Storm Hazard and Slavery: The Impact of the 1831 Great Caribbean Hurricane on St Vincent

Abstract

On 11 August 1831, St Vincent was struck by the Great Caribbean Hurricane. Ninety-two out of 96 sugar estates on the island experienced damage to buildings and crops. Destruction varied, however, according to location and the type of structure at risk. Worst affected were the northerly regions of St David and Charlotte's parishes, while slave villages suffered more than mill works or great houses. As a result of the storm the colony's exports fell by nearly 50 per cent, reflecting disruption to the infrastructure supporting overseas trade as well as a sugar crop shortfall of more than 25 per cent. In contrast to the hazard's large impact on plantation agriculture, relatively few casualties occurred. St Vincent also suffered less acutely than Barbados, a similar sized island, equally dependent on sugar and slavery. A plausible explanation for the hurricane's differential impact between the two colonies lies in localised vulnerability of place. While the enslaved population did not take advantage of the disaster to mount a challenge to white authority, shortages of provisions and timber strained relations on some estates. St Vincent's plantation economy, however, recovered relatively quickly, demonstrating considerable disaster resilience. Although slaves and the free black and mixed-race population received little direct government support, grant-in-aid was allocated to agents primarily responsible for coordinating supplies of food, clothing and shelter. The speed of recovery questions whether natural disasters weakened planter resistance to emancipation across the British West Indies. Conceptualisation of the Great Caribbean Hurricane as an existential threat to British colonies also obscures the extent to which responses to climatic hazard were shaped by the imperial relationship and the interests of largely absentee owners.

Historical Trajectories of Disaster Risk in Dominica

“…However, this came from a reallocation of the West Indies Loan Act (House of Commons 1832), where £1 million had been allocated to Jamaica, Barbados, St. Vincent, and St. Lucia for hurricane relief and dealing with ''insurrection.'' These loans, provided through the newly formed West Indies Relief Commission, were at lower interest rates (3% originally), secured by mortgages, with interest payments charged against future estate revenue, mirroring commercial practice in the private credit market (Smith 2012). Little direct support was given to slaves or anyone of mixed race, but local government agents received grant-in-aid at low cost for the benefit of the general population to coordinate supplies of shelter, food, and clothing (Smith 2012).…”

Adapting to hurricanes. A historical perspective on New Orleans from its foundation to Hurricane Katrina, 1718–2005

“…This fear never became a reality, however. 63,102 In Louisiana, the 1812 hurricane coincided with a war, a socially explosive situation and the successful revolution in Saint Domingue/Haiti, uncovering the vulnerability of a society built on inequality. For the adaptation to hurricanes, the vulnerability of societal structures became an impediment for disaster relief and rebuilding in the aftermath of the hurricane, as fear of a slave revolt led to a higher military presence in New Orleans, which was a novelty compared to the 18th century.…”

The 1902–3 eruptions of the Soufrière, St Vincent: Impacts, relief and response

“…Sugar production across the island fell by 75% that year, but recovery was rapid, and sugar exports recovered within two growing seasons (Smith, 2012). Within three years, St Vincent society changed radically with the abolition of slavery, but the further debts shouldered by many estates as a consequence of this hurricane were felt for many decades.…”

“…In contrast to the eruption of 1812, this event had an island-wide impact, with damage to property and crops across 92 of the 96 sugar estates active at the time, and an estimated mortality across the island of 50 -100 (Smith, 2012).…”