Baracara
Baracara
New Ground Village or Wel te Vreeden | |
|---|---|
village | |
  Baracara Location in Guyana | |
| Coordinates: 5°50′42″N 57°27′54″W / 5.845°N 57.465°W | |
| Country |  Guyana |
| Region | East Berbice-Corentyne |
| Population (2018)[1] | |
• Total | c.350 |
| Time zone | UTC-4 |
| Climate | Af |
Baracara village was founded by people of African descent in the East Berbice-Corentyne Region of Guyana, located on the Canje River. The community has also been called New Ground Village[2] or Wel te Vreeden. Baracara is 20 miles west of Corriverton and just north of the Torani Canal's connection to the Canje River.
Overview
[edit]Baracara is the only maroon village in Guyana.[3][4] A group of escaped slaves settled in Baracara in the early 19th century,[3] and occupied both the east and west banks of the river. The demographics are mostly Afro-Guyanese.[5]
The economy of the village is based on subsistence farming and logging. The village has a health centre, and a primary school, but no secondary school.[2] Baracara can be only accessed by boat from the river.[2] As of 2015, the village has no local government.[6] In 2018, the village received access to the telephone network and Internet.[1]
The village has Scottish Presbyterian, Adventist and Pentecostal churches.[5]
Maroonage in Guyana
[edit]Unlike neighbouring Suriname where tribes like the Ndyuka and Saramaka established autonomous territories, escaped slaves in Guyana were hunted by the local Amerindian tribes for reward.[7] The incentive was very successful: on 5 May 1764, after the Berbice slave uprising, the post holder at Courantyne, near present-day Orealla, reported that he had paid out ƒ 1,074 for captured slaves, and ƒ 1,080 for 180 cut-off hands of killed slaves.[8]
In 1740, Thomas Hildebrand was given permission to look for silver in the Blue Mountains using slaves. The hard work and rough treatment resulted in six deaths among the slaves.[9] The next year, a group of mining slaves escaped to Creole Island on the Cuyuni River. The location was too difficult to conquer, therefore a deal was negotiated[10] and concluded on 8 February 1742.[11] The slaves would be freed, and never had to work in the mines, if they promised to perform a fixed amount of work on the plantations.[10] Three slaves who did not accept the offer were hunted and killed by the local Amerindians.[11]
Notable residents
[edit]- Shamar Joseph - West Indian cricketer[12]
- Romario Shepherd - West Indian cricketer[13]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "'We finally feel like Guyanese' – Baracara connected to the NDMA eGovernment Network". National Data Management Authority. 23 October 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ a b c "Baracara: Hungry for development". Guyana Chronicle. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ a b "MOH/PAHO team vaccinates 150 in Baracara, Canje". Kaieteur News Online. 10 May 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ "PRESERVING OUR AFRICAN GUYANESE HERITAGE IS CRITICAL TO FORMULATING A GENUINE NATIONAL IDENTITY". Guyana Chronicle. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ a b "Baracara". Stabroek News. 10 August 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
- ^ "Baracara Village to be incorporated into local governance system - President Granger tells residents during commissioning of Rubis donated school boat". Office of the President. Retrieved 22 August 2020.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Netscher 1888, p. 187.
- ^ Netscher 1888, p. 241.
- ^ Netscher 1888, p. 111.
- ^ a b Netscher 1888, p. 112.
- ^ a b Netscher 1888, p. 381.
- ^ Kemp, Emma (2024-01-28). "Meet the West Indies' destroyer who just made history". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
- ^ "Growing up in Baracara - Guyana Chronicle". guyanachronicle.com. Retrieved 2024-07-20.
Bibliography
[edit]- Netscher, Pieter Marinus (1888). Geschiedenis van de koloniën Essequebo, Demerary en Berbice, van de vestiging der Nederlanders aldaar tot op onzen tijd (in Dutch). The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff.
