Benjamin Henry Sheares (12 August 1907 – 12 May 1981) was the second President of Singapore.
Benjamin was born the second child of six children in Singapore to a Eurasian family with an English lineage. His father Edwin H Sheares, a technical supervisor of the Public Works Department, was born in England and raised in India. Edwin later migrated to Penang and married Singapore-born Lilian Gomez, of Chinese Singaporean and Spanish descent, and had...
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Benjamin Henry Sheares (12 August 1907 – 12 May 1981) was the second President of Singapore.
Benjamin was born the second child of six children in Singapore to a Eurasian family with an English lineage. His father Edwin H Sheares, a technical supervisor of the Public Works Department, was born in England and raised in India. Edwin later migrated to Penang and married Singapore-born Lilian Gomez, of Chinese Singaporean and Spanish descent, and had six children - the first died in infancy. Life was hard for the Sheares family with the meagre pay that Edwin received from his post, but they were still happy.
The young Ben or Bennie as he was affectionately known, was a quiet boy who kept much to himself and loved to play at Pierce Reservoir, where his father worked. He had a close relationship with his sister Alice and often loved to play doctor with her. There was once when he made Alice swallow a one-cent coin as a medical “pill” in their game. Benjamin was six years old then and...
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