HISTORY OF 1PG: When 1 Persiaran Gurney was first advertised by MBF around thirty odd years ago, my husband was very keen on buying a unit there and moving to one of the few high-rises facing the sea at that time. My old postcards show that there was a palatial mansion sitting on the same site in the 19th century. Although the magnificent building faced Gurney Drive, or North Beach as it was then called, the address was 2, Kelawai Road, Penang. Shortly after, the place was sold and turned into the Shanghai Hotel, a popular venue for wedding tea parties in its early days. Unfortunately, the building was so grand it impressed the Japanese during the Second World War! They occupied the building soon after they took control of Penang. I am sure Chung Thye Pin would have had a cardiac arrest had he known that the underground chambers and tunnels he had so lovingly designed would one day become torture chambers! Although Shanghai Hotel continued running after the war, the harm had been done. Guests came away with spooky tales of eerie encounters with tortured souls. The hotel closed probably around 1960. The building was demolished in 1964 and after some hiccups, the first two blocks of 1 Persiaran Gurney were built. 1 Persiaran Gurney is now home to many happy Penangites. I am sure that if I had bought a unit there in the good old days, I would by now be quite at home with fellow residents from another world! It was called Chung Kheng Kwee mansion, then Shanghai Hotel, finally 1PG. Return