Maidstone and Surrounding Villages...I Remember

Dear My Cool Maidstone:

Greetings! I write to you and all your surrounding villages/districts from somewhere in the United States of America . I would like you to know that there isn’t a day that goes by where I haven’t talked and posted, on social media, about you. Some days I talk about your chain of events, good and not good. And some days it’s all about the antics of childhood and the sayings of the elders that have guided me and many others. I brag that you are district/village nestled in the Don Figueroa Mountains, Manchester, on the island of Jamaica. And that you are documented as one of the first free villages in Jamaica.

I am a Baby Boomer and I am filled with lots of “I remember”. Here’s to the generations who are privileged with the use of modern technology and are tech savvy. And are willing to hear about the past.

I Remember when the people of Maidstone and surrounding villages/districts were united in whatever was going on for the betterment and welfare of all. Be it with church and secular events, fairs, concerts.

I Remember the youth organizations from which we received grooming and proper etiquette:Christian Endeavor Meetings, Boys Brigade, Upward and Onward/U and O, and Juniors (Church organizations). Besides those there were the 4 H Club, Youth Club, Community Council, and cricket club. These organizations and groups allowed us to compete in various competitions, exhibiting our skills at local, parish, and National levels in many skills. Some of the skills were: sewing, crocheting, tatting, farming, baking, and cooking. Cultural events such as square dance, quadrille dance, regular dancing, singing, reciting poetry, sack race, needle and thread race, egg and spoon race, and spelling bee.

I Remember when we went on church and school trips to various places of interest such as the Gleaner Company and the Palisadoes Airport, now known as the Norman Manley Airport. The popular airlines in those times were Pan Am and BOAC. They were the cream of the crop when it came to airlines.

I Remember when people traveled by airlines, they had to be properly dressed. Ladies wore dresses, hats and gloves, and the popular choice in footwear was white shoes. Today I still wonder why white was the most sought after color. And to add to that, people in foreign lands could always single out a Jamaican upon arrival because of the white shoes. Jamaicans always make their mark wherever they go.

I Remember when people sailed to foreign lands by ship because it was much cheaper to go by sea than by air.

I Remember when the Johns Hall District, one of the surrounding districts of Maidstone had a Health Clinic.

I Remember the Pipe Organ at the Nazareth Moravian Church. 

I Remember when the Maidstone community had two libraries: the Church library on the church premises which carried a variety of books. Then there was the school library and later a community library. The people from the immediate and various communities loved to read.

I Remember the Post Office and the loud ringing telephone which was used to send telegrams. And it was always a pleasure to see the red Royal Mail van.

I Remember our local banking system. Most children had a penny bank which was operated by the post office. We had our own bank books and my parents made sure that my siblings and I  deposited money as often as we could. On account of that we became young entrepreneurs. We washed empty aerated glass bottles and then sold them. The money received was deposited at the bank.

I Remember the public Bank at Maidstone, The People’s Cooperative Bank. It was located on a hill a few chains from the village square. And as a result the road in the vicinity of the bank is referred to as Bank Hill. Many years later the bank moved from its location to another area in the village at which point it was named Farmers Bank.

I Remember the church and visitors hosted gospel meetings in Maidstone square.

I Remember on Sundays, my siblings and I were not allowed to play secular songs, which were also referred to as rag songs. 

I Remember the two political parties in Jamaica campaigning in the Maidstone square at different times. It was a time of enjoyment. We danced and sang songs of victory and bantering.

I Remember when thieves came in the still of the night to steal animals and break into shops. Alert villagers always caught and detained them until police arrived.

I Remember when a battalion of law enforcement officers and vehicles came in the still of the morning to raid ganja fields.

I Remember when ganja farmers sold their crops without interference, everyone was well fed in an extra and rewarding manner. Adults and children  wore news shoes, and clothes to church. Church offerings were hefty. At the time I had no clue who the ganja farmers were because ganja planting was illegal. I have to add that my parents had a shop and besides selling the usual foods for daily consumption, they also sold pants length/materials to make men’s pants. They sold shirts, hats, dresses, shoes, needle threads and more. It was bad like a mini haberdashery. So they also benefited from the ganja farmers.

I Remember mothers who had children out of wedlock were not allowed to christen those children inside the church. There was a one room house on the property next to the manse where all illegitimate children were christened. The christening was always held on a Wednesday.

I Remember when the Public Health nurses came to The Nazareth School to administer worm medicine and vaccines. Most of us would run away bawling for our mothers to come get us. Our tears and yelling for mothers were not magic. Because we would be pursued by an adult and taken back to the makeshift clinic, usually a classroom, to have our medicine administered.

I Remember my mother had a manual ice cream bucket. She made the best ice cream. She also sold snowball/shaved ice and added her homemade syrup. My mother also made the best grater cakes, coconut drops, salt fish fritters, beef patties, and fried flour dumplings. 

I Remember the two main events centers/dance halls: Hong Kong was located in the adjoining district, Johns Hall, and Melbos Park in New Hope, another adjoining district of Maidstone. Both places for events were noted for men who sometimes engaged in ferocious fists fights and bottle throwing.

I Remember the many days we took baths in a huge aluminum bath pan because there wasn’t any pipe water.

I Remember the roof of most houses served as a catchment for rainwater to run off into a tank. We would then fetch water from the tank with a drawing pan to cook, clean the house, wash the clothes and bathe.

I Remember farmers reaping their pimento and then selling them to the shopkeepers in Maidstone square. My parents were also among the shopkeepers who bought the pimento.

I Remember my father collecting crocus bags filled with sarsaparilla from local farmers in the various districts. And then hold the bags until the then Jamaica Agricultural Service (JAS) arrived to collect them.

I Remember the coffee pulper, cane mill, and saw mill.

I Remember our family’s gramophone.

I Remember the candy ladies from Huntley, another district on the outskirts of Maidstone. They made the best candy cane. And in those days they made them manually which I understood was a difficult process.

I Remember the hairdressers, dressmakers/seamstresses, tailors , carpenters, shoemakers, and builders who graced the Maidstone and surrounding villages with their skills.

I Remember our main source of light: kerosene lamps, kerosene bottle torch with a piece of tightly rolled old merino, or newspaper as wicks. I remember my father’s Tilly lamp he used in the shop, also fueled by kerosene.

Tah-tah! Now that we have seen the light, please keep telling the events of old.

Grace Dunkley-Asphall, Copyright © 2024