Maroon Town is a settlement in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispan ...

. It has a population of 3122 as of 2009.

Geography and economy

Maroon Town is located in the conical Cockpit Country that spans parts of the parishes of St. James, St. Elizabeth and Trelawny. Located in

Saint James Parish, Jamaica St. James is a suburban parish, located on the north-west end of the island of Jamaica in the county of Cornwall. Its capital is Montego Bay (derived from the Spanish word ''manteca'' (lard) because many wild hogs were found there, from which ...

the community sits approximatel
29 kilometers
southwest of

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore, all of which form the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area, ho ...

, the parish capital. This former settlement of the

Jamaican Maroons Jamaican Maroons descend from Africans who freed themselves from slavery on the Colony of Jamaica and established communities of free black people in the island's mountainous interior, primarily in the eastern parishes. Africans who were ensl ...

has a variety of Jamaican flora and fauna. Farmers in this area invest in ground provisions (including yam) and other staples, but especially bananas. Bananas have over the years been commercially successful as a profit-making venture in this community and are also a regular staple of locals. The Maroon Pride Banana Chips brand originated in this community.

Cudjoe's Town and Trelawny Town

It is a former home of runaway slaves who became

and fought two guerrilla wars against the colonial authorities, the

First Maroon War The First Maroon War was a conflict between the Jamaican Maroons and the colonial British authorities that started around 1728 and continued until the peace treaties of 1739 and 1740. It was led by self-liberated Africans who set up communities in ...

of the 1730s and the Second Maroon War of 1795–6. When it was a home to these escaped slaves, it was called Cudjoe's Town (Trelawny Town). Once the governor, Edward Trelawny, authorised the signing of a treaty with Cudjoe in 1739, Cudjoe's Town became known as Trelawny Town. After the Second Maroon War, the colonial authorities deported the Maroons of Trelawny Town to

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native En ...

and then

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone,)]. officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered by Liberia to the southeast and Guinea surrounds the northern half of the nation. Covering a total area of , Sierra ...

. They then renamed the settlement Maroon Town, and since then it has been a place of archaeological research.

Military barracks

Maroon Town was used as a military barracks for half a century after the Trelawny Maroons were deported, but the colonial government found it difficult to maintain an outpost there. In 1812, a hurricane destroyed most of the buildings in the barracks. Since then, over the years, many officers complained about the poor state of the barracks and the hospital, as well as the frequent rainfall and dampness. The barracks became difficult to maintain, and the colonial authorities eventually abandoned the barracks in the 1850s.

Returned Maroons of Flagstaff

When scores of Trelawny Maroons returned to Jamaica following the abolition of slavery in the 1830s, many of them settled in the nearby village of Flagstaff. In 1905, visitors to Maroon Town observed some Returned Maroons from nearby Flagstaff hunting wild hogs.Frank Cundall, ''Historic Jamaica'' (London: West India Committee, 1915)Curacao/Puerto Rico: University of Curacao, 2020), p. 335.

References

Populated places in Saint James Parish, Jamaica Jamaican Maroon establishments {{Jamaica-geo-stub