Singapore Directories

Directories are alphabetical lists of names and addresses. They list information for the year they are published. They usually show the name of a person, his or her address, and occupation. Directories usually list the head of the household. Directories can also include information such as:


 * City maps
 * Indexes to streets
 * Addresses of churches or cemeteries

A person’s inclusion or omission in directories of successive years can show when he or she came to the city, left the city, or died. Knowing an individual’s address can help you search the census of a large city.

There are various types of directories:

Postal or commercial directories provide alphabetical lists of people living in an area, usually including those engaged in some kind of trade or profession.


 * Trade directories contain alphabetical lists of trades and professions and the people engaged in them.
 * Street directories have alphabetical lists of the principal streets and the people living there.
 * Court directories list the city officers, government officials, and "private" residents.
 * Directories can also provide addresses for societies, libraries, newspapers, and other organizations.
 * Church directories give information and addresses for dioceses, parishes, and congregations.

The Family History Library has many directories. They are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:

SINGAPORE - DIRECTORIES
 * 1883- The Singapore and straits directory for 1883 : containing also directories of Sarawak, Labuan, Sabah or British North Borneo, Siam, Johore and the Protected Native States of the Malay Peninsula and an appendix. (Singapore : Singapore and Straits Print. Off., 1883).
 * 1889- The Chronicle & directory : for China, Corea, Japan, the Philippines, Cochin-China, Annam, Tonquin, Siam, Borneo, Straits Settlements, Malay states, &c. / For the year 1889. (	Hongkong : Printed and published at the Daily Press Office, 1889?)
 * 1947- Telephone directory for Singapore and Johore Bahru, August 1947
 * 1954- Singapore Street Directory. (Singapore: The Information Division. Ministry of Culture., 1954).
 * Guide to Singapore Districts and Street Names