Times of the Islands Winter 2016/17

astrolabe newsletter of the Turks & Caicos National Museum
When the First World War began, the British Empire
included 17 territories classed as the British West Indies:
Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Guiana, British
Honduras, Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica,
Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis (including Anguilla), St.
Lucia, St. Vincent & the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago
and the Turks & Caicos Islands. All were expected to help
the Empire defeat Germany and its allies.
As part of the British Empire, the Turks & Caicos
Islands automatically went to war with Germany when
Britain declared war on August 4, 1914. The Islands were
largely isolated from the direct impact of the war, but
wanted to do their duty. Residents collected funds to
cover the costs of sending a small contingent of men to
fight, but the Secretary of State decided this money would
be better spent on an ambulance.
This incensed some local men who felt their right to
fight had been taken away from them. Undeterred, some
were able to find funds to cover their travel to Britain to
join up. Records show that at least 18 Islanders who privately
funded their departure served in the British armed
forces in France, England, Egypt, Iraq, Canada and the
US. The panels reveal the names of seven volunteers from
Grand Turk, five from Bottle Creek, three from Blue Hills,
and one each from Cockburn Harbour, Lorimers, and Salt
Cay.
The war was not just fought by those who carried
weapons in the armed forces. A merchant fleet was formed
to maintain supplies to the fighting men in Europe, Africa,
Palestine and the Middle East, or “Mesopotamia” as it was
called at the time. It was also to supply the industries
in Britain with the raw materials to make weapons and
to provide food to the British population. Men from the
Turks & Caicos Islands made their own way to Britain or
other Caribbean islands to join up with the Mercantile
Fleet (the Merchant Navy). The Registry of Shipping and
Seaman Medal Card Registry held by the National Archives
in London records eight Turks & Caicos Islands men who
served in the Mercantile Fleet. Most of them were in their
20s, but one of them, Thomas Pearson, was in his 70s! a
For more information on this fascinating subject, the
West India Committee in the UK has produced a documentary
with the BBC. For more information, visit the website
www.westindiacommittee.org/caribbeansgreatwar/.
Museum matters
Story & Photos By Candianne Williams
Rotary Club visit
On the calendar of the Rotary Club of Providenciales,
October is dedicated to Economic and Community
Development, and because October is also Heritage
Month in the Turks & Caicos Islands, the club changed
their weekly schedule to meet at the Museum’s
Development Office in the Village at Grace Bay.
What a night it was! And a good night to get into
character as the crew of the museum’s major exhibit—
the 1513 Molasses Reef Shipwreck. Nature cooperated
to provide a stormy night as a backdrop, so it was easy
for the Rotarians to imagine themselves trying unsuccessfully
to navigate in the waters around the Turks &
Caicos and wrecking the ship on the southern fringe of
the Caicos Bank just 20 miles south of Providenciales.
The swabbie whose job was mopping the deck had no
difficulty imagining how hard that job would have been
as a result of the waves and rain they likely encountered.
The many boat captains and sailing enthusiasts
in the group related to it all very easily. Best of all,
they were able to bring their experiences and wealth of
knowledge into discussions. The objective was to learn
more about the history of the islands, the museum’s
work in the community, and identify ways that they
could assist. We would like to thank the members of
the Rotary for their financial contribution and we look
forward to working with the Club in the future. a
Teacher’s workshop
If the interest and excitement generated from the
Museum’s Teacher’s Workshop on October 26, 2016 is
any indication of things to come, then I can safely say
that we are in for quite a treat on March 7, 2017 when
we host the TCNM’s History and Cultural Heritage Quiz
for Secondary Schools.
There is nothing quite like the intense positive
energy that is generated from a group of persons who
are passionate about the TCI’s history and cultural heritage.
Pastor Samuel Gold Williams and Mr. James Parker
brought us along with them on waves through time as
we discussed the country’s rich maritime heritage and
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