The Kettles of a Bitter Past

Sweetness Forged in Fire: Barbados Sugar-Boiling Legacy



Sugar in Barbados. Sugarcane cultivation began in Barbados in the early 1640s, when the Dutch came to help with sugar cane harvesting. The island's soil and favourable climate made it an ideal location for harvesting sugar. By the mid-17th century, Barbados had become one of the wealthiest colonies in the British Empire, earning the nickname "Little England."By the mid-17th century, Barbados had actually turned into one of the most affluent colonies in the British Empire, making the label "Little England." But all was not sweetness in the land of Sugar as we discover next:



The Boiling Process: A Grueling Task

Making sugar in the days of colonial slavery was  a highly dangerous procedure. After collecting and crushing the sugarcane, its juice was boiled in huge cast iron kettles until it crystallized into sugar. These pots, typically set up in a series called a"" train"" were heated by blazing fires that workers had to stir constantly. The heat was extreme, and the work unrelenting. Enslaved workers endured long hours, often standing near the inferno, risking burns and exhaustion. Splashes of the boiling liquid were not unusual and might trigger extreme, even deadly, injuries.

A Life of Constant Peril

The risks were constant for the enslaved Africans tasked with tending these kettles. They worked in sweltering heat, inhaling smoke and fumes from the boiling sugar and burning fuel. The work required extreme physical effort and precision; a minute of negligence might result in mishaps. Despite these obstacles, oppressed Africans brought impressive skill and resourcefulness to the process, ensuring the quality of the end product. This item fueled economies far beyond Barbados" coasts.


Now, the big cast iron boiling pots points out this painful past. Scattered across gardens, museums, and historical sites in Barbados, they stand as silent witnesses to the lives they touched. These antiques motivate us to review the human suffering behind the sweetness that once drove international economies.


HISTORICAL RECORDS!


Proof of The Deadly Truth of the Sugar Boiling House

Historic accounts, such as those by abolitionist James Ramsay, discover the surprise horrors of Caribbean sugar plantations. Enslaved employees sustained severe heat and the continuous hazard of falling under boiling barrels-- a grim reality of plantation life.


{
Boiling Sugar: The Bitter Side of Sweet |The Hidden Side of Sugar: A History in Iron |Sweetness Forged in Fire: The Sugar-Boiling Legacy |
Molten Memories: The Iron Kettles of Sugar's Past |

The Bitter Cauldron