Gass Forest Museum
Encyclopedia
Gass Forest Museum is a government run natural history museum situated at Coimbatore
, Tamil Nadu
, South India
.
to establish a forest museum in the province. A few years later in 1902, Gamble's successor as conservator of Forests, Horace Arichibald Gass succeeded in establishing a museum for forestry. It was opened to the public 15 April 1902 by Baron Ampthill, the then Governor of Madras. When Gass, the first curator, retired in 1905, his successor F. A. Lodge renamed the museum in his honor. It was expanded in 1905 and 1915. In 1912, the Madras Forestry College (currently the Tamil Nadu Forest Academy) was established in the museum grounds to train foresters. During 1942-47, the museum was closed and the buildings used as shelters for World War II
evacuees from Malta
and Greece
. After Indian Independence in 1947, the museum came under the Government of Tamil Nadu
. It is currently administered by the management of Institute for Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding (IFGTB), which is also situated in the same campus as the museum.
.
Coimbatore
Coimbatore , also known as Kovai , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a major commercial centre in Tamil Nadu and is known as the "Manchester of South India"....
, Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
.
History
Toward the end of the 19th century, an aborted attempt was made by J. A. Gamble, the conservator of forests of Madras PresidencyMadras Presidency
The Madras Presidency , officially the Presidency of Fort St. George and also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision of British India...
to establish a forest museum in the province. A few years later in 1902, Gamble's successor as conservator of Forests, Horace Arichibald Gass succeeded in establishing a museum for forestry. It was opened to the public 15 April 1902 by Baron Ampthill, the then Governor of Madras. When Gass, the first curator, retired in 1905, his successor F. A. Lodge renamed the museum in his honor. It was expanded in 1905 and 1915. In 1912, the Madras Forestry College (currently the Tamil Nadu Forest Academy) was established in the museum grounds to train foresters. During 1942-47, the museum was closed and the buildings used as shelters for World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
evacuees from Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
and Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. After Indian Independence in 1947, the museum came under the Government of Tamil Nadu
Government of Tamil Nadu
The Government of Tamil Nadu, headquartered at Chennai is the governing authority for the Indian State of Tamil Nadu. It is seated at the Fort St. George...
. It is currently administered by the management of Institute for Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding (IFGTB), which is also situated in the same campus as the museum.
Location
The museum is situated in the Forest College Campus, situated on the Cowley Brown Road in Coimbatore. The campus also houses other institutions like the Tamil Nadu Forest Academy (TNFA), the IFGTB, Central Academy for State Forest Service (CASFoS) and other offices of the Tamil Nadu Forest DepartmentTamil Nadu Forest Department
The Tamil Nadu Forest Department was established as the Madras Forest Department in 1855 by Dr. Hugh Francis Cleghorn, "the father of scientific forestry in India". The department is responsible for managing all the protected areas and forests plus environmental and wildlife related issues of Tamil...
.