Sandakan Heritage Museum

Sandakan Heritage Museum led by Jounis Ogak, the East Coast Regional museum curator who is responsible for monitoring branch at the Museum of the East coast such as the Museum Batu Tulug, Bukit Tengkorak (Skull Hill), Agnes Keith House and several other sites in the research.

The existence of the Sandakan Heritage Museum is to collect all the related areas of history to be displayed in the gallery of Sandakan Heritage Museum. Since the opening of the Sandakan Heritage Museums, the count of visitors who come to visit the museum is very encouraging.

The exhibition at the museum has two segments in order. First segment presents the early history of Sandakan, a swap trade, under the administration of British North Borneo Chartered Company, under the Japanese (1942-1945), under British administration (1945-1946) and the reign of colonies (1946-1963).

While the second segment is to present the exhibition after independence (1963-1980), public facilities, local leaders, sports figures, building sites and historic monuments, the main town of Sandakan, economic, socio-cultural and natural history.

Introduction of the Sandakan District

Elopura or Sandakan established in June 21, 1879 by an Englishman named William B. Pryer, who is also an East Coast Residency of Sabah, during the reign of the British North Borneo Chartered Company. Sandakan declared as the capital of the North Borneo in 1884.

The oldest company in Sandakan was established in 1882, and the school St. Mary is the oldest school in Sabah, which was established in 1887. In 1883 a monthly newspaper, the British North Borneo Herald published until the Japanese invasion in 1942.

While the phone service has been operating in Sandakan, beginning as early as in 1896 the cooperation between Sandakan telegraph communications with London in the United Kingdom which was established to actively on 8 April 1897.

Sandakan has been fully developed in 1930 and became the focus of international trade so that it is called "Little Hong Kong of Borneo." Roads have been paved for the first time in 1899 and motor vehicles were introduced in Sandakan as early as 1912. Electricity supply was introduced in 1909.

In 1923, Sandakan was paired with the international automatic telephone exchange, the first in Sabah and also earlier than in Hong Kong in Shanghai, golf club was established in 1917.

However, Sandakan town has changed after destroyed in a bombed by allied forces during World War II. After achieving independence. Sandakan was revealing the new face of sustainable development that we see today.

The main objective of this exhibition was created:

• to open up to people of Sandakan to donate material culture and historical traditions as to realize the establishment of the Sandakan Heritage Museum,
• to promote awareness of the importance of Sandakan as a major contributor to the development of socio-historical development and socio-economic culture of the state.

In the meantime, the public, especially people of Sandakan is recommended not to miss the opportunity to visit the museum which is open every day from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm. Entry is free.