Mount Road In British Era Madras During The Monsoon, 1900 Photo
A rare 1900 photograph captures Mount Road in British-era Madras (now Chennai) inundated during the monsoon season. Mount Road, then as now, was one of the city’s key arterial roads. At the time, Madras often experienced seasonal flooding, which significantly disrupted life in the city. This situation improved notably after the implementation of the drainage and sewerage scheme designed by J.W. Madley in 1907. Prominently visible at the center of the “Y”-shaped road junction is the Kardyl Building.
The road branching off to the left from Mount Road is General Patters Road. The Kardyl Building, seen at the junction, was an example of Indo-Saracenic architecture—a style popular among British architects of the time. It was commissioned by the British firm W. E. Smith & Co in 1897, who were dealers in medical drugs, surgical instruments, and optical goods, and also manufacturer of aerated water. The company went on to become the largest in this field in the Madras Presidency during that period.
The Kardyl Building emerged from the tremendous financial success of its diverse business ventures. It featured a magnificent showroom along with well-equipped medical rooms for doctors and dentists. The building also housed living quarters for British staff, and included a café and a bar. A charming garden adorned the front of the premises. In the 1950s, following a change in ownership, the Bharat Insurance Company took over the building.
Did you know – that Mount Road was once a tree-lined stretch of elegant buildings over which towered the Kardyl Building, the cynosure of all eyes.
Past posts – ‘Farmhouse’ British-India Watercolour Painting 1940., Main Street Pune – Old Postcard 1910., Koonoor Pass (Coonoor) Nilgiris, Old Engraving 1840., Delhi Durbar Kingsway Railway Station – Old Photo 1911.
