Summer Holidays: The origin of India’s hill-stations
From the Himalayas to the Nilgiris, the mountain slopes of India are home to hill-stations. Built by the British, these were sanctuaries designed to get them through sickness and long summers
Nilgiris
Ootacamand (Ooty), Plan and Environs
This map presenting the plan and surroundings of Ootacamund (Ooty) was published in the Constable’s Hand Atlas of India by John Bartholomew & Co. Located in Tamil Nadu at an altitude of 2,240 mt above sea level, Ootacamund (Ooty) flourishes in the Nilgiri hills. Because of its cooler climate, Ooty, was considered an oasis by… Read more »
Lake from Elk Hill, Ootacamund (Ooty)
This view of the Ootacamund in Tamil Nadu was taken by Samuel Bourne (1834-1912) in 1869. The Madras government’s headquarters were relocated to Ootacamund from April to October during colonial rule, making it the summer capital after the 1870s. Because of its cooler climate, Ooty, positioned above the Indian plains, was considered an oasis by… Read more »
Travels among the Todas
In the 19th century, there was great excitement among western anthropologists about the discovery of a ‘primitive’ tribe deep in the misty heart of the Nilgiris. The Todas are a pastoral community of Dravidian origins and among the earliest outsiders who landed to document them was William E Marshall, Lieutenant-Colonel in the Bengal Staff Corps.… Read more »