Information on Chatham Saw Mill (Andaman Nicobar) - History & Architecture

One of the oldest saw mills of Asia also large in size it is the main source of wood that is supplied all over and the mill cuts logs of every shapes n sizes it is 100 meter far from Port Blair and is connected by a bridge. Apart from the mill it bears a forest museum that displays various valuable goods used during the British Raj. In the year 1789 Lt. Archibald Blair arrived here in his vessel viper which crashed in this island hence the island is named as Viper Island.

Chatham Saw Mill Architecture

The saw mill was established in 1883 the machinery used was second hand as the cost of the new machinery was not possible. Though having old machinery the saw mill is one of the oldest saw mills of Asia and also the area of the saw mill is very huge as compared to the other saw mills. In addition to the saw mill a museum is attached towards the northern face of the mill. The museum acts as the main attraction to this place as the saw mill is almost common. The earlier museum was made up of local wood, displaying various sculptures made from the woods giving the vivid idea about the history of the place. The museum also displays various flora and fauna of the place. Later the museum was reconstructed and now the floors are marbled, the ceiling beautified with polished woods and the walls display all the artefacts of the place. The most important sculpture being the bison head carved out from wood which is also regarded as the pride of Chatham. The museum is around 20 feet broad and around 35 feet long having teak door and railings that persists since the construction of the museum. The pillar of the planet is centralised in the premise marking the glory of 125 yrs of the saw mill. This pillar was inaugurated in 2009.

Chatham Saw Mill History

The saw mill was built mainly to fulfil the need of timber in the local place. The history of the mill lies far back in 1789 when Lt. Archibald Blair reached with hid vessel viper. The viper crashed on another island nearby which he named as Viper Island. Blair first stepped in Chatham and after that he found Port Blair the suitable place for the construction of jail the timber from this mill was also used in the construction of the jails in the island. The woods were also used to built residential setup of the British at the Ross island. The history lies far back at around 1883 then the timber was mainly used by the British for the construction of their residence n offices. Various police stations and warehouses were also constructed. the mill was very important for the British but during the second world war the mill was severely damaged by the Japan in 10th march 1942 and the mill was closed till 1945 later in 1946 the British again acquired the land and restarted the mill. The mill was damaged almost completely therefore reestablishment of the mill took a lot of resource and time but the new construction was more powerful with new machinery and the work took its momentum producing processed timber till date.

Chatham Saw Mill Tourism Importance

The location of the mill is within the forestry thus giving added forest visit to the tourists. The museum adds to the attraction where one can see the sculptures of the earlier period also the museum displays the portrait of the mill before and after the Japanese attack. Hence, the place becomes frequently visited place b y the tourist.