Sandakan – Agnes Keith House

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The Agnes Keith House is hard to miss, with its sprawling green lawns and colonial-style wooden walls the residence has since been restored by the Sabah Museum, in collaboration with the Federal Department of Museums and Antiquities.

This British colonial government quarters, called Newlands, the house was once occupied by famous American writer, Agnes Newton Keith. Rebuilt some time in 1946/47 it was the first government permanent timber dwelling to be built after the Second World War and was built upon the ruined foundations of the original house that was destroyed at that time.

The house became home to Agnes and her family - Henry (also referred to as Harry) George Keith, who was the Conservator of Forests and their son, George. When the Keith’s left Sabah in 1952, the house was occupied by subsequent Conservators of Forests, forestry officers, volunteers and other staff.

Though the Keith’s never retuned to Sabah, the house was always referred to as Agnes Keith's House by visitors who never stopped coming to see it. Today the house has been restored and turned into a heritage house, providing interesting insights to life in British north Borneo. It is furnished with a reproduction of colonial furniture and antiques. A gallery on the first floor tells the story of this remarkable woman, her books and her family. A Keith time-line starts in 1873 and ends in 2004 tracing the past to the present Keith’s.

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