The Kim Mui Hoey Kuan celebrated its 150th anniversary with a book launch, and a donation to the National Library Board (NLB).

The Chinese clan association was formed for the people who came to Singapore from Kinmen county in the Taiwan Strait in the 19th century.

Last year was the association's 150th anniversary, but celebrations were delayed owing to the pandemic.

On Sunday, it marked the event at its premises in Keng Lee Road in Newton with the launch of Our Voyage Through Time, a bilingual pictorial book on the history of the Kinmen community in Singapore.

The association also donated a collection of more than 1,000 letters, documents and books to NLB.

Mr Thomas Chua, president of Kim Mui Hoey Kuan, said the publishing of the book was an important milestone for the association.

"It connects the past and the future, and encourages others to help protect our cultural heritage," he said in Mandarin.

Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung, the guest of honour at the event, unveiled the book with Mr Chua.

In his speech, the minister said the book reflected the importance of associations in preserving the history of Singapore for future generations.

"Culture and tradition play an important role in our lives," he said in Mandarin. "I am grateful for the association's donation of these valuable materials, and hope that it encourages other associations and clans to also donate similar material to continue enriching Singapore's historical database."

The collection is currently undergoing preservation and conservation, and selected items are being digitised. Once this is completed, the public can access the digital files via BookSG at https://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/ printheritage