SJK(C) Han Chiang - History

History

The origins of SJK(C) Han Chiang can be traced back in 1910. At that time, there were only 2 Chinese schools in Penang. And the Teochew community of Penang did not have their own school in Penang. Then, the Teochew Association of Penang and Lim Lean Teng founded Han Chiang School in 10 October 1919. Han Chiang was the 3rd Chinese school to be founded here. The name, "Han Chiang" was adopted from a river in Chaozhou, China. The town of Chaozhou is the town the Teochew people here come from. The school was first located beside the Han Chiang Temple at Chulia Street. Construction of the building started in 1919 and was completed in two years. The new building was launched on 10 October 1922. At that time, the school only accepts students from Teochew families. World War II hit George Town in around 1942, forcing the school to cease for three years. After the war, the school building still stood.

In the 1950s, the Chulia Street school block was overcrowded so Mr. Lim Lean Teng gave Han Chiang School a 33-acre (130,000 m2) piece of land and this is where the school currently stands. After the Han Chiang High School was constructed, some pupils relocated from the Chulia Street school building to the new Han Chiang High School block. At that time, the school was not yet constructed on the new 33 acres (130,000 m2) of land. In 1958, due to Lim's great effort, a statue was erected in front of Han Chiang High School and was unveiled by Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first prime minister.

In 1960, the school was made a national-type primary school. Due to the increasing number of students, construction of the school block began in 1961 and was completed in 1962. In October 1962, the school moved into their new school block and students other than Teochew were accepted for the first time. Mr. Lim Lean Teng died in 1963 at the age of 93. Jalan Lim Lean Teng, the road leading to SJK(C) Han Chiang was dedicated in memory of him. 2 years later, a canteen and a few classrooms were built beside the school block. Student enrolment reached 1,700 in the 1970s.

Work on a new block started in 1994 by demolishing the old canteen and few classrooms. The foundation stone was laid in 1995. The building was completed in 1996 and it was launched on 17 August 1998 by the then Chief Minister Of Penang, Tan Sri Dr. Koh Tsu Koon. Since then, the school has celebrated its school anniversary on 18 August.

In the 2000s, the school was recognised as an A-type school. On 2007, the Teochew Association of Penang announced that the real school anniversary date was on 10 October. In conjunction with the school's 88th anniversary in 2007, the Han Chiang Board Of Directors allocated some money to repaint the school and to improve the facilities. Part of the work was done and another part was done after the year-end school holidays, which is renovating and renewing the toilets in the school.

In 2009, in conjunction with SJK(C) Han Chiang's 90th anniversary, the Board of Directors renovated the school hall's ceiling, which was in a dilapidated condition before that. The school's canteen was also renovated and new fans were added.

The school, including Han Chiang High School and Han Chiang College have been known for flooding in several occasions in 1960s, 1980s, 1995 and most recently in 2008. The 1995 and 2008 floods have caused the school to a standstill for 1 day as cleaning works were carried on. In 2010, the school will celebrate its 90th anniversary together with Han Chiang High School and Han Chiang College. The event will last from 9–15 July and it is organised jointly by the Board of Directors and all 3 Han Chiang schools.