Stabroek was the old name of

Georgetown, Guyana Georgetown is the capital (political), capital and largest city of Guyana. It is situated in Demerara-Mahaica, region 4, on the Atlantic Ocean coast, at the mouth of the Demerara River. It is nicknamed the "Garden City of the Caribbean." It is ...

, between 1784 and 1812, and was the capital of

Demerara Demerara (; , ) is a historical region in the Guianas, on the north coast of South America, now part of the country of Guyana. It was a colony of the Dutch West India Company between 1745 and 1792 and a colony of the Dutch state from 1792 unti ...

. Stabroek is currently a ward in the centre of Georgetown.

History

In 1748, Governor Laurens Storm van 's Gravesande build a guard post at the mouth of the

Demerara River The Demerara River is a river in eastern Guyana that rises in the central rainforests of the country and flows to the north for 346 kilometres until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. Georgetown, Guyana's largest seaport and capital, is situated on ...

. Later English planters started to build houses around the guard post creating a little village. The town was established in 1782 during a brief occupation by the French of the Dutch colony of

. The original name of ''Longchamps'' was changed to Stabroek in 1784, after Nicholaas Geelvinck (1732 — 1787), Lord of

Stabroek Stabroek () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the towns of and Stabroek proper. In 2021, Stabroek had a total population of 18,680. The total area is 21.51 km². In 2008 Stabroek cele ...

, the then President of the

Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company () was a Dutch chartered company that was founded in 1621 and went defunct in 1792. Among its founders were Reynier Pauw, Willem Usselincx (1567–1647), and Jessé de Forest (1576–1624). On 3 June 1621, it was gra ...

. In 1789, the population was 780 people of which 239 were whites, however the town rapidly started to grow and by 1807 had a population of around 8,500 people. American traders started to build a

wharf A wharf ( or wharfs), quay ( , also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (mo ...

which became known as American Stelling, and little towns started to appear around the main settlement. The city's name changed again in 1812 when, under British rule, it became Georgetown. A ward of the city, one fourth of a mile broad and one mile long, retains the name Stabroek. Brickdam, Stabroek's main street, was paved with bricks and made of burnt earth until 1921 when it was paved over for the arrival of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

. The upper side of Brickdam was once lined with palm trees. The old name of the city is still reflected in Georgetown's main market,

Stabroek Market Stabroek Market is the largest market of Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown, Guyana. Located in the centre of the capital city, the market is housed in an iron and steel structure with a prominent clock tower. Construction In 1842, the Georgetown ...

, which has existed on or near its present location since the 18th century, and the newspaper ''

Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...

'', established in 1986.Andrew Graham-Yooll
The newspaper ''Stabroek News''
Round Table, Oct 94 Issue 332, p447 The Parliament Building is located in Stabroek on the same spot where the Court of Policy used to be.

Gallery

Stabroek.JPG,

Parliament building, Guyana.jpg, Parliament Building Grey churh.jpg, Immaculate Conception Cathedral 20191121 Guyana 0062 Georgetown sRGB (49295972987).jpg, Supreme Court Street Scene, Georgetown, Demerara by Melton Prior, 1888.png, Stabroek in 1888

References

Bibliography

External links

Aerial view
{{Settlements in Guyana Demerara Tourist attractions in Guyana Wards of Georgetown, Guyana