Philanthropist Tan Chay Yan funded the construction of this building in 1911 in memory of his father, Tan Teck Guan. It became part of the King Edward VII College of Medicine, which had its origins in the Straits and Federated Malay States Government Medical School. The latter was the first tertiary institution founded in 1905 to train local students in western medicine. The Georgian architecture of this building is enhanced by Doric columns and neo-classical accents.