Dato' Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia. The title of the wife of Datuk is Datin. Origin The oldes ...

Toh Ah Boon (; 1860 – 1 April 1932) was a Chinese community leader, and one of the biggest landlords in

Johor Bahru Johor Bahru (), colloquially referred to as JB, is the capital city of the state of Johor, Malaysia. It is located at the southern end of Peninsular Malaysia,along the north bank of the Straits of Johor, opposite of the city-state Singapore. T ...

of his time. He was honored by Late Johor Sultan the SPMJ Dato and DPMJ Dato.

Early life

Toh was the son of Toh Kim Swee, who died when he was still a child. He lived with his uncle who have a provision shop on

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Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

. When he was 15 years old, he accompanied his uncle to

as his uncle started his business as a contractor.

Career

After his uncle died, he took over the business. Toh was successful in his business as he invested in the landed property and also purchased a granite quarry at Pulau Nanas to supply granite to the Johor Government and the contractors of the public works in Singapore and Johor, which included the Mole in Singapore Harbour. He was also involved in tapioca and rubber planting at Gunung Pulai and Jalan

Skudai Skudai (also spelled Sekudai) is a suburb in Iskandar Puteri, Johor Bahru District, Johor, Malaysia. Skudai is part of the new growth corridor of southwest Johor. Its population ranges between 160,000 and 210,000. It houses the Paradigm Mall Johor ...

area. He retired in 1915 and his business was taken over and managed by his sons Toh Gim Seng and Toh Ah Moh.

Philanthropy

Toh contributed much in Johor Affairs especially in education. He donated $20,000 and founded the Toh Ah Boon Scholarship Fund to enable students born in Johor to continue their study at the College of Medicine or Raffles College. When the Johor Military Force proposed to expand their rifle range and buy over the adjacent land which belonged to Toh, he donated the land and also $20,000 to build a pavilion at the rifle range. He also donated $10,000 to the Raffles College for the election in 1919. He also contributed much in the sport sector and donated a cup which bears his name to the Royal Johor Polo Cup. He was honoured by the Sultan the DPMJ in 1925 and the SPMJ Dato in 1929. He was a member of the State Council and the Anti- Malaria Board for many years. He was also once Chairman of the Johor Bahru Chinese Chamber of Commerce. He also served on the Town Board. Jalan Dato' Toh Ah Boon near to Tampoi,

is a road named after him.

Personal life

Toh's ancestry traced back to Nan'an, Fujian, China. His ancestors are from the Hoon Tau villages (南安雲峰卓氏雲頭系), and he belongs to the 17th generation, with the generational name (克). Toh had seven sons and three daughters. Toh's sons include Gim Seng, Toh Ah Moh, G.H. Toh, Toh Gim Bah, Toh Gim Soo, Toh Gim Phee, and Toh Gim Cheng. Toh's daughters include Toh Boo Neo, Toh Chee Neo, and Toh Beng Neo. On 1 April 1932, Toh died in his Johor Bahru's residence in Malaysia. Toh's tomb is located in Johor Bahru Chinese Cemetery in Malaysia.

References

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External links

* https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/singfreepressb19320404-1.2.36.aspx * http://libapps2.nus.edu.sg/sea_chinese/documents/nan_yang_ming_ren_ji_zhuan_2b.pdf - 南洋名人集传：卓亚文君 - 222 page * https://web.archive.org/web/20160304025224/http://www.nanyang.com/node/475916 - 观文论史：卓亚文奖学金•张礼铭 * http://www.lib.nus.edu.sg/chz/chineseoverseas/nan_yang_ming_ren_ji_zhuan.pdf - 南洋名人集传 1860 births 1932 deaths People from Johor Bahru Knights Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Johor People from Singapore