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MANDEVILLE
The town was laid out in 1816, and named after Viscount Mandeville, the eldest son of the Duke of Manchester, who was then governor of Jamaica.
Many of the original buildings can still be seen such as the courthouse, an impressive building of cut limestone with a horseshoe staircase and a raised portico supported by Doric columns and built in 1820. The oldest dwelling is the rectory beside the courthouse, also built in 1820.
Many of Jamaica’s oldest businesses were started in Mandeville; the Mandeville Hotel, one of the oldest in the Caribbean, began operations in 1875. Its golf club, founded as the Manchester Golf Club in 1868, was the first golf course in the Caribbean. The first “free library” in Jamaica was established in 1938, and is the oldest Parish Library.
The growth of the town was given a substantial stimulus when the Alcan Bauxite Company in a joint venture with the Jamaican Government opened its Kirkvine works nearby at Williamsfield in 1957. It built houses at Mandeville for its then mostly expatriate staff. The relatively high wages lured many educated Jamaicans there. Subsequently the town has seen an influx of Jamaican residents returning from abroad.
TO DO IN MANDEVILLE
HIKING AND HORSEBACK RIDING: at Perth Great House, a Georgian mansion built in 1760 and owned by John Nightingale’s family for over 100 years. Phone (809) 962-2822.
CUSTOM BUILT ECO TOURS: When he is not too busy planning and lobbying for alternative energy projects for rural districts, Tony Goffe will plan and conduct eco-tours to cater to special interests, be it fossiling for agates, hunting for orchids or exploring the source of rivers. Phone (809) 962-2149.
We recommend Olympic Gardens by Jamaican born author Andrene Bonner
Olympic Gardens is the first book in a series that celebrates the lives of ordinary people living in Jamaica in not so ordinary circumstances. It is a story of displacement, migration, literacy, family, friendship and hope. It is authored by Andrene Bonner whose works have appeared in literary journals and newsmagazines.
By the time Roderick Brissett learns that he is being shipped away from his rural family home to live with his aunt in the city, it is too late. His mother’s decision came without questions or answers. Roderick’s youth is tested under the most adverse conditions. It is within the abyss of such harsh realities that he must find strength and seek some semblance of joy that will help him to survive, grow, and find his place in the world.
IN PRAISE OF OLYMPIC GARDENS
Andrene…your darling book… should be in every school library in Jamaica and on curriculae. I think your future stories will need to give kids who may have suffered similar alienation, hope. Congratulations and thank you so much for sharing with me.
—Rachel Manley, Author: Drumblair: Memories of A Jamaican Childhood; Slipstream: A Daughter Remembers, and Horses in Her Hair: A Granddaughter’s Story
Blog: http://andrenebonner.wordpress.com
TO PURCHASE BOOKS
1. Email orders: egwechi@gmail.com
2. Telephone orders: 914.668-5836
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Dear Lorna
Thanks for being with us in Mandeville – you continue to motivate and inspire so many of us (the ladies) and I appreciate you promoting Countrystyle at The Astra with our community village tours! Keep up the good work!
peace and love
Diana