Masjid Bencoolen

From 1819 , Upon the arrival of Sir Stamford Raffles to Singapore, a group of Bencoolen Malays (an area in Sumatra in what is now known as Bengkulu), including Indian Muslim migrants who were transported from India to Bencoolen by the British, moved to this island.

The Bencoolen or Bengkulu Muslims established a settlement near Rochor Canal and called it Kampong Bencoolen. The street that served the settlement was then named Bencoolen Street in remembrance of Sir Stamford Raffle’s position as Lieutenant Governor of Bencoolen.

The first version of this mosque was an attap structure built in 1824. In 2002, the mosque's site was redeveloped as part of a mixed development comprising of a commercial block and a 12-storey residential complex. The redeveloped masjid, which is part of the complex, was opened to the public in May 2004. It can accommodate about 1,100 worshippers.

Masjid Bencoolen will undergo a 15-month long upgrading program to provide more prayer spaces from 2021.