Our Story

A house named in the town's own records

Before it became a cafe, this house stood on the site of the home of 'Palat Khao', later known as Khun Kasem Thanasan. His name is still in the history page of the Takua Pa Provincial Court and in the Royal Thai Government Gazette.

We read the records one by one and tell only what they confirm. Where a part of the story comes from memory rather than paper, we say so.

The story of this house in a short film · it plays muted, tap "Tap for sound" to hear the narration
EvidenceTakua Pa Provincial Court

The road to the early courthouse ran past Palat Khao's house

The court's own history page says that in its early years the court sat behind Wat Mai Kamphaeng (Wat Sena Nuchrangsan). To explain how people got there, it describes a road, and uses this house as the landmark.

In an official record, the house was a pin on the map that people used to find their way.

Read the court's history page ↗
Quoted from the court history page

การเดินทางมีถนนสายที่ตั้งต้นจากถนนวัดลุ่ม (วัดคีรีเขต) ผ่านริมบ้านปลัดขาวหรือขุนเกษม (ต่อมาเป็นที่ตั้งของบ้านนายศรีพรม) ทะลุออกถนนตลาดตะกั่วป่า-ย่านยาว

Our translation: the route began at Wat Lum Road (Wat Khiri Khet), passed alongside the house of Palat Khao, or Khun Kasem (later the site of Mr. Sriprom's house), and came out on the Takua Pa market to Yan Yao road.

EvidenceRoyal Thai Government Gazette

Who was Palat Khao? Three names, one man

  • Palat Khao · ปลัดขาวas the court record names him
  • Khao Sukkasem · ขาว ศุขเกษมhis own name, as the Gazette spells it
  • Khun Kasem Thanasan · ขุนเกษมธนสารhis noble title from 1923 (B.E. 2466)
สแกนราชกิจจานุเบกษา เล่ม 44 หน้า 3703 ประวัติรองอำมาตย์ตรี ขุนเกษมธนสาร (ขาว ศุขเกษม) / Scan of the Royal Thai Government Gazette vol. 44 p. 3703, biography of Khun Kasem Thanasan
Royal Thai Government Gazette, vol. 44, p. 3703, 19 February B.E. 2470 (1928 CE) · open the original PDF ↗

Tap a line to see where it is written in the scan.

He was ordained at Wat Mai Kamphaeng, and the early court also stood behind Wat Mai Kamphaeng: two sources, one temple. The Gazette uses the old calendar, in which the year began on 1 April, so December 2470 comes before the February 2470 issue.

The owners' accountThe front fence

The fence reads "สุขเกษม 2498"

B.E. 2498 is 1955, twenty-eight years after Khun Kasem died. So we do not claim that he built this wooden house, and we don't know exactly when it was built. What we can say, from the court record and the owners' account, is simpler: this is the site of Palat Khao's house.

Gazetteศุขเกษม Fenceสุขเกษม

The surname is spelled differently in the two places. Only the spelling differs. The writing on the real fence is hard to read, so this is a redrawn line illustration based on what the owners can read, not a photo.

ภาพลายเส้นรั้วหน้าบ้าน ป้ายเขียนว่า สุขเกษม 2498 / Line drawing of the front fence, sign reading Sukkasem 2498 สุขเกษม 2498
Line drawing, not a photo · text as read by the owners
Community memoryFrom the owners and people in the old market

Who has looked after this house

  1. Palat Khao · Khun KasemThe name in the court recorddocumented
  2. Mr. SripromWell known in the old market · donated land to Ban Sri Schoolname in court record · donation from memory
  3. Auntie SoemWell known in the marketfrom memory
  4. Her heirsThen the house stood empty and uncared for, for a long timefrom memory
  5. 24 Aug 2023The current owners took over the house and began to repair itthe owners

This order of owners is told from the memory of the owners and people in the old market. Apart from the names in the court record, we have not found documents for it yet.

Owners' photos2023 to today

From an empty house to an open door

บ้านหลังซ่อมเสร็จ ผนังไม้สีส้มอ่อน สนามหญ้าและทางกรวด / The house after repair, with lawn and gravel drive
บ้านไม้ก่อนซ่อม ผนังสีแดงเข้ม หลังคาสังกะสี / The wooden house before repair, dark red walls and tin roof

Drag the handle to compare the same house before and after

When we took over the house it had been empty for years. The first plan was to repair it as a guesthouse for travellers.

Then my partner asked for one thing: a built-in white bedroom. Once that room was finished, we ended up living here ourselves, and the house became Siwara Cafe.

  • Part 1When we took over
  • บ้านไม้หลังเดิมก่อนซ่อม มีต้นไม้ขึ้นรก / The old house before repair
    Overgrown and quiet
  • ห้องไม้ด้านในที่ถูกทิ้งร้าง / An abandoned room inside
    Inside, left as it was
  • แมวนั่งบนบันไดไม้ในบ้านร้าง / A cat sitting on the wooden stairs
    The tenant who was here first
  • ทางเดินข้างบ้านไม้สีแดง / Side path along the red wooden house
    The side of the house
  • ชั้นล่างของบ้านเปิดโล่งระหว่างรื้อ / Ground floor opened up
    Opening up the ground floor
  • Part 2Fixing the structure
  • ค้ำยันบ้านระหว่างซ่อมโครงสร้าง / The house propped up during structural repair
    Propped up while the structure was fixed
  • โครงหลังคาด้านในระหว่างซ่อม / Roof frame during repair
    Under the roof
  • โครงหลังคาใหม่ขึ้นบนบ้าน / New roof frame going up
    A new roof frame
  • บ้านระหว่างก่อสร้างยามเย็น / The house under construction at dusk
    Dusk on the building site
  • งานผนังและฝ้าไม้ด้านในระหว่างซ่อม / Wooden walls and ceiling inside during repair
    Woodwork inside
  • Part 3The white bedroom
  • ห้องสีขาวระหว่างติดตั้ง / The white room being fitted
    Being fitted
  • ห้องนอนสีขาวบิวท์อินที่เสร็จแล้ว / The finished built-in white bedroom
    The room that changed the plan
  • Part 4Today
  • หน้าบ้านไม้ที่ซ่อมเสร็จ / The repaired front of the house
    The front, finished
  • บ้านไม้ยามเย็น แสงส้มบนผนัง / The house in evening light
    Evening light
  • ไฟประดับหน้าบ้านตอนกลางคืน / String lights on the house at night
    Lights on
  • กาแฟเย็นของศิวรา คาเฟ่ / An iced coffee at Siwara Cafe
    And the coffee

What we don't know yet

  • When this wooden house was built, and what wood it is
  • How Palat Khao, Mr. Sriprom and Auntie Soem were connected, if at all
  • Old photos of the house from before 2023

If you know something, or have an old photo, we would love to hear from you. We will update this page when we learn more.

The records end here. The rest we are still writing, one cup at a time.

Come and sit in the house for a while.

Get directions Tell us on LINE
Sources for this story
  1. Takua Pa Provincial Court, court history page · tkpc.coj.go.th (quote in chapter 1)
  2. Royal Thai Government Gazette, vol. 44, p. 3703, 19 February B.E. 2470 (1928 CE) · original PDF (chapter 2)
  3. The fence inscription, the order of owners and the repair photos: the current owners and the memory of people in the old market (chapters 3 to 5)