Cultural Pursuits

Queen’s Park Savannah- Lungs of Port of Spain pt 3

Before the stretch of buildings termed the magnificent seven, there is the All Saints Anglican Church  and a lone example of the type of architecture that was once dominant. This  house is falling apart and was recently put on a conservation list.

The western edge of the Savannah, along Maraval Road, is the location of the Magnificent Seven, a group of late Victorian buildings built in an eccentric and flamboyant variety of styles. These are Queen’s Royal College; the residences of the Anglican bishop (Hayes Court) and the Roman Catholic archbishop; Whitehall, once a private residence, former office of the prime minister; Mille Fleurs, Roomor, an ornate black-and-white chateau-like building that remains a private residence; and Stollmeyer’s Castle, a turreted house modelled on Balmoral Castle which is now under renovation.

The eastern side is littered with more examples of the flora, most notable  during the dry season are the Poui trees in bloom.  One can also see the Trinidad Hilton Hotel, The Royal Air Force headquarters, the hills of Belmont.

all photos by Jaime Bagoo

Since I have been mentioning this to  a few people and I said in my last post I would upload the teaser, here it is- the teaser for “Calypso on Trial: the story of Rum and Coca Cola”

Port of Spain Lighthouse, St Vincent Jetty. Built in 1880s, 64 ft hexagonal tower with a small lantern at the top and a gallery in the middle, painted white with red and black trim. The original lighthouse was also hexagonal, but only 43 ft tall. The lighthouse was built at the base of the St. Vincent Jetty, but since then the shoreline has been extended and the original purpose of the light has been lost. At some point some restoration work was done on the tower, but by 2004 it was in poor condition, with a lean of about 5°. In late 2005, the lighthouse was repainted in a wildly colorful pattern honoring Trinidad and Tobago’s World Cup soccer team, and in late 2006 it was painted again to publicize the Cricket World Cup played in Trinidad in 2007.

This is Angus Bascombe’s rendition

This is a comparative image

Another perspective.

Port of Spain Lighthouse, St Vincent Jetty. Built in 1880s, 64 ft hexagonal tower with a small lantern at the top and a gallery in the middle, painted white with red and black trim. The original lighthouse was also hexagonal, but only 43 ft tall. The lighthouse was built at the base of the St. Vincent Jetty, but since then the shoreline has been extended and the original purpose of the light has been lost. At some point some restoration work was done on the tower, but by 2004 it was in poor condition, with a lean of about 5°. In late 2005, the lighthouse was repainted in a wildly colorful pattern honoring Trinidad and Tobago’s World Cup soccer team, and in late 2006 it was painted again to publicize the Cricket World Cup played in Trinidad in 2007. 2011 photo by Jaime Bagoo

Canons at Fort San Andrés. One of the oldest forts built for the defense of Port of Spain. Originally built on an offshore rock in the harbour, the site is now inland due to reclamation of the surrounding land. After the British captured Trinidad in 1797 the fort fell into disuse. A new building, built on the foundations of the old fort housed the Commercial Newsroom, and later the harbour-master’s office. The building housed various government offices, but when the Police Service Traffic Branch vacated the building in 1995 the decision was made to restore the building to its 1845 appearance and convert it to a museum of the City of Port of Spain. Several of the original cannons are still present and the foundations bear the date 1785. The fort may have been built as early as 1757, but the first reference to the fort is in 1777. It saw action when the British captured Trinidad in 1797, but was unable to prevent them from landing. Photos by Jaime Bagoo

Did you know this boat went around the world? Harold La Borde and his wife made history in this vessel. A famous Trinidadian sailor and adventurer who in 1963 to 1973 circumnavigated the world in his 40ft ketch, ‘Hummingbird II’. He was accompanied by his wife, Kwailan, and his five year old son Pierre. As the first known Trinidadian sailors to cross the Atlantic and later to circumnavigate, Harold and Kwailan were awarded the nation’s highest honor - the Gold Trinity Cross. Photo by Jaime Bagoo

Named after Ernest Hugh Canning, Canning’s Corner, which was situated at 25 Frederick Street, corner of Queen Street, Port of Spain. was the site of a popular grocery store of the day.
In 1941, at the time of World War II, Canning’s American son-in-law: Gordon Graves New, then manager of the soft-drink division of the company, arranged for the company to get the bottling concession for the novelty drink in order to supply the heavy demand of the soldiers stationed at Chaguaramas as well as the Wallerfield bases. 2011 Photo by Jaime Bagoo

What do these pictures have to do with culture you say? Well, just look at them.

The view from a hill shows part of the skyline of upper Port of Spain, as seen from Carr Street in Belmont. In a couple of years it will be transformed just as it changed within the twenty-something odd years of my seeing this view everyday.

The Moravian Church fell into dis-use and decay over a period spanning twenty six years, mainly as persons of the Moravian faith moved out of the area. The church is built in typical architectural style of other churches of the faith.

That house on the corner of Piccadilly street itself is perhaps close to being 100 years or so. It was typical of the style of houses from pre -independence days.

The Rosary Church is an historic monument with its own rich history and part of the Catholic Church’s impact on the country.

Laventille road… These were taken as I had just finished reading Lovelace’s “The Dragon can’t Dance” as well as looking at the  movie “Fire Down Below” starring Rita Hayworth and shot entirely in Trinidad…it actually is very reminiscent of the scenes described in the book as well as the footage from the movie.

Will these places be around in the next twenty years? Whether they are or not it would be good to have  some evidence of what the place looked like back then (even if they are not really stellar photos).

This is part of documenting our history as we go along, telling  our own stories.

Join me in capturing images of the country.

Photos by Jaime Bagoo