Chennai, Aug 19 (IANS): The US Consulate General, Chennai launched its Madras Week celebrations with a virtual tour titled "America in Chennai" - Sites, Streets, Structures.
This was organized by the United States-India Educational Foundation (USIEF) in collaboration with the University of Madras.
US Consul General in Chennai Judith Ravin joined Indian Fulbright-Nehru alumnus Prof Suresh Sethuraman on the virtual tour.
The Fulbright Program, the US State Department's flagship international exchange program is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year.
In her remarks, Ravin said: "Today, we not only celebrate the Fulbright Program's 75th anniversary but also the founding day of the city called Madras, which is now Chennai. I would like to remind everyone that American Center Chennai, housed inside the US Consulate building, has a special corner dedicated to the city's famed historian, S. Muthiah, one of the founders of Madras Day."
During his lecture, Prof Suresh Sethuraman, an archaeologist and architectural historian, shared unusual and fascinating facts about Chennai's historic links to America.
He said "Chennai boasts of several sites, streets, and structures that have strong America connections - the St. Mary's church within Fort St. George where Elihu Yale of Yale University fame got married in 1680, the Ice House on Kamarajar Salai where ice from Massachusetts was stored in the nineteenth century, the YMCA building opposite the Madras High Court built with financial aid from the US."
He said that information about these connections is available in archival records in the United States and in Chennai and added that this was a good occasion to recall and celebrate these little known links.
He said that the local government authorities and the owners/custodians of these structures/sites could consider putting up appropriate signages highlighting these unique historic connections for the benefit of local citizens, researchers and tourists.
The US Consulate General Office said that on August 25, USIEF, in collaboration with the US Consulate General Chennai will present a virtual panel discussion: Gana, Koothu, Cutcheri: How Chennai Rolls as a UNESCO Creative City to continue its 75th-anniversary celebration of the Fulbright program worldwide and to mark the occasion of Madras Week.
The webinar with eminent women from the cultural field will discuss what makes Chennai a creative city, with a look at the history of Chennai's diverse music traditions, as well as what it means to be recognised as a UNESCO Creative City for citizens, musicians and policymakers.