Jacob's Ladder is a

Grade I listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

staircase leading from Jamestown,

Saint Helena Saint Helena () is a British overseas territory located in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote volcanic tropical island west of the coast of south-western Africa, and east of Rio de Janeiro in South America. It is one of three constitu ...

, up the side of Ladder Hill to Ladder Hill Fort. The name is a reference to the biblical

Jacob's Ladder Jacob's Ladder ( he, סֻלָּם יַעֲקֹב ) is a ladder leading to heaven that was featured in a dream the biblical Patriarch Jacob had during his flight from his brother Esau in the Book of Genesis (chapter 28). The significance of th ...

, a ladder extending to heaven. The ladder is all that remains of a

cable railway Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

that was built there in the early 1800s. Its tracks and cars were later removed, although the stairs have remained in place and have become a tourist attraction connecting Jamestown and the suburb of

Half Tree Hollow Half Tree Hollow is the smallest by area of the eight districts of the island of Saint Helena, part of the British Overseas Territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is a suburb of Jamestown and i ...

at the top of the hill.

History and description

Designed by the local engineer J. W. Hoar, the Saint Helena Railway Company built a two-car inclined plane, -long, in 1829 to carry cargo between Jamestown and the fort. The cars rode on a pair of iron-plated

fir Firs (''Abies'') are a genus of 48–56 species of evergreen coniferous trees in the family (biology), family Pinaceae. They are found on mountains throughout much of North America, North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa. The ...

rails, laid on wooden

sleepers ''Sleepers'' is a 1996 American legal crime drama film written, produced, and directed by Barry Levinson, and based on Lorenzo Carcaterra's 1995 book of the same name. The film stars Kevin Bacon, Jason Patric, Brad Pitt, Robert De Niro, Dustin Ho ...

anchored into the rock of the valley wall, that were separated by a staircase of 700 steps for pedestrians. The angle of ascent varied between 39 and 41 degrees. Motive power was provided by a team of three donkeys at the top that rotated a capstan connected to the cars by an iron chain and

pulley A pulley is a wheel on an axle or shaft that is designed to support movement and change of direction of a taut cable or belt, or transfer of power between the shaft and cable or belt. In the case of a pulley supported by a frame or shell that ...

Termite Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blattode ...

damage to the sleepers caused the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

to remove the cars, rails and associated machinery in 1871, and it is now known as Jacob's Ladder. Subsequent roadwork has covered over 1 step and only 699 remain. Lights were installed along the sides of the stairs in 2000 and the steps were refurbished in 2006. The staircase has been declared a Grade I listed structure. During the island's annual "Festival of Running", a timed run takes place up Jacob's Ladder, with people coming from around the world to take part. , the record time to ascend the stairs is 5 minutes, 16.78 seconds.

Gallery

File:Looking down from the top of Jacob's Ladder at night.jpg, Looking down at night File:Jacob's Ladder in Jamestown just behind the Saint Helena Museum.jpg, Foot of the ladder in Jamestown File:Jacobs Ladder viewed from the harbour of Jamestown.jpg, From the harbour File:Jacob's Ladder in Jamestown March 2020.jpg, View while climbing File:Jacob's Ladder behind HM Prison in Jamestown Saint Helena.jpg, From behind the prison File:Plaque about Jacob's Ladder in Jamestown.jpg, Plaque in Jamestown

References

External links

{{commonscat-inline, Jacob's Ladder (Saint Helena), Jacob's Ladder Transport in Saint Helena Rail transport in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha Jamestown, Saint Helena Grade I listed buildings in Saint Helena Stairways Railway lines opened in 1829 Railway lines closed in 1871

History and description

Gallery

See also

References

External links