Abstract An improved synthetic procedure for the synthesis of 6-and 7-hydroxyindoles is described. In this method, the addition of two chlorine atoms in 1-benzyloxy-4, 5-dichloro-2- nitrobenzene (3) and 1-benzyloxy-2, 6-dichloro-3-nitrobenzene (9) facilitated the subsequent cyanomethylation step to give substituted cyanomethyl-dichloronitrobenzenes 4 and 10, leading to an overall increase in the yield of the hydroxyindoles 6 and 12.
