8 Reasons to Include Chatham Saw Mill in your Travel Itinerary to Andaman

[Andaman Tour Travel]

You might have noted this name while going through the list of important places to visit in Andaman and have even decided to visit them. However, there are some remarkable reasons to be sited prior to your stopover at the specified destination. They are situated at Chatham Island which you might be visiting on your way that leads to Mount Harriet or other minute islands of Andaman. Besides that, you will already be acknowledged of its significance in the colonial history of India. Such facts aside, here we discuss the reasons not to skip them during your particular travel itinerary to Andaman.

Largest and Oldest mill of Asia

The Chatham Saw Mill of Andaman is the largest Saw Mill of Asia, besides being the oldest. The machinery that is operating inside the workshops of the mill is indeed very huge and has been working from the times of British colonization in the Islands of Andaman. There were even used to be some sort of wagons to transport the timber logs from one place to another even in the same compound of the Saw Mill. Currently, at a total of three shifts, around 20,000 cum logs are sawed from the Mill on a yearly basis.

Timber produced here used to be exported to London

Although it may sound astounding, this particular fact about the Chatham Saw Mill is indeed true. The timbers that were produced and processed from the mill were used to be exported in large numbers to the European settlements in New York and London. Yet another striking fact about them is that it was the Padauk woods exported from Andaman which were used for building the crimson walls of London Buckingham Palace.

Maintained by Forest Department

Located in the Chatham Island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Saw Mill is currently under the control of the Forest Department of Andaman and Nicobar Islands. They can be reached once crossing a 100-meter bridge linking both these places across the sea. Besides, the Chatham Saw Mill is owned and maintained by the State government. In late 2006, they had opened a museum in the mill complex, which showcases the rare pictures of significant histories associated with the past stories of the Chatham Saw Mill.

Museum with the rarest collection

At the museum adjoining the Chatham Saw Mill of Andaman, you could both view and purchase the rare exhibits of the islands that are carved out from wood. So when you are on the venture of buying souvenirs on your Andaman tour, you may possibly lookout for the rarest collection of wooden artifacts from this museum. Also, the search for artifacts made solely by the remotest tribe of Andaman and Nicobar Islands can be challenging if you are traveling in specified tour packages. Henceforth, you may easily acquire from the museum situated inside the premises of Saw Mill.

One of the rarest Timber Mill

Saw Mills like that of Chatham is a rare sight now, as they are wholly bestowed to the production of timber woods in large quantities. The huge pieces of machinery required for the processing of timber woods were imported via the sea from European nations. The final products manufactured from the Chatham Saw Mill were later used for various construction works. Gurjan, Marble, Satin Wood and Padauk are presently the kind of woods processed at present.

Devastated by Bomb Explosion during World War

A sizeable number of workers of Chatham Saw Mill lost their lives during the second world war of 1942 when a powerful bomb was dropped by the Japanese Army. Rather than claiming the innocent lives, some portions of the mill too were damaged. Once bombarded, the Japanese used to consider this specific location as their base camp for the years from 1942 to 1945. They often used the spots to be altered into large storing places for fuels and other commodities. The memorial monuments of the mill were built late in the close vicinity near the crater of the bomb explosion.

As an ancient British monument

The massive Saw Mill was built in 1883 almost a decade before the British had constructed the Chennai High Court Building. The entire structure was being established in this particular island of Andaman with the prime motive of collecting timber and saw needed for the construction works done in the islands during that age. Nevertheless, the machines that used to function in its initial days were mostly second-hand ones that were often imported from either the Indian mainland or London. So when you are on tour to Andaman, you do not necessarily have to grope for any special packages that would include the sawmill, as many of them will already be including them.

 

One of the longest operating Wood Mill of the World

Since its establishment in 1883, the historic Saw Mill had been working continuously, besides the small gap occurred due to the bomb blast occurred during the world war in 1942. From the numerous logs of wood spread across the premises of the Chatham Saw Mill, you could confirm that the establishment is still functioning.  Now they provide affordable timber woods for both private and public sector agencies. However, there are few restrictions for the export and import of raw wood to the Indian mainland under some strict rules.

 

Historical structure such as the Chatham Saw Mill says very much about the prominence of colonial power of British in an isolated island of India and how they had affected the life before and after the lives of the island inhabitants therein. So in order to make yourself more knowledgeable, you have to indeed visit that particular place in person and directly. Andaman Tour Travel based in Port Blair fulfills your dream of vacationing in the mystic and the serene island of Andaman in the most meaningful and appropriate manner. Their experienced tour executives will take you to these locations personally and would make you well aware of each of the historic and cultural spots