Message from the Executive Director

It has been an awesome April at the Trust, with one wonderful outdoor event after another. It was a joy to be able to resume our popular Children’s Nature Walk and Palm Sunday Walk after a two-year hiatus. And we ended the month with the Earth Day opening of our newest nature reserve, Eve’s Pond, along with the exciting announcement of the latest Buy Back Bermuda land purchase, ten magnificent acres at Alton Hill in Southampton.

The opportunity to enjoy the spring weather and spend time outdoors can easily be taken for granted. Many Bermudians do not have large gardens to enjoy, which makes the preservation of green spaces such as Spittal Pond, Eve’s Pond and Alton Hill so critical. Everyone should have the chance to spend time in nature, whether walking, running, flying a kite, or just enjoying the sight of Bermudianas in bloom and butterflies busy among the grasses. This is one of the Trust’s reasons for existence, and why we continue to advocate strongly to preserve our remaining open spaces, as in this recent Letter to the Editor.

Karen Border

Executive Director

Children's Nature Walk

The annual Children’s Nature Walk at Spittal Pond on 5 April was extremely well attended with nearly 300 children and accompanying adults taking part. Thanks to the many expert guides who volunteered on the day to tell the children about everything from pond life and birds to Portuguese Rock, Jeffrey’s Cave and dairy farming.

Palm Sunday Walk – St. George’s

The Palm Sunday Walk in the St. George’s World Heritage Site on 10 April was also a huge success. Over 1,500 people turned out on a bright and breezy day to walk the 5.5 mile loop from Penno’s Wharf to Ferry Point Park and back, taking in many natural and cultural heritage sites along the way, including nature reserves and forts. Myles Darrell, Head of Natural Heritage, spent many days planning and organizing the walk. We were most grateful for everyone’s willingness to support the event and the Trust by registering and donating. Huge thanks to the private landowners who generously allowed access across their properties and to the volunteers who helped on the day. There was a fabulous mood of energy and fun, with a great spirit of community camaraderie.

Buy Back Bermuda – Eve’s Pond Opening and Alton Hill Purchase

On Earth Day, 22 April, we were delighted to join the Bermuda Audubon Society, our ‘Buy Back Bermuda’ partner, to officially open the Eve’s Pond Nature Reserve in Hamilton Parish. This 3.4-acre property was purchased with public donations in 2008 and work to restore it as a nature reserve began in 2019. If you have not yet had the chance to visit, please stop by. Parking is at Shelly Bay, with access west along the railway trail.

The Eve’s Pond opening was the perfect opportunity to announce our recent Buy Back Bermuda purchase, a magnificent 10-acre property at Alton Hill in Southampton that consists of woodland, arable fields and spectacular coastline with one of the largest nesting colonies of Longtails in Bermuda. The purchase of this stunning piece of land was possible thanks to a major gift from a private anonymous donor. Later this year, we will be launching a campaign to raise money to turn the Alton Hill property into a publicly accessible nature reserve.

Natural Heritage Update

Myles Darrell, Head of Natural Heritage

April is a spectacular time of the year – a celebration as we shake off winter and prepare to meet the heat of summer. Nature bursts with activity as flora and fauna seize the moment to recreate themselves in the temperate weather. At the Trust, April was a month with many opportunities to get together and do our bit for Planet Earth.

Volunteers were hands-on at Eve’s Pond getting the new nature reserve ready for its official opening on Earth Day. More than 50 staff from Renaissance Re helped out on 13 April. We planted over 100 trees, shrubs and ground covers, spread about three truckloads of mulch and created a beautiful viewing point, where a new bench will be installed. The following weekend, our community volunteer day at the reserve was also a great success and a lot of fun. More native and endemic trees were planted, a rustic temporary fence was completed and we made preparations so the new crosswalk could be installed.

BNT partnered with Greenrock and other environmental organisations to challenge everyone to complete 13 planet-friendly actions for Earth Day. While it’s a time to celebrate, it’s also a time of action. Although I believe that Mother Earth should be celebrated every day, Earth Day provides extra focus and a chance to consider: “Am I treating our Earth right? Can I do more?”

Cultural Heritage Updates

Charlotte Andrews, Head of Cultural Heritage

Archaeology on the Radar

Did you see a team pushing a wheeled device around King’s Square recently? This strange sight was an archaeological team using the non-destructive technology of Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) to map archaeological resources beneath the surface of the World Heritage Site.

Dr. Michael Jarvis of University of Rochester, David Givens who is Director of Archaeology at Jamestown Rediscovery, and Peter Leach, Archaeology & Forensics Application Specialist for Geophysical Survey Systems, searched for anomalies using GPR to expand our understanding of how the King's Square area was altered and expanded since the Town of St. George's founding in 1612. Initial findings suggest, astoundingly, that nearly half of the area we know as King's Square today is reclaimed land, created through a succession of seawalls built out from the original shoreline and then filled in to add to the square.

The expert team also mapped parts of eastern Smith’s Island and Trunk Island in Harrington Sound, looking to identify 17th-century sites. The experimental project tested the viability of GPR in different Bermuda conditions and sites of known archaeological potential and can report great success. The April visit was supported by local partners Bermuda Aquarium, Museum & Zoo, the St. George’s Foundation, Corporation of St. George, and Bermuda National Trust. The Smith’s Island findings relate to Dr. Jarvis’s multi-year archaeological project there, which continues this summer. If you are over 16 and interested in volunteering for the Smith’s Island excavation, please email: michael.jarvis@rochester.edu

World Heritage Update

This year’s Palm Sunday Walk was a World Heritage Walk, being that it took place in Bermuda’s UNESCO site. The Trust collaborated with Bermuda Audubon Society, BIOS, Corporation of St. George, Department of Environment & Natural Resources, Department of Parks and St. George’s Foundation.

We then observed World Heritage Day on April 18th, when places of Outstanding Universal Value to humanity are highlighted around the world. This year’s theme was ‘Heritage and Climate’, which is a major concern for the low-lying and coastal ‘Historic Town of St. George’s and Related Fortifications ’.

The climate crisis was the focus of the last World Heritage UK conference. We’ll also be attending their upcoming webinars on ‘World Heritage & Sustainability – Tourism & Transport’ and ‘Liverpool – After World Heritage’, which will reflect on how the living city lost its UNESCO status.

Head of Cultural Heritage Dr. Charlotte Andrews was invited to present on the Bermuda World Heritage Site in the City of Bath's 2022 World Heritage Day programme marking the 50th anniversary of the World Heritage Convention.

The Trust wishes to acknowledge four years of tireless work and vital leadership by World Heritage Site Management Committee outgoing Chair Cheryl Hayward-Chew and outgoing Deputy Chair Erica Smith. Corporation of St. George Councillor Elizabeth Christopher is taking on the Chair and we wish her well.

Aerial photos of the Bermuda World Heritage Site courtesy of John Singleton

Solidarity with Ukraine

Like so many people and cultural organisations across the world, Bermuda National Trust stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine in defending their lives, families, identity and culture, including their endangered World Heritage Sites and other cultural and natural heritage.

Cultural genocide has long been used as a weapon of war, and the Trust is deeply saddened to see both human and cultural atrocities being perpetrated in Ukraine. BNT encourages everyone to support the people of Ukraine, such as by donating via the Bermuda Red Cross. Besides humanitarian support, please consider supporting cultural heritage organisations and initiatives for war-torn Ukraine.

Culture Minister and Ministry visit Verdmont

The Trust Team recently welcomed to Verdmont museum the Minister of Youth, Culture & Sport Dr. Ernest Peets, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary Dr. Jennifer Attride-Stirling and the Director of the Department of Culture Dr. Kim Dismont-Robinson.

Following President Alana Anderson’s welcome, Heritage Education Coordinator Anna Stevenson provided a tour focusing on the 18th century lives at the African Diaspora Heritage Trail site. Head of Cultural Heritage Dr. Charlotte Andrews shared BNT’s participation in INTO's ‘Re-imagining International Sites of Enslavement’ programme and the reinterpretation of Verdmont and other Trust museums, sites and collections being embarked on from 2022.

Aeolus teambuilding at Verdmont

The Aeolus team made a massive impact at Verdmont, both inside the historic house museum and in its surrounding gardens. Like the Greek God of winds that gives the company its name, the team swept through the site, clearing invasive and overgrown vegetation outside, and grit and grime inside. Aeolus not only contributed their people power but made a generous donation to BNT for the chance to give back to our natural and cultural heritage during their teambuilding day. Thank you Aeolus!

Heritage at Risk

The Convict Bathhouses

Boaz and Ireland islands

This is part of a series of architectural articles by the Bermuda National Trust to highlight some of Bermuda's endangered historic buildings.

by Linda Abend and Margie Lloyd

When the building of the Dockyard began in 1809 the British Admiralty had a desperate need for labourers. So, 74 English and 54 Bermudian craftsmen were hired along with 164 labourers and an unspecified number of enslaved persons who were hired from their Bermudian owners. In 1823 it was decided that employing convicts from the over-populated English prisons would be a better solution. The HMS Antelope was fitted out to accommodate 300 convicts to be employed at Dockyard and other fortifications on the island. In 1826 the Dromedary arrived with another 300 convicts, followed by the Coromandel in 1828 with yet another 300. By the end of 1846 the Tenedos and Thames had arrived and the convict population totalled 1,759. In total, some 9,000 convicts were employed and were quartered in old warships known as ‘hulks’.

At Boaz Island and at the southern end of Ireland Island are the remains of some of buildings erected by the convicts in hard Bermuda limestone for use as bathing houses. They appear as small towers, in effect cells open to the sky, but walled in so as to form a room on the water’s edge. They were designed to have sea water flow into them through holes at such a height that there was always water for bathing. The buildings had a single entry consisting of steps down into the water, and convicts were therefore confined during their ablutions. This prevented escapes that might occur if the men were allowed to bath directly in the sea. While most were circular structures, square shaped bathhouses were also built.

Click here to read the full article.

Heron Bay Students at Verdmont

We were thrilled to welcome Heron Bay P5 students and their teacher Mrs Soares-Chan to Verdmont on 25 April where they learned about the daily lives of the enslaved men, women and children who lived there. They were a wonderful group of students who asked intelligent and thoughtful questions. We also undertook an object handling session using domestic artefacts from the past.

It was the first field trip we were able to offer in two years, due to the pandemic.

Photography Camp at Waterville

April was a busy month for Heritage Education. The department ran Fantastic Photography camp during the Easter Vacation. Campers visited four different sites – Cooper’s Island, City of Hamilton, Spittal Pond, and the old town of St George’s, where they took an abundance of pictures for their presentations.