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In search of material
I WAS delighted to recently hear from the Committee appointed for the purpose, Justices K.P. Sivasubramaniam and Prabha Sridevan, that the High Court of Madras is planning to develop a Museum and Archives of important documents in the Court. The search is on for material, such as old photographs, artifacts, records, and memorabilia.
I can imagine the search being a very long one, but it will certainly be a worthwhile one, particularly if all those connected with the project go back to the beginnings. Those beginnings might be considered to be in 1678, with the Superior Court, or Court of Judicature, presided over by the Governor. This court, first presided over by Governor Streynsham Master, was the first court of appeal in the British settlement in India. The Court of Judicature was abolished in 1796 and a new Supreme Court took its place, sitting for the first time on December 26, 1800, in the Fort. Bentinck's Building, dating to 1793 and sadly pulled down a few years ago for the new home of the Collectorate of Madras, became the home of this Court in 1817. When the Raj took over from the Company after 1857, a High Court of Madras replaced the Supreme Court. The High Court moved into the palatial buildings it occupies today in 1892. Work on the buildings, which cost Rs. 13 lakhs, was started in 1889 to a design by J.N. Brassington. Henry Irwin further developed this design and, then, engineer J.H. Stephen supervised the construction, further modifying the design. In the 1930s, new buildings in the same style, like the Small Causes Court, were added. In the 1990s more new buildings, which vaguely reflected the style but not the heights which ensured airiness, were added.
There must be records, pictures and other relics of all those years and all those places. If you have any and would like to offer them to the new High Court Museum, please write to The Registrar, High Court of Madras, Chennai-600 106.
S MUTHIAH
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