Sago Lane the dead", but it's actually on Sago Lane. Sago Street was where brothels were located. Sago Lane is known as "ho ba ni au koi" in Hokkien, which literally means "the street behind Ho Man Nin". Ho Man Nin is the "chop" of a well known singing hall in neighbouring Sago Street. 19th century: The lane received its name because during the 1840s, there were numerous sago factories in both Sago Street and Lane. The sago was then taken from the powdery pith of the trunk of the rumbia palm and processed into flour that was used to make desserts,
Sago Lane lined the streets of Sago lane. As Chinese funerals were extended affairs that took place for many days, the wet market stalls would convert to food stalls in the evening to cater to mourners and visitors of the dead. Death houses The common patrons of the houses were the lower classes of the society, often the samsui women. The houses were dark, smelly and creepy. In the death houses, bodies were laid on wooden planks supported by some stools with candles and joss sticks scattered on the floor. It was only the poor or the very superstitious died in this