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Half Tree Hollow is the smallest by area of the eight
The district is bounded by the contours of Ladder Hill and is essentially a flat plateau.
Half Tree Hollow is the largest settlement in Saint Helena, with a population exceeding that of the territory's capital of Jamestown. Its population has fluctuated from 901 in 1998 to 1,140 in 2008 and 1,034 in 2021.
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A view of Jamestown showing Half Tree Hollow
{{coord , 15, 56, 0, S, 5, 43, 12, W, type:city(901)_region:SH, display=title Districts of Saint Helena Populated places in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
s of the island of 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 ...
, part of the British Overseas Territory
The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen dependent territory, territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remna ...
of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha is a British Overseas Territory located in the South Atlantic and consisting of the island of Saint Helena, Ascension Island and the archipelago of Tristan da Cunha including Gough Island. Its name wa ...
in the South Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
. It is a suburb of Jamestown and is situated at the top of Ladder Hill which forms the southern side of the James Valley, at the base of which sits Jamestown. The hill was fortified in the late 1700s and Ladder Hill Fort was subsequently built. The village grew during the 1960s because the James Valley lacked any room for expansion.
Description
The district is bounded by the contours of Ladder Hill and is essentially a flat plateau.
Half Tree Hollow is the largest settlement in Saint Helena, with a population exceeding that of the territory's capital of Jamestown. Its population has fluctuated from 901 in 1998 to 1,140 in 2008 and 1,034 in 2021.
History
Ladder Hill was initially known as Fort Hill, even though it was not initially fortified. It was first used by theEast India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
as an execution ground with the gibbet
A gibbet is any instrument of public execution (including guillotine, decapitation, executioner's block, Impalement, impalement stake, gallows, hanging gallows, or related Scaffold (execution site), scaffold). Gibbeting is the use of a gallows- ...
visible from Jamestown for the moral edification of the population. The first road to Ladder Hill was completed in 1770 and construction of fortifications on the seaward side of the hill began around 1790. Additional works were built over the next several decades and the complex was known as Ladder Hill Fort by 1815. The fort was reinforced and expanded while Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
was in exile in St Helena (1815–21) and the 20th Regiment of Foot is known to have been garrisoned there in 1819. Additional barracks
Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...
and officer's quarters were built during the 1820s.
A funicular
A funicular (, , ) is a type of cable railway system that connects points along a railway track laid on a steep slope. The system is characterized by two counterbalanced carriages (also called cars or trains) permanently attached to opposite en ...
was built to connect Jamestown and the fort in 1829. The cars and rails were removed in 1871 and it was converted into a staircase, commonly known as 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 ...
.
References
Bibliography
*External links
A view of Jamestown showing Half Tree Hollow
{{coord , 15, 56, 0, S, 5, 43, 12, W, type:city(901)_region:SH, display=title Districts of Saint Helena Populated places in Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha