Saint James Parish, Jamaica
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| Location | Latitude Latitude In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a... 18°31'N Longitude Longitude Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda .... 77°59'W |
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| Capital City | Montego Bay Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population .It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches... |
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| Major towns | Adelphi, Cambridge Cambridge, Jamaica Cambridge is a settlement in Jamaica.... , Montpelier Montpelier, Jamaica Montpelier is a small town that is in the Parish of Saint James , Jamaica. - Landmarks :*Montpelier railway station opened in 1895 and closed in 1992.[1] It served the village of Montpelier on the Kingston to Montego Bay line and was 103 miles from the... , Catadupa, Fairfield, Somerton, Irwin, Dumfries |
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| County County A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain... |
Cornwall | |
| Area | 595 square km | |
| Rank | Jamaica's fourth smallest parish | |
| Population Population A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals... |
200,000 (2008) | |
| Commerce Commerce While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any... |
Tourism Tourism Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a... , Agriculture Agriculture Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the... , Industry Industry Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,... |
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St James is a suburban parish, located on the north west end of the island of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
. Its capital, Montego Bay
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population .It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches...
, derived from the Spanish word Manteca (lard) because many wild hogs were found there from which they made lard. It was named publicly the second city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
of Jamaica, behind Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, in 1981. However, Montego Bay became city in 1980 through an act of the Jamaican Parliament. The parish is the birth place of The Right Excellent Samuel Sharpe (died 1833), one of Jamaica's Seven National Heroes.
Brief history
When the Spanish occupied JamaicaJamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Montego Bay was an export
Export
The term export is derived from the conceptual meaning as to ship the goods and services out of the port of a country. The seller of such goods and services is referred to as an "exporter" who is based in the country of export whereas the overseas based buyer is referred to as an "importer"...
point for lard
Lard
Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to butter. Its use in contemporary cuisine has diminished because of health concerns posed by its saturated-fat content and its often negative...
, which was obtained from wild hogs in the forests. In many of the Jamaica's early map
Map
A map is a visual representation of an area—a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as objects, regions, and themes....
s, Montego Bay was listed as "Bahia de Manteca" (Lard Bay). The parish was given the name "St James" in honour of King James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
by Sir Thomas Modyford
Thomas Modyford
Colonel Sir Thomas Modyford, 1st Baronet was a planter of Barbados and Governor of Jamaica, 1664-70.Modyford was the son of a mayor of Exeter with family connections to the Duke of Albemarle, who emigrated to Barbados as a young man with other family members in 1647, in the opening stages of the...
, the island's first English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
Governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
. At the beginning of the English rule, the parish was one of the poorest; it had no towns, few inhabitants and little commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
, except for the exported lard
Lard
Lard is pig fat in both its rendered and unrendered forms. Lard was commonly used in many cuisines as a cooking fat or shortening, or as a spread similar to butter. Its use in contemporary cuisine has diminished because of health concerns posed by its saturated-fat content and its often negative...
. However, after the treaty
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
with the Maroon
Maroon (people)
Maroons were runaway slaves in the West Indies, Central America, South America, and North America, who formed independent settlements together...
in 1739, St James became one of the most important sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
producing parishes. Annually, more than 150 ships arrived in Montego Bay bringing slaves and supplies, and taking sugar. Commerce developed as wealthy merchants and planters erected many elaborate town houses. In 1773 Montego Bay had the only newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
outside of Kingston
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
- The Cornwall Chronicle.
A fire, in 1795 and again in 1811, destroyed many parts of Montego Bay. After being rebuilt, it was again destroyed in 1831 by a rebellion
Rebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
led by Sam Sharpe. This rebellion was as a result of the slave owner's reluctance to free the slaves, even after England proposed that they end slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
. Sam Sharpe, at first, tried to advocate passive resistance, but a group of slaves became violent and began setting fire to buildings and the surrounding plantations and cane fields. As a result of being the main planner of the rebellion, Sam Sharpe was hanged in the Montego Bay market place, which is today known as Sam Sharpe Square.
After emancipation
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
in 1834, the fortunes of the town and parish declined until the banana
Banana
Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....
trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
was promoted by J E Kerr and Co. This prompted the start of tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
in Jamaica. A Freeport was constructed in the 1960s, and later, a cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
terminal
Container terminal
A container terminal is a facility where cargo containers are transshipped between different transport vehicles, for onward transportation. The transshipment may be between container ships and land vehicles, for example trains or trucks, in which case the terminal is described as a maritime...
was opened. Montego Bay was accorded city status on May 1, 1980. The Sangster International Airport, one of the two on the island, is the hub for the national airline
Airline
An airline provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines lease or own their aircraft with which to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for mutual benefit...
, Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
.
Geography
The parish is bordered by Trelawny in the east, St. Elizabeth in the south and HanoverHanover Parish, Jamaica
Hanover , is a parish located on the northwestern tip of the island of Jamaica. It is a part of the county of Cornwall, bordered by St. James in the east, and Westmoreland in the south. With the exception of Kingston, it is the smallest parish on the island...
and Westmoreland in the west. It covers an area of 594.9 km², making it one of the smallest parishes in Jamaica. The population was an estimated 178,000 in 2001.
About two-thirds of the parish consists of limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
. The Nassau Mountains, which rise from St. Elizabeth, south of the parish, extend diagonally across St James. The range then decline to a point just south of Montego Bay
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population .It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches...
. Its highest point is approximately 1524 metres above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
.
Great River, which serves as the boundary between St James and its neighboring parishes Hanover and Westmoreland, and the Montego River, which rises in central St James and flows north, then west to Montego Bay, are the two main river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
s.
The city of Montego Bay may be roughly divided into two sections: the tourist area, which occupies the northern section of the bay
Bay
A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...
along the shore line, and the commercial
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
and industrial
Industry
Industry refers to the production of an economic good or service within an economy.-Industrial sectors:There are four key industrial economic sectors: the primary sector, largely raw material extraction industries such as mining and farming; the secondary sector, involving refining, construction,...
sections, which are second only to Kingston in size and volume of trade
Trade
Trade is the transfer of ownership of goods and services from one person or entity to another. Trade is sometimes loosely called commerce or financial transaction or barter. A network that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and...
.
Commerce
Today, Saint James is one of the fastest growing parishes on the island with large credits going to Montego Bay, because it is seen as some sort of alternative to the overpopulated Kingston and Saint Andrew Corporate Area.Agricultural activities include forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
, and the production of sugar cane and other domestic crops. There are approximately 60 manufacturing establishments in the south of the parish, mainly for garment, woodwork, and food processing. There are also many industrial zones, including The Montego Free Zone, Bogue Industrial Estate, and Ironshore.
Tourism is the main source of employment
Employment
Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
in the parish; one in four persons are employed in tourism. The major forms of employment in tourism are: 1)craft vending in the three craft markets in the parish, Harbour Street Craft Market, Old Fort Craft Market and Success Craft Market; 2)tour bus operating for such companies as JUTA and JCAL tours; and, 3) working in the many famous hotels located in the parish. Over 500,000 tourists annually visit St James, and this accounts for one-third of the revenue generated by tourism islandwide; Montego Bay is often called the Mecca of tourism in Jamaica.
Hotels
There are many famous hotels located in the parish of St. James, most of them in the Rose Hall area. These include: Doctors Cave Beach HotelDoctor's Cave Beach Club
Doctor's Cave Beach Club, Montego Bay has been one of the most famous beaches in Jamaica for nearly a century....
, Wyndham Rose Hall, the Ritz Carlton Hotel, Half Moon Hotel and the newly built Iberostar Hotel located in Lilliput.
Sites
- Rose Hall Great houseGreat houseA great house is a large and stately residence; the term encompasses different styles of dwelling in different countries. The name refers to the makeup of the household rather than to any particular architectural style...
is the most famous in the parish, and probably in the island. It was built on a hill, two miles (3 km) east of Ironshore in 1770 by John Palmer, the CustosCustosCustos is the Latin word for guard. It occurs in titles such as* Custos rotulorum, keeper of the rolls* Custos * Custos...
of St James, who named the house after his wife, Rose. The house attracts over 100,000 visitors per year. The attraction to the house is triggered by the legendLegendA legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
of 'The White Witch Of Rose HallWhite Witch (of Rose Hall)The White Witch is the story of a haunting in Jamaica.-History:The story states that the White Witch was Annie Palmer, who was born in Haiti. She later moved to Jamaica, where she was married to John Palmer in 1820. As an adult, she reportedly stood 4'11"....
', Annie —the wife of John Rose Palmer— who reputedly murdered all three of her husbandsMarriageMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
, before being strangled by her slaves. It is believed that her ghostGhostIn traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
still hauntHAUNTHAUNT was a straightforward but engagingly irreverent text-based mainframe computer game. It was created in OPS4 language in 1979 by John E. Laird....
s the property. In the ChristmasBaptist WarThe Baptist War, also known as the Christmas Uprising and the Great Jamaican Slave Revolt of 1831–32, was a 10-day rebellion that mobilized as many as 60,000 of Jamaica's 300,000 slave population...
/Sam Sharpe rebellion of 1831, slaves destroyed the house and it was left in ruins for over a centuryCenturyA century is one hundred consecutive years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages .-Start and end in the Gregorian Calendar:...
. John Rollins, a wealthy American, bought the property in 1966, and restored the house to its former grandeur.
- Sam Sharpe Square is located in the centre of town. It displays a life sized sculptureSculptureSculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
of Sam Sharpe and his men during the Christmas rebellionBaptist WarThe Baptist War, also known as the Christmas Uprising and the Great Jamaican Slave Revolt of 1831–32, was a 10-day rebellion that mobilized as many as 60,000 of Jamaica's 300,000 slave population...
in 1831.
- Rio de Camorones or the Creek Dome was the source of drinking water until 1893. The domeDomeA dome is a structural element of architecture that resembles the hollow upper half of a sphere. Dome structures made of various materials have a long architectural lineage extending into prehistory....
still stands (although it no longer provides drinking water).
- Old Fort was built in 1774 to protect the town. The old cannonCannonA cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
is still pointing out to sea.
- The Cage was a jail for recaptured runaway slaves. It is now used a Tourist Information Centre and museum.
- St James is noted for its fine beaches. These include Greenwood, Rose Hall, Ironshore, Mahoe Bay, Aquasol Theme Park, Doctor's CaveDoctor's Cave Beach ClubDoctor's Cave Beach Club, Montego Bay has been one of the most famous beaches in Jamaica for nearly a century....
, Cornwall Beach, Montego Freeport, and Spring Gardens.
Notable people
- Jimmy CliffJimmy CliffJimmy Cliff, OM is a Jamaican musician, singer and actor. He is the only currently living musician to hold the Order of Merit, the highest honour that can be granted by the Jamaican government for achievement in the arts and sciences...
, skaSkaSka |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
and reggaeReggaeReggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
singer, musician and actor; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010. - Abdullah el-FaisalAbdullah el-FaisalAbdullah el-Faisal is a muslim cleric who preached in the United Kingdom until he was convicted of stirring up racial hatred and urging his followers to murder Jews, Hindus, Christians, and...
, radical Muslim cleric who preached in the UK until imprisoned for stirring up hatred; deported to Jamaica in 2007. - Yohan BlakeYohan BlakeYohan Blake is a Jamaican sprinter and the current 100 metre World Champion. He holds the national junior record for the 100 metres, and tied Seun Ogunkoya as the youngest sprinter to have broken the 10-second barrier...
, Jamaican Sprinter (currently as of September 2011) the second fastest man over 200m in history behind fellow Jamaican Usain BoltUsain BoltThe Honourable Usain St. Leo Bolt, OJ, C.D. , is a Jamaican sprinter and a five-time World and three-time Olympic gold medalist. He is the world record and Olympic record holder in the 100 metres, the 200 metres and the 4×100 metres relay...
.