Chimnabai Clock Tower
building in Vadodara, Gujarat, India
The Chimnabai Clock Tower, also known as the Raopura Tower, is a clock tower situated in the Raopura area of Vadodara, Gujarat, India. It was completed in 1896 and named in memory of Chimnabai I (1864–1885), a queen and the first wife of Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Baroda State. It was built in Indo-Saracenic architecture style.
History
Chimnabai Clock Tower was built in 1896. The tower was named after Chimnabai I (1864–1885), a queen and the first wife of Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Baroda State. It was inaugurated by Mir Kamaluddin Hussainkhan, the last Nawab of Baroda. During the rule of Gaekwad, it was a stoppage for horse-drawn trams. The clock tower was erected at the cost of ₹25,000 (equivalent to ₹9.3 million or US$96,000 in 2023). It was constructed from the funds raised by the citizens of Baroda State.
The premises of the tower were rented by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation for the last three decades.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Chimnabai Clock Tower” as building in Vadodara, Gujarat, India. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as building in Vadodara, Gujarat, India. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q119821738. Authority coordinates are 22.304, 73.201. None of the 2 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1896, 1864, 1885 and 2023.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Chimnabai Clock Tower”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Chimnabai Clock Tower primary sources, Chimnabai Clock Tower archive and Chimnabai research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Chimnabai Clock Tower”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Chimnabai Clock Tower” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.