History
- History states that the area which is now called as the 'Old Ooty' was originally occupied by the Todas. The Todas then handed over that part of the town to Mr John Sullivan, the then Governor of Coimbatore, during Mar 1819. He later developed the town, and encouraged the establishment of tea, chinchona, and teak trees.
Front of Ootacamund Club, 1905
- The hills were developed rapidly under the British Raj because they were almost entirely owned by private British citizens. Unlike the rest of India, the British came to Ooty town to settle, and stayed for generations.
- Ooty served as the summer capital of the Madras Presidency and much visited by British during the colonial days, and as today, a popular summer and weekend resort.
- Ooty is reached via winding hill roads or a complicated rack railway system built in 1908 by impassioned and enterprising British citizens with venture capital from the Madras government.
- Ooty’s stunning beauty and splendid green deep valleys inspired the British to name it "Queen of Hill Stations".