The small market town of Sam Chuk, in Suphan Buri, is the kind of place with just 200 timber houses and four
main streets. But it was formerly a center of trade in the region, drawing sellers who crossed its surrounding
paddy fields and paddled up its khlongs. It became a magnet for fishermen who once caught shrimp in the fastflowing
Suphan Buri River that passes through the town.
Wealthy or poor, they all came to trade their wares in the town’s market, run by families who had lived there for
generations. But, in 2003, the once-striking market square, with its dark timber walls, was visibly decaying. There
were hawkers selling their goods higgledy piggledy, the 100-year-old structure was dilapidated; the number of
customers had slowed to a trickle.
With trade declining, many were thinking of packing their bags for Bangkok. And the town’s committee was more
often talking about demolishing the building, or giving it back to the Crown Property Bureau – an investment arm
belonging to HM the King. The townsfolk dreamt of the shiny new building that would take the place of the
eyesore.
Cut to Sam Chuk in November 2005, and the town is an entirely different entity. Street traders line its roads,
plying wares typical to the region such as dried fish and kiap bau, a sweet, flat bread. Cars with Bangkok plates
pull up, disgorging curious tourists. And the market is unrecognizable. Having been given a clean-up by the
town’s residents, it is bustling, its food stalls attractively arranged, the shiny concrete floors spanking clean. On a
street leading off from the market is a handsome two-storey home with wooden louvres, which once belonged to
the town’s richest person. Converted into a folk museum a year ago, the wooden walls now hang old black-andwhite
photos of the town’s residents.
There is a grainy picture of two old codgers playing draughts in the market-side coffee shop; a yellowing
Electrolux fridge occupies a corner. A solid teak staircase leads to the museum’s second tiled floor, filled with
glass cases bearing old urns gleaned from the houses of the local residents. Opposite the market is a stall,
staffed by the town’s enthusiastic committee members with booklets and postcards about the local history and
restoration projects