Introduction; The Mead Street that lies north east of CSI Home Church and south of Nagercoil Municpal Office is truly one of the most important streets in Nagercoil , and it has played a very core and crucial role in the social, educational, religious and economic history of Kanyakumari District , Tamil Nadu. and India. .
Rev. Charles Mead [ Founder of Mead Street,Nagercoil].]
The formation of Protestant Christian[ LMS] settlement in Nagercoil: The construction of the LMS Home Church [Present CSI Home Church] at Nagercoil and the Christian settlement near and around the Church started simultaneously due to the visionary initiative taken by Rev Chrles Mead of London Missionary Society. Immediately after having transferred the Mylaudy Mission Head Quarters from Mylaudy to Nagercoil in April 1818, Rev Mead purchased eight pieces of ground adjoining his house [situated inside the present day Women's Christian College compound] at Nagercoil to construct buildings for the Central Church, Boarding Schools, Printing Press, Orphanages, and other necessary establishments.for the Mission . Mr Mead also purchased 2 acres of land at Nagercoil near the Church [Present CSI Home Church at Nagercoil.] for settling some Christian families which he longed and planned to bring from Mylaudy and Tanjore.
The first settlers in the Christian village near the CSI Home Church [LMS] Nagercoil: Mr Mead not only brought the willing Christian families to nagercoil from Tanjore and Mylaudy[ The relatives of Maharasan Vethamonickam's family members and realives] but also he gave financial help towards the erection of their small houses near and at the present Mead Street at Nagercoil .Poor widows and other such poor people were housed fully at the Mission cost.. Thus the nucleus of a small Christian village was formed The first settlers at this newly formed small Christian village were Rev. Charles Mead's servants and a few LMS Misssion agents and boys from Mylaudy
Pioneer Settlers in and around Mead Street, Nagercoil : Mr. Charles Mead's wife Mrs Joanna Coelestina Horst Mead brought some native Christian families from Tanjore to settle at Nagercoil in1819. Rev..J.C. Kohlhoof , a brother-in-law of Mrs Joanna Mead induced many native Christian families of Tanjore to settle in South Travancore under the direct care and protection of Mrs Joanna Horst Mead. .When Rev Mead established the Printing Press and boarding school, he was in need of experienced teachers and experienced workers and as Mrs Mead was connected with the Old Danish Missionary families of Tranquebar and Tanjore Mr Mead was enabled and facilitated to bring experienced workmen and teachers to South Travancore , from Tanjore and Tranquebar regions without much difficulty.
The famous Christian Tamil poet of Tanjore Vedanaygam Sastri's cousin Arulai accompanied Mrs Joanna Mead with her husband and Arulai's husband Mr Arulanandam was appointed as catechist of Nagercoil. This couple was given a house near what is at present called Mead Street..Mrs. Arulai Arulandam's younger brother Christian who was one of the pioneer teachers at the newly established Seminary at Nagercoil was given a house near his sister Arulai's house. Because of the inducement offered by Mr. Mead there was a regular inflow of Christians from Tanjore and Tranquebar area and chief among them were Mr.Arulanandam Pillay and Mr.Christian Pillay from Tanjore , Rayen Pillay and David Pillay from Tranquebar and some others from other places also moved to Nagercoil such as Mr. Nallathambi Pillay from Palayamcottai, Mr.Gnanayutham Mudali from Vadakkankulam and Savarimuthu Pillay from Kattarapuram. The inflow of Christian emigrants from Tanjore to the newly formed Christian village at Nagercoil continued for sometime . Revd Rhenius had also given his testimony about the emigration that took place from Tanjore to Nagercoil in his diary[ CM.Agur, CHT, Madra,1903, p.682].
The people called the new street in the new Christian village at Nagercoil as Mead Street: The newly formed street at the northeast of the central LMS Church[ CSI Home Church Nagercoil] on the two acres of land bought by Rev. Charles Mead was called "Mead street" by the people Charles Mead formed this new Christian Village in tune with his egalitarian ideals and according to him Christians should not be discriminated on the basis of Indian caste system . it will be really pertinent to remember CM Agur's lines, "Under the fostering care of the Missionaries and through the help of the early Christian settlers from Tanjore who freely mixed with the Travancore Christians, the Nagercoil Mission Station grew to be an exclusively Christian village the very atmosphere was Christian. We should not, however , omit, to note this distinction, viz.,whereas in the Tanjore Mission the demon of caste played a prominent and undesirable part, in the Nagercoil and Travnacore Mission generally it was excluded by Mr. Mead and the early missionaries. Travancore Church was a model church in this respect ".[CM. Agur, CHT,Madras ,1903, pp.682-683].. We can say due to the mixing of Tanjore and Mylaudy Christians who were settled in and around the Mead street a new breed of Christians came into existence and this new breed of Christians played a deciding and crucial core role in the educational,social and religious history of Travancore, Tamil Nadu and Southeast Asia countries like Singapore and Malaysia.
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Part B.will follow soon [ Part B will deal with the Mylaudy Christians and their families who lived in Mead Street].
By P. Babu Manoharan, M.A,.[ All rights are reserved. This Article will be enlarged, modified and corrected later if needed].
Rev. Charles Mead [ Founder of Mead Street,Nagercoil].]
The formation of Protestant Christian[ LMS] settlement in Nagercoil: The construction of the LMS Home Church [Present CSI Home Church] at Nagercoil and the Christian settlement near and around the Church started simultaneously due to the visionary initiative taken by Rev Chrles Mead of London Missionary Society. Immediately after having transferred the Mylaudy Mission Head Quarters from Mylaudy to Nagercoil in April 1818, Rev Mead purchased eight pieces of ground adjoining his house [situated inside the present day Women's Christian College compound] at Nagercoil to construct buildings for the Central Church, Boarding Schools, Printing Press, Orphanages, and other necessary establishments.for the Mission . Mr Mead also purchased 2 acres of land at Nagercoil near the Church [Present CSI Home Church at Nagercoil.] for settling some Christian families which he longed and planned to bring from Mylaudy and Tanjore.
The first settlers in the Christian village near the CSI Home Church [LMS] Nagercoil: Mr Mead not only brought the willing Christian families to nagercoil from Tanjore and Mylaudy[ The relatives of Maharasan Vethamonickam's family members and realives] but also he gave financial help towards the erection of their small houses near and at the present Mead Street at Nagercoil .Poor widows and other such poor people were housed fully at the Mission cost.. Thus the nucleus of a small Christian village was formed The first settlers at this newly formed small Christian village were Rev. Charles Mead's servants and a few LMS Misssion agents and boys from Mylaudy
Pioneer Settlers in and around Mead Street, Nagercoil : Mr. Charles Mead's wife Mrs Joanna Coelestina Horst Mead brought some native Christian families from Tanjore to settle at Nagercoil in1819. Rev..J.C. Kohlhoof , a brother-in-law of Mrs Joanna Mead induced many native Christian families of Tanjore to settle in South Travancore under the direct care and protection of Mrs Joanna Horst Mead. .When Rev Mead established the Printing Press and boarding school, he was in need of experienced teachers and experienced workers and as Mrs Mead was connected with the Old Danish Missionary families of Tranquebar and Tanjore Mr Mead was enabled and facilitated to bring experienced workmen and teachers to South Travancore , from Tanjore and Tranquebar regions without much difficulty.
The famous Christian Tamil poet of Tanjore Vedanaygam Sastri's cousin Arulai accompanied Mrs Joanna Mead with her husband and Arulai's husband Mr Arulanandam was appointed as catechist of Nagercoil. This couple was given a house near what is at present called Mead Street..Mrs. Arulai Arulandam's younger brother Christian who was one of the pioneer teachers at the newly established Seminary at Nagercoil was given a house near his sister Arulai's house. Because of the inducement offered by Mr. Mead there was a regular inflow of Christians from Tanjore and Tranquebar area and chief among them were Mr.Arulanandam Pillay and Mr.Christian Pillay from Tanjore , Rayen Pillay and David Pillay from Tranquebar and some others from other places also moved to Nagercoil such as Mr. Nallathambi Pillay from Palayamcottai, Mr.Gnanayutham Mudali from Vadakkankulam and Savarimuthu Pillay from Kattarapuram. The inflow of Christian emigrants from Tanjore to the newly formed Christian village at Nagercoil continued for sometime . Revd Rhenius had also given his testimony about the emigration that took place from Tanjore to Nagercoil in his diary[ CM.Agur, CHT, Madra,1903, p.682].
The people called the new street in the new Christian village at Nagercoil as Mead Street: The newly formed street at the northeast of the central LMS Church[ CSI Home Church Nagercoil] on the two acres of land bought by Rev. Charles Mead was called "Mead street" by the people Charles Mead formed this new Christian Village in tune with his egalitarian ideals and according to him Christians should not be discriminated on the basis of Indian caste system . it will be really pertinent to remember CM Agur's lines, "Under the fostering care of the Missionaries and through the help of the early Christian settlers from Tanjore who freely mixed with the Travancore Christians, the Nagercoil Mission Station grew to be an exclusively Christian village the very atmosphere was Christian. We should not, however , omit, to note this distinction, viz.,whereas in the Tanjore Mission the demon of caste played a prominent and undesirable part, in the Nagercoil and Travnacore Mission generally it was excluded by Mr. Mead and the early missionaries. Travancore Church was a model church in this respect ".[CM. Agur, CHT,Madras ,1903, pp.682-683].. We can say due to the mixing of Tanjore and Mylaudy Christians who were settled in and around the Mead street a new breed of Christians came into existence and this new breed of Christians played a deciding and crucial core role in the educational,social and religious history of Travancore, Tamil Nadu and Southeast Asia countries like Singapore and Malaysia.
-------------------------------
Part B.will follow soon [ Part B will deal with the Mylaudy Christians and their families who lived in Mead Street].
By P. Babu Manoharan, M.A,.[ All rights are reserved. This Article will be enlarged, modified and corrected later if needed].
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