HymanGumm776 at 13:51, 13 November 2025

2025-11-13T13:51:13Z

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{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=August 2017}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Cooke Town
| other_name =
| settlement_type = Neighbourhood
| image_skyline =
| image_alt =
| image_caption =
| nickname =
| image_map =
| map_alt =
| map_caption =
| pushpin_map = India Bangalore
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_map_alt =
| pushpin_map_caption =
| coordinates = {{coord|13.002557|N|77.6186101|E|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = India
| subdivision_type1 =
| subdivision_name1 =
| subdivision_type2 =
| subdivision_name2 =
| subdivision_type3 = City
| subdivision_name3 = [[Bangalore Cantonment]]
| established_title = Established
| established_date =
| founder =
| named_for =
| government_type =
| governing_body = [[Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike|BBMP]]
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes =
| area_rank =
| area_total_km2 =
| elevation_footnotes =
| elevation_m =
| population_total =
| population_as_of =
| population_rank =
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_demonym =
| population_note =
| demographics_type1 = Languages
| demographics1_title1 = Official
| demographics1_info1 = Kannada
| demographics1_title2 = Spoken
| demographics1_info2 = Kannada, English, Tamil
| timezone1 = [[Indian Standard Time|IST]]
| utc_offset1 = +5:30
| postal_code_type = [[Postal Index Number|PIN]]
| postal_code = 560005
| registration_plate =
| blank1_name_sec1 = [[Lok Sabha]] Constituency
| blank1_info_sec1 = Bangalore Central
| blank2_name_sec1 = [[Vidhan Sabha]] Constituency
| blank2_info_sec1 = Jayamahal
| blank3_name_sec1 = Original Planning Agency
| blank3_info_sec1 = Bangalore Civil & Military Station Municipal Commission
| blank4_name_sec1 = Established
| blank4_info_sec1 = 1900
| website =
| footnotes =
}}

'''Cooke Town''' is a neighbourhood in [[Bangalore Cantonment]], in [[Bangalore]] Central, India. Built as a suburb before [[Partition of India|Indian Independence]], it is one of Bangalore's oldest neighbourhoods, established when the Bangalore Civil and Military Station was governed by the [[Madras Presidency|Madras Government]]. Cooke Town is named after G H Cooke, President of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station Municipality between 1928 and 1934, with the Mayo Hall being constructed during his tenure. The suburb, along with other suburbs of the Bangalore Cantonment such as [[Fraser Town, Bangalore|Pulakeshi Nagara]], [[Cox Town, Bangalore|Sarvagnanagara]], [[Richmond Town|Sir Mirza Ismail Nagara]], and Langford Town, has seen dynamic changes over last few years with large [[British Raj]] era bungalows being demolished to build luxury apartments. These developments have resulted in large-scale tree-felling. However, Cooke Town still manages to retain some of its colonial charm, and is called the nicest place in the Cantonment by Bangalore historian Peter Colaco.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Bangalore - A Century of Tales from City Cantonment|last=Colaco|first=Peter|publisher=Media Books|year=2003}}</ref> Cooke Town is a posh neighbourhood with plenty of greenery, parks, educational institutions, hospitals and is at close proximity to the [[Bangalore East Railway Station]] in the [[Bangalore Central Business District|Bangalore CBD]]. According to [[Colliers International]], Cooke Town is one of Bangalore's most costliest neighbourhoods, with the cost of property being in the range to INR 90000-95000 per sq.ft (in January 2026), just slightly lesser than the Bangalore CBD.<ref name=Aliyeh4>{{cite news|last1=Aliyeh|first1=Rizvi|title=Resident Rendezvoyeur: What's in a name?|url=https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/columns/others/Resident-Rendezvoyeur-Whats-in-a-name/articleshow/48319737.cms|access-date=11 August 2015|agency=Bangalore Mirror Bureau|issue=Bangalore|publisher=Bangalore Mirror|date=2 August 2015}}</ref><ref name=Nair>{{cite news|last1=Nair|first1=Anita|title=In many ways, Bangalore still retains its old-world charm|url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-03-13/news/60086025_1_bengaluru-bengalurean-old-world-charm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150321005545/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-03-13/news/60086025_1_bengaluru-bengalurean-old-world-charm|url-status=dead|archive-date=21 March 2015|access-date=8 November 2015|agency=ET Bureau|issue=Bangalore|publisher=Economic Times|date=13 March 2015}}</ref><ref name=Apurva-Mirror>{{cite news|last1=Venkat|first1=Apurva|title=Skywalks will push up housing projects near highways: Colliers|url=https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/Skywalks-will-push-up-housing-projects-near-highways-Colliers/articleshow/47871035.cms|access-date=8 November 2015|agency=Bangalore Mirror Bureau|issue=Bangalore|publisher=Bangalore Mirror|date=30 June 2015}}</ref><ref name=PropertyWala>{{cite web|title=Cooke Town, Bangalore|url=http://www.propertywala.com/cooke_town_bangalore|website=Property Wala|access-date=8 November 2015|date=2015}}</ref>

==G. H. Cooke==
G. H. Cooke, Esq., MC, ICS served as the Collector and President of the Bangalore Civil and Military Station Municipal Commission from 1928 to 1934.<ref name=Harshitha-Cox>{{cite web|last1=Harshitha|first1=Samyuktha|title=The forgotten leaders of Bangalore|url=http://ramubangalore.blogspot.com.au/2013/08/the-forgotten-leaders-of-bangalore.html|website=Suttha Muttha|access-date=8 November 2015|date=6 August 2013}}</ref> He was also the president of the [[Bangalore Club]] between 1931-1933.<ref name=Club>{{cite web|title=Past Presidents|url=https://www.bangaloreclub.com/index.php?page=static&pageid=2&subid=6|website=Bangalore Club|access-date=8 November 2015|date=2011}}</ref> Cooke was also among the 'Fellowship of Baldwins', who supported the [[Baldwin Boys' High School]].<ref name=Weston>{{cite book|last1=Weston|first1=C N|title=Baldwin Boys' High School, Retrospect & Prospect 1947|date=1947|location=Bangalore}}</ref><ref name=Johnson>{{cite web|last1=Johnson|first1=Ronnie|title=Baldwin Boy's High School (Referred to earlier as the Episcopal Methodist School)|url=http://www.children-of-bangalore.com/baldwin.htm|website=Children of Bangalore|access-date=8 November 2015|date=1999|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319152117/http://www.children-of-bangalore.com/baldwin.htm|archive-date=19 March 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=Mythic>{{cite journal|title=Bangalore Cantonment|journal=The Quarterly Journal of the Mythic Society|date=2004|volume=95|page=78|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MQJuAAAAMAAJ&q=G+H+Cooke+bangalore|access-date=8 November 2015|publisher=Mythic Society|location=Bangalore, India}}</ref> In 1933, G. H. Cooke served as the Inspector of Schools, for Bangalore and Coorg.<ref name=Bageshree>{{cite news|last1=Bageshree|first1=S|title=A historic school in a state of decay|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/a-historic-school-in-a-state-of-decay/article2789206.ece|access-date=8 November 2015|issue=Bangalore|work=The Hindu|date=10 January 2012}}</ref>

==Location==
[[File:Aerial.view.of.cooke.town.jpg|thumb|Houses in Cooke Town]]
Cooke Town is surrounded by the neighbourhoods of [[Fraser Town, Bangalore|Pulakeshi Nagara]], [[Cox Town, Bangalore|Sarvagnanagara]], Pottery Town, Richards Town, and Kadamba Nagara, which are similar in that they were all pre-independence parts of the erstwhile [[Bangalore Cantonment|Bangalore Civil and Military Station]] of the [[Madras Presidency]]. The townscape being easily distinguishable from that of the [[Bengaluru Pete|Bangalore Pete]] and South and West Bangalore, which was under the erstwhile [[Kingdom of Mysore|Mysore State]].

==People and culture==
The [[Bangalore Cantonment]] has a large [[Tamil People|Tamil]] population. They trace their ancestry to the large number of Tamil soldiers, suppliers and workers who were brought into the Bangalore Civil and Military Station, by the British Army, after the [[Siege of Seringapatam (1799)|fall of Tippu Sultan]].<ref name=Dasharathi>{{cite web|last1=Dasharathi|first1=Poornima|title=Cantonment: colonial past, multicultural present|url=http://bangalore.citizenmatters.in/articles/295-bangalore-cantonment|publisher=Citizen Matters|access-date=23 December 2014|date=23 July 2008}}</ref><ref name=Srivatsa>{{cite news|last1=Srivatsa|first1=Sharath S|title=Bangalore calling: it all goes way back…|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article1939954.ece|access-date=3 January 2015|issue=Bangalore|work=The Hindu|date=31 October 2007}}</ref><ref name=Arul>{{cite web|last1=Steve|first1=Arul|title=Specialization On Social And Cultural Indifference Among Kgf Tamil Migrants|url=https://arulsteve736.wordpress.com/2013/04/17/specialization-on-social-and-cultural-indifference-among-kgf-tamil-migrants/|publisher=Word Press|access-date=4 January 2015|date=17 April 2013}}</ref><ref name=Aliyeh3>{{cite web|last1=Rizvi|first1=Aliyeh|title=Greet.Meat.Eat.|url=https://aturquoisecloud.wordpress.com/2013/07/18/greet-meat-eat/|website=A Turquoise Cloud|publisher=Word Press|access-date=4 January 2015|date=18 July 2013}}</ref><ref name=Aam>{{cite web|last1=Aam AdMo|title=Right to be a Minority institution (and make majority profits)|url=https://aamadmo.wordpress.com/2012/07/07/right-to-be-a-minority-institution-and-make-majority-profits/|publisher=Word Press|access-date=4 January 2015|date=7 July 2012}}</ref><ref name=Harshitha2>{{cite web|last1=Harshitha|first1=Samyuktha|title=The Mootocherry of Bangalore|url=http://ramubangalore.blogspot.com.au/2013/06/the-mootocherry-of-bangalore.html|website=Suttha Muttha|publisher=Blogspot.com.au|access-date=4 January 2015|date=1 June 2013}}</ref> Cooke Town is also home to expats, foreign students from the [[Middle East]] and Africa. The suburb is home to Pentecostal Churches, and also includes a [[Koreans|Korean]] [[Jehovah’s Witnesses]] congregation. A wide range of cuisines such as [[French cuisine|French]], [[Vietnamese cuisine|Vietnamese]], [[Lebanese cuisine|Lebanese]], [[Syrian cuisine|Syrian]], etc. are available in Cooke Town<ref name=Achal /> A study by [[Colliers International]] indicated that Cooke Town was the second costliest suburb in Bangalore, with an average apartment with 3 bedrooms (3BHK), costing between INR 30-60 million (USD 450,000 to 1 million).<ref name=Apurva-Mirror />

==Landmarks==

===Bangalore Pork Shop===
The Bangalore Pork Shop is one of the Bangalore Cantonment's oldest establishment, and is located on Hutchin's Road. Its branch called the 'Bangalore Ham Shop' at [[M G Road, Bangalore|M G Road]] at the [[Bangalore Central Business District|Bangalore CBD]] was established in 1928.<ref name=Achal>{{cite news|last1=Prabhala|first1=Achal|title=Local Geography: Cooke's corner|url=http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/pbCf3VUjduFWAA4VSMAlNL/Local-Geography--Cookes-corner.html|access-date=8 November 2015|publisher=Live Mint|date=13 April 2013}}</ref>

===Milton Street Park===
The Milton Street Park is located in Cooke Town. The Park is now being improved by the efforts of the Residents Welfare Association of Bangalore East (REWABE). Till a few years back, the park was badly maintained and used by miscreants for illegal activities. Repeated complaints to civic authorities, the local corporator and MLA did not yield any results. Finally, the Residents Welfare Association of Bangalore East (REWABE) took matters into their own hands, and raised funds by auctioning paintings by local children, which was used for improving the park. The Hand-in-Hand Flea Market held regularly at the park to raise funds has gained popularity in the city of Bangalore and gives the residents a platform to showcase and sell their handmade products, arts, crafts and homemade food.<ref name=Patel>{{cite news|last1=Patel|first1=Bharat A|title=The art of maintaining a park|url=https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/bangalore/others/The-art-of-maintaining-a-park/articleshow/46899840.cms|access-date=8 November 2015|agency=Bangalore Mirror Bureau|issue=Bangalore|publisher=Bangalore Mirror|date=13 April 2015}}</ref>

===Ascension Church===
The Ascension Church, located in Dacosta Layout, in Cooke Town, was established in 1966. Cardinal Lourdusamy and Archbishop Arokiaswamy helped build the present church, which was inaugurated on 21 December 1973. The church offers [[Mass (Catholic Church)|Mass]] services in English, [[Kannada]] and [[Tamil Language|Tamil]].<ref name=Ascension>{{cite web|title=Welcome to Ascension Parish|url=http://www.ascensionparish.in/content/welcome-ascension-parish|website=Ascension Parish|access-date=8 November 2015|date=2014}}{{Dead link|date=July 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

===Masjid-e-Munawara===
The Masjid-e-Munawara mosque is located on Hutchin's Road at Cooke Town. The mosque has a large multi-storey commercial complex. Attached to the mosque is the Centre for Islamic Studies consisting of an Islamic Library. The centre hosts debates on comparative religion.

===Banaswadi Railway Station===

===Fleetwood===

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Cantonments of British India]]
[[Category:Bangalore Civil and Military Station]]
[[Category:Neighbourhoods in Central Bengaluru]]

Cooke Town - Revision history

HymanGumm776 at 13:51, 13 November 2025