Statistics
Parish:	Saint Peter
Area:	34km² (13 sq. mi.)
Largest City:	Speightstown Speightstown Speightstown , also known as Little Bristol, is the second largest town centre of Barbados. It is situated north of the capital city of Bridgetown, in the northern parish of Saint Peter....
Population (2008 est.):	11,160 inhab.
Population Density:	328.24 inhab/km²
Parliamentary representation Parliament of Barbados The Parliament of Barbados is the national legislature of Barbados. It is accorded legislative supremacy by Chapter V of the Constitution of Barbados. The Parliament is bicameral in composition and is formally made up of: HM Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Barbados The Parliament of Barbados is the...
- House seats	1
Map
Parishes of Barbados Parishes of Barbados The country of Barbados is currently subdivided into sub-regions known as parishes. According to the Act of the Barbados Parliament they are officially styled as the "Parish of as opposed to the U.S. styled naming convention with the name "Parish" coming after the name...

The Parish of Saint Peter ("St. Peter") is one of eleven parishes

Parishes of Barbados

The country of Barbados is currently subdivided into sub-regions known as parishes. According to the Act of the Barbados Parliament they are officially styled as the "Parish of as opposed to the U.S. styled naming convention with the name "Parish" coming after the name...

 in the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

 island country of Barbados

Barbados

Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...

. It is named after the Christian Apostle and patron

Patron saint

A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...

 saint

Saint

A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...

, Saint Peter

Saint Peter

Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...

. It is located in the north of Barbados, and is the only parish besides Saint Lucy that extends from the east coast to the west.

The Barbados "Platinum Coast

Platinum Coast

The Platinum Coast is a stretch of powdery white sandy-beach in Barbados. Located to the North of Holetown. Its area title has been broadened in more recent times to include much of the coastline of the parish of Saint James. The Platinum Coast is a spot consisting mostly of "nouveau riche" to...

," which extends through Saint Peter from the parish of Saint James just to the south, has helped to make Saint Peter a tourist hot spot. The parish is surrounded with white sand beaches, including those along Mullins Bay. Its topography

Topography

Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...

 includes rolling hills and terraces, some of which are still covered by sugar cane, which was the island's chief cash crop

Cash crop

In agriculture, a cash crop is a crop which is grown for profit.The term is used to differentiate from subsistence crops, which are those fed to the producer's own livestock or grown as food for the producer's family...

 during its colonial period. Within Saint Peter are also large tourist sites such as the Port St. Charles marina (the only marina

Marina

A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....

 in Barbados) and the Almond Beach Village. Other lavish resorts include Schooner Bay, Mount Brevitor, Suga Suga, and Black Bess, the first banyan tree

Banyan

A banyan is a fig that starts its life as an epiphyte when its seeds germinate in the cracks and crevices on a host tree...

 resort in the Caribbean region.

Speightstown

The area of Speightstown

Speightstown

Speightstown , also known as Little Bristol, is the second largest town centre of Barbados. It is situated north of the capital city of Bridgetown, in the northern parish of Saint Peter....

 was the first major port and commercial centre of Barbados

Barbados

Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...

. The city is named after William Speight

William Speight

William James Speight was a 19th century Member of Parliament in Auckland, New Zealand.He contested the Auckland East electorate in the 1879 general election against James Clark and with 371 to 363 votes obtained a narrow victory. He represented the electorate until the end of the parliamentary...

, a member of Barbados' first Assembly

Deliberative assembly

A deliberative assembly is an organization comprising members who use parliamentary procedure to make decisions. In a speech to the electorate at Bristol in 1774, Edmund Burke described the English Parliament as a "deliberative assembly," and the expression became the basic term for a body of...

 during the colonial years, and the former owner of the land on which the city arose. It has a long and colorful history reaching back to the 17th century when it served as one of the main ports connecting the island with the “mother country,” England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. Back then Speightstown was sometimes called “Little Bristol” because of these trading connections with Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

 in England. This little village was the port that Admiral Ayscue

George Ayscue

Admiral Sir George Ayscue was an English naval officer who served in the Civil War and the Anglo-Dutch Wars.In 1648, during the Civil War, while serving as a captain in the navy of the English Parliament, he prevented the fleet from defecting to the Royalists, and was promoted to General at Sea...

 could not take when he was dispatched by Cromwell to quell the insurrection in Barbados in 1649. The Barbadians were loyal to Charles I

Charles I of England

Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

, and would not accept Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell

Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....

 as their protector

Lord Protector

Lord Protector is a title used in British constitutional law for certain heads of state at different periods of history. It is also a particular title for the British Heads of State in respect to the established church...

. For six months Ayscue was unable to land in Barbados, and concentrated attacks on Speightstown were repelled by the small forts along the shore. The tiny island was landed only with the help of a defector

Defection

In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...

 who led Ayscue and his men to land at Oistins

Oistins

The coastal town of Oistins is an area located in the country of Barbados. Situated in the southern portion of the parish of Christ Church, Oistins operates mostly as a fishing village and a tourist hang out, and is the location of the parish church for Christ Church...

 where they met with representatives of the island and signed what has become known as the Charter of Barbados. Signed in 1652, the agreement gave Barbados rights and privileges unheard of on any other island. In particular it guaranteed that Barbados could not be taxed without the consent of a Barbados General Assembly. Many historic buildings dating from colonial times, including Arlington House, still remain standing in the town and can be seen mostly along Queen Street, Church Street and Orange Street. Speightstown saw a lot of activity during the reign of the sugar industry and the day of the slave trade. Many slaves would have passed through this town, even if they were to be shipped on further to other islands or America.

Today Speightstown is busiest on weekends when locals and visitors come out to do their shopping and banking. Many stalls can be found along the streets hawking local and imported fruits and ground provisions

Ground provisions

Ground provisions is the term used in West Indian nations to describe a number of traditional vegetable and fruit staples that are planted in the ground, such as yams and cassava. They are often cooked and served as a side dish in local cuisine. Caribbean recipes will often simply call for ground...

. Although it had fallen into disrepair and neglect over the years, the area is now the focus of new initiatives for development. Speightstown Esplanade at Fort Denmark and the Fisheries Complex have been refurbished. Drainage in the area has been improved to prevent flood

Flood

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...

ing. The jetty

Jetty

A jetty is any of a variety of structures used in river, dock, and maritime works that are generally carried out in pairs from river banks, or in continuation of river channels at their outlets into deep water; or out into docks, and outside their entrances; or for forming basins along the...

 has been rebuilt and a modern ferry

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

 line may be established.

Port St. Charles is open for those who wish to enter the island by yacht

Yacht

A yacht is a recreational boat or ship. The term originated from the Dutch Jacht meaning "hunt". It was originally defined as a light fast sailing vessel used by the Dutch navy to pursue pirates and other transgressors around and into the shallow waters of the Low Countries...

. Speightstown hosts The Gallery of Caribbean Art, which showcases local and Caribbean artists.

Parishes bordering Saint Peter

• Saint Andrew - South-east
• Saint James - South
• Saint Lucy - North

Defined boundaries

These are defined by the Parliament as:-

with St. Andrew: – Starting from the meeting point of the parishes of St. Peter, St. James and St. Andrew and continuing in an easterly direction to its junction with the public road leading from Rock Hall Plantation to Rock Hall Village: then in a north-westerly direction along this public road to its junction at Rock Hall Tenantry with a track leading to Roebuck Village; then along this track in a generally northerly direction to its junction at Roebuck Village with the unclassified public road leading from Four Hills Plantation to Indian Ground; then continuing in a generally northerly direction along this road to its junction with the public road leading from Orange Hill Plantation to Welchtown Plantation; then continuing in a northerly direction along this road to its junction at Welchtown Plantation with the public road leading from Farley Hill to Portland; then in a north-westerly direction along this road to its junction at Portland with the public road called Highway 1; then in an easterly and northerly direction along Highway 1 to the junction at Diamond Comer with the public road called Highway B; then in a generally easterly direction along Highway B passing through Nicholas and Cherry Tree Hill to the junction of this road with the public road leading to Boscobelle; then in a north-easterly direction along this road to the junction with the private road leading to Fosters Funland; then in a generally easterly direction along this road and along the southern section of the loop at the end; and then continuing in an easterly direction to the sea.

with St. James: Starting from the meeting point of the parishes of St. Peter, St. James and St. Andrew and continuing in an easterly direction to its junction with the public road leading from Rock Hall Plantation to Rock Hall Village: then in a north- westerly direction along this public road to its junction at Rock Hall Tenantry with a track leading to Roebuck Village; then along this track in a generally northerly direction to its junction at Roebuck Village with the unclassified public road leading from Four Hills Plantation to Indian Ground; then continuing in a generally northerly direction along this road to its junction with the public road leading from Orange Hill Plantation to Welchtown Plantation; then continuing in a northerly direction along this road to its junction at Welchtown Plantation with the public road leading from Farley Hill to Portland; then in a north-westerly direction along this road to its junction at Portland with the public road called Highway 1; then in an easterly and northerly direction along Highway 1 to the junction at Diamond Comer with the public road called Highway B; then in a generally easterly direction along Highway B passing through Nicholas and Cherry Tree Hill to the junction of this road with the public road leading to Boscobelle; then in a north-easterly direction along this road to the junction with the private road leading to Fosters Funland; then in a generally easterly direction along this road and along the southern section of the loop at the end; and then continuing in an easterly direction to the sea.

with St. Lucy: – Starting from a point on the seashore directly west of the junction of Highway 1C and the public road leading from Shermans to Half Moon Fort, the line travels eastwards to the centre-line of the said road junction; then in a north-easterly direction along Highway 1C to its junction with the private (estate) road leading to Alleynedale Hall; then along this private road and diverting along the northern branch of this road so as to leave the plantation buildings in St. Peter to meet the public road called Highway A leading from Rose Hill to St. Lucy’s Church; then northwards along Highway A to its junction with the public road called Luke Hill; then along this public road in a north-easterly and northerly direction to the junction with the unclassified road leading to Castle Plantation; then along this road in an easterly and south- easterly direction to a point opposite the monument (B.l) placed on the eastern side; then in a north-easterly direction along the line joining this point and another monument (13.2) situate on the western side of an unclassified road at Lamberts and to the centre line of tbe(the) road; then along this road in a north- westerly and north-easterly direction to its junction with the public road leading from Lamberts to Graveyard; then along this public road in an easterly, north- easterly and northerly direction to its junction with the unclassified road leading to Boscobelle; then along this road in a north-easterly, south-easterly and north- easterly direction to the centre of the bridge situate at the point just before the road turns to a south-easterly direction; then in a north-easterly direction (30“ 16') to the sea.

Farley Hill National Park

Farley Hill is a ruin of a Georgian

Georgian architecture

Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...

 mansion which was built by Sir Graham Briggs. Work started in 1818 and rooms were constantly being added over the next fifty years. Farley Hill was eventually regarded as the most impressive mansion in Barbados and in 1957 was used as Belfontaine Mansion in the famous film Island in the Sun

Island in the Sun (film)

Island in the Sun is a 1957 film that stars an ensemble cast including James Mason, Joan Fontaine, Dorothy Dandridge, Joan Collins, Michael Rennie and Harry Belafonte. The cast includes also Diana Wynyard, Patricia Owens and Stephen Boyd. The film is about race relations and interracial romance...

. After the mansion was destroyed by fire in 1965, the property was acquired by the Barbados Government

Government of Barbados

Government of Barbados consists of: The Monarch, HM Queen Elizabeth II ; The Prime Minister, The Hon. Freundel Stuart, and his Cabinet; as legislature, divided into two chambers , and an independent judiciary...

. On February 15, 1966, HRM Queen Elizabeth II

Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom

Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...

 officially opened the grounds as the Farley Hill National Park. Situated high up on a hill overlooking Barbados' rugged Atlantic

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 coast, Farley Hill is a picnic area, wedding venue, and vista point, featuring views of the east coast of Barbados. The forest of mahogany

Mahogany

The name mahogany is used when referring to numerous varieties of dark-colored hardwood. It is a native American word originally used for the wood of the species Swietenia mahagoni, known as West Indian or Cuban mahogany....

 trees is transformed into the stage for musical and theatrical events several times a year, including the Barbados Jazz Festival

Barbados Jazz Festival

The Barbados Jazz Festival is an annual jazz festival of the Caribbean island of Barbados. It is a week-long celebration held annually in January, a jubilant affair that attracts a cast of talented musical maestros to the streets of Bridgetown who play for hours every night in festivity...

 and Gospelfest

Gospelfest

Gospelfest is a spiritual festival and celebration on the Caribbean island of Barbados used by Barbadians for centuries to express their African heritage through Christian music. Every May, local Caribbean musical artists and international gospel artists combine to produce an exuberant concert of...

, among others.

Barbados Wildlife Reserve

The reserve

Barbados Wildlife Reserve

The Barbados Wildlife Reserve is located in the parish of Saint Peter, Barbados. It occupies four acres of mahogany forest near the top of Farley Hill, next to Grenade Hall Signal Station and Forest....

 is situated in a lush mahogany wood, across the road from Farley Hill National Park, and is primarily a monkey sanctuary for the Barbados Green Monkey. The monkeys and most of the other animals are free to roam.

St. Nicholas Abbey

St. Nicholas Abbey is one of the more famous landmarks on Barbados. It is one of only three genuine Jacobean

Jacobean architecture

The Jacobean style is the second phase of Renaissance architecture in England, following the Elizabethan style. It is named after King James I of England, with whose reign it is associated.-Characteristics:...

 mansions in the Western Hemisphere

Western Hemisphere

The Western Hemisphere or western hemisphere is mainly used as a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian and east of the Antimeridian , the other half being called the Eastern Hemisphere.In this sense, the western hemisphere consists of the western portions...

. It is similar to the English Jacobean manor houses of the first half of the seventeenth century, the period between the Tudor

Tudor style architecture

The Tudor architectural style is the final development of medieval architecture during the Tudor period and even beyond, for conservative college patrons...

 and Georgian

Georgian architecture

Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1720 and 1840. It is eponymous for the first four British monarchs of the House of Hanover—George I of Great Britain, George II of Great Britain, George III of the United...

 styles, beginning in the reign of James I

James I of England

James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...

.

St Nicholas Abbey has no church connection. It has always been a sugar plantation house. Colonel Benjamin Berringer built the house between 1650 and 1660. The exact origin of its name is not known but rumour has it that it was named after George Nicholas, husband to Berringer's granddaughter, Susanna. Berringer was killed in a duel with his neighbor, Sir John Yeamans, who then married Berringer's widow and claimed the abbey as his property. In 1669, The Colonel's children took the matter to court and were awarded ownership of the property. Sir John and his wife then moved to the United States, where they helped found South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

. The abbey was later acquired by the eminent baronet, planter and legislator, Sir John Gay Alleyne through his marriage to Christian Dottin. He lived there from 1746 until his death in 1801. Alleyne family traditions hold that Sir John planted the impressive mahogany avenue leading to Cherry Tree Hill. The abbey passed by marriage to Charles Cave in 1834. His great-great-grandson Lt. Col. Stephen Cave OBE lived there from 1978 until his death in November, 2003.

The mansion is well-preserved, with curvilinear Dutch gable

Dutch gable

A Dutch gable or Flemish gable is a gable whose sides have a shape made up of one or more curves and has a pediment at the top. The gable may be an entirely decorative projection above a flat section of roof line, or may be the termination of a roof, like a normal gable...

s with tall finial

Finial

The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed decoratively to emphasize the apex of a gable or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain rods...

s of carved coral stone and corner chimney

Chimney

A chimney is a structure for venting hot flue gases or smoke from a boiler, stove, furnace or fireplace to the outside atmosphere. Chimneys are typically vertical, or as near as possible to vertical, to ensure that the gases flow smoothly, drawing air into the combustion in what is known as the...

s. The entrance portico

Portico

A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls...

, Chinese Chippendale

Chinese Chippendale (architecture)

The term Chinese Chippendale in architecture is applied to a specific kind of railing or balustrade that was inspired by the "chinese Chippendale" designs of cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale...

 staircase and cedar panelling are later additions. The fireplaces and walled Medieval herb garden

Hortus conclusus

Hortus conclusus is a Latin term, meaning literally "enclosed garden". "The word 'garden' is at root the same as the word 'yard'. It means an enclosure", observed Derek Clifford, at the outset of a series of essays on garden design, in which he skirted the conventions of the hortus conclusus...

 were almost certainly included in the original plans brought from England, and copied faithfully. Sugar has been grown on the plantation since 1640 and there is still the evidence of the mill

Sugar refinery

A sugar refinery is a factory which refines raw sugar.Many cane sugar mills produce raw sugar, i.e. sugar with more colour and therefore more impurities than the white sugar which is normally consumed in households and used as an ingredient in soft drinks, cookies and so forth...

 and sugar making edifices. Processed on the property until 1947, the cane is now trucked eight miles to the Portvale Sugar Factory for processing. There is a rare 1930s film of life on a sugar plantation that is available for viewing. Listed by the Barbados Tourism Authority as one of the "Seven Wonders of Barbados," the property has attracted several thousand visitors a year. Amongst the mahogany trees are box

Buxus

Buxus is a genus of about 70 species in the family Buxaceae. Common names include box or boxwood ....

, cabbage palm

Cabbage Palm

Cabbage Palm is a common name for several species of palms or palm-like plants:*Cordyline fruticosa, a tropical tree native to Asia and Polynesia*Corypha utan, an East Asian fan palm...

, silk cotton

Bombax

Bombax is a genus of mainly tropical trees in the mallow family. They are native to western Africa, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, as well as sub-tropical regions of East Asia and northern Australia. Common names for the genus include Silk Cotton Tree, Simal, Red Cotton Tree, Kapok and...

, and avocado

Avocado

The avocado is a tree native to Central Mexico, classified in the flowering plant family Lauraceae along with cinnamon, camphor and bay laurel...

 trees.

Religion

Barbados was a British colony and retains many British traditions. Many of the churches are Anglican, Episcopal

Church in the Province of the West Indies

The Church in the Province of the West Indies is a member province in the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church comprises eight dioceses spread out over much of the West Indies area. The present position of archbishop and primate of the West Indies is held by The Most Rev. John Holder. The Most...

, Seventh-day Adventist

Seventh-day Adventist Church

The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...

, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, and others.