How I got to Jamaica...too.

[Accompong]

What are male yams? I have been loving your photo commentary.
Regards,
Bob

Thanks for the love, Bob. I was wondering if anyone would ask. Here in the US I have heard them referred to as a "Man Yam". The Celebration Ceremony is a mixture of the harvest celebration and a fertility ritual. In the time of the Maroon Wars, they were constantly on the run and unable to cultivate crops so they were hunter-gathers. After the signing of the Peace Treaty in 1738-39, they were able to move from an area called Old Town to the top of the hill where the Kindah "one family" Tree was located and founded Accompong Town named for Cudjoe's brother.

The traditional feast was a fertility rite as their numbers had dwindled from about 600 to around 200 following the war. They had domesticated some boar and would choose a male that had to be black to cook without salt. They also had (what was referred to as) "male" roosters and the "male" yam was a Guinea yam also called the Jamaican Yellow Yam and considered "male" because of it's size and shape.

After the drinking of the rum and spitting it all around to ward off the evil spirits, the gathered crowd would clamor for a piece of each of these food items to ensure fertility. BTW, roasted boar without salt and not completely cooked through and through is nasty!

I am putting together a photo album so I might have a few more pictures to share as I run across them.

Peace and Guidance

[fargoman]

I am a history buff and I think this is very interesting. Thank you for sharing the history. I am going to be reading about this ..love it..

[Accompong]

I am a history buff and I think this is very interesting. Thank you for sharing the history. I am going to be reading about this ..love it..

You might like to check out this video shot by the Public Broadcasting Corporation of Jamaica in 2020 to get a flavor of the happenings during the festivities.

[Accompong]

While on the subject of the Maroons and Accompong Town, here are a couple of more photos. These photos are about 30 years old.

On my first hike out into the Cockpits on the way to the Peace Cave where the Treaty to end the Maroon Wars was signed in 1739, took this picture of my best friend "Marshall" climbing the Karst limestone formations.


Before you reach the Peace Cave you find an area called Big Ground. This is where the invading British Soldiers set up camp and were attacked and suffered enough casualties in the middle of the night to convince King George to sue for peace and end the conflict.


This is a picture of Marshall and some youth under the Kindah "One Family" Tree. This is about a 200 year old mango tree where Cudjoe used to assemble his people and his warriors to plan strategy to defend against the advancing British Army marching up from Balaclava. They could watch them for about 3 days that it took to reach the area. This is called the "One Family" tree because the Maroons were from many tribes in Africa and they had to put aside tribal allegiances to become "One Family" to defeat the British invaders.


Although Marshall was a practicing Rastafarian, he went without his locks for several years. This is one of my favorite pictures of him. He died this past year from complications caused by unchecked cancer spread.

[Accompong]

Back in 2005, I spent a couple of days in what was for me a spiritual spot in the coastal mountains above Cave, Westmoreland called "Kentucky". Here are a couple of pictures from my visit there. Here is also I story I wrote about it at the time but the contact information may not be accurate anymore. https://jamaicans.com/kentuckyjamaica/

Our view from the verandah of our little wooden cottage just after sunrise overlooking Dean's Valley and the ocean.


A little clearer of a picture. That is Savanna La Mar in the distance and you can just make out Negril on the horizon.


This is a picture of Ozzie's home perched on the side of the mountain.

[Accompong]

I would like to thank you all for riding along on My First Visit to Jamaica Story and the subsequent random pictures covering some 30 plus years of visiting and living in Jamaica. These are the last photos I have to share.

A picture of Marshall at the entrance of the Peace Cave outside of Accompong Town. This is where the Peace Treaty of 1739 was signed and where Cudjoe and his warriors would hide before attacking the British Troops at Big Ground.


The Blue Lagoon in Port Antonio. This is a restaurant that jutted into the water and was a great place to eat.


A picture of a pod of dolphins swimming along side us on the way to Black River from Billy's Bay, Treasure Beach.


Sunset in Negril.


While staying at the old Negril Yacht Club, I worked a deal with a local fisherman to purchase his catch each Friday. This was one such Friday and a picture of the catch for that day.
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[Jamakafun]

Such great memories. Spectacular views. Thank you for capturing some great moments in time.

[Maralunatic]

Thank you for sharing your story and pictures. I loved hearing/seeing all the Accompong stuff. Our visit last year was so interesting to hear about the history and someday I will go back when the world has returned to normal.

[Accompong]

Such great memories. Spectacular views. Thank you for capturing some great moments in time.

Bless up. Respect.

[Accompong]

Thank you for sharing your story and pictures. I loved hearing/seeing all the Accompong stuff. Our visit last year was so interesting to hear about the history and someday I will go back when the world has returned to normal.

Like the rest of the World, the Accompong Maroons are experiencing some political and social problems. There will be an election called soon and the people in Accompong Town seem to be rejecting the current leadership or lack thereof. The problem is that Maroons who live outside the town get to vote and their votes seem to be for sale in some instances.

If there is a change in leadership, Accompong Town will be a much better place to visit and to live.

JMO