Bissessarsingh’s family buys Belmont heritage house

The family of historian Angelo Bissessarsingh has bought what is known as the Meyler historic house in Belmont. It will be designated as Angelo Bissessarsingh’s Heritage House.

Bissessarsingh’s aunt Patricia Bissessar made the announcement on Friday in a post in the Facebook group Angelo Bissessarsingh’s Virtual Museum of Trinidad and Tobago, run by the historian and writer until his death in 2017. Bissessar now runs the group.

Bissessar said on behalf of the Bissessarsingh family that Angelo’s only sister Carmelita had just signed the documents making her the owner of “the Meyler Historic House,” on Belmont Circular Road, near the Queen’s Park Savannah.

She added that the house was bought by the Bissessarsingh family with no input from any other organisation or any help from the government.”

The house is listed by the National Trust as a heritage site.

Bissessar said the house would keep its original name for historic purposes, but “Angelo Bissessarsingh’s Heritage House” signage will now be added.

Bissessar wrote that the landmark house was built and designed by Scottish architect George Brown around 1906.

“This house is typical of suburban houses of Woodbrook and Belmont from the early part of the 20th century designed by George Brown, with his distinctive floor plans, strict discipline in the balance of architectural elements, steep gables and elaborate fretwork, making it the ideal building for establishment of the Angelo Bissessarsingh Heritage House.

“It was always a dream of Angelo to purchase one of these gingerbread houses for himself, but unfortunately he did not live long enough to realise his dream. His siblings Carmelita and Mario intend to make his dream a reality.”

Speaking to Newsday on Monday, another of Bissessarsingh’s aunts, university lecturer Annmarie Bissessar, said the family intends to transform the house into a replica of a higher-middle-class 19th-century house, which will be open to the public.

“We’re doing some slight improvements to the building. We would like if it’s staged properly before anyone goes in, and it will take a little time. It’s a bit overwhelming, because everyone wants to go into the building, see the building and I don’t think it’s the time right now.

“We have lots of things in storage that we have to go through, and then we have to ensure that we have adequate areas to display everything.”Security is also a concern: “how to stage that without people taking it up and walking out with some of these tiny pieces we want to display.”

Bissessar said the items included World War II memorabilia, 19th-century clothing, porcelain and musical instruments.

“We have an 1884 wedding dress, the veil, the powder, the perfumes from that century. Everything is so delicate: we have plates where if you break one there is no replacement for it. We have this 1885 piano, for instance, and we’ll have small things on it, like Limoges, Meissen, all the fine ware.

“We have a crystal flower with hummingbirds suckling the flower, very tiny, very intricate. The bedsheets are original chenille bedsheets, so right now we’re walking through the house and thinking through how to stage it....

“We bought soaps that were there from the 18th century – so you could imagine the enormity of the task of putting these all together. That’s why we’re a little bit reticent.”Other items will need to be sourced outside Trinidad.

Bissessar said the team was “pleased that people are so overjoyed,” but wanted to take the time to do research, “look at each room and decide how to stage it and how to make that it that people would come and enjoy it but not destroy anything.”

She thanked the public for its support and said it was greatly appreciated.

Angelo Bissessarsingh published several books about local history. He died on February 2, 2017, at 34, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2015.