Montsinéry-Tonnegrande (; often unofficially spelled Montsinéry-Tonnégrande; ) is a commune of
French Guiana
French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...
, an
overseas region
The overseas departments and regions of France (, ; DROM) are the five departments and regions of the French Republic which are located outside European France (also known as " metropolitan France"). These overseas entities have exactly the s ...
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
located in
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
.
Montsinéry-Tonnegrande is to the south-west of
Cayenne
Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...
. It contains a
botanical garden
A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is ...
Indochinese
Mainland Southeast Asia (historically known as Indochina and the Indochinese Peninsula) is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to th ...
prisoners, was located 38 km outside of town, and connected with a railroad. The camp was in operation between 1931 and 1944.
The commune was previously known as Tonnegrande-Montsinéry, but on 27 March 1969 the name was officially changed into Montsinéry-Tonnegrande.
Geography
The city has 2 population centres spaced by 22 km:
*Montsinéry
* Tonnegrande
It used to be isolated to the close main city of
French Guiana
French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...
,
Cayenne
Cayenne (; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and capital city of French Guiana, an overseas region and Overseas department, department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Caye ...
, but now the RD5 road opens up the city.
Montsinéry is surrounded by rivers and inundated fields. It is located at the convergence of Timouthou and Montsinéry rivers. Life is peaceful in this burg.
Tonnegrande, located on the right border of the Tonnegrande River is also peaceful.
History
Montsinéry-Tonnegrande used to be occupied by settlers. They used to run the sugar cane industry and to farm a spices plantation.
Amerindians are also present in the city.
The 2 burgs developed with creole houses.
In 1836, the population was made up of 1102 slaves and 167 free inhabitants feeding mainly on fishing.
In 1878, Montsinnéry and Tonnegrande were gathered in a single municipal entity.
In 1941 the Montsinnéry-Tonnegrande city was officially created.
Montsinéry-Tonnegrande is also known for its prisons. Indeed, in 1848, a first penitentiary was built and then closed at the end of the 19th century.
In 1931, a new prison was built, called " Bagne des Anamites", in order to receive Indochinese opponents to the French presence in Indochina. The prisoners men performed manual work and built in particular the railroad into the interior. In December 1944, the camp was closed.
Population
Transmitter site
Montsinéry is home to a shortwave transmission facility operated by the TDF Group that is designed to target listeners in the Americas and West Africa. The site is capable of DRM digital shortwave transmissions. An image of the rotatable curtain array antenna in Montsinéry can be found by searching Flickr for "Montsinery antenne". One of their broadcasting frequencies is the 7335 kHz slot that CHU (Canada) recently abandoned.
Voice of Russia began transmitting to North America from Montsinéry — its first transmissions from the western hemisphere since the early 1990s (it previously broadcast from
Havana
Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.eco tourism location offering water bikes on the river and horse rides.