Continuing Heritage Walk: Serampore ...
St. Olav's Church/Danish Church
Age: 214 years
Commonly known as Danish Church in the locality, St. Olav's Church was built in Frederiksnagore during the Danish rule by the name of Norway's national Saint Olav. The fund partly came from private subscription in Denmark and Serampore and partly by public grants. Construction was started by Danish governor of Serampore Lt. Olav Ole but he died in 1805, one year before the construction completed i.e. in 1806. The nave was completed in 1806, a year after the decease of Ole Bie, whereas the portico and the bell tower were completed in 1821.
Captain Krefting, successor of Ole completed the remaining work with the help from Englishmen John Chambers and Robert Armstrong. The Church has been used by the local congregation ever since. The church was Lutheran, for Serampore's Protestant citizens. As there was a small number of resident Danes, the services were performed by the English Baptist missionaries and never by any Danish priest.
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| Lt. Col. Ole Bie's Memorial Plate Plaque inside St. Olav's Church |
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| Lt. Colonel Ola Bie. born at Tronohjem, Norway in Feb 1733. Died in Serampore on 18th May, 1805 |
Why was a Norwegian sitting at highest chair of Frederiksnagore's Danish government? That's because until 1814, Denmark and Norway formed one kingdom. Interestingly though we know Lt. Col. Bie as Serampore's Danish governor (1776-1805), the title was actually never approved while Serampore remained under the authority of Denmark's earliest settlement in India, Tranquebar in Tamil Nadu.
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St. Olav's Church (before restoration) Photo credit: facebook |
St. Olav’s Church is owned by the Calcutta Diocesan Trust Association (CDTA), headed by the bishop of Kolkata, but Serampore College takes care of it on daily basis. The religious ceremonies have been shared between Serampore College and the local parish of Johnnagar Baptist Church. However all activites had to be stopped in 2009 due to very poor condition of the building.
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| After Restoration - St. Olav's Church, Serampore (2020) |
In 2013 the restoration project of St. Olav's had been initiated by the Danish Ministry of Culture with the help of West Bengal government's Heritage Commission. The restoration of St Olav’s Church has won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation 2016 and has set a standard of excellence for future conservation efforts.
Though it was opened daily, due to pandemic situation it was closed during our visit.
Nearby at the back there are two heritage buildings of local rich family.
1. Residence of Sadhu Family at 7 Shibchandra Palit Lane (previously Queen Street) - Sadhu bought this European influenced tranditional bungalow type building from a British person. Age of the building is more than 140 years.
2. Chatterjee Bari at 34 Shibchandra Palit Lane. This more than 200 years old, two storied courtyard house and wooden beams supported tile roof with lime terracing. Brick cupola is over the staircase.
Danish Government House & the Complex
The 12,000-square feet Danish Government House was the former residence of the Danish governors is an imperial colonial-style building. Under the Danes, DGH was the administrative headquarters and continued to be so under the British. The Bengal government too had its offices in the building uptil 1990, when it was abandoned. It was restored by Danish & West Bengal and it now holds the office of Ministry of Information & Cultural Affairs of WB government.
As per recent reports there will be a museum to showcase the history of the town, Serampore from the Baishnav era to British peiod.
You can see more photos of restoration works by Flemming Aalund, the main architecht behind this herculean job at tegnestuen-raadvad.dk
The compound has multiple heritage buildings and structure apart from the Danish Government House - North Gate, Bar Association, Judicial Magistrate Court, Office of Addl. SDPT of Police, Old BL & LRO and SDL&LRO Office, South Gate. Entry is mostly restricted in these official buildings.
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| Map courtsey: the National museum of Denmark |
North Gate - The gate was constructed by the Danish Government as the Northern (riverside) entry/exit point to the then Government compound. After the British Occupation during 1808-15, the gate was rebuilt with paired pilasters headed by Ionic capitals with a triangular pediment of classical order.
Bar Association - Just right when you enter through the North Gate. It is an European influenced traditional bungalow, constructed as a part of staff quarters and / or guard house in close proximity of the Main Gate. Exact history is not much known, but the age of the building is more than 150 years.
Judicial Magistrate Court - Exact history is not clear, but it is highly suggested that this building was built during the British. The age of the building is near about 80-90 years.
On the western part of the compound, the town engineer Götting dug out a new water tank in 1786 and constructed the brick-built steps leading down to the water. The tank provides an attractive element of water and greenery forming a very important part of the compound and the pleasant environment.
Tin Bazaar - once it was a market place (Crown Market), having private godowns and warehouses. Now it is highly populated residential and semi-industrial area.
There is a 'Court Compound Heritage Canteen' near the South Gate. Named as Vheto, it started its operations in January, 2018. They serve mainly Bengali foods in the restaurant.
Once you move out through the South Gate, you will find Old Police Residence just opposite to the road. It's another heritage building listed. And the road goes away straight from you - is K.M. Shah Street.
And if you go little to the right, you will find Residence of Dey family at 1 Gopinath Saha Street and Residence of Das family at 5 Dr. B. N. Jot Sarani. Both buildings are in a poor condition.
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| Dey Family House |
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| Das Family House |
Nearby at Bura Bibi Lane, there is a majar called Buro Bibir Majar. Muharrahm starts from here.
Nearby there is Sri Sri Swami Sri Yukteswar Giri Smriti Mandir.
Paramahansa Yogananda (born Mukunda Lal Ghosh; January 5, 1893 – March 7, 1952) was an Indian monk, yogi and guru who introduced millions to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga through his organization Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) / Yogoda Satsanga Society (YSS) of India.
As we go across the K. M. Sha street, we will find Mela Bari and opposite to it Mr. K. M. Sha's residence. K. M. Sha (ক্ষেত্র মোহন শাহ) was a rich man and was associated with several philanthropic and community development activities such agricultural fair, school for the under privileged, charitable dispensary etc. He contributed significantly to the socio-political and cultural life of Serampore.
The residence of K.M. Sha is an European influenced traditional bungalow, constructed and owned by a Danish citizen, which was bought by him and renovated/expanded. The exact age of the building is not known but definitely over 200 years.
Mela Bari, as it is known by locals, is basically a temple complex including courtyard and pond. It is just opposite to Sha's residence. Main deity is Lord Shiva. During Shivaratri there is a fair conducted over a month in the compound. Now both properties are owned by descendants of Mr. K.M. Sha - Mr Uttam Kr Sha and 4 brothers.
At present the whole compound is in sheer neglect, and the temple complex is in ruins. You can see the neglect in next photos.
Earlier the building complex used for philanthropic and community development activities: temple complex, guest house, library, hostel for needy students and also as a school building. Presently about 400 families have encroached the land and buildings that led to a slum like condition.
Mela Bari - Shiva Ratri's fair celebration - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOp8haGgO1g
Immaculate Conception Church / Roman Catholic Church
Age 244 years with History of 256 years!
Though this beautiful Roman Catholic Church was built in 1776, the history of this church goes back to 1764 when a small chapel was built for European settlers. In 1783 it was dedicated to Madre de Deos. In the painting by Peter Anker in 1790 the church appears as a low building with a large semi-circular pediment spanning the whole width of the gable facing the river. In 1994, the church was renovated in present form by adding an additional floor inside the nave to serve as a meeting hall and adding a new wing for accommodation.
Presently it is a very well maintained religious place for Catholics. Since 1957 the place has housed a Cheshire Home for physically and mentally disabled people, supported by the international Leonard Cheshire organization and run by Catholic sisters.
Immaculate Conception refers to the doctrine that God preserved the Virgin Mary from the taint of original sin from the moment she was conceived; it was defined as a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church in 1854.
Behind the Church, there is a heritage building - a private residence of Bose family (listed as Bose Bari 2, at 51 T.C. Goswami St.).
As you go into the T.C. Goswami Street, there are several heritage buildings which was often regarded as Cluster of Villas. We did not visit them, as most of them are private properties. I am just listing them here with a short history & location.
1. Hannah House/Serampore Mission Girls' School old building- 38 T.C. Goswami Street. This was the first girls' school in Serampore established by Joshua and his wife Hannah Marshman. Now it is abandoned due to poor condition.
2. Serampore Textile College - old building at 29 T.C. Goswami Street. Now it is completely in ruins, abandoned. The villa was a private property of the Goswami family and then it was donated to the Bengal Textile College.
3. Serampore Girls' College - old building at 13 T.C. Goswami Street
4. Bose Bari 1 - located at 35 T.C. Goswami Street. Associate history as follows, D.L. Bose was the first owner of this two storey villa (plot area 37 kottah). Later his son Samuel Bose was baptized and engaged himself in social reform works in Serampore. He was the patron of Missionary School of Serampore. Kadambari Bose, his daughter, was the first lady to visit England. Subsequent generation settled in Kolkata and others shifted abroad.
5. TB Hospital - 11 T.C. Goswami Street
Part of Serampore Walsh Hospital, the building was erected in 1906 with the help from the Goswami family. The building was named as Gobinda Soondari Dispensary.
6. Walsh Hospital - 2 buildings. Located at 22A T.C. Goswami Street. The land was donated by Goswami family.
The history of Walsh Hospital was dated back to 1836-38, which marks the second oldest hospital of Bengal.
In 1834-35 Danish official Johannes von Rehling (who was governor of Danish East India Company during 1838-1841) arranged a meeting with Dr. Marshman, Doctor Doyet and other respected members of Danish East India Company. They agreed to establish a medical center. Initially the center got allowance of 1400 rupees, and yearly 1,800 rupees were given to the medical center.
Danish medical center became Walsh Hospital of Serampore after British took charge of the town. In 1870 the medical center came under the control of Srirampur Municipality.
In 1906, Nandalal Goswami, Kishorelal Goswami, Rajendralal Goswami, Radhikalal Goswami etc. built the Govindasundari Dispensary in memory of their mother and a waiting room for patients coming from far away to the hospital by donating 11,000 rupees. Maniklal Datta Mahashay also donated some money - the old eye treatment center was demolished and a new four-storey building was built there.
Subsequently, this sub-divisional hospital was went under the direct management of the Health Department of the Government of West Bengal and expansion of the services of the hospital is being done.
7. Nag Bari - 30 T.C. Goswami Street. Associated history - Basak families of Kolkata purchased the entire complex of 33 kattah and then they sold it to number of families. Half of the building has been turned into real estate project, remaining older part is in poor condition.
Danish Tavern
Age 234 years
Why? Probably oldest restaurant in India
The tavern dates back to 1786 as the British innkeeper James Parr opened “the Denmark Tavern and Hotel” just near Nishan Ghat, where the Danes kept their flagstaffs and salutation cannons and which directly faced the British cantonment of Barrackpore. That was a time when the riverside was dotted with luxurious white villas belonging to Europeans, most of which are lost without a trace. Bishop Reginald Heber (1783-1826) of Calcutta had remarked: “It looked more of a European town than Calcutta.”
The advertisement in the Calcutta Gazette announced that, ''Gentlemen passing up and down the river may be accommodated with breakfast, dinner, supper and lodging; also liquors sold by the single dozen and a good billiard table and coffee room with the newspapers.'' As Serampore was a popular and lucrative pit-stop among the Danish and English traders, in no time, the tavern became a favorite among the Europeans. However, as the Danish fortunes waned in India, the fate of the tavern also took a setback and gradually its name was lost somewhere in the pages of history.
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| Danish Tavern in ruins (2009) [source: internet] |
As Serampore Initiative kickstarted in 2010, this building was in ruins, and nobody knows what was it. Danish Museum played a pivotal role in the restoration of Danish Tavern started from 2015 at the expenses of nearly 5 crore. Manish Chakraborti was the restoration architect who worked on the project with valuable inputs from Danish architect Flemming Aalund.
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The restaurant and hotel is at present maintained by The Park group of hotels after an auction took place. The menu provides for Danish, Bengali, Italian, Chinese and North Indian cuisines. Apart from the restaurant & bar and 6-room hotel there is also a bakery cafe by the Flurys. The balcony of the tavern gives a great view of the river Hooghly, busy with vessels ferrying people and cargo up and downstream.
If you want to stay here, book on https://www.theparkhotels.com/ . Please note that restoration work still ongoing, so before booking make a call to confirm.
They have a facebook page: fb.com/thedenmarktavernserampore/ too, where you can directly have a chat with the hotel reception.
We stopped here to get the lunch. Post restoration the place is now exquisite in appearance and ambience and turned into a cosy luxury dining experience for Serampore. Tourists from Calcutta including Indians and Europeans are also visiting here. The Park has a special but limited Danish offering.
There are three heritage buildings around Danish Tavern. In front of it, there is Nishan Ghat (to East, by the banks of the river, built in 1782). SDO Bunglow is on the south side, and SDPO Residence is on the north. Permission to enter into these two buildings are restricted.
The most prominent ghat (Ghats = ramps and steps leading down to the river) during the Danish period was today's Nishan Ghat which functioned as the main landing place for merchandise and provided the direct connection between the river and the former Danish Government compound. The significance of the Nisan Ghat in the Danish period was further emphasised by a battery of saluting cannons, a flagstaff and a guard's house. The battery was used exclusively for ceremonial purposes on special occasions which was often witnessed by the British cantonment at Barrackpore.
Roy Ghat or Baboo Ghat is nearby, on the way to north further from Danish Tavern.
Water Tower
Located at N.N. Roy Street, it was built in 1913 by Gopikristo Goswami.
Old SBI Building
When you are coming out of Yugol Addhya Ghat of Serampore, you will find a house in ruins to your left. This was probably another Danish building, occupied by SBI a long back. Now in ruins, and it is abandoned. It is architecture wise European villa type, with parts of the structure built with lakhori bricks indicating its construction period during 18th century.
This is the end of part 2 of Serampore Heritage Walk. In the next part we will move north - to see the Goswami Rajbari, Dol Mandir etc. And we will go to Seorafuli too.
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