MAKING HIS (TRADE)MARK: HAJI YUSOFF BIN MOHAMED NOOR (1855 – 1950)
The fourth pioneer in the Malay Pioneer Series is Haji Yusoff Bin Mohamed Noor!
Haji Yusoff. Courtesy of Hidayah Amin, 2025. Permission required for reproduction
The Pilgrimage Belt
Haji Yusoff was born of Javanese parentage in 1855 in what is now known as Kandahar Street, Kampong Gelam. His father, Haji Mohamed Noor, hailed from Solo, Central Java, and settled in Singapore around 1850. Haji Mohamed Noor ran a thriving eatery near the mouth of the Kallang River but he urged his children to venture into other kinds of enterprise instead. Spurred by their father’s words, Haji Yusoff at age 22 and his brother, Ali, set up their songkok (Malay headwear for men) making business.
In 1880, at the age of 25, Haji Yusoff went on the haj (Muslim pilgrimage) to Mecca and returned with an interest in improving on and producing travel belts catered to the pilgrims’ needs. By this time, his business had expanded, causing to him to move twice to bigger premises along North Bridge Road. The haj belt business was well-positioned and thus so well-received that it enabled him to export his products to Penang, Bengkalis, Sarawak, Johor, Mindanao, Brunei, Miri, Palembang, Siak and Sulawesi.
Haji Yusoff’s trademark. Courtesy of Hidayah Amin, 2025.Permission required for reproduction
Haji Yusoff’s belt business was so successful and renowned such that he was also popularly known as Haji Yusoff “Tali Pinggang” where tali pinggang refers to the haj belts.
By the late 1800s, Kampong Gelam had grown to become the pre-eminent transit point for local and regional Muslim pilgrims including the Dutch East Indies and eastern Malaya. During the annual haj season, hundreds, even thousands of pilgrims would gather at Kampong Gelam. Family members and friends would accompany them to bid farewell as they embark on a long, arduous journey to perform their religious obligations.
Working for the Community
Haji Yusoff had also diversified into other businesses such as real estate. He let his belt business ‘die’ naturally. Today, the belt is still sold along North Bridge Road albeit under the Varusai Brothers brand. The profits Haji Yusoff reaped were consequently invested in real estate, rubber, coconut and palm plantations spread throughout Kampong Gelam, Middle Road, Selegie, Serangoon, Kallang, Joo Chiat, Changi within Singapore, and in overseas places such as Batu Pahat and Penang.
Besides equipping pilgrims on the journey through his trade, Haji Yusoff also contributed to the Kampong Gelam and Muslim communities in an individual capacity. He was among the 12 nazir (trustees) appointed when the Sultan Mosque Board of Trustees was reconstituted in 1914. In 1924, the proposal to renovate what was by then a century-old mosque building had been accepted and Haji Yusoff took an active part by sitting on the fundraising committee. The Sultan Mosque’s present form is the result of the renovation project. In addition, Haji Yusoff also established a madrasah (religious school) which students could attend for free. Conducted on Sultan Mosque’s premises, the madrasah was named after his father, Haji Mohamed Noor.
Students at Madrasah Haji Mohamed Noor. Courtesy of Hidayah Amin, 2025.Permission required for reproduction
In 1912, Haji Yusoff purchased Gedung Kuning (Yellow Mansion) at 73 Sultan Gate. Although he then sold it to raise capital, he was able to re-acquire the house and lived there with his family until his passing in 1950 at the age of 95. The mansion became the family home for generations until it was acquired by the government for conservation in 1999. The building still stands today as a fine example of compound houses owned by successful merchants which once dotted the Kampong Gelam area.
Hidayah Amin, Haji Yusoff’s great-granddaughter, set up ‘Haji Yusoff Memorial Museum’ to continue the knowledge of the legacy of Haji Yusoff. The first Malay family-run private museum was officially opened on Sunday, 17 September 2023 by Dr Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim, Minister of State, Ministry of Home Affairs & Ministry of National Development.
The museum is located on the third floor of No. 717 North Bridge Road, Singapore 198685. It was the workshop/factory where workers sewed tali pinggang and songkok. Some of the artefacts on display are a safe manufactured by Richter & R. Heinz in Hamburg, Germany, the original green cloth to make the belt , as well as a grand, gold-plated mirror imported from Italy.
There is also a conservation storyboard about Haji Yusoff installed by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) in the five-foot way of the family shophouse.
The Museum is open to the public on the last Saturday of every month, and by appointment only.
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