Career
The present day Tan Tock Seng Hospital is named after him. In 1819, Tan moved to Singapore to sell fruit, vegetable and fowl. He worked diligently and was able to set up a shop in Boat Quay and became a notable businessman.
He was famous for contributing money to build a hospital called "Tan Tock Seng Hospital" as he saw many poor and sick people.
Most of his wealth came from the results of his speculations with J. Horrocks Whitehead of Shaw, Whitehead & Company Whitehead died in September 1846 at the age of 36.
Tan also owned large tracts of prime land, including 50 acres (200,000 m²) at the site of the railway station and another plot stretching from the Padang right up to High Street and Tank Road. In time, he became an influential Chinese leader and was the first Asian to be made a Justice of the Peace by Governor Butterworth.
He was skilful at settling feuds among the Chinese and was accustomed to bear the expenses of burying poor Chinese.
In 1844, he contributed $5,000 to the construction of the Tan Tock Seng Hospital on top of Pearl"s Hill. The hospital was later shifted to Tan Tock Seng Road because the building at Pearl"s Hill was too small to cater to enough patients and it was too old. Tan died in 1850 at the age of 52, after catching an unknown disease.
Like him, she was unstinting in her support of the hospital and paid for a female ward.
Tan"s grandson, Tan Chay Yan, was a well-known philanthropist and merchant in Malaya.
