Monegar Choultry

In the 18th century, there were constant wars between the British and the Nawabs of Mysore, resulting in destruction of property and lives and eventually a famine in Madras. In 1782, a village headman, locally known as a 'maniakarar', established a gruel centre in his garden in Royapuram off Broadway. Soon after the war, the centre became a choultry for the sick and poor people. During the 1782 Anglo-Mysore War, the government ordered that all buildings within a proximity of the Black Town Wall be destroyed. However, the choultry was exempted from this order. In 1807, the government made a substantial donation as more people started coming to the choultry. The Nawab of Arcot also donated a huge sum to the choultry.^[1]

A hospital was constructed within the premises of the choultry in 1799 by John Underwood, an assistant surgeon with the company. In 1801, the hospital was combined with the 'Native Hospital and Poor Fund' in the choultry. The building was rented by the Famine Relief Committee which conducted a charity for the 'sick and the poor' along with St. Mary's Church. The Government of Madras took over the affairs of the choultry from the Committee in 1808. The Native Hospital and the choultry's land were taken over by the government in 1910 and was renamed Royapuram Hospital, while the choultry was shifted to the premises of the nearby Rajah of Venkatagiri Choultry where additional rooms were built. The hospital later become the Stanley Hospital.^[1]

According to records published in the book The First Native Voice of Madras, released by author B. Jagannath, Sidloo Chetty and his son Gazulu Lakshminarasu Chetty were native board members along with Captain Christopher Biden, European member, in 1848.^{[citation needed]}