Victoria Terminus Railway Station Bombay, 1900 Photo.
A 1900 photo of the spectacular Victoria Terminus railway station in Bombay (now Mumbai). It is probably one of the most memorable structures in India after the Taj Mahal, and clearly the jewel of Bombay. The building is a richly ornamented display of domes, spires, and arches.
Complete with intricate stone carvings and sculptures, gargoyles, statues, stained glass, etc. Designed by an Englishman F W Stevens, engineer, and architect. He served as an assistant engineer in the Public Works Department (PWD) in his starting years in India. It was constructed where the Bori Bunder railway station once stood.
Bori Bunder became famous for the first railway train journey in India in 1858. The starting was from Bori Bunder station to Thana a distance of around 21 km. The Victoria Terminus was completed in 1888, after ten long years of construction. It was named on the occasion of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, in 1887, the exact year it was opened to traffic.
Stevens was greatly influenced by the design of the St Pancras Station in London. The terminus is now known as the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT). It is the headquarters of the Central Railway (previously the Great Indian Peninsula Railway) and was awarded the UNESCO world heritage site in 2004. Click on the photo for better view.
Did you know- F W Stevens was not only credited with the design of VT, but also buildings of the BMC headquarters, Police Headquarters, Alfred Sailors Home, BB&CI headquarters Churchgate, and so on.
From the collection- Raja Ravi Varma’s “Birth of Shakuntala” Oleograph 1894., Calcutta High Court British India Era – Old Photo 1880., Gateway Of India British Era, Old Postcard 1940., British India Era Social Life In Madras & Poona, Old 1910 Print.
