SLIGOVILLE

Sligoville in St. Catherine is the first Free Village that was started in 1835 in
Jamaica. It was started by the Reverend James Phillippo with support from Lord
Sligo, Governor of Jamaica from 1834-1836. The founding of this Free Village was
intended to prepare for Emancipation. In anticipation of the needs of the former
enslaved persons, a school and a church were built to provide for academic and
religious instructions. Many enslaved persons were in this area once called
Highgate and later renamed Sligoville in honour of Lord Sligo. A lot of missionary
work had been going on there since 1829 under the leadership of George Lyle and
William Knibb. Many of the enslaved in and around the plains of St Catherine had
escaped from their resident plantations to live in this area and so an independent
peasantry developed there even before slavery ended.
Sligoville is considered to be the first area where slavery evolved into an
organized peasantry in Jamaica. It is also seen as the first place that was formally
organized for enslaved Africans to conduct their farming practices when slavery
ended. Today the members of the Sligoville community take much pride in their
historical legacy and seek to preserve it. This is led by organizations such as the
Sligoville Heritage Foundation and the Sligoville Benevolent Society among others.
The areas that are preserved and showcased to visitors are the section where the
peasantry was concentrated, the ruins of the governors’ summer home (Highgate
Park House) , the Anglican Church and its cemetery, the relics of an old tank
where the enslaved drew water from, as well as other areas of historical
significance.
A yearly celebration called Emancifest is held on August 1 organized by the
Emancifest Committee to honour the historical uniqueness of the community and
also to celebrate the first space which set the stage for the Free Village System in
the Caribbean. The community is now organizing to start Heritage tourism in the
area for community members to earn from their rich culture and heritage.
Already, tour guides have been trained by the Tourism Product Development
Company (TPDco ) to carry out tours in the area and to provide hospitality to
visitors. Members of the Sligoville community always strive to remain united and
independent, drawing on their historical legacy for strength and empowerment
to aid development.

References
Williams Paul H. Sligoville Jamaica,First Free Village Established to Prepare for Emancipation. The
Gleaner, August 16, 2014.
Jamaica National Heritage Trust
Blog of diG Jamaica.com. A moment in History – Sligoville established as Jamaica’s First Free Village.

MAIDSTONE
Maidstone is located in the hills of Manchester and it was among the first
communities to be set up as a Free Village in Jamaica. It was founded in the year
1840 and like most of the other free villages the people practised farming which
was their main activity during slavery. The peasants were said to be very
hardworking and did their best to remain united to build their community. Today
this same kind of community spirit remains.

Maidstone is widely recognized for its rich historical value and the people are
proud of their ancestral roots. Many community members still bear the names of
the original settlers of the community of whom they are very proud and so they
strive to preserve their legacy. The Maidstone Community Council is the
organization that works to preserve the community’s rich heritage even as
modern facilities are established. The Council takes great pride in preserving the
heritage sites as they are very important to the country and the community. The
Nazareth Primary school houses the museum that showcases the artefacts of the
area as the people are very interested in heritage preservation activities. Many
artefacts were unearthed from slave sites in the area.

Areas that are focussed on heritage preservation in the the community are the
old great house, an old slave hospital and an elevated area called “trial hill” where
slaves were taken for trial when they were found to commit misdemeanours. The
Nazareth Moravian Church is also important to the community in that was
regarded as the best kept edifice on the island at a particular time. Its history also
makes it important since it was situated at another area in the community and
was removed to Nazareth where the same stones were used to reconstruct it. In
1987 it received a Heritage in Architecture Award from Jamaica National Heritage
Trust marking the significance of the building.

The Council also organizes the ‘ Fus a August’ Fair in the community on
Emancipation Day where they highlight all the artefacts and relics dating back to
slavery. This celebration is twinned with the yearly homecoming celebration that
usually happens at that time. The community is very interested in Heritage
Tourism because of the rich historical value of the area. Maidstone is now part of
the Mile Gully Loop Tour which showcases cemeteries, churches and other
historical sites.

References
Jamaica HeritageTrust. Maidstone
Alicia, Sutherland. Welcome to Maidstone,Historic Manchester community eyes Heritage Tourism.
Jamaica Observer August 13, 2012.
Williams, Paul H. Preserving Maidstone Heritage. The Gleaner July 30, 2014.