Tamil Nadu Timeline

InfrastructureEast India Company rule

Red Hill Railway carries granite to Madras

· Red Hills

Built by Arthur Cotton as an early experiment, the Red Hill Railway hauled granite from Red Hills into Madras for road works.

To supply granite for roads in Madras, the engineer Arthur Cotton constructed the Red Hill Railway from the quarries at Red Hills (Sengundram). During 1836-1837 the line operated between Red Hills and the Chintadripet bridge in the city. Historians count it among the very first railways in India and the first to carry freight. Proposals for railways had surfaced in Madras by 1832, but scheduled passenger trains did not run in the presidency until 1856.

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