Tobago’s odyssey with sea connection

Dr Rita Pemberton

The matter of Tobago’s connectedness with the rest of the world erupted as a major issue when it was made a British possession in 1763 and since, has remained of central importance to its development. One of the first requests from the first planters and merchants which was made through the acting governor, was a call for Tobago’s sea communication to be regularised and be brought on par with the twice per month mail/passenger service which operated in Barbados and Grenada with which Tobago was administratively related. Despite several requests, the situation remained unchanged causing severe communication challenges to the new crop of planters and merchants who were anxious to establish their operations on favourable arrangements.

When made, the first arrangement was with private boats which delivered official and private mail to Tobago every two months with a quick turnaround time which did not facilitate time for immediate responses to be sent. In addition, there were no arrangements for the delivery of internal mail causing planters to have to pay couriers to collect their mail from the island’s lone post office in Scarborough. This was challenging given the poor state of roads in Tobago and residents had to pay private schooners to take mail and passengers to Barbados up to 1794. This was an additional cost that had not been factored into their original plans and was considered onerous by new planters who were anxious to get their businesses fully operational with haste. The time lag encountered in this arrangement affected the timely supply of goods and information to the new planters and merchants.

The Barbados based governor in chief supported a bimonthly arrangement by which three vessels which plied between Barbados and Tobago carried Tobago’s mail to and from Barbados, were allied to the Tobago post office. However, during the early years of British possession when the French continued to harbour intentions on repossessing Tobago, French soldiers and privateers attacked the ships and captured the mail which stimulated serious security concerns about highly confidential matters falling into enemy hands. Instructions from the imperial government were that when such attacks occurred, the mail was to be dumped into the ocean. War with France again broke out in 1781 causing an interruption to mail delivery to and trade disruption in Tobago. The situation was aggravated by the French occupation of Tobago between 1781 and 1793. In addition to the losses caused by French destruction of estates, there were uncertainties of ownership of estates, new regulations were imposed by the French authorities and businessmen encountered difficulties to access credit and trading arrangements with British agents were totally severed. All residents of Tobago were made to swear allegiance to the French monarch and those who refused lost their properties. The Tobago business community was thrown into total disarray and absentee owners who lost interest in Tobago, sought to cut their losses which decision stimulated the process of estates changing hands which characterised the 19th century Tobago.

Mail delivery to the island under the bimonthly arrangement was resumed when Tobago was restored as a British possession in 1793 and was continued until 1840 when the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company was formed to carry mail to the Caribbean colonies. Under the contract with this company, two steamers were required to remain in Tobago. This stirred much expectation from the resident business committee and, in preparation for this development, the Scarborough harbour was upgraded, and a lighthouse was erected at Bacolet Point to provide signals which would guide the boats safely through the rocky approach to the harbour.

Hopes for a new start in the mail delivery service were dimmed when the captain of the Royal Mail steamer went to Courland Bay in Plymouth. and delivered the mail. Planters and the Scarborough-based businessmen were very unhappy because the six-mile distance between Plymouth and Scarborough was marked by very poor roads and it was costly to retrieve mail from Plymouth, by courier. An objecting memo from the upset community cited the impassable road, the negative impact on the mercantile community because it required costs for courier services between Scarborough and Plymouth, passengers on the ship got wet in transit to Scarborough and that the main post office was in Scarborough. The memo was supported by the Lt Governor Henry Darling who endorsed Scarborough as the port of call. However, the company’s rebuttal cited the dangers of the Scarborough harbour which the captain sought to avoid. While other ships plying between Tobago, Barbados, Grenada and St Vincent used the harbour, complaints from the Royal Steam Packet continued until 1875. A new contract was made with the Royal Mail Company from January 1, 1875, for a monthly service by one vessel. Tobago asked for an additional service but the company insisted that it was not financially feasible.

In an attempt to provide resolution to their problems, Tobago planters formed the Tobago Steamship Company in 1881. Their ship, the Dawn, made its first trip July 15, 1881 to facilitate movement of mail and trade with Trinidad. This opened a new avenue for the movement of mail and trade until an accident which occurred in Castara on February 10, 1882, where the Dawn hit a rock and was out of service for repairs for an extended period, after which it never regained its initial efficiency.

On July 1, 1885, a new contract was made with The Royal Mail for the provision of a once per month service to call Tobago. After making its stops in St Vincent, Grenada, Trinidad and Barbados, the ship was required to remain in Tobago for a six-day layover. In 1886, other ships, including ships from Gillespie and company, called in to Tobago for sugar, rum and molasses.

The next arrangement was made at unification of the two islands, with Turnbull Stewart and Co for a service to New York to export fruit. It began with a fortnightly service that did not last long. In 1889, the coastal service which served East and Northeast Trinidad, was extended to Tobago. In 1896, Grell and Company got the subsidy for conducting a service to Tobago which lasted from 1901 to 1906, but the service was erratic and new arrangements were made with the Royal Mail Company for the conduct of a weekly service along the coastal bays of Trinidad and around Tobago. The service to Tobago started in September with the Spey making the around Tobago trips while the Kennet did the round Trinidad service from 1906 to1911. These ships were replaced by larger steamers, the Belize for the round Tobago service and the Barima for Trinidad. At the outbreak of World War I, the Barima was pulled for war service leaving the Belize to service both Trinidad and Tobago during the war years.

Despite strong protests from Tobago about the unsatisfactory service, the contract with the Royal Company was renewed in 1916, but there was no improvement in the quality of service which deteriorated to frequent delays and often no service at all. Amid protests from Tobago planters, merchants and peasant producers, in March 1923 the government of the colony purchased Belize, and Alston’s Ltd was contracted to manage the service between Trinidad and Tobago from 1923 to 1927 service for a seven an a half per cent of the returns. Still, there were no improvements, and the journey from Port of Spain to Scarborough could take 18 hours, two days to make the round the island tour and the return to Port of Spain via Toco and several other stops, could take up to 12-and-a-half hours.

In 1924, the Belize ran aground and was out of service for almost five months and between 1924 and 1927 the ship was prone to frequent breakdowns which required servicing and some form of rehabilitation activity. During this period, the government engaged Canadian National Steamships travelling to and from Guyana to make fortnightly calls to Trinidad and Tobago, but dependence was placed on the sloops which were owned and operated by local fisherfolk to provide this essential service at great risk. There were no satisfactory arrangements to maintain communication between the two islands for the conduct of essential business. Even after 37 years of union, the sea provided an obstacle course and the journey between the islands was an odyssey.