Stephen Popham
Encyclopedia
Stephen Popham was a British politician and solicitor who is remembered for improving the residential locality of Georgetown in the city of Chennai
, India
and reforming the civic and police administration.
and Mary Riggs. Popham's younger brother was the British naval officer Admiral Sir Home Riggs Popham. He had his education at King's School and matriculated from Trinity College, Cambridge
in 1764. He graduated as 4th Wrangler in 1767 and obtained a Master of Arts degree in 1774.Popham was admitted to the Middle Temple
on 14 April 1762.
Popham entered politics in 1776 and was elected from Castlebar
in June 1776. Popham and was succeeded as MP by James Browne.
. In 1778, he travelled along with Day to the city of Madras for an official inquiry. At Madras, a violent argument broke out between Day and Popham forcing the two to break up. Popham stayed on in Madras and purchased a plot in Blacktown and settled down in the city.
Popham purchased the adjacent plot and constructed a drainage channel in the area. He then constructed a wide thoroughfare through Blacktown. The road was named "Popham's Broadway" and presently, it is known simply as Broadway. Popham was critical of the power and influence of the dubashes
Popham recommended the construction of direct and cross drains in every street, the lighting of streets, registration of births and deaths and licensing of liquor shops and outlets. In 1782, Popham submitted a plan for the creation of a regular police force in Madras city.
.
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and reforming the civic and police administration.
Early life
Popham was born on 5 July 1745, the fourth son of Joseph Popham of GibraltarGibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
and Mary Riggs. Popham's younger brother was the British naval officer Admiral Sir Home Riggs Popham. He had his education at King's School and matriculated from Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
in 1764. He graduated as 4th Wrangler in 1767 and obtained a Master of Arts degree in 1774.Popham was admitted to the Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
on 14 April 1762.
Popham entered politics in 1776 and was elected from Castlebar
Castlebar (Parliament of Ireland constituency)
Castlebar was a constituency represented in the Irish House of Commons from 1614 to 1800. The area is in County Mayo. Between 1725 and 1793 Catholics and those married to Catholics could not vote.-History:...
in June 1776. Popham and was succeeded as MP by James Browne.
In India
Popham's fortunes began to decline in the late 1770s and he faced a financial crisis. He arrived in India about this time and was worked in Calcutta as Secretary to Sir John Day, the Advocate-General of BengalBengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency originally comprising east and west Bengal, was a colonial region of the British Empire in South-Asia and beyond it. It comprised areas which are now within Bangladesh, and the present day Indian States of West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Orissa and Tripura.Penang and...
. In 1778, he travelled along with Day to the city of Madras for an official inquiry. At Madras, a violent argument broke out between Day and Popham forcing the two to break up. Popham stayed on in Madras and purchased a plot in Blacktown and settled down in the city.
Popham purchased the adjacent plot and constructed a drainage channel in the area. He then constructed a wide thoroughfare through Blacktown. The road was named "Popham's Broadway" and presently, it is known simply as Broadway. Popham was critical of the power and influence of the dubashes
Popham recommended the construction of direct and cross drains in every street, the lighting of streets, registration of births and deaths and licensing of liquor shops and outlets. In 1782, Popham submitted a plan for the creation of a regular police force in Madras city.
Death
Popham died in Conjeevaram on 13 June 1795 as a result of injuries suffered during a fall from his curricleCurricle
A curricle was a smart, light two-wheeled chaise or "chariot", large enough for the driver and a passenger and— most unusual for a vehicle with a single axle—usually drawn by a carefully matched pair of horses...
.