Exotic pull of the E&O

Thursday, May 17 2012

IN 1889, Penang was introduced to what many had hailed as the “premier hotel east of the Suez” -- the Eastern & Oriental. “E&O”, which is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year (2010), has had an interesting and eventful history. Read here for more. Soon after it was founded, it became the social nucleus of George Town and an exotic getaway for the rich and famous from abroad such as Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, William Holden (right) and Rita Hayworth. It was also a hideout for some very notable writers of that time including Rudyard Kipling, Joseph Conrad, Noel Coward and Hermann Hesse.

The brothers Sarkies, E&O's founders, were Armenians, one of the first communities to emerge in 19th-century Penang. “Tigran, the eldest of the Sarkies, arrived in 1882 and set up Sarkies & Co, auctioneers and commercial agents. By 1884, he had a new venture: The Eastern Hotel, which was a house on Light Street that had been refurbished. It was when his brother Martin joined him in 1885, that Sarkies Brothers (the company) was established, and together they executed a bid to take over the nearby Hotel de l’Europe on Farquhar Street, which became the Oriental Hotel. The third brother, Aviet, joined them in 1886, and soon the two hotels flourished to the point that they had to source for more rooms...Expansion was focused on the Oriental Hotel as it was not possible at the Eastern Hotel.

“When the refurbishment of the Oriental was complete and ready to open for business, the brothers made a business decision to surrender the Eastern Hotel. But unwilling to completely let go of their former establishment, they merged the names instead. So, when the doors to the refurbished hotel were opened in 1889, it was reintroduced to Penang as The Eastern & Oriental Hotel, today known as the E&O.” (E&O Hotel: A restored beauty)

View slideshow below for photos of the past personalities. These pictures are on display in the foyer of the E&O and taken with the kind permission of its management.

Reference

E&O Hotel: A restored beauty (Features, iGT)

Click through pictures for slideshow.