Trelawny Parish, Jamaica

Trelawny is a parish located on the northwest section of Jamaica in the county of Cornwall. Its capital is Falmouth. It is bordered by Saint Ann in the east, Saint James in the west, and Saint Elizabeth and Manchester in the south. This was where the opening ceremony for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 was held.

History

In 1770, the wealthy planters in St James and St Ann succeeded in having sections of those parishes become the parish of Trelawny as they were too far from administrative centres. Trelawny was named after William Trelawny, the then Governor of Jamaica. The first capital was Martha Brae located two miles inland from Rock Bay.

Trelawny is best known for its sugar estates and sugar factories. It had more sugar estates than any other parish, so there was need for a sea coast town to export it. Falmouth became a thriving seaport and social centre. The town had two of its own newspapers; The Falmouth Post and The Falmouth Gazette.

Trelawny was also home to the largest group of Maroons in the island. A 1739 treaty between the Maroons and the English gave the Maroons freedom and land, which effectively put a stop to their raids on the plantations. However, a second Maroon uprising in 1795, led to over 600 Maroons being exiled to Nova Scotia, Canada and later to Sierra Leone in Africa in 1800.

Geography

Trelawny is located at latitude 18°15'N, longitude 77°46'W. It has an area of 874 km², making it the fifth largest parish on the island. It has a population of 74,000. Most of the parish is flat, with wide plains such as Queen of Spain's Valley, 750 feet above sea level, and Windsor, 580 feet above sea level. Most of southern Trelawny is at 750 feet above sea level. The highest point in the parish is Mount Ayr which is 3,000 feet above sea level.

The southern section of Trelawny is part of the Cockpit Country, and is uninhabitable. It is therefore a natural reserve for flora and fauna; most of Jamaica's 27 endemic bird species can be found there, along with the yellow snakes, and the giant swallowtail butterfly, the largest butterfly in the western hemisphere.

Most of the parish has the typical limestone features of cockpits, sinkholes, caves and underground passages. There are about 48 caves, most with phosphate gatherings. These include the Windsor Cave, and Carambi Cave, known for its beauty and phosphate deposits. There are several other caves which have Taino carvings on the walls. There are also several underground conduits, with the longest running for 15 miles. The main rivers are the Martha Brae, Rio Bueno, Cane and Quashie.

Commerce

Trelawny's sources of employment come from agriculture, manufacturing, and Tourism. Rum and sugar are Trelawny's principal products. Other crops include bananas, yams, strawberries, vegetables, pimento, coffee, ginger, and coconut. Though the fishing industry is declining, Trelawny still produces a large amount of fishes. There are ten beaches along the coast, with more than 30 boats each as well as 27 fish ponds. There are 25 factories in the parish. These produce sugar, rum, and apparel, among other things. Two of the eight remaining sugar factories in Jamaica are in Trelawny —Hampden Sugar Factory, and Trelawny Sugar formerly Long Pond Sugar Factory. The tourism sector is still growing. Major hotels are Grand Lido Braco, Silver Sands Resort and the Starfish Hotel.

Notable citizens

Trelawny Parish is the birthplace of six track and field athletes: world record holder and 2008 Olympic Gold Medal Champion in the 100 metres and in the 200 metres Usain Bolt, Veronica Campbell-Brown, Marvin Anderson, Omar Brown, Michael Frater and Ben Johnson.

References

* [http://www.jamlib.org.jm/trelawny_history.htm Parish Information]
* [http://www.statinja.com/ Statistical Institute of Jamaica]
* [http://www.discoverjamaica.com/gleaner/discover/geography/polgol.htm The Political Geography of Jamaica]
* [http://www.jamaicancaves.org/windsor.htm Windsor Great Cave, Jamaica]
* [http://www.jamaicancaves.org/carambie_050331.htm Carambie Cave, Jamaica]