Culture and history · Dow Hill
Victoria School and the 1879 ridge
See from the road the boarding school that Sir Ashley Eden founded in 1879, and read the hill as a piece of colonial social history: schools built for clerks' and railwaymen's children, not only for the rich.
Many hill schools in India were founded for the children of the wealthy. Victoria School was different in intent. In 1879 Sir Ashley Eden, Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, wanted a school in the hills for the children of government servants of modest income, many of them Anglo-Indian families working on the railways, the telegraphs and in the offices of Calcutta.
The school was built on Dow Hill, in the forest above Kurseong, where the climate was thought healthier than the plains. A girls' school followed on the same ridge. Over the next century both became well-known boarding schools, and they still are.
Stand at the public road and look at the stone blocks and the chapel through the trees. It is a short stop, best combined with the forest walk or the drive to Chimney.
Cost: Free
Questions people ask
Good to know
When was Victoria Boys' School founded?
In 1879, at the wish of Sir Ashley Eden, then Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal. It was meant for the children of government servants of modest income. It is still a working boarding school on Dow Hill, run by the state, and is not open to casual visitors.
Can tourists go inside Victoria Boys' School?
No, not without permission. It is a working boarding school, and the campus is private. You can see the buildings from the public road. Please do not photograph students or try to enter the grounds.
How far is Victoria Boys' School from Kurseong?
It is about 4–5 km from Kurseong bazaar up the Dow Hill road, 1–1.5 hours on foot or 15 minutes by car. A Kurseong taxi costs about ₹400–600 one way. The road carries on to Dow Hill School and then Chimney.
Also in Dow Hill
More things to do
Treks and walks · 3 hoursWalk the Dow Hill forest roadDow Hill · Free · ₹400–600 for a car back
Culture and history · 2 hoursDow Hill ghost lore by daylightDow Hill · ₹800–1,200 for a car with a local driver
Wildlife and birds · 2.5 hoursDawn birding in the Dow Hill forestDow Hill · Free · guide ₹800–1,200