The Red House

Taken February 28th by Ariel Mahabirsingh

The picture above shows the Red House (no, not this one, or that one) which is located Port-of-Spain, the capital city of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located on the corner of Knox Street and Abercromby Street. The building faces Woodford Square, which is the location within which the above photograph was taken. It is a government building that houses the Parliament, and it is thought to have been built in the year 1844. 

It is also the location where the water riots occurred; these took place in 1903 when the Red House was believed to have been burnt down and then rebuilt. However, it was not completely burnt as the roof and windows were destroyed but the structure remained intact (Raymond, 2013). The riots occurred due to the increase in taxes for water usage. The less economically privileged believed that this was unfair as they used less water than the more financially privileged, and as a result, the riots took place and fire was set to the building. As seen from the picture, the building is currently undergoing renovation.

This building was chosen because of the rich history and the significance it has to the government of the country. It is located in an area where there are a few other government buildings, such as the Hall of Justice, Port-of-Spain Magistrate's Court and the Port-of-Spain City Hall. This building therefore shows some cultural significance, and alludes to the history of Port-of-Spain as a whole.

Port-of-Spain was the main area where anchoring occurred in the 18th century (Besson 2011). It was a quaint town, until the British conquered the island, and this small town was then changed into a more modern city. The development of this area as one of the first in Trinidad would be consistent with the fact that most government buildings today are located in Port-of-Spain, and the Red House is an example of this.

References:
Besson, Gerard. 2011. 'Port-Of-Spain's Early City Life'. Blog. The Caribbean History Archive. http://caribbeanhistoryarchives.blogspot.com/.

Raymond, J. (2013). The Red House: 150 years of history. Guardian.