West Coast Sumatra (Dutch: Sumatra's Westkust Residentie, abbreviated SWK) refers to the administrative region in the Dutch East Indies that covered the west coast of Sumatra, including the Mentawai, Nias, Banyak and Batu Islands.

Background The area originally had the status of a keresidenan in 1819, rose to gouvernement from 1837, and became a keresidenan again from 1914 until it was occupied by the Japanese in 1942. The administrative centre of the West Coast of Sumatra is located in Padang.

When the region had gouvernement status, the West Coast of Sumatra once housed a number of keresidenan, namely Padangsche Bovenlanden, Padangsche Benedenlanden, Bengkulu, Tapanuli, Singkil, Rokan Hulu, Kampar, Kuantan Singingi, and Kerinci. Today, part of the West Coast of Sumatra is inherited by the Province of West Sumatra, while other parts are incorporated into the Provinces of Aceh (Singkil), North Sumatra (Batu Islands, Nias and Tapanuli), Riau (Rokan Hulu, Kampar and Kuantan Singingi), Jambi (Kerinci) and Bengkulu.

Until 1862, the West Coast of Sumatra was ruled by middle-ranking officers, and between 1862-1915 by civilian governors. Notable leaders in this area were Andreas Victor Michiels (1838-1849), Jan van Swieten (1849-1858) and Elisa Netscher (1870-1878).

Chronic

In early October 1842, overseer Eduard Douwes Dekker arrived on the West Coast of Sumatra.

Pastor Marius Buys travelled in this area between 1878-1879. The prints were published as serialised stories in the Opregte Haarlemsche Courant between 1878-1882, and later published as a book.

During the Japanese occupation from 1942 to 1945, the West Coastal region of Sumatra, which had the status of a prefecture, was called Sumatora Nishi Kaigan Shu.

List of authorities

Dutch East Indies The ruler who once reigned in Sumatra's Westkust. NameTook officeOccupationJames du PuyMay 1819 – November 1823Assistant ResidentAntoine Theodore RaaffNovember 1823 – April 1824Assistant ResidentJean Chrétien BaudApril 1824 – December 1824Assistant ResidentHubert Joseph Jean Lambert de StuersDecember 1824 – July 1829Assistant ResidentHendrik Mauritz GillavryJuly 1829 ‒ March 1831Assistant ResidentCornelis Pieter Jacob EloutMarch 1831 – February 1834Assistant ResidentEmanuel Alexander Intveld FrancisFebruary 1834 – November 1837Assistant ResidentA.V. MichielsNovember 1837 – February 1849GovernorJ. Van SwietenFebruary 1849 – September 1858GovernorA. MeisSeptember 1858 – 3 August 1861GovernorCornelis Albert de Brauw3 August 1861 – November 1862GovernorJules Félicien Romain Stanislas van den Bossche6 November 1862 – 28 July 1868GovernorN.A.T. Arriens28 July 1868 – 24 February 1870GovernorElisa Netscher24 February – 3 April 1878GovernorHendrik Dirk Canne3 April 1878 – 12 June 1885GovernorR.C. Kroesen12 June 1885 – 13 July 1889GovernorO.M. De Munnick13 July 1889 – 5 June 1894GovernorW.J.M. Michielsen5 June 1894 – 29 September 1898GovernorA. M. Joekes29 September 1898 – 22 April 1902GovernorE. A. T. Weber22 April 1902 – 12 February 1905GovernorF. A. Heckler12 February – 16 February 1910GovernorJ. Ballot16 February 1910 – 12 August 1915Governor dan Assistant ResidentJ.D.L. Le Febvre12 August 1915 – 15 September 1919Assistant ResidentW.A.C. Whitlau15 September 1919 – 10 June 1926Assistant ResidentP.C. Arends10 June 1926 – 29 July 1927Assistant ResidentGeorge Francois Elbert Gonggrijp29 July 1927 – 2 January 1932Assistant ResidentB.H.F Van Heuven2 January 1932 – 28 February 1935Assistant ResidentAdriaan Isaac Spits28 February 1935 – 7 May 1937Assistant ResidentGerardus Arnoldus Bosselaar7 May 1937 – 1942Assistant Resident

References

Bibliography

Buys, Marius. Twee jaren op Sumatra's Westkust, Amsterdam 1886 Gusti Asnan, Pemerintah Daerah Sumatera Barat dari VOC hingga Reformasi, Yogyakarta: Citra Pustaka, 2006.