The Straits Times has covered it all. The parties, like Zouk's 2009 Mambo Jambo, and the parades, like the 1967 National Day celebration.

The story of the hawker who dishes out your favourite dishes to that of the 13-year-old girl whose custody battle set off riots. In pages that follow, we bring you a selection of the stories that have defined Singapore over the last 170 years. And the stories behind the stories.