St. Andrew's Church ( C.N.I ) — Attraction in Kolkata

St Andrew's Church also known as the Kirk is the only Scottish church in Kolkata and was opened to the public only on March 8, 1818. The foundation stone was laid on November 30, 1815 by Marquis of  Hastings. The Countess of Moira and the Countess of  Loudon attended the stone laying ceremony. In 1835, the clock fitted to the tower. It was designed by M/s Burn, Currie & Co. It was also known as "laat sahib ka girja" (the church of the Governor). Probably the name derived from the fact that the foundation stone was laid by the wife of the Governor General, Marquis of Hastings. St Andrew's Church was built just at the site of Old Court House which was demolished in 1792. The street just in front of the St Andrew's Church is known as the Old Court House Street.There was a story about the spire of the church. The first Bishop of Calcutta did not allow the erection of the spire, as he thought that only the Church of England had the authority to allow the construction of such church. Reverend Bryce, the priest of the church heard this he declared that he would not only have a steeple higher than the Cathedral Church of St John's but would also place on the top of it a cock to crow over the bishop. Bishop was deeply mortified. Later on Government declared that the entire building might be repaired by the public works department except the bird as it was a little bit controversial. The bird is...

A beautiful church of early eighteen hundreds has a white facade with an inspiring spire. The church is located in a major junction of the city adjacent to the 'Writers Building'. It has imposing pillars at the entrance - both in the front and the backsides. Church offices are located at the entrance. The church has an elevated pulpit and a semi circular seating arrangement built using classic ebony wood. The pew chairs have woven seats. It has a semicircular balcony for patrons. Its walls bear a number of plaques and plates of marble and stone put up for dedication and remembrance. One such plaque has been put up by Calcutta Police on the first Police Commemoration Day. It has lots of stories to tell for the coming...

From Prosenjit Das Gupta's "10 Walks in Calcutta" (HarperCollins, 2000): St Andrew's Kirk, built in 1818, is also the site of the old court house (initially the mayor's court) of the East India Company. It was here that until the 1790s sat the bench of the Supreme Court. The road which runs due south in front of the Kirk is therefore commonly called the Old Court House Street to this day.

St Andrew's is much smaller than St John's, but boasts a higher steeple, a fine colonnaded entrance in the Doric style with a wide portico at the rear. Inside can be seen a magnificent organ and a beautiful carved pulpit. Along the wall are memorial tablets to the clergy, soldiers and the gentry since the...