 Earl of Minto, the then Viceroy and Governor General of India laid the foundation on 12 December 1909.The Municipal Corporation of Madras, after functioning from several other places including Errabalu Chetty Street, settled at Ripon building in 1913, with P. L. Moore as the President of the Municipal Corporation at the time of the inauguration.The inaugural function was attended by over 3,000 of the city's elite.