Kanigiri Town
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.
Kanigiri Town
Head-quarters of the taluk of the same name in Nellore District, Madras, situated in 15 degree 25' N. and 79 degree 31' E. Population (1901), 5,528. The town has a large market, to which cotton goods and iron are imported from Madras, chillies and tobacco from Kistna, and sundry articles from the Ceded Districts. Spinning instruments, razors, and scissors are manufactured and largely exported : the slippers made here are considered superior to those in other parts of the District ; and the granite of the Kanigiri hill supplies excellent building stone. This hill rises to a considerable height on the north of the town, forming a feature in the landscape for many miles round. On it is a rugged table-land about a square mile in area, where a town is said to have once stood. It is supposed to have been fortified by one of the Gajapatis of Orissa and designated Kanakagiri Vijaya- martanda Durgam, combining the name of the hill with that of the deity to whom a temple on it was dedicated. The remains of some of the defences still stand. The place was taken in the sixteenth century by Krishna Deva of Vijayanagar, and played a conspicuous part in local feuds until it was destroyed by Haidar All.
