Volume 1 No 1

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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.