Jesselton 1911

What is so special about Kota Kinabalu,formerly known as Jesselton in 1911? There used to be a railway line right up to Tg Lipat where the Port now lies from Tenom, a district in the Interior Residency of Sabah, formerly North Borneo.

Kota Kinabalu City old name was Api Api after the Malay word for Fire after the town was burnt by none other than Mat Salleh, the Bajau chieftan and rebel at that time in 1897 including the island fronting Kota Kinabalu called Gaya Island.

1911 saw the reconstruction of Jesselton, some 14 years after tStar Cityhe town was burnt down.

The village that you saw called Kg Air is no more there and there lies Asia City and Star City and of course Kg Air the Town.

You Could Count Them With Your Fingers

There are only about 3 old buildings left in Kota Kinabalu City; the old post office building, the sabah art gallery site and the old clock tower. The Japanese had bombed Kota Kinabalu during WW2 in the year 1945 that leave us with only 3 buildings, one of which was burnt.

Kota Kinabalu and Sabah for that matter is a story about piracy and rebellion coming mainly from the Bajau against the British East India Company. The story of Mat Salleh and Shariff Osman at Marudu were good example of such activities.

The British initially established a settlement at Gaya Island, off Kota Kinabalu, but they later shifted to Kota Kinabalu, known as Api Api then because of attacks from the pirates.