Tulloch Castle Takes Centre Stage for Emancipation Vigil

The historic Tulloch Castle in Kensington, St. James, regarded as the cradle of the movement which spawned the abolition of slavery in Jamaica and the Western Hemisphere, will be the site for the parish’s Emancipation vigil this year.

Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) Parish Manager for St. James, Vinton Haughton, who provided details at a recent JIS Think Tank, said the celebrations will begin with a concert on Friday, July 31.

Activities get underway at 8:00 p.m. with a two-mile trek from Kensington Square to the amphitheatre in Tulloch Castle.  The procession will be led by the Cambridge Marching Band.

The concert will feature an impressive slate of artistes drawn from the best of the 2015 JCDC Festival of Arts competitions in St. James.

“At midnight … we will herald in Emancipation Day with ‘Sounds of the Drums’. That’s going to be an exciting event. We are going to see lots of our performers drumming and ….we know the story behind drums… and what role drums played in (slavery) and the movement for freedom,” Mr. Haughton said.

He informed that activities will continue into Emancipation Day in Flagstaff, where the JCDC will be partnering with the South St. James Development Trust to host EmanciFest.

The all-day family affair, which will start at 10:00 a.m., is a cultural and entertainment event featuring music, dance, rides, bounceabout and culinary offerings.

It is documented that the burning of a thatch house on the Tulloch Castle Estate and the subsequent burning of Kensington Great House signalled the start of the 1831 Christmas Rebellion, spearheaded by National Hero, Deacon Sam Sharpe.

The rebellion helped influence the push for the full emancipation of the slaves, which came August 1, 1838.