Chapter 13 - The Charleys of Jamaica

 Chapter 13

The Charleys of Jamaica

When the writer was a student at Bedford College for Women, Regents Park, London in 1923 she went to a Student Christian Movement party in Bloomsbury and met a Jamaican who was in this country as a student. He was interested in her name and said he worked as accountant for the Charleys in Jamaica. They were citrous fruit growers and rum manufacturers.

Their estates were known as:

1.      Masemure Estate, Little London P/O, Jamaica. Owned by James Charley.

2.      Kew Estate, Lucca P/O, Jamaica. Owned by Joce Charley.

3.      Mint Estate, Grange Hill, Jamaica. Owned by John Charley.

When the late Olive Baggallay, a friend of the writer, went on holiday to Jamaica in 1949 staying on a citrous fruit farm adjoining the Charley estates she learned the following interesting facts. About the time of the Mayflower a community of men and women from North Devon sailed to the New World but were wrecked outside Kingston harbour. They had brought with them certain things from their old homes including a font from the village church. This font is now in a church on the coast near the site of the wreck. This small group founded the British community in Jamaica. The question arises whether a Charley from North Devon was included among the pilgrims. This is more than a probability.

The Charleys already mentioned above made money in Jamaica and some retired to England.

There was a young Charley at Taunton School when the writer’s nephew David Charley was there. He came from Jamaica.

In 1957 Peter Abrahams went to Jamaica to collect information about the country prior to writing his book “Jamaica” which was sponsored by the Colonial Office. He visited the West Indies Sugar Company Ltd. And met Harold Capel Capusac the general manager. Frome is one of the two estates owned by this company which is a subsidiary of Tate and Lyle and was incorporated in the United Kingdom. In chapter 4 entitled “Freemen, Bondmen, and Slaves” we read that Mr. Capusac had been manager of the estates of one James Charley who had made up his mind that he would be the first Jamaican millionaire.

In 1937 the new company acquired Mr. Charley’s interests. It also bought the Morris estates which adjoined the Charleys. In all it bought seven estates and factories and amalgamated them into the present 27,000 acre Frome Estate.