A recent book on the history of Mussoorie contains many charming stories for the readers about the glorious past of the popular hill station.
Written by Virgil Miedema and his daughter Stephanie Spaid Miedema, it is titled “Mussoorie and landour: Footprints of the Past”.
The details are indeed exhaustive, especially in the form of the notes given at the end of each of the ten chapters. It is a pictorial and narrative history of Mussoorie and landour, focusing on the colonial era, covering the period from 1823 when Frederick Young and Frederick Shore built their “shooting box” on Camel’s Back to 1947 when India became independent. The authors tell us in the Preface that their love affair with Mussoorie began in the mid 1990s when they first visited the hill station. “Our affection for this Himalayan resort continued to grow over the years as our visits increased. This book is a result of our enduring fascination and association with the town ,combined with an amateur’s interest in history.”
With the help of guidebooks and local experts, the authors have created a work that does not leave out any aspect which makes Mussoorie and landour the places that they are –unique and enchanting. Besides being a nostalgic account of the hill station’s past, this book is full of descriptions of interesting people and places. How the best of schools, hotels, churches, bungalows, clubs and cinemas were set up and flourished is told in a captivating and conversational style. Cemeteries are also described at length. The entire life story of Frederick Young, the ‘discoverer’ of Mussoorie, is recounted in great details as his role in establishing the hill station is crucial. Young pushed for and succeeded in establishing the landour cantonment as a convalescent depot. He built three houses in the station. His house named Mullingar still stands in landour, though occupied by Tibetans and in a dilapidated condition. He spent most of his life in India and died in 1874 in Ireland at the age of 87. Without Young, Mussoorie would not have come into existence.
The rich and impressive history of the station narrated in this work is a reminder of the hallowed past of Mussoorie, re-establishing the importance and status of the hill town which may be taken lightly by new visitors. By recreating the aura which Mussoorie had during those early years as well as in the early 20th century, the authors ensure that the readers get a holistic picture of the glorious past of the place when the cream of British and Indian society spent more than half the year amid its bracing climate. The Queen of Hills was indeed a resort for Kings, including Maharajas of Kapurthala, Kalsia, Gaekwad, Jind, Rajpipla and Nabha.
An account of famous early residents of Mussoorie — Young, Everest, Falconer and Cautley — and royal visitors from England gives an interesting dimension to this well-researched history of Mussoorie which was “a little England” for the first one hundred years of its existence. The book tells us that the station saw its defining growth during the Victorian era. “Victorian Mussoorie came to epitomize a “hill station ideal” and outlined for future generations the basic features of the town.”
The chronicle also dwells upon the life and times of Frederick Wilson (“Pahari Wilson”) whose legend still echoes in the Himalayas. He first came to landour in 1837 as a clerk in the East India Company’s army. He was sent back to England and mustered out of the army in 1838. He later returned to India and garnered contracts ,making a lot of money. He married twice ( both were Garhwali women). Though some people question his worthiness, Wilson’s story is quite an interesting one.
The 313 page book is a page-turner as it uses simple language, avoiding complicated descriptions. Separate chapters on schools, churches, hotels, clubs and royal visitors give the reader a very clear picture of the atmosphere of the hill station down the centuries. In another nine years, Mussoorie will turn 200. The book will be extremely interesting for tourists, researchers and also for the general readers as its literary value is no less than its historic import. It reads like a beautiful story …only this is a true and charming tale of a place whose charm has endured over the years and pulls people towards it all round the year .The colonial features of the station still remain, merging smoothly with its modernized and Indian look to create a wondrous fairyland with a festive air .
The book is a must- read for those who love the hills and those who are takers for nostalgia and romance.