Department of History

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Now showing 1 - 18 of 18
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    The history of the only rabies epidemic in Trinidad and Tobago (1923-1937)
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2010-04) Mungrue, Kameel
    This paper reviews historically the only rabies epidemic in Trinidad which occurred between 1923 and 1937, and the ensuing epidemiological investigation that led to new knowledge of the disease. It chronicles the events that led to crucial experiments, which provided evidence for the first time, that bats were capable of transmitting rabies. The epidemic began among cattle in 1923 and progressed without being recognised as rabies, with many alternative diagnoses offered. The epidemic mysteriously and suddenly jumps the species barrier to spread to humans,which accounted for 84 deaths between 1929 and 1937. The disease in cattle and man was not recognised as the same until 1931. Once it became clear that the disease was rabies and the bat the agent for transmitting the disease, public health measures were implemented to arrest the epidemic.
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    Friend or foe? Venereal diseases and the American presence in Trinidad and Tobago during World War II
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2010-04) McCollin, Debbie
    While there has been extensive scholarship into sexually transmitted diseases, particularly HIV/AIDS in the latter part of the twentieth century, and a very rudimentary understanding of `a VD problem’ during World War II, little specific research has been conducted into the escalation and the control of this `problem’ in the war, far less its significance to the colony’s wider development. Thus, this work investigates the culpability of foreign forces, specifically the Americans stationed in the colony during the war, in the dramatic escalation of VDs. Conversely, it also examines their contribution to the development of the first comprehensive VD control campaigns, especially for syphilis and gonorrhea, and thus establishes concretely the dualism which is prominent in this period, of the American military as friend and foe, as impediment and facilitator in the control of some of the most prominent diseases and generally in the advancement of healthcare in the colony.
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    An historical overview of dentistry in Trinidad and Tobago
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, 2010-04) Naidu, Rahul; Ramroop, Visha; Rafeek, Reisha
    The development of dentistry in the Caribbean had its beginnings largely in folk and lay practitioners providing dental care, before the arrival of qualified dentists and the establishment of an organised and self-regulating profession. Hence, in this respect the history of Caribbean dentistry parallels that of many European societies. This paper discusses dentistry in Trinidad and Tobago during British rule, the setting up of the government dental service and its development in the early post-colonial period, in particular the training and deployment of dental nurses. The introduction of dental legislation relating to self-regulation of the profession, ensuring standards of care and outlawing unlicensed dental practitioners is also explored, along with issues relating to the development of the regions’ first dental school and graduation of locally trained dentists.
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    Book review: history of the Church of the Nazarene in Trinidad and Tobago
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2010-04) Teelucksingh, Jerome
    The book is an account of the educational and spiritual endeavours of the Church of the Nazarene during its 82 years of existence in Trinidad and Tobago. In the review of Gelien Matthews’s book, I commented on the strengths of the publication. The author provides scholarly insight into the operation and organization of a vibrant Christian denomination. The study will certainly be of value to persons interested in the local history of Trinidad and Tobago. Matthews’s lucid writing style will enable anyone to read and appreciate the mission of the Nazarene Church in Trinidad and Tobago. I have also focused on her use of sources. The footnotes and bibliography reveal diverse sources, such as journals, websites, interviews, and the Church’s manuals and monographs. The book’s seven chapters explore various aspects of the Church of the Nazarene including its global mission, the role of the District Superintendent and the functioning of District Boards and Auxiliaries. The historical snapshots will provide the reader with an insight into both the contributions and challenges of the Nazarene Church.
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    The possible influence of astronomy on the culture of ceramic-age, pre-Columbian inhabitants of Greencastle Hill in Antigua
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, 2010-04) Imbert, Maura P.
    When Columbus arrived in the West Indies in 1492, it is reported that the Antillean Islands were inhabited by an Amerindian culture referred to as Taíno by Caribbean archaeologists. The Taíno culture was extensively chronicled by Spanish historians but little or no information was available about their astronomical knowledge. Archaeological and mythological evidence has shown that this was extensive. Sebastian Robiou-Lamarche, who has intensively researched Taíno astronomy, has shown that there is a relationship between the Taíno and Mesoamerican cultures embodying certain deities and related cultural practices. An archaeological excavation of the summit of Greencastle Hill on the island of Antigua indicated that Greencastle Hill was inhabited by a Ceramic-age Amerindian presence during the period A.D. 900-1200. Artifacts recovered during this excavation were typical of the Terminal to post-Saladoid culture affiliation, classified as Mamorean Troumassoids by Caribbean archaeologists. This group evolved into the Eastern Taíno by A.D. 1200. An array of stones on the summit of Greencastle Hill has recently been investigated to determine whether it could have been an astronomical calendar. When the bearings of the stones in the array were compared with the azimuths of stars known to have been of importance in Amerindian cultures, the correlations strongly suggested that the array was used to determine time. The results of this investigation suggested a parallel investigation of how astronomy affected the lifeways of the cultural group that inhabited Greencastle Hill, including their social life, religious ceremonies, navigation, agricultural activities, and their time reckoning of important seasonal events. The results of this investigation are presented in this paper.
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    "Ballad of the downfall of the fish-house" (anonymous): a forensic approach to finding the author and meaning from history and critical discourse analysis
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, 2010-04) Figuera, Renée
    Following the physical collapse of the Fish-Market on King’s Wharf in Port of Spain circa 1836, an anonymous poet published “Ballad of the Downfall of the Fish-House,” a satirical commentary on the vestiges of slavery and the administrative blunders of the Port of Spain Cabildo. Therefore, in order to find the meaning and author of this anonymous text, I adapt Fairclough’s model of Critical Discourse Analysis. My approach details evidence from the sociohistorical context, the discursive context of surrounding editorials in the Port of Spain Gazette, and the linguistic context of language use (discourse) in the poem, in relation to other historiographic works. From all evidence, the anonymous author of “Ballad of the Downfall of the Fish-House” is Edward Lanza Joseph, the author of History of Trinidad and Warner Arundell. In this context, the poem initiates a compilation of poetic works by E. L. Joseph, which were published anonymously in the nineteenth century.
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    The revolutionary (re-)valorization of ‘peasant’ production and implications for small-scale farming in present-day Cuba
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2010-04) Wilson, Marisa
    In this article, I outline a historical shift in Cuban ideology from the 1950s to the 1960s that has continued to affect the way land and its products are utilized and distributed in Cuba. While prior to the late 1950s and/or early 1960s, campesinos ('peasants’) in Cuba were associated with the most exploited class, after the second agrarian reform of 1963 a majority were officially identified as the most exploitative class. As the acceptable size of private landholdings shrunk, the organisation of small-scale production and distribution grew more and more centralised. In the process, locally-grown food became less and less accessible. Since the 1990s, however, a new model for the agriculture sector has emerged in Cuba that treats small-scale production for the national food basket as a matter of national security. Yet opportunities for present-day campesinos are still inexorably linked to historical processes of value-formation in the Cuban agrarian economy.
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    The dougla in Trinidad’s consciousness
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Regis, Ferne Louanne
    Trinidad is a complex multi-ethnic society where the two major ethnic groups - Africans and Indians - are in competition for power: economic, political and social. These contestations force the meeting and mixing of these two groups but militate against their merger. This is a reality that impacts significantly on the lives of their offspring the Dougla who are birthed into this complex social, cultural and linguistic situation and whose social position within this divide remain unclear and uncertain. Before 2011, Douglas were not designated in official censuses as a marginal ethnic community or even a biracial minority group leaving them free to declare themselves African, Indian or members of the umbrella categories Mixed and Other. Despite the steady increase in the number of people who define themselves as Douglas, their position in Trinidadian society remains ambivalent and indeterminate. This presentation maps the comparative invisibility of Douglas in Trinidadian society from the second half of the 19th and 20th centuries via an examination of social history and anthropology, creative writing, and popular culture.
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    The participation of Guyanese women in politics and parliament during the administration of the Peoples National Congress
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) McAlmont, Cecilia
    The Fourth World Conference on women was held in Beijing, China, September 1995 three years after the Peoples National Congress was defeated at the polls by Peoples Progressive Party. During that conference, the minuscule presence of women in the hierarchy of political parties, their limited participation in all areas of political activity and their under representation in parliaments were lamented. The above statement amply reflected the situation that existed in Guyana. In December 1964, as a result of elections held under the system of Proportional Representation, the PNC came to power in coalition with the United Force. The paper will focus on the participation of Guyanese women in the hierarchy of the PNC. It will also examine the percentages of women on the parties’ lists, in parliament and as ministers of government during the 28 years of the PNC’s administration.
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    Women in British Caribbean society and the Victorian gender ideology in the post- Emancipation century
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Blommestein, Muriel
    The status guided Victorian gender ideology, based on the patriarchal rights of males, was a well established concept in nineteenth century Caribbean societies. It survived as an entrenched Eurocentric paternalism that was accommodated by other patriarchies. It promised respectability through Christian monogamous marriage and middle class wealth, and this solidified its early Christian/capitalist base. In the post-emancipation century, Caribbean women were challenged by this Euro-serving ideology that reflected a ‘gilded’, metropolitan culture. While‘marginalised’ subaltern women grappled with emotional and physical survival in this period, Creole elite women were no less badgered by the rigidity of existing cultural norms from slave society. This discussion looks at the origins and influences of this tenacious ideology on the lifestyles of women in the colonial British Caribbean. Clearly, the ideology maintained ‘clout’ in British Caribbean societies, even when articulated at such an illiberal moment in the history of the region.
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    Book review: Eric Williams: The myth and the man by Selwyn Ryan. Kingston: The University of the West Indies Press, 2009, pp. 842, ISBN: 978-976-640-207-5.
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Toussaint,Michael
    The review will draw attention to Selwyn Ryan’s extensive research on the topic and longstanding familiarity with the subject matter. It will comment on the strength, limitation and relevance of this recent work. Eric Williams was a noted Caribbean statesman and scholar. He served as Trinidad and Tobago’s first Premier and Prime Minister, and was that country’s Head of Government until his passing in 1981. As both a politician and an academic, Williams has done, stated and written much. Likewise, much has been said and written about Williams, regarding his contribution to global intellectualism, the development of Trinidad and Tobago and Caribbean civilization. There have also been a number of attempts to psycho-analyse Williams. This review proposes to locate this latest contribution by Selwyn Ryan in relation to the broad corpus of literature already devoted to the analysis of Eric William’s life and career. Additionally, it will explore Ryan’s approach to the challenge of delineating myth from fact regarding this important and outstanding Caribbean personality.
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    Women potters?: a preliminary examination of documentary and material culture evidence from Barbados
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Farmer, Kevin
    The introduction of wheel thrown pottery in Barbados is seen as an exception within the femaledominated pottery tradition of the region. This paper will examine recent documentary evidence of a plantation in Barbados that counters such a gendered division of labour. This study will examine the influence that female potters might have had on the vessels forms created, as well as the factors that led to the inclusion of women in the pot house workforce. The paper will also discuss whether their presence was simply an exception to the rule in the occupational composition of plantation pot houses.
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    A brief history of early education of the deaf in Trinidad and Tobago
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Braithwaite, Benjamin; Drayton, Kathy-Ann; Lamb, Alicia
    A sketch of any aspect of the history of the deaf in Trinidad and Tobago is an important step towards understanding the underpinnings of their present status in the wider society. This paper outlines the beginnings of formal education of the deaf in Trinidad and Tobago. It includes an overview of the formation of the first school for the deaf in Trinidad and the transition of teaching methods used: from oralist techniques, through mixed oral and manual methods, and finally towards the use of natural sign language in the classroom. Through this record, the wider population can begin to understand the evolution of the deaf community in Trinidad and Tobago and their unique language, Trinidad and Tobago Sign Language (TTSL).
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    The roots/routes of the ancient order of foresters in the Anglophone Caribbean with special emphasis on Barbados
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Ramsay, Alicia Olivia
    Fraternal organisations transplanted into the Caribbean from the eighteenth century were aspects of European, African and American cultural expressions embraced by West Indians over time.This paper does not propose to expose any of the secrecy of fraternal organisations or Lodges, as they are known. It explores from the mid-nineteenth century, the roots and routes of the fraternal organisation, the Ancient Order of Foresters (AOF), primarily in Barbados and selected territories of the Anglophone Caribbean. It will be shown that former colonies such as Barbados were pivotal in both the early development and spread of some fraternal organisations in the Caribbean that had originated in Europe. This paper also seeks to determine whether there was any degree of regional unity facilitated by fraternalism. The intention here is to offer more perspectives on the connections between Barbados, the wider region and the former Mother Country, Britain.
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    Unrepentant Euro-centrism in the movie Amazing Grace of Freedom
    (Department of History, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus,Trinidad and Tobago, 2011-03) Matthews, Gelien
    In the year 2007, as part of the commemoration of the bicentennial anniversary of the British abolition of the trade in captured Africans, Michael Apted directed the movie Amazing Grace of Freedom. While the movie is a good historical source for understanding the role played by British abolitionists in ending Britain’s involvement in the forced human traffic from Africa, it is flawed insofar as it exaggerates the agency of white British humanitarians. The movie is Eurocentric, seeped in the dominant and traditional humanitarian and religious explanations for abolition, male oriented and totally disregards the self liberating ethos of the enslaved. The contribution of the wider British public, of women, of blacks in the United Kingdom of the enslaved in the colonies, and of economic factors in abolition are either sidelined or ignored altogether in the themes explored in the movie. A critique of the movie’s shortcomings is essential, not only because of its narrow interpretation of abolition but also because in an age of readily accessible technology just by the click of a button this attractively packaged but faulty historical source can get into the hands of millions of viewers around the world.