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Fort Augusta Adult Correctional Centre, formerly Fort Augusta Prison, is Jamaica's only prison for women.
[Fort Augusta](_blank)
, Jamaica National Heritage Trust. It was built to accommodate 250 female inmates
, Tyrone Reid, Jamaica Gleaner, 2004-02-08. but has held over 280 on occasions.
[Comparison of daily averages* over a 10 year period (1997-2006) by institution and sex](_blank)
, Department Of Correctional Services, 2007. It has been known to run short of food.
It is operated by the
Department of Correctional Services for the
Ministry of National Security.
Fort Augusta was originally an ocean side fortress built by the English in the 1740s to provide the main defence for Kingston Harbour’s west side.
[Behind these walls, Part 2, Christina Xu, 2007-07-19](_blank)
It was completed in the 1750s and named Fort Augusta in honour of the mother of King George III.
In 1763 lightning struck the fort and its three thousand barrels of gunpowder causing an explosion that broke windows 17 miles away and killed three hundred people.
The shocks created a crater which had to be filled before reconstruction could begin.
During the
American Revolution
The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...
the fort was occupied by the
Duke of Cumberland's Regiment
The Duke of Cumberland's Regiment, also known as Montagu's Corps, South Carolina Rangers, and the Loyal American Rangers, was a British Loyalist (American Revolution), Loyalist provincial unit raised from American colonists and rebel prisoners by ...
.
The remains of the fortress now consists of massive crumbling walls of brick that have been fortified with other materials (including barbed wire).
Some years ago, the DCS sold the land on which Fort Augusta sits to the
Port Authority of Jamaica
The Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ) is an agency of the Ministry of Transport and Mining responsible for the:
* regulation and development of Jamaica's ports and shipping industry
* safety of all vessels navigating the ports of entry
* regulation ...
.
At the time, the DCS had plans to build a 5000 inmate prison that would accommodate both males and females and relieve the overcrowding faced by most prisons in Jamaica.
However, while the new facility is long in coming a move is still anticipated so no one is willing to do any renovations to Fort Augusta.
On March 2, 2017 Fort Augusta inmates were relocated to the south camp rehabilitation center.
In April 2020 it was announced that the Jamaican government intends to use Fort Augusta as a half way house and counselling center for returning deportees.
Jamaica Star: April 17th, 2020: Fort Augusta to be renovated to house deportees
/ref>
See also
*List of prisons in Jamaica
Twelve correctional institutions in Jamaica[Custodial Services](_blank)
, Department Of Correctional Services, c2007.
External links
Aerial view
*Photos
References
{{Prisons in Jamaica
Prisons in Jamaica
Women's prisons in Jamaica
Buildings and structures in Saint Catherine Parish