HISTORY OF ANTIGUA
The first inhabitants of Antigua were the Simony (“stone people”) dating back to at least 2400 BC. Next came the Arawaks who I already mentioned in my post about St. Maarten, and finally they were displaced by the cannibalistic Carib Indians. However, the Caribs apparently did not settle on Antigua or nearby Barbuda.
On Columbus’ second voyage in 1493, he arrived in Antigua, naming it after the Church of Santa Maria de la Antigua in Seville. In 1632, the English who were living on nearby St. Kitts, established a settlement, the first of it’s kind from Europe. The island remained under British rule until 1967, except for a brief occupation by the French.
Like other islands in the Lesser Antilles chain, Antigua was used as a sugar plantation with slaves imported from African countries. Slavery was abolished in 1838. Tobacco was the initial crop but sugar was more profitable.
Sugar was immensely valuable to Europe so the British located their fleet headquarters at the Dockyard in English Harbor during the 1700’s and 1800’s. Lord Nelson was the senior officer stationed there, and thus this dockyard and harbor are known today as Nelson’s Dockyard.
In 1967, Antigua was granted status of Associated Statehood with Britain and later became an independent country with Barbuda in 1981.
GEORGAPHY
The island has an area of 108 square miles and is mostly low except in the west where volcanic rocks rise to 1330 feet and form Boggy Peak. The absence of mountains and forests distinguish Antigua from other Leeward Islands. There are no rivers and few springs, making the island dry and subject to droughts, despite an average rainfall of about 40 inches. The people store a lot of this rainfall in cisterns to provide water for their uses after boiling. The capital city is Saint John’s. The population of the island is about 89,000.
ECONOMY
Agriculture used to be the main industry, but this has been supplanted by tourism. Sugar was the main crop but now it is only grown to produce rum for local consumption. Derelict windmills can be seen around the island. Fruits and vegetables, including citrus fruits, mangoes, eggplants, are now cultivated. Manufacturing is limited and consists of processing agricultural products and making clothing and textiles and concrete blocks.
OUR DAY ON ANTIGUA
Exiting the ship in the morning, you encounter a most unpleasant line of taxi and tour people, all trying to get your business for an island tour. We pushed beyond these aggressive types and walked towards town. Eventually, I found a taxi driver named Lennon Charles who was willing to negotiate a fair price for an island tour. I believe we paid him about $10 US/pp for a tour of about 4 hours. He took us over to see Nelson’s Dockyard, and showed us how to pick up the seedpods of the Poinciana tree. He calls these pods “shock shock” because of the sound they make. Leonard showed us the highest point on the island and some beautiful harbors and beaches, should we wish to come and stay at a future time. He also drove by his wife and children who were just getting out of school.
Contact Information for Lennon Charles is:
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| Earline on Antigua |
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| Ron & Nancy on Antigua |
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| Old Sugar Mill |
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| Nelson's Dockyard |
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| One of many beaches on Antigua |
After our tour, we returned to the ship to get ready for dinner. It was about dinnertime that the ships began to rock and roll from the high winds. Even with such a large ship, you could feel the side-to-side motion. It was severe enough that one serving cart became a rolling missile. The production show “Cool Art, Hot Ice” was cancelled.
We retired early as the ship headed for Saint Lucia.
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