Barbados Sugar-Boiling Kettles
The Bitter Side of Sweet
The Sweet Harvest: Barbados Sugar Economy. Barbados, typically called the "Gem of the Caribbean," owes much of its historic prominence to one product: sugar. This golden crop transformed the island from a small colonial station into a powerhouse of the international economy during the 17th and 18th centuries. Yet, the sweet success of sugar was built on a structure of oppressed labour, a truth that casts a shadow over its tradition.
The Boiling Process: A Lealthal Job
Making sugar in the days of colonial slavery was a perilous process. After gathering and squashing the sugarcane, its juice was boiled in enormous cast iron kettles until it crystallized into sugar. These pots, typically set up in a series called a"" train"" were heated by blazing fires that workers had to stoke continually. The heat was extreme, and the work unrelenting. Enslaved workers endured long hours, frequently standing close to the inferno, running the risk of burns and fatigue. Splashes of the boiling liquid were not unusual and could cause serious, even deadly, injuries.
The Human Cost of Sweetness
The sugar industry's success came at a severe human expense. Enslaved Africans lived under harsh conditions, subjected to physical penalty, bad nutrition, and relentless workloads. Yet, they demonstrated extraordinary durability. Numerous discovered methods to protect their cultural heritage, giving songs, stories, and skills that sustained their communities even in the face of unimaginable difficulty.
Today, the large cast iron boiling pots work as suggestions of this agonizing past. Scattered throughout gardens, museums, and historical sites in Barbados, they stand as quiet witnesses to the lives they touched. These relics encourage us to review the human suffering behind the sweetness that once drove global economies.
HISTORICAL RECORDS!
Abolitionist literature on The Risks of the Boiling House
Abolitionist literature, including James Ramsay's works, details the horrific dangers dealt with by enslaved employees in sugar plantations. The boiling house, with its dangerously hot barrels, was a deadly office where fatigue and extreme heat led to tragic accidents.
Sweet Taste Forged in Fire - Click the link for Details
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