Kingston, Jamaica

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Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation
Kingston skyline, circa 2003
Kingston skyline, circa 2003
Motto: 
A City That Hath Foundations
Location of Kingston shown within Jamaica
Location of Kingston shown within Jamaica
CountryJamaica Jamaica
CountySurrey
ParishKingston
St. Andrew
Established1693
Government
 • MayorDesmond McKenzie
Area
 • Total453 km2 (175 sq mi)
Elevation
9 m (30 ft)
Population
 (2001)
 • Total651,880
 • Density1,439/km2 (3,730/sq mi)
 • Kingston Parish
96,052
 • St. Andrew Parish
555,828
Time zoneUTC-5 (EST)

The City of Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica. It is located on the southeastern coast of the island country. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island. In the Western Hemisphere, Kingston is the largest predominantly English-speaking city south of the United States, with a population of 651,880 (2001 census).[1]

The local government bodies of the parishes of Kingston and St. Andrew were amalgamated by the Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation Act of 1923, to form the Kingston and St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC). Greater Kingston, or the "Corporate Area" refers to the KSAC; however, it does not refer to Kingston Parish, which only consists of the old downtown and Port Royal. Kingston Parish had a population of 96,052, and St. Andrew had a population of 555,828 in 2001.[1]

Two parts make up the central area of Kingston: the historic but troubled Downtown, and New Kingston. Several reggae stars, including Buju Banton, Sean Paul, Bounty Killer, and Beenie Man, hail from Kingston. Attractions include the nearby Hellshire and Lime Cay beaches, the National Gallery of Jamaica, the ruins of Port Royal, and Devon House, a mansion with adjoining park that once belonged to Jamaica's first black millionaire. Several annual and well-visited festivals are held in Kingston.

Kingston is served by Norman Manley International Airport and also by the smaller and primarily domestic Tinson Pen Airport.

History

Devon House, home of the first West Indian millionaire of African descent. Now a much visited reminder of the luxury in which the rich lived in the 19th century.

Kingston was founded in 1693 by refugees from the disastrous earthquake which destroyed much of the previous main port city of Port Royal. Initially the refugees lived in a tented camp on Colonel Barry's Hog Crawle. The town did not begin to grow until after the further destruction of Port Royal by the Nick Catania Pirate Fleet's fire in 1703. Surveyor John Goffe drew up a plan for the town based on a grid bounded by North, East, West and Harbour Streets. By 1716 it had become the largest town and the centre of trade for Jamaica.

Gradually wealthy merchants began to move their residences from above their businesses to the farm lands to the north on the plains of Liguanea. The first free school, Wolmer's, was founded in 1729[2] and there was a theatre, first in Harbour Street and then moved in 1774 to North Parade. Both are still in existence.

Ruins of the 1882 fire which swept through the lower half of the city.

As a centre of commerce and fashion, Kingston rapidly out-distanced the somnolent official capital in Spanish Town and Kingston continued to grow despite calamities: a devastating hurricane in 1784, a huge fire in 1843, a cholera epidemic in 1850, and additional fires in 1862[citation needed][dubious – discuss] and 1882.[3]

In 1755 the governor had decided to transfer the government offices from Spanish Town to Kingston. It was thought by some to be an unsuitable location for the Assembly in close proximity to the moral distractions of Kingston, and the next governor rescinded the Act. However, by 1780 the population of Kingston was 11,000, and the merchants began lobbying for the administrative capital to be transferred from Spanish Town, which was by then eclipsed by the commercial activity in Kingston. This campaign was to continue for a century as Kingston grew still further as an important trading port during the Napoleonic wars. The city finally became the administrative capital of Jamaica in 1872. It kept this status when the island was granted independence in 1962.

On January 14, 1907, an earthquake in Kingston destroyed about 75% of the buildings. Fire broke out and spread widely, adding to the death toll which eventually reached about 800, rather less than some initial reports. The damage was estimated to exceed £2m. Brick and stone buildings suffered the worst damage. Reinforced concrete was widely used in the rebuilding of the city, and building heights were restricted to 60 feet. These building codes were considered to be progressive at the time.

The city became home to the Mona campus of the University of the West Indies founded in 1948 with 24 medical students.

The 1960s saw the commercial activity expanding north. The old Knutsford race course became New Kingston, and uptown shopping plazas were developed causing the decline of the commercial and shopping centres of King Street and Harbour Street. An area of 95 acres along the waterfront was redeveloped with wide landscaped boulevards and multi-storey buildings which include the Bank of Jamaica, Scotia Bank Centre, the Jamaica Conference Centre, and Kingston Mall. Later, from the 1980s, there have been continuing efforts by the Urban Development Company to improve roads systems and trading conditions in the downtown area.

In 1966 Kingston was the host city to the Commonwealth Games.

Demographics

The majority of the population is of African heritage. East Indians are the second largest racial group, followed by Chinese, White/Arab (primarily Lebanese). A small number of Hispanics, mostly from Latin America, also reside in the city.

Religion

There is a wide variety of Christian churches in the city. Most are Protestant, a legacy of British colonization of the island. The chief denominations are Church of God, Baptist, Anglican, Methodist, Roman Catholic, Seventh-day Adventist, and Pentecostal. Afro-Christian syncretic religions are also widespread.

There is a Jewish synagogue in the city as well as a large number of Buddhists and Muslims. The major non-Christian religion is the Rastafari movement.

Climate

Prominent people born in Kingston

Sister cities

Kingston has five sister cities.

Attractions and landmarks

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kingston, Jamaica.

References

  1. ^ a b Statistical Institute of Jamaica
  2. ^ Wolmer's Boys School
  3. ^ Jamaican History 5

External links

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