James and Mary Sands
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
James and Mary Sands
A dangerous shoal in the Hooghly river, Bengal, situated in 22degree 14' N. and 88° 5' E., between the confluence of the Damodar and Rupnarayan rivers with the Hooghly. The sands are 3 miles long and a third of a mile in width. They are so named from the wreck of the ship Royal James and Mary which took place on these sands in 1694. The sands occupy the centre of the river, leaving channels on either side, known as the Eastern and Western Gut ; they are probably due to the diminution of the velocity of the current of the main channel, caused by the water of the Rupnarayan entering the Hooghly nearly at right angles. Various schemes have been suggested for evading this dangerous shoal ; and it has more than once been proposed to dig a short canal at the back of Hooghly Point so as to avoid the sands, or to construct ship canals from the docks to Diamond Harbour or to Canning on the Matla river. The problem was examined in 1865 and again in 1895 by experts, both of whom suggested the construction of walls to train the channel into the Western Gut. Neither proposal has been adopted by the Port Commissioners, who are at present considering another scheme to improve the existing channels by dredging.
