Historical Society

Honourable Carlton Mills is being pulled from a lot of directions these days with his position that holds the complex running of education, youth, sports and culture. He needs assistance from without…us. The way to guarantee that community needs are met is to actively participate in particular programmes that you are particularly interested. Think of the demands of those portfolios and how they affect your everyday life.

Education affects all the children on these islands, the private and the public students. The public education systems are in need of volunteers to tutor, mentor and provide materials, as well as food to and for students. For example: young people can foster prejudgements of those they consider superior or inferior because of a learning institution’s reputation. Supervised inter-action between the private and public school sectors is a way to enhance knowledge of the other in positive ways. Not so much through competitions as through particulars projects in which they participate together. Nothing is wrong with competition but if that is the only way the see each other, it does not exactly promote togetherness.

I know I don’t need to go on through the list and lecture you about what is and is not happening here, it is just that there is a chance to strengthen the social and cultural aspirations of this nation through a well meaning person, such as Honourable Mills right now, and we should take that opportunity to involve ourselves by assisting him as citizens.

I heard somebody say the other day that we should let government do everything and just follow the laws to make this a balanced society- I am paraphrasing. I guess from my democratic foundation that means to not assist government to govern by forming community groups that will do the stuff that can reduce the tax burden of government expansion. Strange concept. We need to assist, otherwise how would government know what we really need?

I am trying, in my meagre way, to assist government with history documentation. Honourable Mills is a historian and weighs what I am doing against what might be thought of me by some in power, and has asked me to help him form a Historical Society. So, I am asking you, who are interested in the history of this place, to do so. Let’s form a Historical Society. It is needed. It is the first step toward a National Archives. Officially, the first step after the formation of a group such as this, is the cataloguing of what there is as far as documentation locally, then internationally about this place. This catalogue then can be presented to an archives expert who can begin the fairly long and involved process of establishing the foundation of our own archival needs and get further expert assistance that will assist in establishing the archives itself.

People such as John Phillips, Sandra Garland, Oswaldo Arrisa, Bengt Soderqvist, Tom Lightbourne have access to documents already and the knowledge to get more, as well as oral histories and special historical interests are all needed in the formation of a society of professional and amateur historians in this archipelago. The Historical Society would be independent of any other organisation or government body of course.

I want to join it and I am volunteering to coordinate its formation. If you or somebody you know might be interested in joining my telephone number is 243 2093.

Model Museum
We met last Tuesday on Grand Turk and decided upon a perfect location for the Model Museum but of course it is just a wish location at the moment. But the Model Museum Committee is made up of private citizens in the tourism industry (government and private), national museum, schools, the Dept of Culture, as well as a representative of NPEAC, the funding agency for the preliminary study (all living on Grand Turk), the architect and the Federation, and this is a serious undertaking that we have all committed ourselves to complete.

The next step is to put together a formal proposal to submit to Government and await their assessment. We would like the model museum and the research associated with it to be created as a quasi-governmental directorate.

Maritime Documents
Historian Oswaldo Arrisa nonchalantly handed me some documents that were skinny booklets with hardbound green cloth covers and the words, Certificate of British Registry in impressed black ink. Inside were fold out certificates on beige paper and with official titling. They were the official registration of several sloops at Grand Turk in the 1950s.

The names of the registered vessels and people were very interesting:

The K. C. M. Orlando by M.O. Willington Livingstone Swann and Gustavus Oneal Lightbourne, both of Blue Hills, Caicos Islands, Builder G.O. Lightbourne, Master Willington Livingston Swann, 1958;

 

The E.M. Flying Feathers by Elijah Alexander Misick and Mary Augusta Misick both of Kew, builder Stanley Hamilton, Master Elijah Alexander Misick Caicos Islands, 1953;

 

The Prince Navy by Samuel Walkin of Blue Hills, Builder Samuel Walkin, Master Samuel Walkin, 1946;

 

The Caicos Speed Bird by (M.O.) Marie Jestina Handfield and Lillian Mildred Handfield of Kew, Caicos Islands, Builder Stanley Hamilton, Master Humphrey Handfield, 1952.

 

Note: the registration is at Grand Turk, Turks Islands and the owners’ residences for these were in the Caicos Islands.

 

Not until 1961 did we find a reference to the Turks and Caicos Islands combined, so the question is arising when was this archipelago named the Turks and Caicos Islands officially?

Also, there is no official reference to Providenciales, just Blue Hills as two words.

What does M.O. stand for?

Any information on these registrations?

Mariners’ Week & the South Caicos Regatta

The sailors at the 54th Family Island Regatta that we talked to are hot to get to the Turks and Caicos for Mariners’ Week and are trying to get the funding together to ship their sloops. We, here, are into fund raising mode and are starting up the strong aspect of publicity. You will soon see banners and posters and all that other stuff all around. Digicel is assisting with the promotions and will sponsor a new sloop just completed by James Dean.

Master Boatbuilder Albert Higgs, who shared the committee boat with me at George Town, to assess the Bahamian sailors and craft, is in the final stages of completion on his rocket sloop. He says he has confidence in the Federation and has spent $20,000 on this sloop for the Mariners’ Week TCI Challenge Cup Regatta. Wil Gibson is working Mike Robertson to death building spreaders and chain plates and getting lots of advice on rigging for his two sloops just finishing construction for Mariners’ Week.

Gold Williams is confident his new design for Wil will beat everything around here, not even considering the Bahamians as competition.

Goldray Ewing is planking his new sloop and has his sails already for his new 30-footer.

Honourable Norman Saunders does not have time for much else readying his restored Sloop for the South Caicos Regatta and Mariners’ Week.

Mo Cox has sent his (George Dean) Sloop to the painters to smooth it out and put a fine finish on her for South Caicos and Mariners’ Week.

Wing is working away and being quiet… for a change.

JJ Parker is fine tuning Mary Jane, confident that she is the best around. He is also putting Environment I through her paces just to keep up with the sailing part.

There is a lot of action by boat people here but we still need crews for all this action. Call me if you want a crew spot at 243 2093. This is for everybody, okay?

We still don’t know much about what is happening with the South Caicos Regatta but are hoping for the best. They are supposed to have a meeting two weeks before the event and we are supposed to be invited to that meeting.

Let’s join in and get Mariners’ Week to be the best grass roots celebration of a grass roots culture ever!