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The Barbados Railway 1881-1937
“The old time people used to say that the Barbados Railway was mentioned in the Bible, among the creeping things of this earth”. “The Barbados Railway 1881-1937” by Peter Murphy was shared by Robert Badley who found a copy in his father’s papers. The author Peter Murphy has given his permission for BajanThings to re-publish “The…
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High Altitude Research Project (HARP) 1962 – 1967
The High Altitude Research Project (HARP) space gun was set up at Paragon just to the east of the runway of what was then Seawell Airport – the brainchild of Canadian ballistics scientist Dr. Gerald Bull and jointly funded by McGill University, Canada and the USA Army Research and Development Center. The HARP project was…
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The 1679 Barbados Census – a searchable database
The 1679 Barbados census offers one of the earliest and most complete snapshots of colonial society in the English-speaking world. It captures land ownership, plantation structure, and demographic patterns at a time when Barbados was the wealthiest colony in the British Empire. For genealogists and historians, it provides essential insights into early family names, migration,…
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My Memories of Independence day – 30th November 1966
In November 1966 I was 13 years old and naturally still at school. I remember two events related to Barbados becoming independent. Firstly – a historical pageant at Kensington Oval on Thursday 1st December 1966 at 4.15pm in the presence of their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Kent There was a historical pageant…
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Jean Agatha Forde
Jean Agatha Forde was born on the 22nd September 1942 at Triopaths in St. Andrew, Barbados. War was raging in Europe and the Pacific, but they were not affected by this. She grew up in a safe and hardworking environment. Very little food was imported into the island, and what was would not have reached her…
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Operation Carlota – Cuba’s secret flights to Angola via Barbados
Fifty years ago on 7th November 1975, Cuba launch Operation Carlota using Seawell airport as the first refuelling stop on the long flight east from Cuba to Angola transporting elite Cuban troops in support of the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), which was facing external aggression aimed at thwarting independence. These flights…
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W/O Derek Davies – A Bajan Specialist Gunner with 224 Squadron RAF Coastal Command
Derek Sewell Blackburn Davies joined the RAF on 3rd September 1942, serving for nine months in the RAF regiment. He received aircrew training as a specialist air gunner receiving his wing in April 1944 and was then posted to 224 Squadron, RAF Coastal Command joining the crew of F/L Merrington flying in B-24 Liberators hunting…
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Barbados Blackwood Screwdock (dry dock)
In July 2025 PM Mia Mottley launched the Bridgetown Pierhead Project, a waterfront development project aimed at breathing new life into historic Bridgetown. Pierhead then (early 1960s) and now (2025) pre revitalisation. This new Pierhead development incorporates what used to be the Blackwood screwdock – which was a marvel of Victorian engineering. Like the HARP…
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Haunted by Janet
This is a follow on post to: Hurricane Janet – 22 September 1955. 70 years on Clem Griffiths recalls Hurricane Janet. Some Bajans measure life by elections, others by cricket matches – but me? By hurricanes. My first brush was Janet of 1955, though at two years old I nearly slept through it… until a…
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Belleville Village
Belleville was developed in 1885 by Samuel Manning and his brother, Thomas Manning, in partnership with George Whitfield. It was designed as a model residential suburb of Bridgetown, featuring fine homes and nearly 900 Royal Palm trees. By 1890 construction had commenced and by 1898 at least 79 houses had been completed. Some regard Belleville…
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BajanThings
Bajan history. Interesting Bajan people. Hiking in Barbados and Overseas. International Travel…
Category: Bajan History
Bajan (Barbadian) history.