Coordinates: 18°55′42″N 72°49′52″E / 18.9283, 72.8311 Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...

Watson's Hotel
Watson's hotel, now known as Esplanade Mansions at Kala Ghoda
Shown within Mumbai
Building
Structural system	Cast iron
Town	Mumbai
Country	India
Client	John Watson
Coordinates	18°55′42″N 72°49′52″E / 18.9283, 72.8311
Construction
Started	1867
Completed	1869
Design team
Architect	Rowland Mason Ordish
Engineer	Rowland Mason Ordish

Watson's Hotel, currently known as the esplanade mansion, is India's oldest surviving cast iron building, located in the Kala Ghoda district of Mumbai (Bombay). It was named after its original owner, John Watson. The building was fabricated in England and constructed onsite between 1867 and 1869. It was designed by civil engineer Rowland Mason Ordish (1824–1886), who was also associated with the St Pancras Station in London. Its external cast-iron frame closely resembles other high-profile 19th century buildings such as London's Crystal Palace. The main façade of the hotel is distinguished by building-wide open balconies on each floor that connected the guest rooms. The rooms in Watson's Hotel were built around the atrium in a courtyard arrangement.^[1] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Red_pog. ... Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but can mean any of a group of iron-based alloys containing more than 2% carbon (alloys with less carbon are carbon steel by definition). ... , Bombay redirects here. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... Rowland Mason Ordish (11 April 1824-1886) was an English engineer. ... Rowland Mason Ordish (11 April 1824-1886) was an English engineer. ... Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but can mean any of a group of iron-based alloys containing more than 2% carbon (alloys with less carbon are carbon steel by definition). ... Kala Ghoda is a region in South Bombay, India. ... , Bombay redirects here. ... The Petronas Twin Towers, designed by Thornton-Tomasetti and Ranhill Bersekutu Sdn Bhd engineers, and Cesar Pelli, were the worlds tallest buildings from 1998 to 2004. ... Rowland Mason Ordish (11 April 1824-1886) was an English engineer. ... The Gothic Revival facade and clock tower of the disused Midland Hotel are the most visible part of St Pancras station. ... For other uses, see Crystal Palace. ...

John Watson opened the hotel as an exclusive whites-only hotel, and it was the swankiest hotel in the city in those days. The five storied structure housed 130 guest rooms, as well as a lobby, restaurant and a bar at the ground level. The hotel also had a 30 by 9 metres (98 ft × 30 ft) atrium which had a glass skylight. The atrium was originally used as a ballroom. The common joke at that time was: "If only Watson had imported the English weather as well". At its peak, Watson's hotel employed English waitresses in its restaurant and ballroom.^[2][1][2] Looking up inside the 32-story atrium of the Shanghai Grand Hyatt, part of the Jin Mao Building. ... A ballroom is a large room inside a building, the designated puprose of which is holding dances (balls). ...

Among the hotel's notable guests was Mark Twain who wrote about the city's crows he saw outside his balcony in Following the Equator. It was also the first place in India to screen the Lumière Brothers' Cinematographe invention in 1896. However this was witnessed only by Europeans.^[1][2] Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30, 1835 – April 21, 1910),[1] better known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American humanist,[2] humorist, satirist, lecturer and writer. ... Following the Equator is basically a tour of the British Empire undertaken by Mark Twain as a response to regain his financial status and extricate himself from debt incurred from his failed investment in the revolutionary typesetting machine. ... The Lumière Brothers, Louis Jean (October 5, 1864–June 6, 1948) and Auguste Marie Louis Nicholas (October 19, 1862–April 10, 1954), were the creators of the cinematographic projector. ... The cinematograph or Lumiére Cinématographe was an early type film projector, an all-in-one camera, projector and developer, circa 1895. ...

According to rumours, Indian industrialist Jamsetji Tata was denied access to the hotel. In retaliation he opened the Taj Mahal Palace, a hotel that stands near what is now the Gateway of India in 1903.^[1][2] Jamshedji Nusserwanji Tata (March 3, 1839 - May 19, 1904) was a pioneer in the field of modern industry. ... A view of the hotel at night The Taj Mahal Palace is a prestigious hotel located in the Colaba district of Mumbai, India, next to the Gateway of India. ... The Gateway of India as seen from the water. ...

After Watson's death, the hotel lost its popularity to the Taj Mahal Hotel. In the 1960s the hotel was closed and sold to a private owner. It was subdivided and partitioned into small cubicles with independent access and let out on rent. Over the years apathy toward the building by the residents has resulted in it being in a dilapidated condition. The atrium was subsequently used as a dumping ground and has several illegal constructions. The building currently has 53 families and 97 commercial establishments. Most of the commercial establishments are chambers of lawyers catering to the adjacent Bombay Civil & Session Courts and to the nearby Bombay High Court.^[1][2] The Bombay High Court was inaugurated on August 14, 1862. ...

The building's poor state of affairs has been remarked time and again, and efforts by Heritage activists to persuade its present owner to invest in restoration have been stymied by his refusal to spend from his own pocket, and without tenants' contributing. The condition of the building was publicized by Italian architect Renzo Piano, as a result of whose efforts, the building was listed June 2005 on the "100 World Endangered Monuments" by the World Monuments Fund, a New York-based NGO.^[3] Just a few days after its nomination, part of the building's western facade (not seen in the picture) – originally balconies developed into tiny offices, collapsed, killing one person and crushing several cars and motorcycles parked in the street below. The building is currently listed as a Grade II-A heritage structure.^[1][2] The Padre Pio Pilgrimage Church in San Giovanni Rotondo. ... The World Monuments Fund (WMF) is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of historic art and architecture worldwide through fieldwork, advocacy, grantmaking, education, and training. ... This article is about the state. ... NGO redirects here. ... The Forth Bridge, designed by Sir Benjamin Baker and Sir John Fowler, opened in 1890, and now owned by Network Rail, is designated as a Category A listed building by Historic Scotland. ...

References