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The Tea Chest came into my life on a sunny Tasmanian morning. It
was Friday, January 1st 2016. I bought it off the internet. I liked the
look of it – I thought it would look good in my old Victorian house
in Launceston.
It was a standard Tea Chest, the sort commonly used for moving house
years ago. My brother-in-law, a removalist, hated these chests – they had
metal strips along the edges which often caused cuts and tears, and the
owners always filled them so full that they were too heavy to pick up. But I
liked this Tea Chest – there was large stencilled lettering on every side.The
man I bought it from, John, didn’t know much about it other than that he
had bought it in September 2015 from someone in Longford, a small town
about 15 minutes away from Launceston.
From the lettering I quickly learned that this Tea Chest came from Assam,
and it was called Bordubi. I didn’t know what that meant, or even where
Assam was, other than in India somewhere. I went back to the internet and
discovered that Assam is a region in north-eastern India where a lot of tea
comes from. And Bordubi is a tea estate there. I couldn’t find much
information, but I came across a photograph of the General Manager’s
house on the Bordubi Estate, on a website run by a lady called Shona Patel.
I e-mailed her…
Hello Shona - I've just bought an old Indian tea chest, and it is covered in writing.
It's from Bordubi, and has a number - C06047B. On one side it says It Pays To
Buy Good Tea! It has the trader's (I assume - or grower's?) name on it - George
Williamson (Assam) Ltd, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Guwahati 781001.
I did a search on Bordubi and it brought me to your website. Can you tell me
anything about Bordubi - does it still grow tea? Have you been there? What
was/is it like?
I'm intrigued. I live in Launceston, Tasmania most of the time and sometimes in
London. Or elsewhere. I've never been to India.That is high on my wishlist. In the
meantime I have a little touch of India in my living room!
Hope to hear from you soon.
And I did – Shona wrote back immediately…..
Hi there Nick,
Yes I am familiar with Bordubi Tea Estate and am friends with the current
General Manager and his wife. Bordubi is located in the Tinsukia district of
Upper Assam and makes very fine Assam Tea. It is a very beautiful tea estate.
Here is a photo of the bungalow:
Let me know how else I can assist you!
Happy New Year!
Bordubi C06047B
~ Nick Flittner
Launceton, Tasmania, Australia
18 July 2016
Nick Flittner comes from a long line
of farmers from Cornwall, England,
dating back to the 1600s. He had a
small farm in Tasmania until a few
years ago and worked for the
Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers
Association from 2007-2010 as their
Drought and Climate Change
Manager. He is currently managing a
project at the University of Tasmania
to encourage more people from rural
areas to go to university. He is a
writer and a poet and would love to
visit India , and Bordubi, one day.
Bordubi Tea & Chest Reunited