Gass Forest Museum is a government run natural history museum situated at

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...

, Tamil Nadu, India.

History

Toward the end of the 19th century, an aborted attempt was made by J. A. Gamble, the conservator of forests for

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including the ...

, to establish a forest museum in the province. A few years later in 1902, Gamble's successor as Conservator of Forests Horace Arichibald Gass succeeded in establishing a museum for forestry. It was opened to the public 15 April 1902 by Baron Ampthill, the then Governor of Madras, at that point simply referred to as the Forest Museum at Coimbatore. When Gass, the first curator, retired in 1905, his successor F. A. Lodge renamed the museum in his honor. It was expanded in 1905 and 1915. In 1912, the Madras Forestry College (currently the

Tamil Nadu Forest Academy Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

) was established in the museum grounds to train foresters. During 1942–47, the museum was closed and the buildings used as shelters for World War II evacuees from Malta and Greece. After Indian Independence in 1947, the museum came under the administration Government of Tamil Nadu. It is currently run by the

Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding (IFGTB) is a Forestry Research institute situated in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu. It works under the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) of the Ministry of Environment, Forest a ...

(IFGTB), which is situated in the same campus. The museum was reopened for public on 1 May 2015 after carrying out renovation works. A 3D diorama depicting wildlife in its natural habitat has been added.

Location

The museum is situated in the Forest College Campus, situated on Cowley Brown Road in the heart of Coimbatore city. The campus also houses other institutions like the Tamil Nadu Forest AcademyTamil Nadu Forest Academy
/ref> (TNFA), the Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Central Academy for State Forest Service (CASFoS) and other offices of the Tamil Nadu Forest Department.

Gallery

Some of the specimens kept in this museum: File:Gauss museum-Gaur.jpg, Stuffed Gaur (Indian Bison) presented by jayachamaraja wodeyar, Mysore File:Gauss museum-Chinkara.jpg, Stuffed Chinkara (Indian gazelle) File:Leopard at Gass Forest Museum, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.jpg, A stuffed leopard File:Peacock-Gauss museum.jpg, Stuffed peacock and peahen File:Elephant-foetus1 Gass museum.jpg, Elephant foetus (gifted by renowned 'elephant doctor' V. Krishnamurthy) File:Sandal tree trunk-Gauss museum.jpg, Seasoned trunk of a sandal wood tree File:Neer kadambai-Gass museum.jpg, Seasoned specimen of neer kadambai (நீர்க்கடம்பை) tree trunk

References

{{authority control Natural history museums in India Museums in Tamil Nadu Tourist attractions in Coimbatore Museums established in 1902 Forestry museums in India Buildings and structures in Coimbatore Museums in Coimbatore Science museums in India Forest museums