Official Name: | Queenstown |
Settlement Type: | Village |
Pushpin Map: | Guyana |
Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Guyana |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | Guyana |
Subdivision Type1: | Region |
Subdivision Name1: | Pomeroon-Supenaam |
Subdivision Type2: | Neighbourhood Council |
Subdivision Name2: | Aberdeen/Zorg-en-Vlygt |
Established Title: | Founded |
Established Date: | 25 September 1841 |
Population As Of: | 2012 |
Population Footnotes: | [1] |
Population Total: | 474 |
Population Blank1 Title: | Ethnicities |
Population Blank2 Title: | Religions |
Coordinates: | 7.1936°N -58.4938°W |
Queenstown is a village in the Pomeroon-Supenaam Region of Guyana. It is located on the Atlantic Ocean coast. It is one of the first villages where the emancipated African slaves bought the lands.[2] Queenstown is home to the oldest extant mosque of Guyana.[3]
Queenstown started as three plantations named Mocha, West Field and Dageraad.[2] In 1780, Fula people from Senegambia, Africa, arrived on the plantations as slaves. The tribe set out to build a small masjid out of wattle and mud. The mosque was rebuilt three times, and is still in service for a congregation of about 50 people.[3]
In 1838, the slaves were emancipated. The plantations at the time were owned by Mr Carberry who decided to parcel up the land, and sell the lots to the former slaves.[2] On 25 September 1841, the village of Queenstown was officially founded and named after Queen Victoria.[2]
In 1842, the coffee shop of the village was transformed into the St Bartholomew's Anglican Church. The church was completed in November 1843. The building is shaped like an upside-down ship,[4] and has been declared a regional monument.[5]
Queenstown has a primary school, health clinic, community centre and a post office. Secondary education is provided in Anna Regina.[6]
Queenstown is one of the emancipation villages where the villagers dress up in African clothes and parade through the village accompanied by a band on Emancipation Day (1 August).[7]