Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago

Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago
The District of St.James

St. James, Port of Spain, Trinidad, in 1998.
Coordinates: 10°40′N 61°31′W / 10.667°N 61.517°W / 10.667; -61.517Coordinates: 10°40′N 61°31′W / 10.667°N 61.517°W / 10.667; -61.517
Country Trinidad and Tobago
County Saint George County
City Port of Spain
Government
 • Mayor Louis Lee Sing (Mayor of Port of Spain City)
 • Governing body Port of Spain City Corporation
Time zone AST (UTC−4)
 • Summer (DST) DST (UTC-4)

St. James is a district of Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. The main road is the Western Main Road. It runs from Woodbrook to Cocorite. St James is also known for its diverse mixture of cultural activities.

History

In 1824, the foundation stone of a new military barracks was laid at St. James. Most of the material for the construction came from the Maraval Valley and occasioned an action between the Government and Jean Boissière over damage to the latter's sugar estate at Champs Elysées caused by the removal of so much stone. The barracks took three years to build and were completed at the cost of about ₤80,000.[1]

Until 1992, the Civil Aviation Training Centre (CATC), now a unit of the Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority, was located along Long Circular Road in St. James.[2]

The largest Pizza Hut in the world is located in Saint James on Tragarete Road.[3]

St. James is the birthplace for the successful Trinidadian-based soft-drink company Solo.[4]

People

A tadjah at Hosay in St. James. 1950s
"Where Belmont's settlement was African in origin, in St. James, the city's most westerly suburb, the influence was decidedly East Indian. St. James too was a sugarcane estate, and the workers there were largely East Indians who arrived in Trinidad as indentured laborers The streets of St. James bear witness to its earliest inhabitants with names such as Delhi, Bombay, Calcutta, Benares, Ganges, and so on. St. James is mecca for the annual Hosay Festival, when it is possible to hear classical tassa drumming, as small effigies of mosques parade through the streets. . . . There is a Muslim mosque on the Western Main Road in St. James and a Hindu temple on Panka Street."[5]

Singer, songwriter and rapper Nicki Minaj was born in St. James[6] and lived here until she was five years old with her grandmother before moving to New York City with her parents.[7]

Gary Goodridge, a kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and arm wrestler, was born in the district.

References

  1. ↑ The History of the West Indian Islands of Trinidad and Tobago. 1498-1900. Gertrude Carmichael. Alvin Redman, London, 1961, p. 141.
  2. ↑ "CIVIL AVIATION TRAINING CENTRE (CATC), TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO." Trinidad and Tobago Civil Aviation Authority. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
  3. ↑
  4. ↑ http://www.solobev.com/res1024x768.html
  5. ↑ Trinidad & Tobago. Insight Guides. APA Productions, Singapore, 1987, pp.142-143.
  6. ↑ Telesford, Nigel (1 Nov 2010). "Minaj magic". Trinidad Express. Retrieved 16 February 2011.
  7. ↑ "Character Study: Just How Real Is Nicki Minaj?". Vibe. Vibe Media. 23 June 2010. Retrieved 29 July 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, January 20, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.