Mussoorie

Mussoorie
A settlement study
Amit Murao
www.amitmurao.com
A typical colonial hill settlement

In the 1800s something known as the Hill
Station typology developed. There were many
reasons behind their development:
o
To escape the scorching heat of the plains.
o The desire to create a little part of England in a

Foreign Land.
o
To cater for families of the British.
o They proved suitable for the schooling of British

Children.
A typical colonial hill settlement

Shimla
Mussoorie
Darjeeling
Pune
Udagamadlam
Map of British Empire,
Development of hill stations

o
Mussoorie is one of the first planned hill
towns made in India by British. There are some
eighty of them in all. These stations developed into
centers of social activity.
o
Spacious bungalows, parks, wide roads and
avenues were specific to these stations. Hospitals
and recreational centers were established in such
centers. And most of them did not have much
continual activity.
Colonial hill architecture
o
In these stations the cottages have a
glazed verandah to serve as a combined living, and
dining space. The bedrooms opened into the
verandah. Cross ventilation was provided by the
use of Fireplaces, dormers and skylights. The
provision of an attic where all the junk of the
house was stored was a regular feature. The
construction material being stone or brick-kiln lime
mortar, wood for the flooring and the ceilings,
while galvanized iron sheets were used for
roofing.
- D. Chakravarty The Architecture of the Western
Himalyas
Colonial hill architecture

o
The influence behind the architectural manners
of the hill stations are distinctly varied. First was the
Gothic pleasure villa; then there were the festive
terraces of the Georgian spas and resort; and finally
the chalet styles of the Swiss and German Alps. Add to
this the contemporary taste of ornamental wood work,
elaborate it with porches and verandahs, festoon
everything with guttering and down pipes, cap it with a
marvelous variety of convoluted chimney pot, wrap it
up in the familiar imperial bungalow, and you have the
fundamentals of the hill station style.
- Morris and Winchestor - Stones of the Empire
location
o Mussoorie is
located between
300N to 300-8N
Latitude and 78025E to 780-30E
Longitude.
o The average
height is 2000 M.
o It is at a distance
of 34 Km from
Dehradun and 275
Km from Delhi.
topography of Mussoorie
o Mussoorie is located at an altitude of 2,000 m in
the lower Himalayan ranges of Dehradun district.
o
It covers an area of 67.75 sq. Km.
o The town is on a crescent shaped ridge which

primarily runs east west with the major populace
living on the south facing slope.
Growth and development

o British took over Mussoorie from Gurkhas in
1815.
o There after these mountain ranges were used as
hunting grounds.
o Mussoorie became a sanitarium in 1826 and in
1826 Capt Young made first residential building of
Mussoorie The Mullingar House.
o
The other early buildings were:

o
Everest Lodge
1832
Convent School
1834
Christ Church
1836
MacKinnon's
Brewery
Everest
Lodge 1832
Christ Church
Mullingar Estate
1836
Shooting Range
1826
1823
Himalaya Club
Major Buildings before

1850
Library
1843
Vincent Hill
School
Hamilton Court
School
Woodstock
School
MunicipalsOffice
1856
Wynberg Allen
School
1880
Oakgrove
School
1880

1900
I.A.S.Academy
Savoy
Hotel
Masonic Lodge
Kincraig Bus-stop
Ghanand
School

1950
Happy Valley
Doordarshan
Relay Center
I.T.B.P.
M.P.G. College
Mussoorie and its components

Mussoorie is broadly divided into three
parts:
1. The Mall
2.
The Cantonment
3.
Landour Bazar
The Mall
Nature of the Mall
The dictionary meaning of Mall says: A Sheltered
tree lined promenade walk in a garden or park, and
extended to denote a shopping and pedestrian area,
closed to traffic.
Mall of Mussoorie
o
The Mall is the most important area of the town.
It is the Urban Spine of the town.
o Mall formed the center of life and activity and

was the main focal point.
o It serves the commercial, social and, recreational
need on the town.
o It is the representative of major Architectural
Expression of the town.
o
It was the only public open space available.
The Mall
The Mall
The Mall
o The Mall in Mussoorie in 2.2 Km Long.
o It connects two entry points (Bus Stands) to the
town.
o The Mall next to the two entry points is
dominated by Commercial activity.
o The Central part is a mix of recreational and
commercial activity.
o The recreational activity ranges from Video Game
parlors,Billiards and snooker Clubs, to Skating Rinks.
The Mall
o
It is entirely through vision that the
environment is apprehended. Although the
pedestrian walks through the mall at a uniform
speed, the spaces along the streets are often
revealed in a series of jerks.
o
The spaces along the mall can though to be a
series of overall continuity and coherence.
oPicture Palace marks
the beginning of the
mall road.
oIt is an important
landmark and one of
the two cinema halls
still in operation.
The Mall
o
The Mall starts from the Kulri Bazar and there
are many hotels and shops built in last two decades
that have reduced the built to open volume.
o
The recent building activity on the mall in in
direct response to the shopping needs, they do not
quite fit in the character of the Mall.
oThe built mass
averages to a height of
G + 1 and the ratio
between built height to
the street width in
approximately 1:1.
The Mall
Section in 1980s
Section now
The Mall
o
The Mall sometime meanders away from the
valley. Onto some flat areas. The built mass differs in
such places as shown here.
o
It generates the feeling of that of a plaza.
The Mall gun hill

o
Gun Hill is the highest peak along the Mall.
During the British time a Canon was kept atop it and
was fired hourly to announce time, hence the name.
Today it is a major tourist attraction and a Rope-Way
leads to it.
The Mall gun hill

o
Gun Hill is visited by tourists for the
breathtaking view it offers of the greater Himalayas
and Mussoorie town.
o
Excessive Limestone mining in the past few
decades has led to the deterioration in the view, but
tourist throng here in rainy season and winters.
The Mall
o An important node is
formed
near the Rope-Way on
the Mall road.
o Here is a recreational
park along with some
food joints.
o The activities here
are
recreational.
o Water fountains at
one end of the park
create a relaxed
atmosphere.
o The level of the park
is a few feet below the
road, cutting it off from
the road, yet forming an
integral part of the
The Mall
The Mall
oThe Mall ends near Library, now called Gandhi
Chowk.
oMall was designed to give all time view to the doon
valley but is losing its character.
Library through the

Gandhi Dwar.
Character of The Mall street

oThere has been considerable effort on the part of
elements
MDDA (Mussoorie Dehradun Development Authority)
to beautify the Mall and for this lot of elements have
been added on the Mall road.
oStrategically Located Hawa Ghars have been

renovated in the colonial style

oSpecially designed Lamp posts and Dust Bins have
elements
been placed all over on the Mall.

o
The Band stand on the Gandhi Chowk was the
elements
place where military band used to play in British
Times. Now it is devoid of any activity.

oThe Murals on the retaining walls have been
elements
conserved.
Character of The Mall

o
The few old building on the Mall are classic
architecture
examples of colonial Architecture but later addition
totally ignore the character of the Mall.
The Mall ANALYSIS

o Vehicular traffic disturbs the mall. The fee of Rs.
50/- is no deterrent to affluent tourists.
o Building of Historic and Architectural interests
are being neglected and replaced by Hotel and
other Tourist related activities.
o Building activity near the Kulri Bazar has blocked
the view of the doon.
o A large number of informal shops come up along
the Mall every
season. These are preferred by tourist because they
lie right on
their movement line.
o There are some step taken by the Development
Authority that
no new construction is allowed.
o Modification to any existing building along the
Mall on the valley side should not increase the
height of building roof more than the level of Mall.
Landour Bazar
o The clock tower marks the beginning of the
bazaar.
o It is the wholesale market for vegetables and food
grains.
o It came up in 185-s to serve the need of the
Britishers.
o Now it caters to the needs of the whole town.
o There are a large number of service shops such as
tailors, cobblers, dry cleaners, workshops and repair
shops.
Landour Bazar
Landour Bazar
o The condition of the buildings is very poor.
o The buildings are 5 6 stories with roads at two
levels.
o There are shops along the upper road as it has
vehicular access.
o The residences have their thresholds opening right
on the lower level of the road.
Landour Bazar
o The people at lower level have almost nothing in
terms of public amenities.
o They use the road as the extension to their
house.
o Children use it as a play strip.
o It is also used as an extension to semi formal
business.
Landour Bazar - Analysis

o Landour developed due to the social and economic
restraints imposed by the British on the local
population.
o Maximum utilization on only flat land let to a land use
pattern with more than one activity at one place.
o The mixed land use led to a densely populated and
compactly built area.
o The road cannot be widened because of the built
volume and topography.
o The Problems faced by the people are: Congestion of Traffic
Encroachment
Absence of Basic amenities
No place for Parking
No Public Open Area
cantonment
o Cantonment lies on a road that rises up from

Mullingar Chowk
situated at the end of Landour Bazar.
o The cantonment lies about 500 meters above the
town at the
topmost part of the ridge.
o The house built here are far apart and wide roads
are present.
o At present a large part of Cantonment in
restricted area and is under defence services
occupation.
cantonment
cantonment
o A road completely encircles the hill and is used as

a walk in the midst of imposing scenery.
o The building here have
remained as they were due
to strict bye laws of Cantt.
Board.
cantonment
o The ridge has only few shops, the char-dukan and

the Sisters Bazaar.
o It also has the one of the oldest and well
preserved church of the town St. Pauls Church.
Mussoorie space allocation in

British
times
oMussoorie
was distinctly designed keeping in mind
the social mindset.
transport
o There is less public transport available.

o Cycle rickshaws ply on the Mall road and few
other relatively flat areas.
o These Rickshaws are geared and are developed
by IAS training academy Mussoorie.
o They were a replacement for Hand pulled
rickshaws 10 years ago.
Industries effect of mining
o There was widespread Limestone mining in the

region in 1980s.
o It lead to a series of landslides which threatened
the very existence of town.
o Mining was banned in 1989 and a major forestation
drive was
launched.
o The effect of mining is still visible for the nearby
hills.
Mussoorie-problems
Various building types according

to the slopes
Extra
Masonry
Split Level
Cut and fill
Cascade
Amended
Section
Houses on
posts
bibliography
1. Development Bye-Laws M.D.D.A
2. Williams G.R.C. Historical and Statistical memoir
of Dehradun, Dehradun, Natraj Publishers, 1985.
3. Rawat S.S. Mussoorie: An urban Study,
Dissertation, SPA, 1992
4. Dr. H Ramachandran, Dr. Nira Ramachandran
Carrying capacity of Mussoorie Concept Publishing
company, Delhi 2001
5. Survey of India Mussoorie and Landour Guide
Map

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A typical colonial hill settlement

To escape the scorching heat of the plains.

o The desire to create a little part of England in a

To cater for families of the British.

o They proved suitable for the schooling of British

A typical colonial hill settlement

Map of British Empire,

Development of hill stations

Colonial hill architecture

Colonial hill architecture

It covers an area of 67.75 sq. Km.

o The town is on a crescent shaped ridge which

Growth and development

The other early buildings were:

Growth and development

Major Buildings before

Growth and development

Major Buildings before

Growth and development

Major Buildings before

Growth and development

Mussoorie and its components

The Mall is the most important area of the town.

It is the Urban Spine of the town.

o Mall formed the center of life and activity and

It was the only public open space available.

The Mall gun hill

The Mall gun hill

Library through the

Character of The Mall street

oStrategically Located Hawa Ghars have been

Character of The Mall street

Character of The Mall street

Character of The Mall street

Character of The Mall

The Mall ANALYSIS

Landour Bazar - Analysis

o Cantonment lies on a road that rises up from

o A road completely encircles the hill and is used as

o The ridge has only few shops, the char-dukan and

Mussoorie space allocation in

o There is less public transport available.

Industries effect of mining

o There was widespread Limestone mining in the

Various building types according

Cut and fill

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