During the late 1800s, the Gaya Island, which was already inhabited by a people known as the North Borneo Railway, was expanded and renamed to Jesselton. The name came from Sir Charles Jessel, a director of the Company. Eventually, Jesselton became a major trading post of North Borneo, dealing in rubber, rattan, honey, and wax. The planned railway was built and used to transport goods to the Jesselton harbor. Bajau uprisings during these times were not uncommon, and the Company worked to quell the long-standing threat of piracy in the region.
Jesselton was razed by the retreating British early in World War II to prevent it from falling into the hands of the Japanese. After the Japanese takeover of Borneo, it was renamed to Api. What remained of the town was destroyed again by Allied bombing in late World War II, with only three buildings left standing, as the Japanese were pushed out of Borneo.
 Kota Kinabalu apartment building
Kota Kinabalu apartment building
After the war, the British North Borneo Company, unable to finance the huge costs of reconstruction, gave control of North Borneo to the British crown. The new colonial government elected to rebuild Jesselton as the capital of North Borneo instead of Sandakan, which had also been razed in the war. The need for speedy rebuilding led to much of Kota Kinabalu being built over with concrete apartment blocks. Since then, land reclamation projects have greatly expanded the flat land available in the city for building, and most of the modern city center is located on landfill.
Jesselton was renamed Kota Kinabalu in 1968 after Mount Kinabalu, about 45 km (28 mi) east-northeast of the city. The meaning of the name "Kinabalu" is unknown, although theories suggest either "Chinese widow" or "revered place of the dead". Kota Kinabalu received official city status from the Malaysian government on February 2, 2000.
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