Port-of-Spain has quite a compelling history, with nuances and facets that we see every day without actually knowing their origins.
Before the Twin Towers, there was Freetown. Before the International Waterfront, there was Puerto d’España, a port kept under wraps from pirates and enemies of the Spanish. 
The city of Port-of-Spain is 104 years old and for the month of June, the Port-of-Spain City Corporation will be hosting a number of events to celebrate this anniversary. 
To help commemorate, we dug up some pretty interesting facts about the nation's capital. Here are 10 facts about the city you probably didn't know.
1. Belmont was previously called Freetown
The British abolished the slave trade in 1807 but the British Royal Navy were ordered to patrol the African West Coast and prevent the illegal transportation of slaves by British ships. As a result, a number of Africans were freed and some of them were brought to Trinidad.
Coming from tribes including Yoruba, Rada, Mandingo, Ibo, and Krumen, they were brought here, not as slaves, but as free men and given land in Belmont. Belmont became known as Freetown for a while, extending from the East Dry River at the north end of Circular Road, and up into the Belmont Valley Road.
2. Before there was St. Ann’s, there was Belmont Asylum
The Belmont Asylum was founded in 1851 and was located on Circular Road, opposite to where the secondary school is today. It was eventually moved to St. Ann’s and became known as the ‘Mental Hospital’.
3. The capital was intentionally kept uninhabited at one point
Under Spanish rule in the mid-16th century, Trinidad was a strategic outpost to the Orinoco delta. In an attempt to avoid drawing the attention of pirates and other Spanish enemies, the Spaniards kept Trinidad unpopulated, keeping the island as just a port to keep Spanish ships safe in the Gulf of Paria. They spread rumours that Trinidad was dangerous and was a catchment for diseases like yellow fever and malaria. The main anchoring place didn’t even receive a proper name but was just called a ‘Harbour of Spain’  or Puerto d’España. 
4. The 'jamette society' originated in Port in Spain
At one point, the streets of east Port-of-Spain were known as the ‘French Shores’, and those who inhabited them were known as jamettes (from French ‘diamètre’). The term referred to those outside the circle (the ‘diameter’) of polite society. In the eyes of the colonial government, the jamette society was outrageous, vulgar and obscene.
5. Everyone and everything was thrown in prison
The Royal Gaol on upper Frederick Street was completed in 1812 where criminals, along with debtors, the insane, and even animals were thrown into it.  
6. Governor Woodfood passed an interesting law to protect the streets of Port-of-Spain
After he became Governor in 1813, Sir Ralph Woodford was keen on modernising the face of Port-of-Spain. Sidewalks were constructed and paved with gravel. To preserve the new (and expensive) streets, a law was passed in 1824 forbidding the keeping of pigs in the city. Additionally, cows, goats, horses, and mules had to be kept in compounds and were not allowed to roam the streets anymore.
7. The first boys' school opened in 1823
The first primary school for boys was opened in Port-of-Spain in April 1823 followed by a primary school for girls in 1826. 
8. Queen's Park Savannah was initially intended for cattle 
Governor Woodford purchased Paradise estate in 1819 from the Peschier family. The area, originally called 'The Savannah' was cleared ‘for the recreation of the townsfolk and for the pasturage of cattle’. It was later officially changed to 'The Queen's Park Savannah' in 1845. 
9. The Botanic Gardens had Far East influences
The Governor bought additional land from the Peschier estate at St. Anns, which was constructed for the new Government House and the Botanic Gardens. Botanist David Lockhart was hired to design the Botanic gardens; he introduced many trees from the Far East into Trinidad, the most notable being samaan tree. 
10. The Queen's Park Savannah was used for many sporting events
In addition to being an open pasture, the Savannah provided the residents of the town with their first golf course and the game was played with the grazing cows and running horses. 
Horse-racing was also introduced in 1828; by 1854, after the erection of the Grand Stand, horse racing was held annually. The Savannah was quite the multipurpose venue, with cricket, polo, football and other sports taking place in the open space. 
Source:  The Loop

Mareena Robinson Snowden, is the first Black woman to graduate from MIT with a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering
Black girl magic was in full effect earlier this month when Mareena Robinson Snowden, became the first black woman to earn a Ph.D. from MIT in Nuclear Engineering. Snowden’s dissertation focused on the development of radiation detectors for future nuclear arms control treaties. According to her personal website, she is a native of Miami and earned a B.S. in Physics from the illustrious Florida A&M University. Snowden took to her Instagram to share some of her thoughts on her achievement:“No one can tell me God isn’t. Grateful is the best word I have to describe how I feel. Grateful for every part of this experience – highs and lows. Every person who supported me and those who didn’t. Grateful for a praying family, a husband who took on this challenge as his own, sisters who reminded me at every stage how powerful I am, friends who inspired me to fight harder. Grateful for the professors who fought for and against me. Every experience on this journey was necessary, and I’m better for it.”
She went on to shout-out a few Black women who’re also displaying Black girl magic. 
“When they ask where the skilled black female technical minds are, know there are many – @joymariejohnson, @_sai_89, @rhondalenai, @being_niaja, @jtiaphd, @siangoan, April Gillens, @beyoncizzle, Tiera Fletcher, Ciara Sivels, Grey Batie, @tashaleeb, @special_kay868, Staci Brown, Njema Fraizer, @jedidahislerphd, Delonia Wiggins, Jami Valentine Miller and many more – who show up proudly in the fullness of their black womanhood and fight each day for our place in these fields.”
Thank you Mareena Robinson Snowden, Ph.D. for all your hard work and dedication we look forward to seeing all the amazing things you will accomplish next!
Source:  The Black Detour2018

​When next you watch a flat screen TV or the slim screen on your laptop, thank Trinidadian research engineer Dr. Andre Dominic Cropper.
He is the mastermind behind the Flat Panel Display Touch Screen made from thin layers of laboratory produced diamond called Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED).
Cropper’s US patent for a new Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) facilitated the development of flat panel displays, which are today used in most electronic devices from ATM machines and flat-screen TVs to laptop computers.
He holds two patents for the inexpensive manufacture of OLEDs for use in TV displays.
Born on August 4th 1961, Cropper grew up in St. James and attended Newtown Boys’ RC School as well as Fatima College.
He had a keen interest in electronics from an early age, and his schoolboy hobby was dismantling and reassembling electronic devices.
He was also a keen swimmer at Flying Fish Swimming Pool, and went on to represent Trinidad and Tobago on swimming teams in regional and international games during the 1970s.
He, however, declined joining the T&T swim team to the 1984 Olympics in order to complete his university education.
He had already gone to the United States in 1978 and, at the time, had just graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering at Howard University in Washington D.C., but immediately started his Master’s degree. He graduated with honours in 1987.
Upon graduation, Cropper began teaching at Norfolk State University in Virginia. In his spare time, he began research on diamond technologies, and the use of thin layers of laboratory-developed diamonds as a semiconductor for new technological applications.
Cropper sent a proposal of this work to NASA, which was impressed by the idea. But, since he did not have his Ph.D., NASA stipulated that he would have to hand over his research to “a qualified researcher” and work under that person. 
Cropper refused the offer and decided to pursue a doctoral degree and develop his idea.
In 1995 he obtained his Ph.D. in Electrical/Materials Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia.
On completion of this doctorate, he returned to Trinidas where he began teaching at the University of the West Indies in the Department of Electrical Engineering.
In 1999, Cropper joined Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, New York, as a Research Associate and Project Manager of OLED applications.
His research work at Kodak included OLED applications, thin film diamond growth, production and its novel applications, new semi-conducting electronic and optoelectronic materials, flat panel display technologies, remote sensing, image exploitation and compression, information extraction and motion estimation.
His eventually took the position of Technology Development Manager for the Sensor Products within ITT Industries Space Systems Division.
In 2005 T&T recognised Dr. Cropper with the “National ICONS in Science & Technology” Award, and in 2006 the “Caribbean ICONS in Science Technology & Innovation” Award.
Also in 2006, Rochester Museum and Science Center, in Rochester NY, honoured him as one of the “Inventors – Who Makes Things Work in Rochester”.
In 2014, he was the recipient of the “Professional of the Year” Award for outstanding career achievements, from American Indian Science & Engineering Society (AISES), and from Raytheon the “STAR Award” for outstanding Achievements within STEM Community in 2014, as well as an “Inventor Award” in 2014 and 2015.
This Caribbean icon in innovation embraces the arts, believing there's a similarity between artists, engineers and scientists - they create new things.
In a video feature by NIHERST, published on YouTube in 2012, he says: "An artist creates something...brings new experiences to life. A scientist does the same thing - brings a new technology forward, creates something new. There's a lot of synergy between arts and science."
Dr. Cropper is married to Trinidadian Natalie Rogers-Cropper, a professional dancer and dance school administrator at Garth Fagan Dance Company.
Source: www.caribbean-icons.org 

​Another Trini making news - check it out here
This was brought to my attention by yet another Trini author, Anne Marie Meyers, living and working in Toronto.  Here is what she had to say: 
"Remember the interview I did back in February 2017 about a young girl and her mother creating a magazine called 'Contagious'? with the aim of writing articles featuring positive accomplishments by kids? Well their magazine has gone national, and guess what, they are from Trinidad. Feeling proud here.
This is the link to the interview and below you will see them being interviewed on television. 

.

Jillionaire wants NYC to get ready to rum-ble!
“I’ve always been a big fan of rum,” the Trinidad-born DJ, who’s one-third of the EDM trio Major Lazer, tells The Post. When he’s not busy spinning Top 40 hits “Lean On” and “Cold Water” with his groupmates Diplo and Walshy Fire, Jillionaire (real name Christopher Leacock) basically acts as the self-appointed Trinidadian culture ambassador to the US. His current priority: helping his country’s most prized spirit overcome its bad stateside reputation.
“People here go to college, drink Bacardi 151 and swear off rum for the rest of their life,” he says. “But, there are fine-aged rums the same way there are fine-aged whiskeys.”
The 40-year-old serves up several such varieties, including Angostura 1919 and Banks 7 Golden Age Rum, at his new Williamsburg bar, Clyde’s.
Trinidadian head bartender Cyllan Hicks pours the sugarcane-based booze into typical Caribbean cocktails (think rum punches) and more serious potions. Jillionaire’s favorite is the Night Nurse ($14), a riff on an Old Fashioned which swaps the usual whiskey for 8-year aged Bacardi, and tops it off with Benedictine, spiced coffee syrup and chocolate and Angostura bitters. On a recent Tuesday night, bargoers guzzled the Rum Sazerac ($14), with two types of rum, Velvet Falernum and orange bitters.
The cozy watering hole is named after Jillionaire’s grandfather, and is next door to Trinidadian restaurant Pearl’s, which the musician also co-owns. Through Clyde’s, Jillionaire hopes to sell New Yorkers on Trinidad’s laid-back booze scene.
On the Caribbean island, he says, life is all about “liming,” or “our word for ‘hanging out.’” Trinidad has “a very unique drinking culture. We celebrate everything. We celebrate the weekend. We celebrate the weekday. We celebrate, ‘Oh, it’s Tuesday.’” Think fewer premeditated, Facebook-invite parties and more leisurely happy-hour hangs. After work, “one [drink] turns into two or three,” two friends turn into five or six, “and all of the sudden it’s a big lime.”
Be warned: After a few hours’ “liming” at Clyde’s, you may indeed need “somebody to lean on.”
Source: NY Post, April 27, 2018

Did you know that not far from Hornerman Lane is Pregnancy Lane? How about Buller Street or Pepper Sauce Road?
Here are 10 of the strangest names we've spotted along the roads of Trinidad and Tobago:

These famous (or infamous?) streets in Diego Martin have a sordid history. It is alleged that Hornerman Lane, formerly Trumpet Lane, was so named because the men from that street allegedly wandered over to Pregnancy Lane, formerly Wilson Lane, when the husbands on that street left for work. 
The name stuck after eight women allegedly became pregnant around the same time about 30 years ago. 

​Contrary to some dirty minds, Buller Street is actually named after General Sir Redvers Henry Buller, a British Army officer who was awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest award for British and Commonwealth forces.
He served as Commander-in-Chief of British forces in South Africa during the early months of the Second Boer War and subsequently commanded the army in Natal until his return to England in November 1900.
Did you know? Six other streets bear names of members of the British Army who also performed admirably, including Roberts, Kitchener, Baden-Powell, Methuen, McDonald and Gatacre Streets. 

3. Pepper Sauce Road, Endeavour, Chaguanas
Things must get spicy there. 
4. Potato Trace, La Romaine
Located off the Southern Main Road, Potato Trace is actually close to Hosein's Meat Shop. You know what they say about meat and potatoes...
5. Sesame Street, Preysal
Can you tell us how to get there? Seriously, we don't know. 
6. Concerned Citizen Street, Couva
It's a rough guess, but we think a concerned citizen decided to finally name this street. 

8. Mandingo Road, Princes Town
Located off Moruga Road, this road is so long there's actually a Mandingo Road Number One.
9. Soursop Crescent, Malabar
Did you know? There's also a Soursop Street in Nassau Bahamas, and a Soursop Lane in Florida, USA.
10. Punch Bowl Road, Mason Hall, Tobago
Located off Northside Road, this curious name fits its winding shape.

What strange road or place names do you know of in Trinidad and Tobago? 
Source: The Loop, Feb. 5, 2018

Black Panther actor Winston Duke is not the only success story from his Tobago family. His sister, Cindy M. Duke, is an MD/PhD trained Physician Scientist working in Las Vegas, Nevada.
A Gynecology and Obstetrics (Gyn/Ob) specialist and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (REI) sub-specialist, she is the founder and director of the Nevada Fertility Institute which provides diagnostic and treatment options for women and men.
In 1995, at age 17, Duke migrated to the United States with nine-year old Winston and their mother, Cora Pantin.
Their mother, in her desire for a better life for her family, sold everything she owned to invest in her children's dreams.
From a studio apartment in Brooklyn, Cora let Winston follow a creative path and Cindy persue her dream of becoming a doctor.
Winston attended the University of Buffalo and Yale School of Drama. He is today the breakout star in the historic blockbuster movie, Black Panther.
Cindy M. Duke earned her medical degree at the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry, Rochester, NY, where she also gained her PhD in Microbiology & Immunology. She now operates the Nevada Fertility Clinic.
Dr. Duke's Clinical and Research Interests include Oncofertility, Fertility Preservation, Investigating the Role of the Microbiome in Reproduction and Eliminating Disparities in Healthcare Access and Delivery for Treatment Infertility.

Trinidad and Tobago model Naomi Chin Wing continues to make waves in the fashion industry as she made an exclusive catwalk debut for Alexander Wang at NYFW Autumn/Winter 2018 collections on February 10.
She later walked for nine other brands including Calvin Klein Marc Jacobs Coach Victoria Beckham Prabal Gurung and closed Carolina Herrera's show. 
Chin Wing was selected to showcase the iconic Venezuelan designer's finale garment as she closed an eponymous career spanning many decades.


She debuted internationally in September 2017 at Paris Fashion Week for Yves Saint Laurent and is now based in London where she is represented by IMG Model Management.
Chris Nathan, founder of Coco Velvet, said secondary school students will have the opportunity to pursue international modelling careers this summer as CVI will host its annual fashion workshop from July 1 leading up to the Grand Finals of Top Model Trinidad and Tobago on October 14 at NAPA.
Source: The Loop, February 2018