History of Mussoorie
Initially Mussoorie was constructed as a shooting lodge in 1825 when an adventurous British military officer Captain Young and Mr. Shore, the resident Superintendent of Revenues at Dehradun explored the nearby regions of the present site. Soon Mussoorie became a popular holiday resort and a hill station because of its undying charm of its beauteousness. In 1827 a sanitorium was built at Landour, which later became a large cantonment. In 1901 the population of Mussoorie was 6461 which rose to 15,000 in the summer season when the people from plains visited here in order to escape the hot and sultry conditions. The number of tourists visiting Mussoorie kept on increasing every year and thus Mussoorie became popular day by day. Previously, Mussoorie was approachable by road from Saharanpur (93 km) away. Accessibility became easier in 1900 with the railway coming to Dehradun, thus shortening the road trip to 34 km. In present date Mussoorie is very well connected by all means of transportation. Mussoorie is one of the most frequently visited hill station and holiday spot and has very few competent tourist spots. After the discovery of Musoorie, this hill station gradually developed as a centre of tourism, education, business and beauty.
The locals often refer the town as “Mansoori” rather than Mussoorie. The name Mussoorie is often attributed to a derivation of 'mansoor', a shrub which were found in abundance in the area. The locals often refer the town as Mansoori rather than Mussoorie. Mussoorie is a gateway of the Yamunotri and Gangotri shrines.
In April 1959, after fleeing Chinese occupation of Tibet, the Dalai Lama established the Tibetan Government in Exile in Mussoorie. The Government of Tibet in exile eventually moved to Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh. The first Tibetan school was established in Mussoorie in 1960. Presently around 5,000 Tibetans live in Mussoorie.
Mussoorie is suffering now from over-development of hotels and tourist lodges and has serious problems of garbage collection, water scarcity and parking shortages and particularly during the summer tourist season.
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