May Pen is the capital and largest town in the parish of Clarendon in Middlesex County,

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 Hispa ...

. It is located on the Rio Minho river (Jamaica's longest), and is a major market centre for the Parish. The population was 61,548 at the 2011 census increasing from 59,550 in 2001, including the surrounding suburbs of Sandy Bay, Mineral Heights, Hazard,

Palmers Cross Palmers Cross is a district in south-central Jamaica, located to the east of May Pen May Pen is the capital and largest town in the parish of Clarendon in Middlesex County, Jamaica. It is located on the Rio Minho river (Jamaica's longes ...

, Denbigh, Race Track, and Four Paths among others. The town has a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Description

May Pen, originally May's Pen, was established as a pen (cattle farm) settlement by the British between 1660 and 1683 on a crossing point of the Rio Minho river. It became part of an estate named after its owner, slave trader, Reverend William May, who was born in England in 1695 but in his later years resided in Jamaica. He oversaw 27 enslaved people on this estate and was rector of the Kingston Parish Church but was later transferred to Clarendon, where he served for 32 years. May Pen is well located from an administrative point of view in the centre of a largely agricultural parish, and as a midpoint on the Kingston to

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

road. Boasting a large open air market and transportation centre along Main Street and Sevens Road, the town's centre is often chaotic with activities of shoppers, vendors daily and motorized traffic. May Pen also has many banks, hardware stores, pharmacies and eateries. The town also has a large post office, headquarters for local government, and court house. The clock tower in the town centre was erected in 1908 after the death of a doctor Robert Glaister Samuel Bell who drowned while attempting to cross the Rio Minho river in 1904. As well as having a memorial plaque to Bell, it has another dedicated to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

(1914-1918). The first bridge over the Rio Minho was built by 1874 for the local railway company, and rebuilt in the 1920s, it was demolished in 1950 after floods and rebuilt downstream. May Pen is also an important

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

packing centre, including oranges and a hybrid citrus fruit called an ugli. The Denbigh Agricultural Showground is located approximately three miles west of the centre of the town. May Pen's geographical position is situated near the centre of the entire island. May Pen has long been viewed as one of Jamaica's most important agriculture towns. During its heyday of Jamaican bauxite mining, citrus and sugar production, Clarendon was among Jamaica's leading parishes in terms of economic activity. With the now defunct Jamaica Railway Corporation, May Pen then served as the crossroads of Jamaica natural resources, connecting Frankfield and its citrus plantations in the north of the parish, with Lionel Town and its sugar production in the South. The Alcoa mining and refinery in partnership with the Jamaican government (Jamalco), located south of the town, is the single largest employer of the town, along with the Trout Hall citrus business. The Denbigh Agricultural Show Ground is the largest in the English-speaking Caribbean, and has served to promote regional farmers agriculture, textile and livestock production. Held annually during Jamaica's Independence Celebration weekend, Denbigh often attracted large crowds from all parts of the island to see Jamaica's best in agricultural output, and enjoy festive activities. While May Pen has no universities, it does have several public and private schools, including Central High School, Denbigh High School,

Glenmuir High School Glenmuir High School (GHS) is a Jamaican secondary school located in May Pen, Clarendon Parish, Jamaica. It is among the top performing secondary schools in the country. In 2011 it was among the top 3 preferred schools for students who sat the G ...

(Anglican), Glenmuir Preparatory School (Anglican primary),

May Pen High School May Pen High School (abbreviated M.P.H.S. or MPHS) is a privately – run Seventh-Day Adventist School in Jamaica with an estimated population of 400 students. The school is located at 18A Bryants Crescent, May Pen, Clarendon and has been there fo ...

(Adventist private), May Pen Primary School, Foundation Preparatory School, and St. Thomas Moore Preparatory School (Catholic primary).

Notable people

* Frederick "Toots" Hibbert,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and ska singer, and frontman for Toots & the Maytals, was born in May Pen * Andre Blake,

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

for

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 2010 ...

and

Camaal Reid Camaal Reid (born 17 May 1988) is a Jamaican footballer playing with Scarborough SC in the Canadian Soccer League. Club career Jamaica Reid began playing in the National Premier League in 2009 with Sporting Central Academy. He re-signed ...

for

Scarborough SC Scarborough SC is a Canadian soccer team founded in 2014. The team is currently a member of the Canadian Soccer League, a league that is not sanctioned by a FIFA recognized body. The team plays home games out of Birchmount Stadium in the district ...

and

Suburbs

May Pen consists of 16 communities: * City Centre/Main St * City Centre/Manchester Av * Bushy Park * Buckshaven * Curatoe Hill * Denbigh * Four Paths * Glenmuir * Mineral Heights * Paisley * Palmers Cross * Oliver Gardens/Effortville * Race Track * Sevens Road/Farm Pen * Trenton/Hazard * Weston Park

References

External links

Statistical Institute of Jamaica

{{Authority control Populated places in Clarendon Parish, Jamaica