In early 1890s, Tawau's population was about 200, mainly by the 25 men the immigrant, Bugis Wajo people as the coconuts planters with the majority community of the local villagers Tidung and Suluk, the groups of local natives ( see information of Muzium Negeri Sabah) from the Kesultanan Sulu Territories (including Kudat, Sandakan, Lahad Datu and Sebatik) around Borneo Island. These people ( Tidungs and Suluks, local natives as the villagers ) were long-settled in the old villages in Tawau Lama. Most of them were fishermen,hill rice farmers and sells jungle product, who maintained trade with the Dutch. Besides that based on fact of history, there was an early settlement at Kalabakan, the oldest kampong in the Tawau distrist. The chief of kampong Kalabakan was menteri or minister of the Sultanate of Bulungan. The early settlement in Tawau was in Kampung Tawau Lama located in the river mouth of Tawau river. But the Tawau Town, undoubtedly, was first settled by Bugis Wajo due to the fact that Penghulu Puado with his 25 men had arrived in Tawau way (1885) earlier than Kee Abdullah (1894), Daeng Mepata (1900) or the first British Resident, Alexander Rankin Dunlop (1899).
The name Tawau itself an enigma: the earliest reference to site of present town was Tanjung. Some sources suggest that the Suluk traders called the place Tawao, a misnomer of Davao on Philippine Island of Mindanao. The most credible origin of the word Tawau is attributed to the Tidung, who called the place Tanah Tidung with the word Tanah corrupted to Tawau. However, there is no firm evidence to support this claim.
The most detailed account of the founding of Tawau comes from former Ketua Kampung of Kampung Balung was KK Dullah Salim Puado( Malay Bugis Wajo ), grandson of Penghulu Puado, the First Malay Native Leader recognised by the British. Puado, a Bugis Wajo from Sengkang, was a trader whose business activities extended along the east Borneo coast from Banjarmasin to
