Jalan Tun Perak

History

Jalan Tun Perak is one of the oldest roads in Kuala Lumpur. It was originally named Java Street, and was initially settled by Malays and other people from Java and Sumatra, hence the naming of this street and the nearby Malay Street (Jalan Melayu). A Boyanese community centre was once located on the street and a Kampung Rawa was locate to its north. Indian Chettiars and Indian Muslims also settled here. A Malay cemetery was located close by and on which Masjid Jamek, one of the oldest mosques in Kuala Lumpur, was then built in 1909. Java Street was later renamed Mountbatten Road, and later still Jalan Tun Perak.

It became a popular place for shopping during the colonial era – there was a row of shops that included well-known stores of the time such as Robinson's, John Little, and Whiteaways. The street however declined in popularity as a shopping area and many stores closed by the 1970s to be replaced by financial institutions; the Robinson's department store which opened in 1928 was acquired by United Asian Bank in 1976 and demolished to make way for its bank headquarters (now called Menara UAB) completed in 1984. Another bank building is now the most prominent building on Jalan Tun Perak – the Maybank Tower which is located at the end of the street where it meets Jalan Pudu. The tower was built in 1987 on the location of the colonial era Subordinate Courts building at Bukit Mahkamah which was demolished in 1982.

Opposite Menara UAB is a Mughal-style building constructed in 1910 that once housed the Federated Malay States Survey Office, and was later used as the Sessions & Magistrates Courts, then occupied by the Department of Information (Jabatan Penerangan) Malaysia. Another surviving building from the early period is the Gian Singh Building at the corner of Lebuh Ampang built in 1909. At the junction with Malacca Street (Jalan Melaka) is a five-storey Art Deco-style Oriental Building built in 1932, which at that time was the tallest building in Kuala Lumpur, and it once housed Radio Malaya.

In 1996, the elevated track of the Ampang line of the light rapid transit (LRT) system was constructed along the entire stretch of Jalan Tun Perak. A station was also constructed with an elevated platform over the bridge at Klang River beside Masjid Jamek after which the station is named – Masjid Jamek LRT Station.