Chacachacare is an island in the Republic of

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

, located at 10° 41' north

latitude In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...

and 61° 45' west

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...

. The island is in area. It is one of the Bocas Islands, which lie in the ''

Bocas del Dragón The Bocas del Dragón (Dragon's Mouths) are the series of straits separating the Gulf of Paria from the Caribbean Sea. There are four Bocas, from west to east: * The Boca Grande or Grand Boca separates Chacachacare from the Paria Peninsula and ...

'' (''Dragons' Mouth'') between

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

and

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

. Chacachacare is the westernmost of the Bocas Islands which belong to Trinidad and Tobago. Patos Island, which lies further west, was part of Trinidad and Tobago until 1942, when it was ceded to Venezuela in exchange for Soldado Rock.

History

The island was spotted by

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

on his third New World voyage on 12 August 1498, and his little fleet spent the night anchored in Monkey Harbour. He named the island 'Port of Cats' because he heard roars of what he thought were wildcats, mistaking the call of howler monkeys for wildcats. It has also been called "El Caracol" (the

Snail A snail is a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gas ...

) because of its shape. At various times in its history Chacachacare has served as a

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

plantation, a

whaling Whaling is the hunting of whales for their products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that was important in the Industrial Revolution. Whaling was practiced as an organized industry as early as 875 AD. By the 16t ...

station and a leper colony. The Venezuelan revolutionary Santiago Mariño, who later joined forces with Simón Bolivar and was instrumental in the liberation of Venezuela from Spanish rule, used Chacachacare as a base for his successful 1813 invasion of Venezuela with a tiny band of 45 "Patriots". His sister, Concepción Mariño, played a part in the

Venezuelan War of Independence The Venezuelan War of Independence (, 1810–1823) was one of the Spanish American wars of independence of the early nineteenth century, when independence movements in South America fought a civil war for secession and against unity of the S ...

from her estate on the island. The island became a leper colony, established by the British government of the colony of

in the 1860s. The men and women of the colony were kept separate, they were not allowed visitors from the outside and were forbidden to leave. The lepers were cared for by French Dominican nuns, two of whom caught

leprosy Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a Chronic condition, long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the Peripheral nervous system, nerves, respir ...

; one of the two committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

. In 1942, 1,000 U.S. Marines were stationed on Chacachacare and built barracks all over the island, bringing with them diesel generators, which provided electrical power to the island for the first time. The authorities began to relax the strict rules of the colony, for instance, allowing men and women to mix. With improved medical treatment for leprosy, and the decline of the Dominican order, the island was abandoned after 1984, when the nuns left their quarters and the last

leper Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria '' Mycobacterium leprae'' or '' Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve da ...

on the island died. In 1999,

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

visited Chacachacare during the Miss Universe contest and contemplated having a casino and hotel built on the island; however, the idea has not been pursued. Today, Chacachacare remains uninhabited, except for staff maintaining a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

on the summit of the island. The

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

Temple founded in 1945 continues to be functional with occasional religious activities. It is also regularly used for camping and visits by recreational boaters. Many Trinidadians go to this island, as well as

Monos Monos is an island in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is one of the "Bocas Islands", which lie in the '' Bocas del Dragón'' (''Dragons' Mouth'') between Trinidad and Venezuela. It is so named as the island was once home to noisy red h ...

and Huevos, for day trips. This is popularly referred to as "going down the islands".

Lighthouse

Places

Bolo Rocks

The Bolo Rocks are a series of rocks located at the southwestern point of Chacachacare. They were named after a slave called Bolo who worked for a whaling station on the island.

Cabresse Island

Cabresse Island is a very small islet located just off the northern point of Chacachacare.

Gallery

File:Leper colony, Chacachacare, Trinidad. 1967.jpg, Approaching the leper colony on Chacachacare Island,

File:Chacachacare dry forest 2.jpg, Tropical dry forest, Chacachacare File:Chacachacare map 1927.png, Map of Chacachacare (1927) File:Chacachacare dry forest 3.JPG, Trinidad and Tobago dry forest on Chacachacare showing the dry-season deciduous nature of the vegetation File:Chacachacare.JPG, Abandoned Nun's Quarters, Chacachacare

References

Notes Bibliography * *

External links

Tim McDonald. "Chacachacare: The sad legacy of an idyllic island in the Caribbean"
'' Tri-City Herald'' via Associated Press. Accessed 21 November 2022.
Chacachacare Interactive Map
Chaguaramas Development Authority. Accessed 21 November 2022. {{Islands of Trinidad and Tobago Gulf of Paria Uninhabited islands of Trinidad and Tobago Leper colonies Whaling stations of the Caribbean Whaling in the Caribbean