Times of the Islands Spring 2022

astrolabe newsletter of the Turks & Caicos National Museum
This postcard shows the salt pans circa 1906. Salt raked into small
piles is ready to be moved to storage areas or to salt sheds.
Wind-powered water wheels were heavy and could
not be moved. Kids would sometimes ride on them as
though they were riding on a carousel.
From pond No. 2, the pickle was moved to shallow
salt pans where it would begin to crystalize after 15 to
20 days. It was ready to rake after another 20 to 25 days.
Toothed wooden rakes were used to break up the salt
crystals and rake them into small piles.
Salt raked into piles next to the salt pans would then
be loaded on donkey carts or wheelbarrows and moved
to outdoor storage areas near the beach or to salt sheds.
The next issue of the Astrolabe will continue the
story of the salt industry on the Turks & Caicos Islands. a
Thanks to Nigel Sadler of Sands of Time Consultancy for
providing information on the Royal Regulations of 1767.
Jeff Dodge spent a year at the Naval Base on Grand Turk
in 1966. He returned in the 1990s with his wife for a
diving vacation. A visit to the Museum led by Brian Riggs,
spurred his interest in collecting early picture postcards
of the Turks and Caicos Islands.
72 www.timespub.tc