Atkinson Clock Tower

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The next piece of architectural beauty is a little known piece of history that has stood the test of time, right in the heart of Kota Kinabalu (formerly Jesselton). It doesn't seem much at first. Just a tiny speck in a bustling tiny city.

Perched on top of a tiny hill, it now humbly overlooks the commercial business district (CBD) of Kota Kinabalu since it's construction in 1905.

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Again, doesn't look mighty impressive. It's just a clock tower! doesn't even chime the time like Big Ben in London. (okay, it does chime. Never knew!)

Let's rewind and see what this clock tower is all about!

You could pretty much just google or wikipedia it, but I know you wouldn't. In a nutshell, the clock tower was built as a memoir to the first District Officer (Francis George Atkinson) of Jesselton at that time. He died at an early age and was highly popular among the townfolk, so much that his mother presented the idea of a clock tower as a tribute to him.

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Eclectic in nature with a blend of local taste and British colonial architecture, it was built out of the local timber known as Merbau wood, and it is widely agreed that ship carpenters played a role in constructed it as the inner makings resemble closely of such workmanship. Featuring not even a single nail, the clock tower was soon completed in 1905.

Its' location was perfectly selected to compliment it more than just a memoir. If you look at the photograph below, you could see that the clock tower is on top of a small hill that allowed it to act as a navigational reference point for incoming trading boats and merchant ships during its' heyday.

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At night it was lit~ Like literally - illuminated for ships far off away and allowing them to hone in to familiar welcoming land.

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Decades pass and due to land being reclaimed, the CDB eventually developed and the relative significance of the clock tower's function diminished over time. A quick glance at the photo below, shows how that has caused the clock tower to be obstructed from the coastal view.

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Having being transformed multiple times over the years, with clock face-lifts and its' facade renovated, it has stood the test of time through both World Wars and now proudly claims the title as the oldest standing structure for Jesselton/Kota Kinabalu till today.

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PART 2 shall feature what's the latest scoop on the clock tower and efforts to conserve it.

Cheers for now!
VL

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