Figure 1.--Trinidad in the early 20th century, like much of the Caribbean, was very poor. The slaves emancipated in the 1830s had made little economic progress.

We have begun to build some basic information about Trinidad-Tabago. The larger island, Trinidad, is the largest island of the Lesser Antilles. It is located just off the eastern coast of Venezuela. We have a page on Tridadian history. The British introduced plantation sugar agriculture when they seized the island from the Spaniush. The economy shifted after the turn of the 20th-century to petroleum. We have begin a page on the economy. Unfortunaterly Trnindad readers have not yet provided us information on their country. As part of the British Empire, slaves were emancipated (1830s). The did not prosper and most of the liberated slaves lived in poverty. The native American population perished in the early colonial period. Much of the population is decended from Aftican slaves imported to work on the sugar planttions. There is also a small populstion of Asians imported as indentured laborers. The discovery of oil has provided funds for economic development. An English reader provides us some information during the 1960s. He writes, "... my little brother had a friend from Trinadad at his school. He was born there and had a brother. I normally only saw the Trinadian brothers in school uniform or play clothes like ours but in the Summer holidays they'd be playing cricket in the park with their Dad and then they's be wearing! really brightly coloured shirts with exotic patterns on them (the Dad too!) which were probably from Trinadad as you rarely saw such bright and exotic shirts for sale in England back then. We visited Trinidad in 2000 and saw the children mostly wearing school uniforms. After school, however, we did not see a lot of exotic pattern shirts. As far as we could tell, Trnidadian children had for the most part adopted standard American casual wear."

Geography

Trinidad and Tobago are the southernmost islands of the Lesser Antilles and Caribbean archipelago, Both islands are a geological extension of the South American continent. The climate has two seasons: a dry season from January to May and a rainy season from June to December. Trinidad is an island outside the normal path of Atlantic hurricanes. Trinidad is the larger of the two island and the largest island of the Lesser Antilles. It is located just off the eastern coast of Venezuela. Trinidad is only separated from Venezuela by the 11 kilometer straits of the Gulf of Paria. Trinidad is covered by tropical rain forests in the coastal Northern Range. The highest peak is El Cerro del Aripo (940 metres). It is one of three low mountain ranges that run east to west across the Island. Sections of the east and west coasts are swamps. There are flat agricultural land in the Central Plains. This became an important sugar growing areas (19th century). The teraine in Southern Trinidad is mostly gently undulating hillsides. Tobago is a smaller island located bout 20 miles northeast of Trinidad. Tobago has beautiful white sand beaches because of the coral reefs around the island. Tobago's interior rises steeply from the eastern coast into tall peaks with lower lying lands that are now protected reserve area. Tobago is a volcanic island and the volcanic rock is in stark contrast to Caribbean blue waters.

History

Trinidad was the first Caribbean Island to be settled by Native Aericans. It is visible from the South American mainland and easily accessible on even ptimitive dug-out canones. The spread to the islands of the Caribbean Arc was a much more difficult undertaking. Trinidad and Tobago proved to be a much sought after prize in the colonial wars that followed the European discovery of the Americas. Columbus claimed Trinidad for Spain (1498). The Spanish established the first settlement (1532), but an English force commanded by Sir Walter Raleigh destroyed the settlement (1595). The English were, however, unable to hold on to the Island and the Spanish reestablished control. The Spanish colonial epoch lasted three centuries and is reflected in the name of the capital--Port of Spain. The British took cotrol of the island again as a result of the European wars initiated by the French Revolution. A British naval force seized the island. Spain ceded the island under theterms of the Treaty of Amiens (1802). The British seized Tobago durig the Napoleonic Wars (1803). The history of the smaller island of Tobago is a little more complicated. The Dutch who were a major naval power at the time raided and then seized Tobago from the Spanish (1630s). They introduced sugar cane. The French who were allied with the Spanish during the American War for Independence seized Tobago (1781). They greatly expnded the sugar planttions importing more Africans to work as slaves. The British who had seized Trinidad took possession of Tobago after the Napoleonic wars (1814). After slavery was abolished there was a severe shortage of labor in the Caribbean islands like Trinidad. The former slves no longer wanted to woirk on plantations. The British introduced the Coolie Labor System, importing indentured labor from Asia, primarily China and India. Workers from Asia were referred to as Coolies. The British amalgamated Trinidad and Tobago to administer as a single unified colony (1888). Trinidad was the site of important military bases during World War II, including American facilities. The British began making major reforms after World War II, introducing adult suffrage (1945). The British sponsored the West Indies Federation believng thatvthe individual islands were too small for independence. The Federation proved unpopular for the independent-minded peoples involved and the Federation Caribbean peoples thought otherwise and the Federation collapsed. Britain grnted the Island independence (1962). Eric Williams dominated independent Trinidad for two decadeds. Williams served as primeminister from independence until his death (1981). Williams headed the People�s National Movement (PNM) which was the dominant political party until the mid-1980s. Unlike some Caribbean islands, Trinidad has been generally stable since independence. An Islamic militant group seized Parliament (1990). The Government promised reforms and the militants released the hostages, including the country's prime minister. The Islamic militants were granted amnesty (1992).

Economy

Trinidad was for three centuries a part of the Spanish Empire. The Spanish showed little interest in Trinidad. The first settlement sid not appear until Domingo de Vera founded St. Joseph (1592). Sir Walter Raleigh looking for El Dorado landed on the island and reported only mosquitoes, bush and despair. He visited Pitch Lake and burned St. Joseph. Few Spanish settlers came to Trnidad. At one time there were only 160 Spanish settlers on the Island which became a haven both smugglers and pirates. Trinidad was a colonial backwater. Conditions were so poor on the Island that a settler wrote to the King complaining that they could only go to mass once a year and in clothes they had to borrow form each other. Some settlers arrived from the French islands (Martinique and Guadeloupe). The French Revolution devolved into two decades of war in Europe. A British invasion fleet seized the island (1797). The British were in full control by the Napoleonic Wars (1803). As the Spanish population was small, the British had little difficulty converting Trinidad into a British colony. The British comvered into another Caribbean sugar colony, importing captured Africans as slave labor. Economic conditions followed swings in sugar prices. Following a slave revolot in Jamica, Britain emancipasted slaves in the Empire (1834). The former slves did not want to work on the plantations. They preferred to live on subsistence agriculture. They did not prosper and most of the liberated slaves lived in poverty. An alternative was an indentured labor schemes (1852). Indentured workers were imported from South Asia and small numbers from China. This helped to create the country's ethnic diversity. The economy shifted after the turn of the 20th-century to petroleum. The economy continued to be based on agriculture. The discovery of oil has provided funds for economic development. Trams and railways were built (second half of the 19th Century). Oil was known to exist on the Island for centuries, but it had no substantial value. This changed in the early-20th century. The advent of the automobile and internal-comustion engine, the conversion of the British Royal Navy from coal to oil, and other developments radically changed the economic picture. Oil became a very valuable resource and fundamentally changed the Trinidaduan economy. Oil fiukds were developed in the Guayguaygare, Point Fortin, and Forest Reserve areas. Oil and petroleum producrs came to dominate the economy and in the process the country's demographics changed from a rural agricultural population to an urban one. The most imprtant economic sectors in modern Trinidad are: petroleum and petrochemicals, construction, services, and agriculture. The modern Trinidadian economy continues to be dominated by the petroleum industry which developed in the early-20th century. The petroleum resource and industry has provided Trinidad the highest percapit income level in the Commonwealth Caribbean--$$6,000 (1985). The petroleum indistry produves about 5 percent if the GDP. Trinidad id sepleting its oil resources, but has large-untapped gas resources.

Chronology

Activities

Ethnicity

The native American population perished in the early Spanish colonial period. Mistreatment abd European dseases were the primary causess. The Spanish replced them with small numbers of African captives forced into slavery. During the Spanish era, people of African abcestry were only about 10 percent of the popultion. This small number was because the Spanish did not pursue plantation sugar agriculture like the British and French in the Caribbean. This did not begin to chsnge until the lte-18th century. It is only with the British seizure of the Islands, that large numbers of Africans were brought into Islands (early 19th-century). Much of the population is decended from Aftican slaves imported to work on the sugar planttions and the South Asians. After emancupation (1830s), the feeed slaves had no desire to work on the sugar plantations and largely pursued subsistince agriculture. The British reolaced the former slves with South Asians recruited to work as indentured laborers, referred to as 'coolies'. The population was still primarily of African bcestrry until after World War II. At the time of World War II, African-Trinidadians were about half of the population. This has changed in modern times. At the end of World War II, the African ethnic group was nearly half of the population. People of South Asian and African ancestry today each constiture about 35 percent of the population. We are not sure why the African group has declined in contrast to the South Asians, but it has been a steady and long term process. Combined, the African and South Asisn Trinidadians constitute 70 percent of the population. Most of the rest are people of mixed ancestry.

Demographics

We do not fully understand Trinidadian demographic trends. They seem to be a variance from much of the developing world. The country has a population of nearly 1.4 million people, but the rate of growth has declinced markedly since the torrid annual 2.8 percent of the 1950s. TThe groiwth rate is now only about 0.25 percent rate (2018). Some projections suggest tha the growth rate will turn negative (2030s). This is unusual in the modern world. Another unusual trend is urbanization. Most countries report increasing urbamization. Trinidad has been reoorting a decaded-long decline in urbanization. The Urban population in 1955 wasnearly 20 percent. The Urban populatiom is now only 8 percent and declining. We also note and outward migratiom which was substantial (1970s-90s), but has since declined. [Worldometers] This outward migration is a ophniomenon observble throughout the Caribbean. Most emigrants head for the United States, Canada, and Britain.

Personal Experiences

An English reader provides us some information during the 1960s. He writes, "... my little brother had a friend from Trinadad at his school. He was born there and had a brother. I normally only saw the Trinadian brothers in school uniform or play clothes like ours but in the Summer holidays they'd be playing cricket in the park with their Dad and then they's be wearing! really brightly coloured shirts with exotic patterns on them (the Dad too!) which were probably from Trinadad as you rarely saw such bright and exotic shirts for sale in England back then. We visited Trinidad in 2000 and saw the children mostly wearing school uniforms. After school, however, we did not see a lot of exotic pattern shirts. As far as we could tell, Trinidadian children had for the most part adopted standard American casual wear."

Sources

Worldometers. "Trinidad and Tobago".

Created: 7:45 AM 9/25/2011
Last updated: 4:36 PM 10/19/2018