page_title: History of Mumbai
section_title: City development
hierarchical_section_title: History of Mumbai / British period / City development
caption_attribution_description: English: Colaba Causeway construction using timber, viewed from Colaba island, 1826
context_page_description: Human habitation of Mumbai existed since the Stone Age, the Kolis and Aagri were the earliest known settlers of the islands. The Maurya Empire gained control of the islands during the 3rd century BCE and transformed it into a centre of Buddhist culture and religion. Later, between the 2nd century BCE and 9th century CE, the islands came under the control of successive indigenous dynasties: Satavahanas, Abhiras, Vakatakas, Kalachuris, Konkan Mauryas, Chalukyas and Rashtrakutas, before being ruled by the Silharas from 810 to 1260.
  King Bhimdev established his kingdom in the region in the late 13th century, and brought many settlers to the islands. The Muslim rulers of Gujarat captured the islands in 1348, and they were later governed by the Gujarat Sultanate from 1391 to 1534. The Treaty of Bassein between the Portuguese viceroy Nuno da Cunha and Bahadur Shah of the Gujarat Sultanate placed the islands into Portuguese possession in 1534.
  The islands suffered incursions from Mughals towards the end of the 17th century. During the mid-18th century, the city emerged as an important trading town, with maritime trade contacts with Mecca and Basra.
context_section_description: The educational and economic progress of the city began with the Company's military successes in the Deccan. The Wellington Pier (Apollo Bunder) in the north of Colaba was opened for passenger traffic in 1819 and the Elphinstone High School was established in 1822. Bombay was hit by a drought in 1824. The construction of the new mint commenced in 1825. With the construction of a good carriage road up the Bhor Ghat during the regimes of Mountstuart Elphinstone and Sir John Malcolm gave better access from Bombay to the Deccan. This road, which was opened on 10 November 1830, facilitated trade in a large measure. By 1830, regular communication with England started by steamers navigating the Red and Mediterranean Sea. In July 1832, the Parsi riots took place in consequence of a Government order for the destruction of pariah dogs which infested the city. The Asiatic Society of Bombay (Town Hall) was completed in 1833, and the Elphinstone College was built in 1835. In 1836, the Chamber of Commerce was established.
  In 1838, the islands of Colaba and Little Colaba were connected to Bombay by the Colaba Causeway. In the same year, monthly communication was established between Bombay and London. The Bank of Bombay, the oldest bank in the city, was established in 1840, and the Bank of Western India in 1842. The Cotton Exchange was established in Cotton Green in 1844. Avabai Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy funded the construction of the Mahim Causeway, to connect Mahim to Bandra and the work was completed in 1845. The Commercial Bank of India, established in 1845, issued exotic notes with an interblend of Western and Eastern Motifs. On 3 November 1845, the Grant Medical College and hospital, the third in the country, was founded by Governor Robert Grant. The earliest riots occurred at Mahim in 1850, in consequence of a dispute between two rival factions of Khojas. Riots broke out between Muslims and Parsis in October 1851, in consequence of an article on Muhammad which appeared in the Chitra Gnyan Darpan newspaper. The first political organization of the Bombay Presidency, the Bombay Association, was started on 26 August 1852, to vent public grievances to the British. The first-ever Indian railway line began operations between Bombay and neighbouring Thane over a distance of 21 miles on 16 April 1853. The Bombay Spinning and Weaving Company was the first cotton mill to be established in the city on 7 July 1854 at Tardeo in Central Bombay. The Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway (BB&CI) was incorporated in 1855.
  The University of Bombay was the first modern institution of higher education to be established in India in 1857. The Commercial Bank, the Chartered Mercantile, the Agra and United Service, the Chartered and the Central Bank of Western India were established in Bombay attracting a considerable industrial population. The outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 increased the demand for cotton in the West, and led to an enormous increase in cotton-trade. The Victoria Gardens was opened to the public in 1862. The Bombay Shipping and Iron Shipping Companies were started in 1863 to make Bombay merchants independent of the English. The Bombay Coast and River Steam Navigation Company was established in 1866 for the maintenance of steam ferries between Bombay and the nearby islands; while the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 revolutionized the marine trade of Bombay. The Bombay Municipal Corporation was established in 1872, providing a modern framework of governance for the rapidly growing city. The Bombay Port Trust was promulgated in 1870 for the development and administration of the port. Tramway communication was instituted in 1873. The Bombay Electric Supply and Transport (BEST), originally set up as a tramway company: Bombay Tramway Company Limited, was established in 1873. Violent Parsi-Muslim riots again broke out in February 1874, which were caused by an article on Muhammad published by a Parsi resident. The Bombay Gymkhana was formed in 1875. The Bombay Stock Exchange, the oldest stock exchange in Asia, was established in 187
caption: Colaba Causeway construction using timber, view from Colaba (c. 1826)
exif: {}