European Lady In Wolseley Car Chandernagore, 2 Photos 1913
Two 1913 photos show a European lady in a Wolseley Car in Chandernagore, now Chandannagar. Chandernagore was one of the five settlements of French India. Here a European Lady of British origin travelled to Chandannagore from Calcutta (Kolkata) in 1913. It was a distance of approx 47 km.
The vehicle seems to be the British-made Wolseley a solid and rugged iron horse of a car. Much preferred across the country during the British era. Motorcars made their presence felt in India in 1897. When a Calcutta resident is believed to have brought the first car into India. Although this may be disputed because there are stories of cars brought into India by others.
Since one group of car aficionados claim that the Maharaja of Patiala was the first to import it into India. The other group vouch that a rich Parsi from Bombay was the first to own one. Which one it is we may not know exactly. Nevertheless, during the colonial era imported cars flooded the market in India. The likes of which were the Mercedes Benz, Rolls Royces, Chryslers, Standard, Buicks, and so on. Although this would cease after India’s independence. Cars were then limited to manufacturing in India, imports were almost discontinued. Click on the image for better view.
Did you know – the Ambassador, Fiat Padmini, Standard, etc were some of the early cars after 1947. By the 1980s, the 90’s and 2000 many foreign cars joined the fray.
From the collection –1964 M. Suriyamoorthy Charcoal Art Abstract (#10)., First White Man To Climb The Taj Mahal, 1927 Photo ., Cantonment Market In Bangalore – Old Postcard 1914.
