Morant Point, located in the parish of St. Thomas, is Jamaica’s easternmost point, and marked by the oldest lighthouse on the island. Morant Point Lighthouse was built in 1841 by Kru men, a West African ethnic group indigenous to Ivory Coast and Liberia, who were never enslaved and renown for their exceptional maritime skills and seafaring. This national monument was the first cast iron lighthouse built in the Western Hemisphere, and still works to this day by flashing three white bursts of light every 20 seconds, serving as a useful navigational aid for vessels approaching from the Atlantic or rounding Jamaica’s southeastern coast. The road to the Morant Point Lighthouse is rough but well worth the effort. With that said, here’s how to find the Morant Point Lighthouse and how this unusual adventure went.
Continue reading “Morant Point: Jamaica’s Oldest Lighthouse”Galina Lighthouse, Saint Mary
The only time it’s acceptable to combine business with pleasure is on a business trip, of course. St. Mary is home to several beaches, waterfalls, swimming holes and historic sites. I visited the parish recently for a practical reason, but stopped at the Galina Lighthouse on my way home. Jamaica is home to eleven lighthouses, nine on land and two offshore. These lighthouses are all operational, and maintained by the Port Authority of Jamaica. Lighthouses are erected close to navigable waters in order to guide incoming sea and aircraft. They serve as visual guides based on their physical characteristics in the day, then deliver characteristic flashes of light by night.
Continue reading “Galina Lighthouse, Saint Mary”