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[[Tea]] was originally a [[China|Chinese]] export first traded by the [[East India Company]] in 1685 from [[Canton]] (up river from [[Macao]]) and the trade was in 1750 a more valuable revenue stream than all of India. The trade was lost in 1833, and  a year later native tea plants were found growing in Assam. Interest was reignited, the first export of tea from India was 12 tea chests in 1838. The Assam Tea Company took over the East India Company's tea plantations in 1839. By 1860, a million pounds (weight) of tea was being grown in:
[[Tea]] was originally a [[China|Chinese]] export first traded by the [[East India Company]] in 1685 from [[Canton]] (up river from [[Macao]]) and the trade was in 1750 a more valuable revenue stream than all of India. The trade was lost in 1833, and  a year later native tea plants were found growing in Assam. Interest was reignited, the first export of tea from India was 12 tea chests in 1838. The Assam Tea Company took over the East India Company's tea plantations in 1839. By 1860, a million pounds (weight) of tea was being grown in:
[[Image:Plucking tea.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Plucking tea]]
[[Image:Plucking tea.jpg|right|thumb|350px|Plucking tea]]
*[[Assam]]
*[[Assam]]. See also page '''[[Assam Tea Industry]]'''
*[[Travancore]]
*[[Travancore]]
*[[Nilgiri Hills]]
*[[Nilgiri Hills]]
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==Fibis Resources==
==Fibis Resources==
*[http://search.fibis.org/frontis/bin/aps_browse_sources.php?mode=browse_dataset&id=628&s_id=806 Tea Planters Cachar 1865-1875] on the FIBIS database, over 200 names listed.
*[http://fibis.ourarchives.online/bin/aps_browse_sources.php?mode=browse_dataset&id=628&s_id=806 Tea Planters Cachar 1865-1875] on the FIBIS database, over 200 names listed.
* ''[[FIBIS Journal]]'' Number 9, "Jokai Tea Estates" by Dick Barton. Includes a useful reading list.
* ''[[FIBIS Journal]]'' Number 9, "Jokai Tea Estates" by Dick Barton. Includes a useful reading list.
* ''[[FIBIS Journal]]'' Number 24, "Life with Tea in India: The Diaries of Samuel Cleland Davidson" by Wendy Pratt and Peter Bleakley
* ''[[FIBIS Journal]]'' Number 24, "Life with Tea in India: The Diaries of Samuel Cleland Davidson" by Wendy Pratt and Peter Bleakley
*"Life with Tea and India: Diaries of Family Life in the Cachar Area". The first 10 minutes of a talk given by Wendy Pratt (FIBIS Member) and Peter Bleakley at the FIBIS Spring Lecture meeting 22 May 2010  is available to download or listen to on the [http://feeds.feedburner.com/FibisPodcast  podcast page].  The full version is available for FIBIS members only in the [http://members-area.fibis.org/ FIBIS Social Network], previously known as the  Members  Area.  Members can also access the accompanying visual presentation which displays impressive original material including photographs and equipment designs.
*[http://wiki.fibis.org/index.php?title=Category:Tea_images Tea Images] Images relating to tea planters and tea production comprising some of the original material mentioned below - examples of which are on this page.
*[http://wiki.fibis.org/index.php?title=Category:Tea_images Tea Images] Images relating to tea planters and tea production comprising some of the original material mentioned above - examples of which are on this page.
==Fibis Lecture recordings==
Fibis lecture recordings are available to Fibis members only when logged in to the website. They can be found in the Members Area - under the heading Open Lectures
*"Life with Tea and India: Diaries of Family Life in the Cachar Area" Talk by Wendy Pratt and Peter Bleakley (2011). Members can also access the accompanying visual presentation which displays impressive original material including photographs and equipment designs.
*"Thomas Meekin's Tea Times" A story of Life on the Plantation" Talk by Andrew McMeekin 2017.


== Records==
== Records==
[[Image:Packing and weighing tea.jpg|left|thumb|250px| Packing and weighing tea]]
[[Image:Packing and weighing tea.jpg|left|thumb|250px| Packing and weighing tea]]


*From the end of the 19th century special sections covering '''tea plantations''' appear in ''Thacker's Indian Directories''. [http://www.shop.fibis.org/fact_files.htm ''FIBIS Fact File No 3 - Indian Directories by Richard Morgan''] states "The tea section lists within each area the names of the firms, their “tea gardens” (areas under cultivation), the trade mark or logo of the company as it was stamped on their tea chests , the postal address, acreage, proprietors, general managers and assistants, Indian agents and addresses, and London Agents and addresses”  
*From the end of the 19th century special sections covering '''tea plantations''' appear in ''Thacker's Indian Directories''. [https://www.fibis.org/store/fibis-books-and-publications/fibis-fact-files/bff-0003-indian-directories-by-richard-morgan/ ''FIBIS Fact File No 3 - Indian Directories by Richard Morgan''] states "The tea section lists within each area the names of the firms, their “tea gardens” (areas under cultivation), the trade mark or logo of the company as it was stamped on their tea chests , the postal address, acreage, proprietors, general managers and assistants, Indian agents and addresses, and London Agents and addresses”  


An example is given of how a genealogical history can be obtained by using the annual directories in this context.
An example is given of how a genealogical history can be obtained by using the annual directories in this context.


Some ''Thackers'' are available online, refer [[Directories online# Thacker's Indian Directory| Directories online-Thacker's Indian Directory]]
Some ''Thackers'' are available online, refer [[Directories online# Thacker's Indian Directory| Directories online-Thacker's Indian Directory]].


Details of the location of other ''Thackers'' are given in [http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~poyntz/India/directories.html "Thackers - and other - Directories"] by Ian Poyntz. homepages.rootsweb.com
*[http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/archives/collections/scottishbusinessarchive/jamesfinlayco/ Guide to James Finlay & Co Managers and Assistants Letterbooks] University of Glasgow. .Finlay Muir & Co as the company became known began to diversify into tea estate management around 1882 and by 1901 was managing extensive tea estates in India and Sri Lanka. These letterbooks contain a wealth of information about the men recruited in Britain to manage the Finlay tea estate business overseas
*[http://www.gla.ac.uk/services/archives/collections/scottishbusinessarchive/jamesfinlayco/ Guide to James Finlay & Co Managers and Assistants Letterbooks] University of Glasgow. .Finlay Muir & Co as the company became known began to diversify into tea estate management around 1882 and by 1901 was managing extensive tea estates in India and Sri Lanka. These letterbooks contain a wealth of information about the men recruited in Britain to manage the Finlay tea estate business overseas
==Cemeteries==
*[[British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia|BACSA (British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia)]] cemetery publications is
:''Bangladesh: Tombs in Tea'' by  John Radford and Susan Farrington, 2001, 96pp.
:Covers tea areas in the valleys of Luskerpore, Balisera, Manu/Doloi, Lungla and Juri; also the oldest cemetery in Sylhet town. 45 illustrations, maps and plans.
:See [http://indian-cemeteries.org/bacsa/html/bacsa_books.html BACSA Books].   
:[[British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia|BACSA]] have put the indexes to these cemetery books online and these indexes are free to browse. If an indexed name is of interest then application can be made to BACSA for details of the relevant burial inscription - charges apply for this service


==Volunteer Regiments==
==Volunteer Regiments==
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==Historical books==
==Historical books==
*The [[British Library]] has the following book in its catalogue:
*The [[British Library]] has the following books in its catalogue:
:''Taylor’s Maps of the following Tea Districts, Darjeeling, Terai, Jalpaiguri and Dooars, Darrang, Golaghat, Jorhat Nowgong, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh, Cachar, Sylhet, with complete Index to all Tea Gardens,'' published 1910
**''Taylor’s Maps of the following Tea Districts, Darjeeling, Terai, Jalpaiguri and Dooars, Darrang, Golaghat, Jorhat, Nowgong, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh, Cachar, Sylhet, with complete Index to all Tea Gardens,'' published 1910. Consists of 11 Plates/Maps. UIN: BLL01004862801
:*[http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/maps/asia/4862801u1u1910.html Map pf Darjeeling & Terai; Plate 1] British Library Online Gallery (click to enlarge)
*:[http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/onlineex/maps/asia/4862801u1u1910.html Map of Darjeeling & Terai; Plate 1 of this series of maps] British Library Online Gallery (click to enlarge)
**''Tales and Songs from an Assam Tea Garden'' by Maurice P. Hanley (Calcutta 1928) UIN: BLL0100158619
**''The Trials of a Planter'' by  Oscar Lindgren (Kalimpong 1933) UIN: BLL01002174145
**''Assam Planter: Tea Planting and Hunting in the Assam Jungle'' by A. R. Ramsden. (London 1945)  UIN: BLL01009605678


==Historical books online==
==Historical books online==
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*[http://books.google.com/books?id=hYWiQWMf_7kC&pg=PA292 "Industrial Resources of British India"] in ''The Quarterly Review'' contains a section on tea, Google Books, 1863
*[http://books.google.com/books?id=hYWiQWMf_7kC&pg=PA292 "Industrial Resources of British India"] in ''The Quarterly Review'' contains a section on tea, Google Books, 1863
*[https://books.google.com.au/books?id=py8TAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA1-PA1 ''East India (Products) Part I Reports on the Tea and Tobacco Industries in India'']. Part of a larger publication [UK Parliamentary Papers] ''Accounts and Papers East India. Continued Session 5 March-7 August 1874 Volume XLVIII'' Google Books.
*[https://archive.org/details/teaplantinginout00mcgorich/page/n7  ''Tea planting in the outer Himalayah''] by A T McGowan Assist. Surgn. [[52nd Regiment of Foot|52nd Lt. Infty]]. 1860 Archive.org. The author was based at the Fort of [[Kangra]].


*[http://www.archive.org/stream/oldtimesinassam00kinngoog#page/n7/mode/1up ''Old times in Assam''] by T Kinney 1896 Archive.org  A tea planter’s life in the early 1860’s. Reprints from columns in the ''Englishman'' and ''Indian Planters’ Gazette''.
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/oldtimesinassam00kinngoog#page/n7/mode/1up ''Old times in Assam''] by T Kinney 1896 Archive.org  A tea planter’s life in the early 1860’s. Reprints from columns in the ''Englishman'' and ''Indian Planters’ Gazette''.


*[https://books.google.com.au/books?id=IuloAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA1 ''The Neilgherry Tea Planter''] by James McPherson 1870 Google Books
*''The Experiences of a Planter in the Jungles of Mysore'' by Robert H Elliot 1871. [https://books.google.com.au/books?id=ONAMoXQpsVwC&pg=PR3 Volume I] Google Books, [https://archive.org/details/experiencesapla00elligoog/page/n8 Vol. I Archive.org] [https://hdl.handle.net/2027/umn.31951p01118998b?urlappend=%3Bseq=9 Volume II] HathiTrust Digital Library. [https://hdl.handle.net/2027/umn.31951p01118998b?urlappend=%3Bseq=316 Health management of plantation coolies] page 290, Vol. II. [https://books.google.com.au/books?id=gRs7AQAAMAAJ&pg=PR1 Vol. II Google Books]. Includes Coffee, Chinchona, Cardamon, Tea, Cotton, Silk, Sandal-Wood, Rhea-Grass.
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924023234515#page/n7/mode/2up ''A tea planter's life in Assam''] by George M Barker 1884. Archive.org. With seventy five illustrations by the author.
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924023234515#page/n7/mode/2up ''A tea planter's life in Assam''] by George M Barker 1884. Archive.org. With seventy five illustrations by the author.


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*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924023998168#page/n7/mode/2up ''The Tea planter's vade mecum : a volume of important articles, correspondence, and information of permanent interest and value regarding tea etc''] by the Editor of the ''Indian Tea Gazette''  1885 Archive.org
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924023998168#page/n7/mode/2up ''The Tea planter's vade mecum : a volume of important articles, correspondence, and information of permanent interest and value regarding tea etc''] by the Editor of the ''Indian Tea Gazette''  1885 Archive.org
*[https://archive.org/details/mobot31753003634620 ''Notes on Tea in Darjeeling''] by A Planter. 1888 Archive.org.
*[http://archive.org/stream/wynaadandplanti00fordgoog#page/n6/mode/2up ''The Wynaad and the Planting Industry of Southern India''] by Francis Ford 1895 Archive.org
*[http://archive.org/stream/wynaadandplanti00fordgoog#page/n6/mode/2up ''The Wynaad and the Planting Industry of Southern India''] by Francis Ford 1895 Archive.org
 
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/teaproducingcomp00gowwrich#page/n5/mode/2up ''Tea producing companies of India and Ceylon, showing the history and results of those capitalised in sterling''] by Gow, Wilson & Stanton, Tea and Tea Share Brokers 1897 Archive.org  
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/teaproducingcomp00gowwrich#page/n5/mode/2up ''Tea producing companies of India and Ceylon, showing the history and results of those capitalised in sterling''] by Gow, Wilson & Stanton, Tea and Tea Share Brokers 1897 Archive.org   
*[https://archive.org/details/memoriesofanafri005386mbp/page/n5 ''Memories of an African Hunter with a Chapter on Eastern India''] by Denis D Lyell 1923 Archive.org. Missing pages 8-9, 12-13. [https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.$b33687?urlappend=%3Bseq=9 HathiTrust Digital Library version] all pages. Lyell went to a tea garden in 1894, and worked in various locations until c 1899.
 
*[https://archive.org/details/wideworldmag1910-v25/page/77/mode/2up "The Tea-Planter and the Tigress"] by A W Strachan page 78 ''The Wide World Magazine. Volume 25 1910 May-October'' Archive.org
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/indianteaitscul00baldgoog#page/n7/mode/2up ''Indian Tea, its Culture & Manufacture''] by Claud Bald 1907. Archive.org (One of the books on the reading list in the Fibis Article mentioned above).
*''The Planters' Chronicle''.  Published at Madras by the  United Planters' Association of Southern India. Initially a monthly, in early 1910 it became a weekly, and remained so until 1930, with a bimonthly journal during World War II. [https://archive.org/search.php?query=title%3A%28%22Planters+Chronicle%22%29&sort=date  ''Planters Chronicle''] Archive.org, mirrors from Digital Library of India. A broken range of editions from 1906-1915.
 
*[https://archive.org/search.php?query=%28%22United+Planters%22++%22Southern+India%22%29&sort=date ''Proceedings Of The United Planters Association Of Southern India''], or similar titles. Archive.org, mirrors from Digital Library of India. Broken range of editions from 1910 to 1929.
*[https://archive.org/search.php?query=title%3A%28Tea+And+Coffee+Trade+Journal%29&sort=date '' The Tea And Coffee Trade Journal'']  published in New York. Archive.org, mirrors from Digital Library of India. Broken range of editions from  Vol.33, 1917 to Vol.39, 1920.
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/indianteaitscul00baldgoog#page/n7/mode/2up ''Indian Tea, its Culture & Manufacture''] by Claud Bald 1907. Archive.org (One of the books on the reading list in the FIBIS Article mentioned above).
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924013772441#page/n1/mode/2up ''The early history of the tea industry in north-east India''] by Harold Hart Mann 1918 Archive.org
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/cu31924013772441#page/n1/mode/2up ''The early history of the tea industry in north-east India''] by Harold Hart Mann 1918 Archive.org
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/bengalassambehar00playuoft#page/424/mode/2up ''Bengal and Assam, Behar and Orissa : their history, people, commerce and industrial resources''] by  Somerset Playne , J W  Bond 1917 at Archive.org lists four tea companies  
*[http://www.archive.org/stream/bengalassambehar00playuoft#page/424/mode/2up ''Bengal and Assam, Behar and Orissa : their history, people, commerce and industrial resources''] by  Somerset Playne , J W  Bond 1917 at Archive.org lists four tea companies  
 
*[https://archive.org/details/dli.pahar.3375  ''Assam Shikari. A tea planter's story of hunting and high adventure in the jungles of North East India''] by Frank Nicholls 1970. Archive.org, mirror from Pahar-Mountains of Central Asia Digital Dataset. Nicholls (born 1889)  went to India 1911 as an assistant manager to a tea estate in Assam. He retired 1952, and remained in Assam until 1963.
*Some sample pages from [http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=477224#forgottenfrontierbygeoffreytyson ''Forgotten Frontier''] by Geoffrey Tyson, first published 1945, may be downloaded as a pdf from the Koi-Hai website. The complete book  may be viewed online on the [[Online books#Digital Library of India| Digital Library of India]] website, including as a [http://dli.serc.iisc.ernet.in/handle/2015/528129 pdf download]. The book is about the escape of refugees from Burma in 1942 and the help provided by the tea planters of Assam in assisting the refugees from North Burma into India.
*''Forgotten Frontier'' by Geoffrey Tyson, published 1945.  [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.528129 Archive.org], mirror from Digital Library of India. The book is about the escape of refugees from Burma in 1942 and the help provided by the tea planters of Assam in assisting the refugees from North Burma into India.
*Text from ''Navvies To The Fourteenth Army'' by AH Pilcher c 1947 is available as pdf downloads from the Koi Hai website, located under [http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=508961 Memories, the Henderson Family] Scroll down to the item dated  October 12, 2009. Does not contain the illustrations and maps from the original publication. The author was Col: A H Pilcher who at the outbreak of the second world war commanded the [[Assam Valley Light Horse]].  In March 1942 he was put in charge of raising a labour force from the Tea Plantations to build the Manipur/Burma Road to evacuate the 14th Army and also the many civilians who were fleeing Burma. Eventually he raised and commanded a labour force of 82000 <ref> Scroll down to comments section [http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/40/a2776340.shtml Jungle Work: A Civil Engineer in Burma] BBC ww2peopleswar</ref> This book (55 pages) was published in Calcutta for Private Circulation and was illustrated with black and white plates and line drawing maps. <ref> marelibri.com, page no longer accessible</ref> The [[British Library]] has a catalogue reference Mss Eur F174/1316, but this is possibly a manuscript, not the printed book. The book is available at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) Library, University of London.
*Text from ''Navvies To The Fourteenth Army'' by AH Pilcher c 1947 is available as pdf downloads from the Koi Hai website, located under [http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=508961 Memories, the Henderson Family] Scroll down to the item dated  October 12, 2009. [https://archive.org/details/0-title-navvies/0TitleNavvies/ Archive.org mirror version]. Does not contain the illustrations and maps from the original publication. The author was Col: A H Pilcher who at the outbreak of the second world war commanded the [[Assam Valley Light Horse]].  In March 1942 he was put in charge of raising a labour force from the Tea Plantations to build the Manipur/Burma Road to evacuate the 14th Army and also the many civilians who were fleeing Burma. Eventually he raised and commanded a labour force of 82000 <ref> Scroll down to comments section [http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ww2peopleswar/stories/40/a2776340.shtml Jungle Work: A Civil Engineer in Burma] BBC ww2peopleswar</ref> This book (55 pages) was published in Calcutta for Private Circulation and was illustrated with black and white plates and line drawing maps. <ref> marelibri.com, page no longer accessible</ref> The [[British Library]] has a catalogue reference Mss Eur F174/1316, but this is possibly a manuscript, not the printed book. The book is available at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) Library, University of London.
*[http://pahar.in/wpfb-file/1955-the-children-of-kanchenjunga-by-fletcher-s-pdf/ ''The Children of Kanchenjunga''] by David Wilson Fletcher. Link to a pdf download PAHAR Mountains of Central Asia Digital Dataset.  Full title: ''The Children of Kanchenjunga. On the lives of a tea-planter and his family in the Darjeeling Hills'',  Published London 1955.
:[http://pahar.in/wpfb-file/1955-himalayan-tea-garden-by-fletcher-s-pdf/ ''Himalayan Tea Garden''] by David Wilson Fletcher. Link to a pdf download PAHAR Mountains of Central Asia Digital Dataset. Full title: ''Himalayan Tea Garden: A Young Family's Adventures on a Tea Plantation Near Darjeeling''. Published New York, 1955. [https://archive.org/details/himalayanteagard00flet/mode/2up Archive.org Books to Borrow/Lending Library edition], catalogued 1956. Catalogue details state "Originally published in London in 1955 under title: ''The children of Kanchenjunga''". Elsewhere, the author was stated to be  a Gurkha officer who ran a tea plantation in Darjeeling in 1953.
*[https://archive.org/details/EconomicPlantsOfTheNilgiris ''Horticultural and economic plants of the Nilgiris''] edited by S Krishnamurthi  1953 Includes Tea, coffee chinchona etc  Archive.org
*''Planting Directory Of Southern India 1956''. Published by the  United Planters Association Of Southern India. [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.40905 Archive.org], mirror from Digital Library of India.
*[http://www.historyofceylontea.com/ceylon-publications/other-publications/the-pioneers-1825-1900-the-early-british-tea-and-coffee-planters-and-their-way/quick-view/index.php ''The Pioneers 1825 - 1900 : The Early British Tea and Coffee Planters and Their Way of Life''] by  John Weatherstone. 1986. historyofceylontea.com. Also available as [http://myrepositori.pnm.gov.my/xmlui/handle/123456789/3201  a  pdf download, Repositori Digital], digital repository of the National Library of Malaysia.
*[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_xjG0AAAAIAAJ/page/n5 ''Pflanzerleben in Indien kulturgeschichtliche bilder aus Assám''] by Oscar Flex 1873 Archive.org. German language. [http://www.reiseliteratur-weltweit.de/index.php/artikel/1367-fi-1864-flex-teeplantage Extract from the book] reiseliteratur-weltweit.de. German language. ([https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_xjG0AAAAIAAJ/page/n71 page 63]), [https://translate.google.com.au/translate?sl=de&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reiseliteratur-weltweit.de%2Findex.php%2Fartikel%2F1367-fi-1864-flex-teeplantage Google Translate English version of the extract] reiseliteratur-weltweit.de. Article with details of the book [https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/north-east/an-european-s-account-of-assam/cid/443929 "An European's account of Assam"] by  Arup Kumar Dutta  5.03.12 ''The Telegraph (India)''.
*Fiction. [http://access.bl.uk/item/viewer/ark:/81055/vdc_000000045A5C ''The Dead Man's Gift: a tea-planter's romance''] by Herbert Compton (London) 1890. British Library Digital Collection.


==Recommended Reading==
==Recommended Reading==
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==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.koi-hai.com/ Koi-Hai] a site for those who lived and worked in North East India, particularly in the Tea industry. Includes articles, list of relevant books, photos, some grave inscriptions, tourism information
*[http://www.koi-hai.com/ Koi-Hai] a site for those who lived and worked in North East India, particularly in the Tea industry. Includes articles, list of relevant books, photos, some grave inscriptions, tourism information
**Includes a [http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=521666 link]  to a Directory (34 pages pdf which may be downloaded) published by the India Tea Association Calcutta 1930, consisting of a ''Complete Index to Tea Gardens in India'' (28 pages) and maps of the North Eastern tea areas: Sibsagar (computer page 30); [[Cachar]] p 31; [[Dibrugarh]] (p 32) Lakimpur (p 33) and Sylhet (p 34)
**Includes a [http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=521666 link]  to a Directory (34 pages pdf which may be downloaded) published by the India Tea Association Calcutta 1930, consisting of a ''Complete Index to Tea Gardens in India'' (28 pages) and maps of the North Eastern tea areas: Sibsagar (computer page 30); [[Cachar]] p 31; [[Dibrugarh]] (p 32) Lakimpur (p 33) and Sylhet (p 34). [https://archive.org/details/index-tea-gardens/mode/1up?view=theater Archive.org mirror version].
*Very interesting and detailed [http://karachi.s-asian.cam.ac.uk/archive/audio/robertson.html interviews] of many aspects of the life and work of a tea planter. Travancore State, Calcutta, Darjeeling, N.W.F.P. Recorded by A.S. Robertson and his son, A.F. Robertson (1976 and 1979) from  [[University of Cambridge - Centre of South Asian Studies]]. Listen to the interviews, or read the transcripts.
*Very interesting and detailed [http://www.s-asian.cam.ac.uk/archive/audio/collection/a-s-robertsoninterviews] of many aspects of the life and work of a tea planter. Travancore State, Calcutta, Darjeeling, N.W.F.P. Recorded by A.S. Robertson and his son, A.F. Robertson (1976 and 1979) from  [[University of Cambridge - Centre of South Asian Studies]]. Listen to the interviews, or read the transcripts.
*[http://shangrilajournals.com/shangrilajournals.com/Assam%20-%20Where.html Assam Where?] Growing up in the tea growing district of Cachar during the late 1940s and the 1950s from Shangrilajournals.com. (There are links at the bottom of the page)
*[http://shangrilajournals.com/shangrilajournals.com/Assam%20-%20Where.html Assam Where?] Growing up in the tea growing district of Cachar during the late 1940s and the 1950s from Shangrilajournals.com. (There are links at the bottom of the page)
*[http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:oCWol4f9xGEJ:202.144.14.20/index.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D367292%26catid%3D44&hl=en&gl=au&strip=1 Halycon <nowiki>[</nowiki>sic<nowiki>]</nowiki> days: a memoir of tea estate life] by Duncan Allan ''The Statesman'' 25 April 2011 (Scroll down) ([https://web.archive.org/web/20120308172112/http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=490750#halcyondays Another version] (archived))
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120308172112/http://www.koi-hai.com/Default.aspx?id=490750#halcyondays  Halycon <nowiki>[</nowiki>sic<nowiki>]</nowiki> days: a memoir of tea estate life] by Duncan Allan (archived))
*[http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:jZM7LUhlgScJ:minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/35484/Spielman.doc%3Fsequence%3D1+northern+bengal+mounted+rifles&cd=58&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=au Cultivating an Industry: A Survey of the lives of British Tea Planters in Assam 1860-1936] (html version) by A.H. Spielman 13 May 2009  [http://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/35484/Spielman.doc?sequence=1 Original link] minds.wisconsin.edu
*"Cultivating an Industry: A Survey of the lives of British Tea Planters in Assam 1860-1936"] by A.H. Spielman 13 May 2009  [http://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/35484/Spielman.doc?sequence=1 Word download], which, depending on your browser, you may need to locate in your downloads folder. minds.wisconsin.edu
* [http://www.history.ac.uk/gh/s-z.htm Business records relating to tea companies] in the Guildhall Library, London.  It seems likely these companies are ones registered in the U.K.
*[http://www.history.ac.uk/gh/s-z.htm Business records relating to tea companies] in the Guildhall Library, London.  It seems likely these companies are ones registered in the U.K.
*[http://www.deccanherald.com/content/415097/it039s-time-tea.html "It's time for tea"] by Anurag & Priya Ganapathy.  Supplement, ''Deccan Sunday Herald'' (possibly Sunday 22 June 2014). An overview.
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140626013415/http://www.deccanherald.com/content/415097/it039s-time-tea.html "It's time for tea"] by Anurag & Priya Ganapathy.  Supplement, ''Deccan Sunday Herald'' (possibly Sunday 22 June 2014), now an archived webpage. An overview.
*[https://specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk/?p=14604 Early tea cultivation in India and Sri Lanka] Cambridge University Library’s Special Collections. Includes images.
*[http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=81070 The Story of India Tea] 1917 British Pathe film clip
*[http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=81070 The Story of India Tea] 1917 British Pathe film clip
*[http://www.sms.csx.cam.ac.uk/media/1077801 The Elephant Man] is about the rescue of refugees fleeing Burma in 1942 by Gyles Mackrell, an Assam tea planter.  He mounted an operation to save refugees who were trapped by flooded rivers at the border with India using the only means available to get them across - elephants. Includes YouTube film clip from the Centre of South Asian Studies, Cambridge. More about Gyles Mackrell’s story  in this [http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jul/07/flight-by-elephant-andrew-martin-review link] theguardian.com ([https://web.archive.org/web/20131114023120/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jul/07/flight-by-elephant-andrew-martin-review archive.org] link)
*[https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/the-elephant-man The Elephant Man] 8 Nov 2010 (cam.ac.uk) is about the rescue of refugees fleeing Burma in 1942 by Gyles Mackrell, an Assam tea planter.  He mounted an operation to save refugees who were trapped by flooded rivers at the border with India using the only means available to get them across - elephants. [https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-11652782 BBC article] 1 November 2010 includes YouTube film clip from the Centre of South Asian Studies, Cambridge. More about Gyles Mackrell’s story  in this [http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jul/07/flight-by-elephant-andrew-martin-review link] theguardian.com ([https://web.archive.org/web/20131114023120/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2013/jul/07/flight-by-elephant-andrew-martin-review archive.org] link). [https://www.dnw.co.uk/auction-archive/past-catalogues/lot.php?auction_id=188&lot_uid=194151 Medals issued to Gyles Mackrell] dnw.co.uk. Longer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLMj-zG2Vmc YouTube video: The Elephant Man].
*[http://www.kaiserscross.com/304501/581001.html  "Retreat from Burma 1942: The Struggles through the Northern Passes"] by Harry Fecitt “Harry’s Sideshows”  kaiserscross.com. The involvement of the tea planters.
*[http://www.assamco.com/heritage.html Assam Company Ltd] Background to the Assam Tea Company and its [http://www.assamco.com/teaplantation.html Tea Plantations]
*[http://www.assamco.com/heritage.html Assam Company Ltd] Background to the Assam Tea Company and its [http://www.assamco.com/teaplantation.html Tea Plantations]
*[https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/heritage/back-then-at-the-burra-bungalows-of-tea-estates/cid/1680275  "Back then, at the burra bungalows of tea estates"] by Moumita Chaudhuri  30 Dec. 2018 ''The Telegraph'' India.
*[http://www.pinterest.com/teabuddy/tea-garden-bungalows-of-colonial-india/ Photographs: Tea garden bungalows of colonial India] pinterest.com
*[http://www.pinterest.com/teabuddy/tea-garden-bungalows-of-colonial-india/ Photographs: Tea garden bungalows of colonial India] pinterest.com
*[http://www.upasi.org/ UPASI (The United Planters' Association of Southern India)] is an apex body of planters of tea, coffee, rubber, pepper and cardamom in the Southern States of India viz. Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka in existence since 1893, located at [[Coonoor]], Nilgiris. Article [https://web.archive.org/web/20131127092701/http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/history-and-culture/a-tea-industry-anniversary/article4544060.ece  A tea industry anniversary] by S. Muthiah, Madras Miscellany March 24, 2013 ''The Hindu''. The first tea auction at Coonoor was in 1863.
*[http://www.upasi.org/ UPASI (The United Planters' Association of Southern India)] is an apex body of planters of tea, coffee, rubber, pepper and cardamom in the Southern States of India viz. Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka in existence since 1893, located at [[Coonoor]], Nilgiris. Article [https://web.archive.org/web/20131127092701/http://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/history-and-culture/a-tea-industry-anniversary/article4544060.ece  A tea industry anniversary] by S. Muthiah, Madras Miscellany March 24, 2013 ''The Hindu''. The first tea auction at Coonoor was in 1863.
Line 94: Line 126:
*[http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/total-tea-day/article4081155.ece    "Total Tea Day:A Taste Of History. The museum at the Nullathani estate in Munnar] November 9, 2012 thehindu.com
*[http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/total-tea-day/article4081155.ece    "Total Tea Day:A Taste Of History. The museum at the Nullathani estate in Munnar] November 9, 2012 thehindu.com
*[http://www.poabsestates.com/plantations/travancore/travancore-planting-history/ Planting History [Central Travancore<nowiki>]</nowiki>] poabsestates.com
*[http://www.poabsestates.com/plantations/travancore/travancore-planting-history/ Planting History [Central Travancore<nowiki>]</nowiki>] poabsestates.com
*[http://www.historyofceylontea.com History of Ceylon Tea]  
*[http://www.historyofceylontea.com History of Ceylon Tea]


== References ==
== References ==
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[[Category:Occupations]]
[[Category:Occupations]]
[[Category:Commerce and trade]]
[[Category:Commerce and trade]]

Latest revision as of 06:51, 4 September 2023

Tea was originally a Chinese export first traded by the East India Company in 1685 from Canton (up river from Macao) and the trade was in 1750 a more valuable revenue stream than all of India. The trade was lost in 1833, and a year later native tea plants were found growing in Assam. Interest was reignited, the first export of tea from India was 12 tea chests in 1838. The Assam Tea Company took over the East India Company's tea plantations in 1839. By 1860, a million pounds (weight) of tea was being grown in:

Plucking tea

Fibis Resources

  • Tea Planters Cachar 1865-1875 on the FIBIS database, over 200 names listed.
  • FIBIS Journal Number 9, "Jokai Tea Estates" by Dick Barton. Includes a useful reading list.
  • FIBIS Journal Number 24, "Life with Tea in India: The Diaries of Samuel Cleland Davidson" by Wendy Pratt and Peter Bleakley
  • Tea Images Images relating to tea planters and tea production comprising some of the original material mentioned below - examples of which are on this page.

Fibis Lecture recordings

Fibis lecture recordings are available to Fibis members only when logged in to the website. They can be found in the Members Area - under the heading Open Lectures

  • "Life with Tea and India: Diaries of Family Life in the Cachar Area" Talk by Wendy Pratt and Peter Bleakley (2011). Members can also access the accompanying visual presentation which displays impressive original material including photographs and equipment designs.
  • "Thomas Meekin's Tea Times" A story of Life on the Plantation" Talk by Andrew McMeekin 2017.

Records

Packing and weighing tea
  • From the end of the 19th century special sections covering tea plantations appear in Thacker's Indian Directories. FIBIS Fact File No 3 - Indian Directories by Richard Morgan states "The tea section lists within each area the names of the firms, their “tea gardens” (areas under cultivation), the trade mark or logo of the company as it was stamped on their tea chests , the postal address, acreage, proprietors, general managers and assistants, Indian agents and addresses, and London Agents and addresses”

An example is given of how a genealogical history can be obtained by using the annual directories in this context.

Some Thackers are available online, refer Directories online-Thacker's Indian Directory.

Details of the location of other Thackers are given in "Thackers - and other - Directories" by Ian Poyntz. homepages.rootsweb.com

  • Guide to James Finlay & Co Managers and Assistants Letterbooks University of Glasgow. .Finlay Muir & Co as the company became known began to diversify into tea estate management around 1882 and by 1901 was managing extensive tea estates in India and Sri Lanka. These letterbooks contain a wealth of information about the men recruited in Britain to manage the Finlay tea estate business overseas

Cemeteries

Bangladesh: Tombs in Tea by John Radford and Susan Farrington, 2001, 96pp.
Covers tea areas in the valleys of Luskerpore, Balisera, Manu/Doloi, Lungla and Juri; also the oldest cemetery in Sylhet town. 45 illustrations, maps and plans.
See BACSA Books.
BACSA have put the indexes to these cemetery books online and these indexes are free to browse. If an indexed name is of interest then application can be made to BACSA for details of the relevant burial inscription - charges apply for this service

Volunteer Regiments

Volunteer Regiments involving tea planters include

Related articles

Historical books

  • The British Library has the following books in its catalogue:
    • Taylor’s Maps of the following Tea Districts, Darjeeling, Terai, Jalpaiguri and Dooars, Darrang, Golaghat, Jorhat, Nowgong, Sibsagar, Lakhimpur, Dibrugarh, Cachar, Sylhet, with complete Index to all Tea Gardens, published 1910. Consists of 11 Plates/Maps. UIN: BLL01004862801
    Map of Darjeeling & Terai; Plate 1 of this series of maps British Library Online Gallery (click to enlarge)
    • Tales and Songs from an Assam Tea Garden by Maurice P. Hanley (Calcutta 1928) UIN: BLL0100158619
    • The Trials of a Planter by Oscar Lindgren (Kalimpong 1933) UIN: BLL01002174145
    • Assam Planter: Tea Planting and Hunting in the Assam Jungle by A. R. Ramsden. (London 1945) UIN: BLL01009605678

Historical books online

  • Old times in Assam by T Kinney 1896 Archive.org A tea planter’s life in the early 1860’s. Reprints from columns in the Englishman and Indian Planters’ Gazette.
Himalayan Tea Garden by David Wilson Fletcher. Link to a pdf download PAHAR Mountains of Central Asia Digital Dataset. Full title: Himalayan Tea Garden: A Young Family's Adventures on a Tea Plantation Near Darjeeling. Published New York, 1955. Archive.org Books to Borrow/Lending Library edition, catalogued 1956. Catalogue details state "Originally published in London in 1955 under title: The children of Kanchenjunga". Elsewhere, the author was stated to be a Gurkha officer who ran a tea plantation in Darjeeling in 1953.

Recommended Reading

A Brief History of Tea by Roy Moxham (2009). For Review see Other occupations reading list.

External links

References

  1. Scroll down to comments section Jungle Work: A Civil Engineer in Burma BBC ww2peopleswar
  2. marelibri.com, page no longer accessible