Barbados Sugar’s Unseen History

Sweet Taste Forged in Fire

In 18th-century Barbados, cane sugar was made in cast-iron syrup kettles, an approach later on adopted in the American South. Sugarcane was squashed using wind and animal-powered mills. The drawn out juice was heated up, clarified, and evaporated in a series of iron kettles of decreasing size to produce crystallized sugar.

Sugar in Barbados. Sugarcane growing started in Barbados in the early 1640s, when the Dutch presented sugar production. The island's rich soil and favourable climate made it the perfect area for sugar production. By the mid-17th century, Barbados had become one of the wealthiest nests in the British Empire, earning the nickname "Little England." But all was not sweetness in the land of Sugar as we discover next:



The Boiling Process: A Lealthal Task

Sugar production in the days of colonial slavery was  a highly dangerous procedure. After collecting and crushing the sugarcane, its juice was boiled in enormous cast iron kettles up until it turned into sugar. These pots, often organized in a series called a"" train"" were heated by blazing fires that workers needed to stoke continuously. The heat was suffocating, and the work unrelenting. Enslaved employees 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 might cause serious, even deadly, injuries.


The Human Cost of Sweetness

The sugar industry's success came at a serious human expense. Enslaved workers lived under brutal conditions, subjected to physical penalty, poor nutrition, and relentless work. Yet, they showed remarkable strength. Numerous discovered ways to preserve their cultural heritage, passing down tunes, stories, and skills that sustained their communities even in the face of inconceivable challenges.




By acknowledging the hazardous labour of enslaved Africans, we honour their contributions and sacrifices. Barbados" sugar industry, built on their backs, formed the island's history and economy. As we admire the relics of this period, we need to likewise remember individuals whose labour and durability made it possible. Their story is an important part of comprehending not simply the history of Barbados however the broader history of the Caribbean and the global effect of the sugar trade.



The next time you see kettle in a peaceful garden or museum, remember that it is more than a decorative piece. It is a reminder of the the slaves who tended the boiling sugar, the lives that sustained, and the strength that continues to motivate.


HISTORICAL RECORDS!


The Truth of Making Sugar Revealed in Historical Records

The boiling home was one of the most unsafe places on a Caribbean sugar plantation. Abolitionist authors, consisting of James Ramsay, recorded the shocking conditions enslaved employees endured, from harsh heat to deadly accidents in open sugar barrels.


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Boiling Down Sweetness