Georgetown is the city of my birth and I have an admiration for its handsomeness. The tree lined roadways, the lamp lit avenues, the colourful buildings, the colonial buildings, the history and the general beauty of the city.
The city started as a small settlement, a British capital port for the Demerara-Essequibo colony in 1781 when Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Kingston moved the capital from Borselen Island which was a few miles in the Demerara River. In 1782 the French captured the small town and developed it into their capital named La Nouvelle Ville; in 1784 the Dutch captured the town and developed it further into their capital, Stabroek after Nicolaas Geelvinck, Lord of Stabroek, and President of the Dutch West India Company; the downtown ward still bears the name Stabroek and is also the name for the world-famous cast-iron market.
After permanent British succession from the constant wars and handing over of the titles to land, the town was renamed Georgetown on April 29, 1812 after the then ruling British monarch, George III and eventually the city was designed into what it looks like today, the avenues and the boundaries of the wards, were at this time drawn out. On August 24, 1842 Georgetown was promoted from a township into a city during the reign of Queen Victoria.
To date Georgetown would be a bit difficult; it was birthed as a capital of a united colony 233 years ago but gained official city status 172 years ago. But no matter which date, the city has an interesting heritage. Those who left their names as imprints of their roles in developing it deserve our gratitude, particularly Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Kingston who started it all.
I feel a spiritual connection somehow when I zone out and walk through certain parts of the Garden City mainly because in my childhood days the history of Guyana fascinated me. I read books and books about the constant battles for Guyana. We were French, then Dutch, British, then Dutch and back and forth until we were ceded to the British crown.
The city itself was developed by these transformations based on the lives of the people who came here. The Dutch knew of the threats of floods and so they built our sea defences. They started digging our canals, mud dams and sluice gates.
The French built our roads, lined them and bricked them. The English designed more wards, placed boundaries and actually carved the city into what it looks like today: the grid of roads running east to west, north to south; the avenues and pavements, the sewerage system, city blocks and communities.
We should celebrate the beauty of Georgetown with a Heritage Week honouring the people who laid the foundation of our capital, who came here and made it their home.
We must celebrate their contributions and efforts in developing a city. It is a serious consideration that City Hall, the Ministry of Local Government and the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce should look at: Georgetown Heritage Week.
People need to know the fascinating history of their capital and know that they are now holding the mantle, a torch of commitment to develop the city.
They need that sense of importance; that pride and love to beautify and develop.
As you can imagine, it pains me to see the destruction of this once glorious city. The glistening canals now choked with plastics and Styrofoam, lawns brown and scarred or overgrown, buildings leaning, unpainted and falling apart – even the world famous City Hall looks much like the city it administers.
Georgetown, however, is still beautiful with its birds, greenery and bridges.
Georgetown, like its sister cities in the Caribbean is truly a melting pot. We all live together, work together and play together. We can preserve this heritage for posterity by losing our penchant for littering and breaking the law and gaining pride in our environment, much like Kingston and all the men who built this great city.
