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Author : ANGELO BISSESSARSINGH. It is used as a bath water additive, aftershave, beverage (NOT ADVISABLE) and is the cheapest way to “sap yuh head” when throbbing migraines set in. The comforting smell of bay rum is a scent signature engrained in the psyche of every Trinbagonian. It conjures up many memories….of granny or mammy rubbing yuh head when yuh sick, the village drunk when he cyah get puncheon, countryside funeral wakes and such. The history of Bay Rum can be traced back as far as the 16th Century when Sailors in discovered that the West Indies bay leaf made a great perfume to freshen up and mask the stink they acquired while being stuck on a ship for months. To apply the scent to themselves, the sailors would rub the dry leaves on their body, thus leaving the fragrant oil on their skin. Tired of having to rub bay leaves on himself like a crazy seafarer, some sailor got the idea that rum would make a great liquid to steep the bay leaves in to extract their essential oils and make an easy-to-apply cologne. And with that, bay rum was born("sailors would rub" 2010). Islanders took this basic recipe and began adding their own olfactory flourishes by mixing in cloves, citrus rind, and cinnamon. “The first bay rum sold in Trinidad was originally produced on the island of St Thomas. Local manufacture began in the early 1900s. It was initially prepared by collecting the distillate from boiling bay leaves in white rum, but is now made from a combination of bay oil, citrus and spice oils, alcohol and water. In 1838 - Danish chemist Albert Heinrich Riise became interested in this local remedy and discovered that by mixing St John bay leaf oils with fine Virgin Island rums, it created an amazing fragrance.”In Trinidad, it was sold by practically every shop and dispensary as one of the essentials in a home medicine melange. This was especially important in a time when proper medical attention was unlikely to be had outside of the large towns and even if available, was beyond the reach of the working class population. Its use as an antiseptic was also well established. I have seen advertising for locally produced bay rum dating as far back as 1909 but the properly branded TRINIDAD BAY RUM did not seem to exist before 1918. It was produced and bottled at Frederick Estate in Caroni which at the time was managed by the formidable Captain Watson and boasted one of the most up to date sugar refineries in the West Indies, which was designed and assembled under the instruction of engineer H.A Green (Green St. in Tunapuna is so named in his memory) . In 1887, two years after the complex was erected, it was described by Collens thus: “The buildings at Frederick were designed and erected, and the machinery put together, by Mr. H. A. Green, one of the most experienced engineers in the colony. They are 240 feet in length, and 160 feet in breadth, the chimney being 150 feet high. The whole structure is very far from being the unsightly mass a factory so often seems to be, the glass window and green jalousies alternating with pleasing effect.” The usine contained a distillery which manufactured several grades of alcohol , including industrial distillate as well as very fine rums. Contracting global sugar markets and other economic considerations forced Frederick Estate to rationalize its operations as part of the larger enterprise , Caroni Ltd. The much-vaunted factory was dismantled and re-established at Brechin Castle where its shell still stands . This was in the 1930s. The distillery remained at Caroni however, until its closure and sale in the early 2000s. Compelled to find ways of increasing its profitability, bay rum was introduced as part of the product line and soon became very popular, with its instantly recognizable label that was initially pasted onto black 12 oz. bottles. Sold at six and later ten cents per unit, it was a commercial success for Caroni. It was also available wholesale in stoneware demijohns from the factory. One of the first commission agents to market the product aggressively was a commission merchant of Chinese-Trinidadian extraction named Louis Jay Williams (L.J Williams). He was also ironically, the local distributor for Limacol which was the main rival of the bay rum, although the former was considerably more expensive, being imported from British Guiana where it was manufactured by Bookers (known also for their iconic and long-running Booker’s Drug Store Almanac). By the 1930s, the Frederick Estate factory was relocated to Caroni Ltd’s Brechin Castle compound and sales of Trinidad Bay Rum proved to be a commercial success.Trinidad Bay rum has passed through several owners since it was first manufactured on Frederick Estate in Caroni. Ironically enough the current manufacturer of the product (now called Cari Bay Bay Rum) is located at Frederick Industrial Estate in Caroni, just a mere stone’s throw away from the distillery where it was originally formulated. There are even claims that a Portuguese Immigrant Claudio Carvalho did his own distillation at a Bay Rum Factory he established in San Fernando and was the main distributor of Bay Rum in San Fernando and environs in early 1900s. (Source: Virtual Museum of Trinidad and Tobago, Jan 16, 2025)  It was so refreshing to buy a "press" with guava syrup and condensed milk .
(Source: Trinbago Golden Memories, Nov 29, 2024)  Wow, I had no idea about the original story of Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer! If you aren't familiar with it either, read below:
As the holiday season of 1938 came to Chicago, Bob May wasn’t feeling much comfort or joy. A 34-year-old ad writer for Montgomery Ward, May was exhausted and nearly broke. His wife, Evelyn, was bedridden, on the losing end of a two-year battle with cancer. This left Bob to look after their four-year old-daughter, Barbara. One night, Barbara asked her father, “Why isn’t my mommy like everybody else’s mommy?” As he struggled to answer his daughter’s question, Bob remembered the pain of his own childhood. A small, sickly boy, he was constantly picked on and called names. But he wanted to give his daughter hope, and show her that being different was nothing to be ashamed of. More than that, he wanted her to know that he loved her and would always take care of her. So he began to spin a tale about a reindeer with a bright red nose who found a special place on Santa’s team. Barbara loved the story so much that she made her father tell it every night before bedtime. As he did, it grew more elaborate. Because he couldn’t afford to buy his daughter a gift for Christmas, Bob decided to turn the story into a homemade picture book. In early December, Bob’s wife died. Though he was heartbroken, he kept working on the book for his daughter. A few days before Christmas, he reluctantly attended a company party at Montgomery Ward. His co-workers encouraged him to share the story he’d written. After he read it, there was a standing ovation. Everyone wanted copies of their own. Montgomery Ward bought the rights to the book from their debt-ridden employee. Over the next six years, at Christmas, they gave away six million copies of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to shoppers. Every major publishing house in the country was making offers to obtain the book. In an incredible display of good will, the head of the department store returned all rights to Bob May. Four years later, Rudolph had made him into a millionaire. Now remarried with a growing family, May felt blessed by his good fortune. But there was more to come. His brother-in-law, a successful songwriter named Johnny Marks, set the uplifting story to music. The song was pitched to artists from Bing Crosby on down. They all passed. Finally, Marks approached Gene Autry. The cowboy star had scored a holiday hit with “Here Comes Santa Claus” a few years before. Like the others, Autry wasn’t impressed with the song about the misfit reindeer. Marks begged him to give it a second listen. Autry played it for his wife, Ina. She was so touched by the line “They wouldn’t let poor Rudolph play in any reindeer games” that she insisted her husband record the tune. Within a few years, it had become the second best-selling Christmas song ever, right behind “White Christmas.” Since then, Rudolph has come to life in TV specials, cartoons, movies, toys, games, coloring books, greeting cards and even a Ringling Bros. circus act. The little red-nosed reindeer dreamed up by Bob May and immortalized in song by Johnny Marks has come to symbolize Christmas as much as Santa Claus, evergreen trees and presents. As the last line of the song says, “He’ll go down in history.” Rudolf will air December 6th, NBC, 8:00 Eastern, 7:00 Central time.  Research done by Patricia Bissessar
There's no Christmas plant more iconic than the Poinsettia . Almost every plant lover would purchase one or more of these plants to add to their home décor during the Christmas Holidays. I remembered growing up as a child many homes in the countryside had a large Poinsettia Plant growing in their front yard. But have you ever wondered about the symbolism behind the poinsettia flower and its connection to Christmas? There is an old Mexican legend about how Poinsettias and its connection to Christmas. According to the legend there was once a poor Mexican girl called Pepita who had no present to give the baby Jesus at the Christmas Eve Services. As Pepita walked to the chapel, sadly, her cousin Pedro tried to cheer her up. 'Pepita', he said "I'm sure that even the smallest gift, given by someone who loves him will make Jesus Happy." Pepita didn't know what she could give, so she picked a small handful of weeds from the roadside and made them into a small bouquet. She felt embarrassed because she could only give this small present to Jesus. As she walked through the chapel to the altar, she remembered what Pedro had said. She began to feel better, knelt down and put the bouquet at the bottom of the nativity scene. Suddenly, the bouquet of weeds burst into bright red flowers, and everyone who saw them were sure they had seen a miracle. From that day on, the bright red flowers were known as the 'Flores de Noche Buena', or 'Flowers of the Holy Night'. Ever since the poinsettia has been a symbol of The Christmas Miracle. Reference : Ranch, Paul Ecke. ("The Legend of the Poinsettia." 11/14/07). http://www.ecke.com/HTML/h_corp/corp_legend.html (Source: Angelo Bissessarsingh Virtual Museum of Trinidad and Tobago, Nov 17, 2024)  A Personal Account:
I remember that night quite vividly. It was during the late 1950s in the Morne Diablo area, South Trinidad. My aunt had just given birth, and I was standing outside their home, listening to the pandemonium inside. From where I stood, I could hear the chaotic noises, but I didn’t see anything directly. I was told that my uncle, normally a strong man, was frozen in fear in the corner when he saw the newborn child. Vashti, the mother, was said to be slipping in and out of consciousness. Inside, Ms. Ingrid, the ‘chaamine’, was struggling to control the situation. She told me later that she tried in vain to hold down the child, but it scratched her fiercely and scurried under the bed. During a brief moment of silence, when the child had stopped screaming and growling, it was said to target the father with insults. With a disturbingly deep, unsettling voice it shouted: "Boysie! Wey yuh mudda? Watch yuh, yuh moorkh!" From outside, I could hear the cries, the screaming, the moving furniture. Ms. Ingrid said that earlier, as soon as the child was delivered, it asked her in ‘a big man’s voice’ what she was doing there. She said she never expected the raakhas to be that strong, that the “kala jaadu that griping Vashti was too much.” Ms. Ingrid described the creature as looking like a slippery, black ‘crapaud,’ with teeth like a dog. We were told to go ‘up de road’, away from the house. I heard later that when they eventually mustered the courage to look under the bed, the ‘thing’ was gone. The trauma of that night left my aunt mute for nearly two years, and my uncle, unable to cope with the stress, fell into alcoholism, which ultimately led to his death. Ms. Ingrid herself was never the same after that night. To be honest, nothing was right after that, especially with Auntie Vash—no amount of puja, or visits from priests and pundits could bring her back to her old self. She eventually passed away in 2004. To this day, the memory of that night haunts me—the eerie cries, the growls, the stories from Ms Ingrid, it was really something else yes.” - D. Bheepat ---------------------------------------------------------------- "The Raakhas" The tale of the “Raakhas” is a chilling legend that likely evolved with the East Indian indentured labourers who came to the Caribbean and was propagated by their descendants. This folklore may have been influenced by the “Rakshasa” of Indian mythology—demonic or ‘goblin-like’ beings known for their shape-shifting abilities, immense strength, and in some instances, an insatiable appetite for human flesh. In Trinidad, a Raakhas/Raa-khas is a sinister newborn creature, often resembling a young rat, monkey, or frog, with a complexion as dark as night. It bears a high, sloping forehead, and its menacing grin reveals four protruding teeth—two on the upper jaw and two on the lower. Its long fingernails, toenails, and hair add to its eerie appearance, and it may even possess a tail. Upon birth, the raakhas immediately attempts to flee, leaping through windows and scaling rooftops, all the while shrieking the names of its parents as a chilling omen of impending doom. The chaamine (midwife) faces a grim task: to kill the raakhas by strangling it or crushing its chest with a grinding stone (sil) the moment it is born. If the creature survives, it becomes a relentless predator, seeking to end the lives of its parents and others by clawing at their flesh and piercing their necks with its razor-sharp teeth. The child never lives beyond a few days; it either perishes naturally or is mercilessly destroyed by human hands. A child is cursed to become a raakhas as a result of its mother's dark karma. Have you ever heard of this tale? Further Reading: - Mahabir, K., & Khan, A. (2010). Indian Caribbean folklore spirits. Chakra Publishing House. - Pattanaik, D. (2003). Indian mythology: Tales, symbols, and rituals from the heart of the subcontinent. Inner Traditions. - https://www.nalis.gov.tt/.../Indian-Caribbean-Folklore (Source: San Fernando North Community Library, July 20, 2024) |
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