Clarendon Jamaica

Amity hall in Clarendon was once a large sugar estate; it is now part of the Monymusk Sugar Estate. Amity Hall in Trelawny is owned by Vale Royal Estates Limited.

Arthur Seat is in Clarendon — there are two sources given for this place-name: one is that it came originally from Scotland, the other that it took the Christian name of its first owner, Arthur McKenzie, who owned it from 1811. Beckford Kraal is named after the Beckford family who were granted 1,000 acres here by royal patent in 1669. Breadnut Bottom and Breadnut Valley, in St. Elizabeth, are named after the breadnut tree (Brosimum alicastrum), the pods of which are fed to cattle during drought.

Bustamante Drive, Clarendon, is also named after the Right Hon. Sir Alexander Bustamante, National Hero. Carlisle Bay was named after the Earl of Carlisle, Governor of Jamaica, 1678-1680. It is notable for being the scene of the principal military engagement with a foreign enemy in Jamaica during British occupation. This attack was made by Captain DuCasse, the Governor of San Domingo, and was the second; the first had been made at Port Morant and ‘Cow Bay’ (now known as Bull Bay) in the east end of the island on June 7, 1694.

Chapelton was first known as “Chapel Town”, as the village took the name from the church. The Chapelton Church (Cundall tells us) was dedicated to St. Paul, and was built at the time when the present parish of Clarendon was divided into the parishes of Clarendon and Vere. The “Cross” Church, near May Pen, now in ruins, was then the Parish Church of Clarendon. The (Chapelton Church was built as a “chapel of ease” to the Cross Church, and was the first place of worship of any size erected in upper Clarendon. The oldest records go back to 1666.

Codrington Mountains, formerly known as John Crow Mountains, on the lower ridge of Blake Mountains, were owned by Mary Codrington of Happy Grove Estate. Colonel’s Ridge might have been named after Colonel Dawkins, an early English settler, who owned “Dawkin’s Pen” and “Dawkin’s Kraal”. Curatoe Hill, in May Pen is named after a plant which once grew there, and was used in connection with rum fermentation. Danks was originally known as “Danke” and was owned by Sir Henry Morgan, buccaneer and one time Governor of Jamaica. In the book Captain Blood by Raphael Sabatini, the following explanation is given:

“This land was given by Sir Henry Morgan, to his wife who was of German nationality, and she said ‘danke’ which is German for ‘thanks’, and the land was given this name”.

Dawkins is named after James and Henry Dawkins, early English settlers. Henry Dawkins was Member of the Assembly in 1774.

Denbigh is in Clarendon. This name comes originally from North Wales. Denbigh was a property owned by the late Hon. W.G. Muirhead, C.M.G., Custos of Clarendon, who gave part of it for the Denbigh Show Grounds. Race Course in Clarendon.

Far Enough is in Clarendon. Land was taken up here by George McKenzie, one of the members of the Scotch Darien Expedition (1698) which proved a failure. (The Darien Project was an unsuccessful scheme entered upon at the close of the 17th century by Patterson, the Scottish financier, for colonizing the Isthmus of Darien and directing trade to Scotland.) Land was granted to Scotsmen in Jamaica, and this particular one said when he got here that he was “far enough from Courts and Kings”. Four Paths is in Clarendon.

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Gold Mine, across the Rock River in Clarendon, is so designated because the Spaniards in their search for gold are said to have “washed gold” here. Halse Hall was named after Major Thomas Halse, who joined the invading English Army under General Venables and Admiral Penn at Barbados, and was granted land here. Halse was born in 1614 and died in 1702. His tomb is to be seen in the burial ground at Halse Hall. On his death his half-brother, Francis Sadler, acquired the property, and he adopted the surname, “Halse”, being afterwards known as Francis Sadler Halse. He was a Member of the House of Assembly for St. James, 1745-6, and again in 1749. He died without issue and his wife, Janet, entered into an agreement with John Ellis to convey to him all estates owned by her husband, including

Halse Hall subsequently came into the ownership of Sir Henry de la Beche, who was an eminent geologist. A plaque to his memory was placed in the Great House by the Historical Society of Jamaica in 1956, unveiled by the then governor of the island, Sir Kenneth Blackburn. Halse Hall is now owned by Alcoa Minerals of Jamaica. There is also a Halse Hall Village.

Hay’s Savannah (now spelt “Hayes”) was named after John Hays, an early English settler. There is also Hay’s Corn piece. Both are part of the New Yarmouth Sugar Estate. The village of Hayes, built on the savannah, is about seven miles south of May Pen.

Howard Street May Pen, is named after Mr. Howard Sharpe, the late Chairman of the Citrus Company in that town. Jackson Bay is named after Colonel Jackson, who commanded the Clarendon Militia in the early history of that parish. James Hill, Clarendon, was first listed as James’ Hill, which indicates that it was named after the first owner.

Juan De Bolas Mountain and (two) Rivers are named after Juan Lubolo (1662), the first Maroon chief. His name was later corrupted to Juan de Bolas. The English gave this name to the mountain and the rivers in acknowledgement of his joining with them in getting rid of the Spaniards; through his help hostile Maroons were captured as well. They also appointed de Bolas Colonel of the Black Militia and he was granted land here. However soon after, the Maroons ambushed him for his treachery.

Kellits is in the parish of Clarendon. The correct spelling of this name is Kellets. An early attorney for the Kellits Sugar Estate, the late Mr. H.E. Upton, claimed, “that Kellets was owned by the Kellet and MacKenzie families”. Cohn MacKenzie married his cousin Janet in 1720, and his brother George MacKenzie, also of Kellets, died there, and a stone taken from the ruins of the sugar works with the initials G.M.K. proves this. The first crop of sugar was harvested in 1773. As far as the MacKenzie family is concerned, Peter MacKenzie of Chudleigh in South Devon, Manchester, married one Janet Broadbelt “between February 8th 1796 and June 4th 1798”. The reference to him also states that Peter was born on March 23, 1779, and baptised on the following October 16th in the parish of Clarendon. He was the second son of George MacKenzie, President of the Legislative Council, of Far Enough and Kellets, who died in Spanish Town in 1815. It was Peter’s great-great-grandfather, Alexander MacKenzie, who left Scotland in 1698, joined the Darien expedition, and finally settled in Jamaica. The MacKenzie pedigree states “that Peter died in 1839, and Jane his wife survived him until December 1856”. Another owner of Kellets circa 1811-1812 was Robert Milligan, a London merchant. He was also Deputy Chairman of the West India Dock Co. From 1815 to 1825 the estate was owned by the Hon. John Shand, who retained it until 1845, when the records cease. At that time Kellets comprised 100 acres. Since those early days, Kellets has been bought by the government and laid out as a township, with shops, gas stations, markets, department stores, etc.

On the grounds of Kellets a tomb and monument to a faithful slave can be seen. It reads as follows:
“Here lies honest Page, whose principles did honour to his human nature. He died October 1 795 aged 49.
His Master in gratitude for his long and faithful services has erected this tomb to his memory.”
(See “Kellets Estate”, by F.J. Duquesnay, Jamaica Historical Society, Vol. IV, No. 10, Sept. 1971).

Kemps Hill Lookout four miles from “The Alley”, is the site of an old English Camp, and was first known as “Camp Hill”. This look-out commands a view of Carlisle Bay, and was used during the attack by the French at that Bay in 1694. Old cannon can still be seen there.

Longville is named after Samuel Long, first of his family to settle in Jamaica. This occurred in 1655, when he accompanied the expedition under Admiral Penn and General Venables. He entered the politics of the island, and was appointed first Speaker of the House of Assembly, and afterwards, Chief Justice. In the history of the island, he is particularly remembered for having, along with Sir William Beeston, governor of the island, 1683-1700, gone to England and acquired a form of government for Jamaica. There were two of this family who had the Christian name of Samuel: Charles Long, the son of the first settler, married and his son was named after his grandfather, Samuel. Charles and Samuel jr. also lived at Longville. Edward Long, the son of Samuel Long jr., born August 23, 1734, became a historian. His History of Jamaica, published in 1774 in three volumes, is considered his greatest work.

Max Lane Avenue, in May Pen, Clarendon, is named after the late Max Pawsey, custos, who gave land for the erection of a library in that town. May Pen is the capital and initially was owned by Reverend. Wiffiam May. He was pastor for the Kingston Parish Church and then served for another 32 years in May Pen Clarendon.

May Pen is said to have begun with two inns on a bank of the Rio Minho in which travelers going from east to west had to lodge when the river was in spate, because it was then unbridged. After a bridge was built over this treacherous river, in which well-known members of the public were drowned, more houses were erected and the village became the town of May Pen. The town now consists of Denbigh, Mill Bank, Lime Savannah, and Bryant Pen, in which, in the old days, cows grazed. The first significant mention of May Pen was in Law 20 of 1877, which states that “The Parishes of Clarendon and Vere shall constitute one Parish under the name of Clarendon and the town May Pen shall be the Chief Town thereof”.

The town grew so rapidly that in 1938 May Pen was made the capital of the parish of Clarendon, and in 1962 it was granted mayoral status. It is now a large town and boasts many churches, factories, a courthouse, modern libraries, and numerous shops. Mocho Mountains are in Clarendon.


Monymusk was owned by the Grant family, ancestors of Lady Tweedmuir, and was named after their home in Scotland. The West Indies Sugar Company Ltd.’s holdings at Monymusk formerly totaled nearly 27,000 acres, of which 13,000 were in cane cultivation, 6,000 in grass for cattle (beef) raising, and 4,000 leased to small farmers for food crops; the remainder comprises roads, housing compounds, swamp and woodland.

Morgan’s Valley is also named after Sir Henry Morgan, who acquired land there when he gave up piracy and was trying to encourage the buccaneers to become gentlemen farmers.

Sanguinetti is said to bear the name of an Italian Jew who owned the Sanguinetti property, listed as comprising 3,249 acres. The Hon. Jacob Sanguinetti is the earliest (1746-1800) recorded owner. Members of the family living in Clarendon were F.S. Sanguinetti (vestryman, 1847). Moses Sanguinetti (vestryman and Manager of the Savings Bank, 1841) and Mrs. Caroline Sanguinetti. By 1938 there were two properties named

Sanguinetti, one of 76 acres owned by Mr. R. Tyndale Biscoe (now of Fairview, Newport), and the other of 592½ acres owned by William G. Causeland. There is now also a post office which bears this name. Moses Sanguinetti, prior to his coming to Jamaica, married Elizabeth, eldest daughter of S. Sheddon Esq. of Collman House, Cheltenham, England, in St. Mary’s Church, in that country.

Sevens, a sugar estate in Clarendon, was first listed (j as “Seven Plantations” and appeared thus on a map dated 1661. In 1662, when the island was being divided into ten districts, Seven Plantations was said to have been first owned by Anthony Collyer, a name which occurs among the old records of land titles in the record office. Collyer was one of the first representatives of Jamaica in the House of Assembly 1663-1664.

Sharp Avenue, May Pen, Clarendon, is named after Howard R. Sharp, who established the Citrus Company of Jamaica Limited, of which he was director for many years. (See Who’s Who Jamaica, 1969.)

Shaw Park, in St. Ann, was named after an early Scottish settler, John Shaw. There is now a Shaw Park Hotel. The hote1 first started in the Great House, built by Shaw, which was enlarged, and picturesquely placed in a garden. This original hotel no longer exists, but the Shaw Park Gardens are still an added beauty, as is the waterfall.

Sheckles, in the parish of Clarendon, is named after John S. Sheckles, Member of the Assembly, Custos of Clarendon, and Brigadier-General of the Militia. A resident in the island for 55 years, he died in 1782. Smokey Hole, in the parish of Clarendon, was first known as “Dawkins Smokey Hole”, the latter name partially deriving from that of a previous owner of the area, Colonel Dawkins. Spaldings is a place-name from Lincoln- shire, England.

Storks Street, in May Pen, Clarendon, is named after Mr. Storks deRoux, pioneer businessman of May Pen, who owned the property through which the street was cut. Suttons Thompson Town may be named after Mr. R. Thompson of “Thompson Hall”, who grew coffee extensively in this parish in its early history.

Toll Gate may have been so named because in its early history a toll was taken not far from this property. Toll Gate was owned by the Quintin Logan family for years. Logan was J.P. for Clarendon in 1916.

Top Hill, on the border of Clarendon and St. Ann, is named for its geographical location. Once only arrived at by bridle track, the now thriving town can be reached by road. The first building at Top Hill was a Baptist church in,) the charge of the Rev. George Turner, whose sphere of churches also comprised Staceyville, Paradise and Rock River.

Trout Hall is the location of a citrus company and factory, among the earliest to be established in Jamaica. These came into existence through the effort of Mr. R.H. Sharp, who became their manager. For bringing prosperity to the people of that area, two streets in the town of May Pen were named after Sharp.

Vere-Ma-Hollis Savannah is in Clarendon. This word is said to be derived from the Spanish Los Virmejales (sometimes spelt Bermexales) — “the red grounds”, and the soil of the savannah answers this description.

Vere-Ma-Hollis Savannah was the second settlement, or hato, which Don Cristobal de Yssasi had Ji4an de Serras establish, and of which he was put in charge. (In 1657 Yssasi, who was the last Spanish governor, had a camp here.) Angels is also in the parish of Clarendon.

Blake Mountains, in the Blue Mountain range, are now known as John Crow Mountains. On December 4, 1890, Sir Henry Blake, Governor of Jamaica, by a notice in The Jamaica Gazette declared that the name should be changed to Blake Mountains, commemorating the feat of Inspector Herbert Theodore Thomas (then stationed in St. Thomas), the first recorded person to cross the until then inaccessible, rocky plateau known then as the John Crow Mountains, but the old name has prevailed.

Bull Head is so named from the shape of the mountain, which rises to a height of approximately 3,600 feet, and is the highest elevation in this parish. This mountain is as nearly as possible the centre of the island and is a conspicuous landmark to vessels approaching the island from the south. The ascent is easy and the view on a clear day is magnificent, as it commands the entire parish to the south, the parish of St. Ann to the north, the Manchester hills to the west, and Blue Mountain Peak to the east.

Elim near Thompson Town in Clarendon: both may be named after the biblical Elim. At Elim in Clarendon, the Baptist Missionary Society of London began work in 1861.

Milk River was has mineral baths that are located at the bottom of a hill of limestone. The saline water gushes out 240 gallons every minute which is 345,600 saline water gallons daily. Milk River Bath has mineral salts, high radioactivity and makes it therapeuticfor people suffereing from rheumatism, neuralgia, kidney, eczema and liver diseases.

Alley (also referred to as ‘The Alley’) was first known as ‘Withywood’ — originally in the parish of Vere, later Clarendon, which replaced Vere. It takes its name from the Alley Church, established in 1671, the oldest Anglican Church in the island and one which contains many monuments to early settlers.

Manchioneal spanish for little apple, which is the fruit the manchineel tree. Found on coastal areas the leaves and juice are poisonous.

For years Manchioneal was a banana shipping port, and before the days of motor cars was much in use. There was a coastal steamer which took passengers to Rio Bueno, and other small ports. At that time the steamer was the sole method of travel to schools, for example, the Westwood High School.

Manchioneal consists of a number of districts, including Reach, owned by Wffliam Bryan in 1811, which was known for Christmas revelry on the part of slaves, and celebration of the commemorative “Ninth Night” for the dead. If that night was not celebrated with music and dance, feasting, and acts of “sweeping out”, the spirit, it was claimed, would return to the house. It is also at the village of Reach that the Jamaican dance known as “kumina” originated.

Malmsey Valley was owned from 1740 by Peter Beckford Senior of the famous Beckford family, early English settlers from Gloucestershire, England. Ruins of the Great House can still be seen.