Dr Rita Pemberton
THE 1880s was an important decade in the history of Tobago, for during this period the economic crisis which raised concerns about the island's development had implications for its political future.
The downward spiral of the island's sugar industry, which had been ailing since the start of the 19th century, continued unabated and became intensified as the century progressed. Despite the signs of decline, no meaningful intervention had been applied to the industry, which became locked into ineffective traditions, making it moribund. The problems which occurred during the 1880s were stimulated by developments relating to land ownership and control.
By 1880, the Gillespie/Mc Call alliance became the leading planters in Tobago. Alexander Marshall Gillespie had been trading in Tobago since the 1850s as consignee and creditor to several estates. From 1867, Gillespie purchased estates in the Windward side of the island, but Gillespie and Company was formed in 1870 with his son William and James Morris. By 1884 Gillespie moved from being part owner of Green Hill and Friendship Estates to having a consignee's lien over 20 estates on the island.
John Mc Call, who initially owned a property, not an estate, called Irvine Hall but, from 1869, began to expand his land acquisitions as part owner of Betsy's Hope, Richmond and Glamorgan and Goldsborough estates. Ten years later he gained control of most of the estates in Tobago, which was facilitated by the business relationship with Gillespie and Company which had influence on the Encumbered Estates Court.
The Encumbered Estates Court was established in 1854 to give title to heavily encumbered estates which could not attract investment. In 1858 the Assembly sanctioned Tobago's entrance into the court's jurisdiction, which facilitated the rapid positioning of the Mc Calls/Gillespie partnership as the leading planters on the island. This resulted from their ability to purchase estates through the Encumbered Estates Court.
While it is understood that from a business perspective people will take advantage of the opportunity of low prices to acquire as much property as possible, the Mc Call/Gillespie group certainly used this opportunity, as well as its influence in the court, to expand its land empire on the island.
When this was done both parties in the alliance were fully aware of the state of the sugar industry because both had intimate relations with plantation operations. It would be expected that their involvement would result in some attempt to introduce improvements in the industry. However, the relationship did not result in the injection of funds to modernise or diversify the sugar industry, or agriculture in general, on the island.
On the contrary, there was no attempt to lift the industry out of the antiquarian methods of operation, nor was there any attempt to attend to any of the other burning operational issues which plagued the industry. Relations between planters and metayers descended into an all-time low during the eightie
