Queen's Park Savannah
Encyclopedia
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
's largest open space—and the world's largest traffic roundabout
Roundabout
A roundabout is the name for a road junction in which traffic moves in one direction around a central island. The word dates from the early 20th century. Roundabouts are common in many countries around the world...
—is the Queen's Park Savannah, known colloquially simply as "the Savannah". It occupies about 260 acres (1.1 km²) of level land, and the distance around the perimeter is about 2.2 mi (3.5 km). Once sugar land, it was bought by the town council in 1817 from the Peschier family (except for a small parcel near its centre that served as the Peschier cemetery, which remains in private hands).
At first it was used as a vast cattle pasture in what was then the town's suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
s, but by the middle of the 19th century it had become established as a park. Until the early 1990s, horse racing was held frequently at the Savannah race track, and it also contains several cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, football and rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
pitches. Apart from a ring of trees round its perimeter, the Savannah was never really landscaped, except for the small area in its northwest corner called the Hollows, a former reservoir
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
now drained and planted with flowering shrubs.
Royal Botanic Gardens, Trinidad
The Royal Botanic Gardens in Trinidad is located in Port of Spain. The Gardens, which were established in 1818, are situated just north of the Queen's Park Savannah. This is one of the oldest Botanic Gardens in the world. The landscaped site occupies 61.8 acres and contains some 700 trees.The...
, the Emperor Valley Zoo
Emperor Valley Zoo
The Emperor Valley Zoo is the main zoo in Trinidad and Tobago. It is located north of the Queen's Park Savannah and west of the Botanic Gardens in Port of Spain....
, the official residences of the president and the prime minister, and Queen's Hall, the city's major performing arts venue. Lady Chancellor Road, which ascends the hills overlooking the Savannah, is one of Port of Spain's most exclusive residential areas.
On the Savannah's southern side is the Grand Stand, formerly used for viewing horse races, now used for various cultural events, most notably Carnival
Trinidad and Tobago Carnival
The Trinidad and Tobago Carnival is an annual event celebrated on the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago is the most significant event on the islands' cultural and tourism calendar, with numerous cultural events running in the lead up to the street parade on...
, when a temporary North Stand and raised stage are constructed in front of the Grand Stand, creating the "Big Yard", Carnival's central location since the early 20th century (previously, the main viewing area for Carnival was in downtown Port of Spain). From this location the Parade of Bands is broadcast live to the nation on Carnival Monday and Tuesday; it is also the venue for the Calypso
Calypso music
Calypso is a style of Afro-Caribbean music that originated in Trinidad and Tobago from African and European roots. The roots of the genre lay in the arrival of enslaved Africans, who, not being allowed to speak with each other, communicated through song...
Monarch and Carnival King and Queen Competitions and the finals of the Panorama steelpan
Steelpan
Steelpans is a musical instrument originating from The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago...
competition.
The western edge of the Savannah, along Maraval Road, is the location of the Magnificent Seven, a group of late Victorian buildings built in an eccentric and flamboyant variety of styles. These are Queen's Royal College
Queen's Royal College
Still regarded as the bastion of secondary school education Queen's Royal College is the oldest secondary school in Trinidad and Tobago, referred to for short as "QRC", or "The College" by past alumni...
; the residences of the Anglican bishop (Hayes Court) and the Roman Catholic archbishop; Whitehall, once a private residence, now the office of the prime minister; Mille Fleurs, the future home of the Law Association; Roomor, an ornate black-and-white chateau-like building that remains a private residence; and Stollmeyer's Castle, a turreted house supposedly modelled on Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle is a large estate house in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is located near the village of Crathie, west of Ballater and east of Braemar. Balmoral has been one of the residences of the British Royal Family since 1852, when it was purchased by Queen Victoria and her...
which is now being converted into subsidiary offices for the prime minister's staff.