Research & Reconnoitre St Ann
December 18, 2009 by editor · Leave a Comment
Part of doing this project is identifying appropriate sites for exploration, further research and visual documenting. As a starting point I have been able to use the website of the Jamaica National Heritage Trust where I found a list of great houses in locations around the island. The site lists many historical and heritage sites and has helped me to focus on sites which are in the area of St Ann, which is where I have been based on this trip .
Today, we are going to take a look at three possible sites of interest to see what’s there and see whether it will be possible to do some photowork within the boundaries of the estates in which they are located.
The sites are
- Drax Hall Water wheel
- Belmont Great House
- Roaring River Great House
All three locations are in St Ann.
Post Reconnaissance Update
Drax Hall Water Wheel
Two out of three ain’t bad, we managed to stop and check out the Drax Hall Water Wheel which is a magnificent ruin. Didn’t take my SLR with me, just the small point and shoot from which I cannot download the images at present to show, however I was very pleased that I decided to persuade my guide to make the stop there. The picture on the JNHT website doesn’t do it justice.
Landovery Chimney
We also stopped prior to reaching Drax Hall at a cattle farm by Landovery. The farm manager was kind enough to allow us to view the chimney and remains of the house which was on this parcel of land, some more research is required in order to determine previous colonial estate owners and thus uncover some history about the location, the mill there and any other interesting facts.
Other Sites
Along the way passing along Highway 2000 on the way from Runaway Bay past St Ann’s Bay we drove up to Roaring River Great House, however we discovered we needed to have made an appointment with the Urban Development Corp. (UDC) in order to be allowed access to the site which is currently being developed as a heritage site/attraction much the same as Seville. We did pass another chimney by the Richmond estate, and say another water wheel by the roadside just before we got to Dunns River. These we will try to investigate more about during the next 14 days.
Seville Great House
December 16, 2009 by editor · Leave a Comment
When the English captured Jamaica in 1655 from the Spanish areas of the country were divided up amongst the captains and generals of the conquering armies. One such was the Seville Estate that was awarded to a Captain Hemmings. Prior to the Spanish, Taino peoples from South America had settlements on the area now known as Seville. The Spaniards imported Africans as slaves to work the sugar and later Copra there and the English continued this activity.
The Seville Great house was built by Hemmings grandson towards the end of the 17th century. Originally a two storey house, the top floor was blown off during a hurricane in the 19th century. The upper floor was never restored so the house as it was then remains today. Operated as a heritage park where visitors can learn about the various known inhabitants of the area, the once 3000 acre Seville estate which extended form Clayground to the sea has been divided up and what remains known as Seville Estate is now merely 300 acres, divided by the main coastal highway that runs on the northern side ot the island from Montego Bay in the west to Port Antonio in the east.
The last owners of the estate prior to it being taken over by the Government were the Hoskins family. Their family burial site can be seen here. The last remaining spot is empty as the youngest sister did not die on the island and is buried elsewhere.
At Seville Heritage Park, you can take a tour of the great house and the grounds and learn something about the past inhabitants of the area, from the Taino, through to the English. Several archaeological digs have been carried out there, revealing artifacts from the past, which demonstrated how the inhabitants lived.
There are also reconstructions of a Taino village and African house on the site as well as the ruins of some of the plantation workers most notably the overseers house and the intact structures of the copra kiln and chimney.
Recent Photos
