Nanny of the Maroons

Nanny of the Maroons is the only female National heroine in Jamaica.

She is remembered for the inspiration she gave to her people in fighting the English Oppressors in the
early 18th Century.

Nanny was a leader of her village, Nanny Town in the parish of Portland, Jamaica. According to Beverley
Carey -
"The Maroon Story", Nanny died sometime between 1758 - 1762.

Legend has it that she possesses super human power.

Samuel "Sam" Sharp

Samuel Sharp also called 'Daddy' Sharpe, was a Deacon at the Burchell Baptist Church in Montego Bay.

He spent most of his time travelling to different estates in St. James educating the slaves about
Christianity and of freedom.

Sharpe had formed a Secret Society among the slaves and many of his meetings were held at night.
In 1831 he led the Christmas Rebellion which started at Kensington Estate in St. James and then spread
throughout the western end of the island.

Paul Bogle

Paul Bogle was a Deacon of the Native Baptist Church in Stony Gut, St. Thomas, Jamaica.

His belief in the teachings  of the Bible inspired him to become involved in the
peoples' struggle for justice.

Paul Bogle spent much of his time educating and training the members of his congregation, and is
credited with initiating the so-called Morant Bay Rebellion in 1865.

Edward Eyre, the then Governor of Jamaica, offered a £2,000 reward for the capture of Paul Bogle for
his alleged role in the unrest at Morant Bay.

 
 

George William Gordon (1820-1865)

TGeorge William Gordon, the son of a planter and one of his female slaves was born at Cherry Garden

Estate in
St. Andrew. Gordon was self-educated and became a successful landowner and businessman. He was
one of the original founding members of the Jamaica Mutual Life Society, an insurance company.
Gordon was an exceptional "free coloured"; he championed the cause of poor blacks. As a member of
the Jamaica Assembly, his defense of the social and moral rights of the oppressed made him an enemy
of the Colonial establishment, particularly Governor John Eyre.

In 1865 when the so-called Morant Bay Rebellion broke out, Gordon was arrested for conspiracy,
probably because he was a member of the same Baptist Sect that Paul Bogle belonged to. Gordon had
actually ordained Bogle as a Deacon in the Baptist Church. When Gordon was arrested, the Government
could find no evidence to support his arrest.

Marcus Garvey
Born in 1887 in the parish of St. Ann, Marcus Garvey was famous worldwide as a leader. His call was for

the  improvement of black people.

In 1914 he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) which grew into an
international organization that still exists in Jamaica, the United States, and a number of other countries.

Marcus Garvey was a Black Nationalist and politician, and though he never won a seat in the Jamaica
Legislature (1920s), he never faltered as a spokes person for the poor and oppressed.

Norman Washington Manley

Norman Washington Manley, founder of the People's National Party, was born in 1893 in Roxborough,

Manchester.  He was a brilliant scholar, athlete, lawyer and politician.

He, along with Alexander Bustamante, played a great role in advocating for full Universal Adult Suffrage
in 1944.
In 1955, he was elected Chief Minister of Jamaica.

Alexander Bustamante

Alexander Bustamante founded the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) in 1938 and was also

founder of the  Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).

He became Jamaica's first Prime Minister in 1962 and died in 1977.

The house in which he was born in Blenheim, Hanover is now a National Monument.