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"" ...