the aquarium shop on the ground floor of her apartment building, keeping them as pets under her bed. She even kept fish in jars, all hidden together with the chelonians. When the turtles and tortoises began crawling all over the house, her parents willingly accepted them, and as time passed, Connie’s father Danny Tan fell in love with them, too. Soon, he would go out and get his own turtles and tortoises, species Connie had not seen or could not afford before. The first one he bought was a long-necked turtle Connie had admired for a long time at a pet store she secretly visited in Eunos.

For as long as Connie could remember, her father Danny was an avid collector of ornaments. He would collect all sorts of items, particularly those of the Chinese Zodiac animals. The first turtle artefact Danny bought was a jade turtle, a gift to Connie’s mother when they were still dating. A frequent traveller, Danny was always fascinated by the great diversity of turtle and tortoise artefacts which existed across different cultures and countries. This initiated how he would go on to own the largest collection of turtle and tortoise artefacts in the world, to the point of earning him a Guinness World Record in 2005. The majority of this personal collection is exhibited in what led to the Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum of Singapore.

Danny and Connie shared a very close father-daughter relationship and always went everywhere and did everything together. Their common passion for turtles and tortoises brought them even closer, and together, they decided to share their love and unbridled enthusiasm for their pets with the country.

With this ambition to share their interests, Danny and Connie began with two exhibitions that introduced their turtles and tortoises to the public. Danny’s close connections with the Mandarin Hotel and the Marina Square facilitated his use of the venues in 1998 and 1999 respectively. The hotel manager at the time extended his hospitality by providing free catering services. Danny’s friend and former Singaporean politician Lim Boon Heng was the Guest of Honour at the Mandarin Hotel exhibition. The Ulu Pandan Building Fund also offered their services to help distribute and sell tickets. Both exhibitions did unexpectedly well. This initial success would seed the opportunity that enabled the father-and-daughter team to open their own museum in 2000.

Creating the Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum

Opening a turtle and tortoise museum had always been on Danny and Connie’s minds, but their dreams did not transform into reality until Danny’s friend Lim Hng Kiang (presently the Minister of Trade and Industry) began to encourage and push them into establishing one. Lim was the one who gave the museum its name, “The Live Turtle and Tortoise Museum.” Lim Boon Heng graced the opening of their first museum at Neil Road. Due to hefty rental fines, however, Danny and Connie decided to close the museum within the year. Danny’s friend and former Chairman of the Jurong Citizens’ Consultative Committee Lee Choon Huat recommended that the museum be moved to Jurong Gardens, known today as Chinese Gardens. The move from Neil Road began in 2002, and it the newly renovated museum was opened to the public the following year. The then Minister of Environment, Lim Swee Say (presently Minister of Manpower at the time of this writing) was the Guest of Honour at the opening.

The museum’s vibrant early years at Jurong Gardens illustrated a certain enthusiasm and interest that surrounded the turtles and tortoises. Good timing, well-known supporters, and the appeal of these reptiles among different people made for an exciting moment in the history of the institution. The opening of a new museum within the grounds of a new national park, coupled with the annual Lantern Festival, attracted large numbers of museum visitors. Danny and Connie were very much supported by various organisations as well as Danny’s influential contacts. Apart from the Ulu Pandan Building Fund, the Singapore Tourism Board and the Lee Foundation also provided funding to the museum. Former Minister of Parliament for Bukit Batok Dr Ong Chin Chong was a close friend of Danny’s who supported Danny and Connie’s museum venture. Dr Francis Seow, the well-established colorectal and colon surgeon in Singapore, would come in and examine the turtles and tortoises whenever he could, and he promoted the museum to other turtle lovers. Public interest grew even more when a banker from Citibank decided to adopt a turtle from the museum by sponsoring its care for a year. The banker believed that adopting the turtle had brought her much. She told her friends of her good luck, and encouraged them to do the same, which thereby brought the museum new resources. Without these various enthusiasts, Danny and Connie would have found it much more difficult to live out their dream to open and operate a museum devoted to turtles and tortoises, and thereby educate the Singaporean public about them.

A Home for Turtles and Tortoises

By calling the new home for their growing numbers of chelonian pets “museum” rather than “zoo,” the Tans emphasized an educational rationale to their endeavor. The museum catered to hundreds of visitors daily during its early years. Preschools would arrange lessons at and excursions to the museum, birthday parties were held, and some couples even arranged to have their wedding photos taken there. The museum received its fair share of foreign tourists, and tour groups also brought Singaporeans from all ages and communities to the museum. In addition to attracting visitors, the turtles and tortoises, played a broader role in raising awareness of issues such as animal welfare, conservation, education, and amateur and expert knowledge among the museum visitors. Some of this awareness unfanned in surprising ways, such as through episodes of turtle theft occurred at the museum in broad daylight (but most stolen turtles were eventually found and returned).

As word about the museum and the diversity of species continued spread nationwide, many people began to donate their own chelonians to the museum. Several donations reflected the harsh reality that most people who kept chelonians as pets did not know how to properly care for them. Connie has accepted turtles and tortoises with damaged and misshaped shells surrendered by previous owners who had maintained them in poor living conditions. In other instances, some species grew too big to be kept in a home and were brought to the museum. In other instances, some species grew too big to be kept domestically at home and were brought to the museum. Especially after Singapore joined the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 1986, which spurred a wave of donations, the number and species of Danny and Connie’s chelonians grew significantly. The museum eventually caught the attention of the Primary Production Department (PPD), the precursor to the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA). Today, those who wish to donate their turtle or tortoise pets must provide a surrender fee, in order to discourage the trade of exotic and endangered species. The relationship between the museum and PPD/AVA has not always been a smooth one, but it is symbiotic one, given that both strive for the well-being of the chelonians. 

The Life of the Museum

Danny and Connie were committed to keep the museum educational and non-commercial, which would benefit visitors but eventually created financial strains. The father-daughter duo ensured that entrance fees for both adults and children were kept low, allowing accessibility and affordability to everyone. Ever since they opened in 2002, adults have been charged 5 SGD and children, 3 SGD. Large groups could also visit for reduced fees. Still, because the museum was purposefully, if not uncompromisingly educational, its funding and support gradually declined over the years. Most agencies and organisations interested in partnerships have required that the museum be commercialised, but Danny and Connie have insisted upon their intentions to keep it purely educational. The upkeep of the museum grew difficult over time due to waning support and funds. The contract between the museum and its landlord, the Chinese Gardens, changed to an annual one, which added uncertainty and instability to the operation and maintenance of the museum. Connie has since been wary to invest in upgrades for she could be asked to leave at any given moment.

According to Connie, the museum seemed intricately linked to information about her father. During the early years of the museum at Jurong Gardens, Connie visited a fortune teller who explained that the thirty characters in the museum’s name did not bode well for Danny. In certain instances, these misfortunes extended to the museum as well. In an instance when Danny broke his arm, more than twenty red-eared sliders walked up to the steps behind the museum where they were normally fed, and expired. When Danny passed away in 2015, more than a hundred turtles joined him. So many individuals died the following day, Connie remembered, that they had to dig a “mass grave” for them. In short, the museum’s strength seemed tightly tied to Danny Tan’s life.

Despite Danny’s reputedly strong-headedness and fierce personality, he was always kind and loving towards his turtles and tortoises, Connie recalled. He would feed and wash them, and spend many long days at the museum. He loved them so much that he took little time away from them. After undergoing a surgery one time, he rested in his office at night and spent time with his turtles and tortoises during the day. Danny poured so much of his heart into the museum and the animals that his pain and loss was felt tremendously, and some would even dare say, even by the reptiles.

Braving the Future

Today, Connie, her son Jedd, and a few of their loyal staff and volunteers stick with the museum to look after the reptiles and to welcome visitors. The museum’s poor financial position and unpredictable status has led Connie to scout for a new site for the museum. She hopes to find one suitable for her turtles and tortoises, and that she can start a new and fresh chapter with them.

— TAWD research group, NTU, 12 Feb. 2018

Credits

A TAWD Production

Direction and Cinematography
Peh Yang Yu

Assistant Cinematographer
Hu Tsun Hao

Executive Producers
Lisa Onaga
Chen Song-Chuan

Editing
Peh Yang Yu

Audio Editing
Anna Saradha D/O R. Mohanadas

Music
www.bensound.com

Cast
Connie Tan (herself)
Jedd Tan (himself)

Special Thanks
Vincent Wong
NTU Humanities & Social Sciences Library 

This documentary was made possible with the generous support of Singapore MOE Tier 1 Grant M4011752 and Nanyang Technological University.