It is not a stretch to say that we take escalators for granted these days because they have become such an ubiquitous feature of our daily life in Singapore.

From shopping malls to MRT stations, it is hard to imagine how these places would even function without escalators at all.

Yet, we rarely give escalators a second glance, unless it's for all the wrong reasons.

This was not always the case, however.

There was a brief period of time, in 1965, when the escalator was an attraction all by itself for Singaporeans because of its sheer novelty.

Cathay debuts the first escalator

Before Singapore became independent from Malaysia in the second half of 1965, Cathay Organisation opened a S$6 million entertainment centre, known as Orchard Theatre, in January that year.

It is located along Orchard Road, at where Cathay Cineleisure is currently located.

Apart from a cinema, Orchard Theatre had a bowling alley called Jackie's Bowl, and an escalator, which made Orchard Theatre the first of its kind to have such amenities, not just in Singapore, but in Malaya.

Needless to say, all of these made a big impression on Singaporeans.

The escalator, in particular, garnered a rather surreal reaction.

One Singaporean, Tan Wee Him, who spent his youth at the Orchard Theatre recalls in an interview with the National Archives of Singapore:

"... I remember on its opening day, a lot of people would, for no reason, just step onto this automated staircase, and go all the way up, and then walk to the other side and take the staircase down, and then walk up again..."

Escalator was originally invented as an amusement ride

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the reactions of Singaporeans might have to do with the original purpose of the escalator's invention -- as an amusement ride rather than a means of transport.

In 1891, an American by the name of Jesse Reno came up with idea of a moving staircase or inclined elevator.

He subsequently patented the design in 1892 and created a new amusement ride at Coney Island, New York based on the design -- a moving stairway that elevated passengers on a conveyor belt at a 25-degree angle.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="200"] Source: Findagrave[/caption]

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The term "escalator" however, was coined by another inventor: Charles Seeburger.

Seeburger formed the name from a combination of the word "scala", which is Latin for steps and the word "elevator". 

Seeburger came up with the name after buying the patent of an unbuilt design from an explorer who had been inspired by Reno's ride.

In conjunction with an elevator company called Otis Elevator Company, Seeburger produced the first commercial escalator in 1899.

The company found great success with its new escalator model and eventually bought Reno's patented design as well in 1911.

This resulted in the creation of the modern escalator when it combined both models, and the eventual distribution of escalators worldwide.

In all, it would take 74 years for the escalator to finally reach the shores of Singapore, from the moment it was first conceived.

Top image from the National Archives of Singapore