Patuakhali 4.79

Patuakhali is a town located on the southern bank of Laukathi river in the division of Barisal in Bangladesh. It is the administrative headquarter of Patuakhali district and one of the oldest towns and municipalities in the country. Patuakhali municipality was established in 1892. The town covers an area of 27.03 km² with a population of 65,000 according to 2011 census.HistoryHistorically, Patuakhali was part of Chandradwip kingdom in the fourteenth century. The present town was then full of jungle and along the river-side a small market used to meet once a week. During British rule in Bengal, the land of Patuakhali town was owned by a landlord family. A civil court with a Judge was set up in 1868 and Patuakhali was established a subdivision of then Barisal District in 1871. On the northern bank of the river, in the village Laukathi, were the tahsil cutcheries of the principal landlords of the subdivision. With the influx of population from the districts of Dhaka, Faridpur and Barisal a good market, a middle English school and a charitable dispensary were gradually established and trading firms opened up business. The high school and the Begum Hospital were probably the most important public institution in the town that time. The high school was established in 1887 and a hostel attached to the school in 1904. The hospital was established in 1872, and was provided with a new building in 1904, the entire cost being borne by the late Nawab Sir Khwaja Ahsanullah Bahadur of Dacca. The hospital is called the Begum Hospital after the Nawab's wife. Rice, firewood, coarse cloth made by the local weavers and hogla mats were the chief items of trade. A hosiery factory was established in 1911-12.