Saturday, 15 December 2018

Haji Ismail @ Ismail BPB (died 1876)

Name: Ismail
Nickname: Ismail BPB (BPB = Benggali Permatang Berah)
Origin: Permatang Berah, Province Wellesley, Penang
# of Siblings: Unknown
Religious qualifications: he was a clergy, a learned man, an imam or a maulana
Occupation: village chief (penghulu) in 1863
Race: Malay
Marriages: he married 2 wives:
  1. Kalthom bt Sheikh Mohd Salleh Al Makawi (Batu Uban)
  2. Merak Mas bt Tahir (Jelutong)
Demise: 30 January 1876

Prison and Health: 
  • He was admitted to Criminal Prison in February 1875, under sentence from the Supreme Court of Pinang for two years rigorous imprisonment (1875-1877). 
  • He was under treatment at the Criminal Prison Hospital in September 1875 for Beri-beri. 
  • He was treated for chronic bronchitis beginning January 1976. 
  • He was re-admitted at the Criminal Prison Hospital on 26 January 1876,  suffering from inflammation of the left lung. On the morning of the 27 January 1876, he complained of difficulty of breathing and of great oppression on the chest. He gradually grew worse and died at 5.30 a.m. on 30 January 1876, while in a fit of coughing. Verdict: Death from natural causes.
  • Burial place: Unknown
Death: he died in the Criminal Prison Hospital on 30 January 1876

Parents: Persian father & Malay mother. Their names are unknown.
Ethnicity: His father was Persian, from keturunan Abdul Qadir Al Jilani (Al Jailani) - a Muslim Sunni. Both Abdul Qadir Al Jilani's parents were from keturunan Nabi Muhammad SAW. But in Malaya and Malaysia today, Persians are grouped as Indians and are known as Benggali as they adorn big turbans (pakai serban besar).
Abdul Qadir was born in Gilan in Persia (Iran) --> Baghdad in Iraq --> died and buried in Baghdad.
Ancestral transit route: Baghdad --> Hyderabad in Bengal 
Ismail's father's route to Malaya: Hyderabad in Bengal --> Permatang Berah in Province Wellesley, Penang in Malaya. 
Because he was named Ismail and he came sailing to Penang, he was often confused with Nakhoda Kecil Ismail. The 2 men lived at 2 different times. Nakhoda Kecil Ismail lived c.1695-1795. Ismail BPB lived c.1800-1876.
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PENANG

There is one reference to Ismail of Pinang in 1863. He was caught in a criminal case in 1863, a case of land fraud.

PINANG. Singapore Free Press and Mercantile Advertiser, 26 November 1863, Page 4
  • This report did not mention his surname nor give his exact residence.
  • It mentioned names of 2 places - Kg Permatang Berah and Kg Bindahari, Penaga, Pinang.
  • These 2 places are located in Province Wellesley (Seberang Perai) on the mainland.

 KG PERMATANG BERAH

The drop pin 'Surau Haji Abdul Razak' is used to locate Kg Permatang Berah on Google Map. This village is between 3 other nearby villages - Permatang Pak Maras in the north and Permatang Kuala and Kg Padang Benggali in the south.




KG BINDAHARI (old name)
KG BENDAHARI (new name)

Kg Bindahari is renamed to Kg Bendahari today. It is in the north, near the northern border of Penang with Kedah. It is near to Sg Muda (Muda River) and not very far from Kuala Sg Muda estuary, on the Penang side. Kg Bendahari is 18 minutes drive to Kg Permatang Berah.






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I CAN'T BREATHE!

There is one reference to Hajee Ismail of Pinang in 1876.

Inquests. Straits Observer (Singapore), 1 February 1876, Page 3
Inquests.
An Inquest was held at the Criminal Prison by A. W. V. Cousins, Esq., H. M. Coroner, on the 30th inst., on the body of a male Malay prisoner named Hajee Ismail. The deceased was committed to the Criminal Prison on the Feb., 1875, under sentence from the Supreme Court of Pinang for two years rigorous imprisonment, for fabricating false evidence. Was admitted into the Criminal Prison Hospital on the 26th, suffering from inflammation of the left lung. On the morning of the 27th instant he complained of difficulty of breathing and of great oppression on the chest. He gradually grew worse and died at 1/2 past 5 a.m. on the 30th, while in a fit of coughing. He was also under treatment in hospital in September last year for Beri-beri and also treated at the commencement of the present month for chronic bronchitis. Verdict:-Death from natural causes.
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BOOK

PRISONERS THEIR OWN WARDERS
A RECORD OF THE CONVICT PRISON AT SINGAPORE
IN THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS ESTABLISHED 1825,
DISCONTINUED 1873, TOGETHER WITH A
CURSORY HISTORY OF THE CONVICT
ESTABLISHMENTS AT BENCOOLEN,
PENANG AND MALACCA FROM
THE YEAR 1797

BY MAJOR J. R A. McNAIR
Late Royal Artillery, C.M.G., A.M.I.C.E., F.L.S., and F.R.G.S
Late Colonial Engineer and Surveyor General and Comptroller of Indian Convicts
Straits Settlements from 1857 to 1877 Author of "Perak
and the Malays" (Sarong and Kris)

Assisted by W. D. BAYLISS
Mem. Soc. Engineers Lond., Late Superintendent of Works and
Surveys and Superintendent of Convicts, Singapore

WITH MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS

https://www.gutenberg.org/files/26974/26974-h/26974-h.htm

------------------
SINGAPORE

 LUNATIC ASYLUM

 CRIMINAL PRISON
Punishment by transportation

AWV Cousins, Esq. (HM Coroner for the Straits Settlements)

 CRIMINAL PRISON HOSPITAL
  • For ill criminals
  • Sent by Supreme Court of Pinang
  • Hajee Ismail died on 30 January 1876 at 5.30 am. He suffered from chronic bronchitis with inflammation of the left lung. He had prior beri-beri.

 CONVICT PRISON
Convict Prison 1825-1873
Established in 1825, closed down in 1873
Convicts were from India, Bengal, Burma etc
Convicts were sent to Andaman Island or set free after 1873
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/26974/26974-h/26974-h.htm

Mr GD Coleman (Surveyor and Executive Officer of Government)
  • He was appointed in 1833
  • Mr GD Coleman died on 27 March 1885
Honorable Major J. F. A. McNair, R.A., (Colonial Engineer)
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PENANG

 SUPREME COURT OF PINANG


PULAU JEREJAK PENAL COLONY
Established 1861
The place was initially used for quarantine before travellers were allowed to enter Penang island. It was then used as jail for ISA prisoners and transportation (buang daerah).
There were 27 blocks, but 24 were demolished and only 3 have remained. Each block had 50 male inmates.
The British then built a Prison in 1930 and among prisoners here were Dr Burhanuddin and Ahmad Bustamam.
There is also a bunker to hold water.
https://youtu.be/kRRiftSnOUU


 PENANG GAOL
First established in 1789 at Fort Cornwallis, George Town
Then relocated to Jalan Dato Kramat, George Town in 1870s
https://www.penang-traveltips.com/penang-prison.htm
http://teochiewkia.blogspot.com/2009/05/penang-prison.html

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PERAK

TAIPING PRISON
Established in 1879

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MALACCA

MALACCA PRISON
This was an old jail on the straight road from Masjid Banda Hilir
It was known locally by Malays as "Rumah Pasong"
Officially, it was the Henry Gurney Jail, named after Sir Henry Gurney
The jail became defunct and was turned into a prison museum circa 2000

Entrance to a prison cell.
Inside a prison cell.
Rows of prison cells.
Prison yard.

There was an old small lockup building at Tanjong Mas
This later became a big modern prison and training complex by the sea
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KUALA LUMPUR

PUDU JAIL
  • Jalan Pudu in KL
  • Mrs Dorothy Leembruggen was a warder here
  • Prison was closed down for a long time and was eventually demolished
  • Only the prison gate remained as a memory of the infamous prison
  • The old prison was haunted as prisoners were sentenced to death by hanging at the crack of dawn (waktu fajar or Subuh)
  • The present levelled prison ground is also believed to be haunted
  • It is planned for development of a shopping complex or public space
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Criminal Transportation 

1,400 criminal prisoners from the Straits Settlements,* Burma and Hong Kong were destined for Bombay and Madras Presidencies, between 1836 and 1864. 

*The Straits Settlements: Penang, Malacca and Singapore after 1826.

Criminal transportation was also for petty thefts.  Transportation was for seven years.

Source:
Transnational Histories of Penal Transportation: Punishment, Labour and Governance in the British Imperial World, 1788–1939
Clare Anderson
PUBLISHED ONLINE:
31 August 2016

Table 1. Convict transportation flows in the British Empire, 1615–1939.

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