Vreed en Hoop
Vreed en Hoop is a village at the mouth of the Demerara River on its west bank, in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana, located at sea level.[2] It is the location of the Regional Democratic Council office making it the administrative center for the region.[3] There is also a police station, magistrate's court and post office.[2]
Vreed en Hoop | |
|---|---|
village and regional capital | |
  Vreed en Hoop Location in Guyana | |
| Coordinates: 6.80763°N 58.18154°W | |
| Country |  Guyana |
| Region | Essequibo Islands-West Demerara |
| Population (2012)[1] | |
| • Total | 469 |
| Time zone | UTC-4 |
| Climate | Af |
History
Vreed en Hoop encompasses a few small communities, among them New Road, Plantain Walk, Crane and Coglan Dam. The name of the town comes from the Dutch "Vreed en Hoop", meaning "Peace and Hope" in English.[2]
The name is derived from the Plantation Vreed en Hoop which already existed in 1798.[4] In 1828 ownership changed to Sir John Gladstone[4] who became the permanent absentee planter.[5] At the time of the emancipation of slavery, the plantation had 415 slaves.[5] In 1838, Gladstone was the first planter to expel most of his former slaves, and replace them with indentured servants from India.[5] In 1839, newspapers started to report physical abuse at his plantations, therefore Gladstone quietly transferred ownership.[5]
Vreed en Hoop also consists of a market and other shopping stores. It has an educational institute for children and a college where teachers go for training.
Transport
In 1900, the Demerara-Essequibo Railway opened between Vreed en Hoop and Greenwich Park. In 1914, the line was extended to Parika. The railway remained in operation until 1974.[6]
Passenger boats (speedboats) traverse the Demerara River linking Vreed en Hoop to the capital city of Georgetown in about five minutes, much faster than using the Demerara Harbour Bridge (DHB). For safety passengers must use the lifejackets provided. The busy terminal connects travellers to the West Bank Demerara road up to Parika, with cars and minibuses plying the routes.[2]
Plastic City
Plastic City is a shanty town located within Vreed en Hoop. It is located a quarter mile from the village.[7] To the north, there is a jetty that leads to the Atlantic Ocean, and out of sight, there is a makeshift village. Plastic City started in the early 1990s and has been growing ever since.[8] The main problem is the lack of access to water and electricity,[9] and the proneness to flooding.[8]
Presidents promised to solve the problem.[10] Opposition leaders visited the area, but as of 2020, Plastic City remains.[8]
Climate
Vreed en Hoop has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with heavy rainfall year-round.
| Climate data for Vreed en Hoop | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 28.8 (83.8) |
29.1 (84.4) |
29.4 (84.9) |
29.8 (85.6) |
29.5 (85.1) |
29.2 (84.6) |
29.5 (85.1) |
30.3 (86.5) |
31.1 (88.0) |
30.9 (87.6) |
30.3 (86.5) |
29.5 (85.1) |
29.8 (85.6) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 26.1 (79.0) |
26.4 (79.5) |
26.7 (80.1) |
27.0 (80.6) |
26.7 (80.1) |
26.3 (79.3) |
26.4 (79.5) |
27.0 (80.6) |
27.7 (81.9) |
27.5 (81.5) |
27.1 (80.8) |
26.6 (79.9) |
26.8 (80.2) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 23.5 (74.3) |
23.8 (74.8) |
24.0 (75.2) |
24.3 (75.7) |
24.0 (75.2) |
23.5 (74.3) |
23.4 (74.1) |
23.7 (74.7) |
24.3 (75.7) |
24.1 (75.4) |
23.9 (75.0) |
23.8 (74.8) |
23.9 (74.9) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 235 (9.3) |
125 (4.9) |
133 (5.2) |
163 (6.4) |
302 (11.9) |
336 (13.2) |
272 (10.7) |
192 (7.6) |
86 (3.4) |
92 (3.6) |
168 (6.6) |
285 (11.2) |
2,389 (94) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org[11] | |||||||||||||
Notable people
- Mohamed Shahabuddeen (1931–2018), International Court of Justice judge.[12]
References
- "2012 Population by Village". Statistics Guyana. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
- Ullah, Shabna (June 21, 2015). "Vreed-en-Hoop". Stabroek News. Retrieved August 19, 2017.
- "Have you ever visited the West Side? It's really the 'Best Side'". Guyana Chronicle. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
- "Vreed-en-Hoop". University College of London. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- "Two Johns and a few Gladstones". Stabroek News. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- "The Public Railways of Guyana, 2014, Part 2". International Steam. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
- "There is no civilization in "Plastic City" in Vreed-en-Hoop". Kaieteur News Online. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- "Plastic City residents still living in rough conditions". Stabroek News. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- "Life in Plastic City". Stabroek News. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- "Plastic City residents welcome President's squatter resettlement plan". Department of Public Informations. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- "Climate: Vreed en Hoop". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved August 13, 2020.
- "A Tribute to Dr. Mohamed Shahabuddeen". The West Indian Online. Retrieved 4 September 2020.