The Jolly Journal: May Edition
Former Governor-General Sir James Carlisle takes us back in time to when Jolly Harbour was an expanse of mangroves – and shares his memories of its evolution. We also catch up with local businesses as they settle into their new home. And Coach Darin talks exercise and mental health.
The thriving community of today was once a mangrove swamp. Pictured is a younger Sir James (Photo courtesy Sir James Carlisle)
Swamps, cockles and jumbies: Sir James Carlisle recounts Jolly’s storied past
It’s hard to imagine Jolly Harbour’s picturesque beach road was once a “dark and dismal” path that children believed harboured malevolent spirits.
The memory of picking one’s way through the dense trees to reach the coast – at the mercy of ‘jumbies’ and falling coconuts alike – remains pellucid for Sir James Carlisle.
Today, that same road is a hub of commerce, paved, and lined with bright bougainvillea. The former Governor-General is one of few still living in the area to have witnessed its transformation from a mangrove swamp to a thriving residential community.
His hilltop home overlooking the marina on one side and an expanse of countryside on the other is a pretty good place to share recollections of days gone by. Back in the 1940s when Sir James was a schoolboy, the view was obscured by dense logwood trees and cattle grazed where homes and schools now sit.
Born and raised in Bolans Village, he recalls the procession of parishioners, clad in their Sunday best, weaving their way through an avenue of mahoganies to the Anglican Church for the weekly service.
Sir James’ property occupies land that has been in family hands for generations.
“My family used to own land on the beach but we swapped it for here. It was a good deal in those days because agriculture was the main thing,” he says.
Reeds Point was an excellent source of eels and cockles, Sir James continues, while the bluff now home to Cocos Hotel was abundant with lime kilns used to make mortar for construction.
“We were required to work in those days. As children we looked after the goats and pigs, which everyone had then. We lived in a wooden house near where Bolans Police Station is today,” he says.
Breathe deeply and you can almost smell the traditional wood-fired bread from the bakery that would attract residents from near and far.
Sir James and classic scene of tourists relaxing on Jolly Beach during the resort’s early years.
Sir James may have been denied a secondary school education because his mother couldn’t afford the bus fare for him to get there each day, but he didn’t let that hold him back. He migrated to England during the Windrush era, spent several years in the Royal Air Force and trained to be a dentist.
After his return to Antigua in the 1970s, he would go on to hold the role of Queen Elizabeth’s official representative for 14 years, as the young country’s second Governor-General.
It was during the 1970s that Jolly Beach captured the attention of Swiss developer Dr Alfred Erhart who created its titular resort.
“I thought the resort was fantastic. It was one of the island’s first big hotels. It was exciting; it meant Antigua was developing,” Sir James smiles.
But there were two key aspects that aggravated the resort’s early guests – and ultimately inspired the development of the surrounding community.
“The mangrove swamp had a lot of fish and crabs.
During the hot months, the swamp would dry up and the creatures would die. The stench was absolutely horrible,” Sir James recalls. “And there were so many mosquitoes we used to call the area Mosquito Harbour. By abolishing the mangroves to develop Jolly Harbour, Dr Erhart solved both problems.”
The community’s first homes were built in the early 1990s. By now, the Jolly Beach Resort was a favoured tourist hotspot, its steady stream of visitors serviced by a handful of budget airlines.
Still, efforts to sell the new properties were initially arduous.
“There were hardly any takers,” Sir James says. “Then they took an ad in the Sunday Times, and after that it just went wild.”
The 88-year-old’s memories are immortalised in his book, ‘A Life Shaped by Extraordinary Circumstances’, released in January 2024 and available on Amazon.
His recollections of quieter days from decades ago are at odds with the bustling neighbourhood of today, the sound of construction in the distance.
But the father-of-five and grandchildren of several more is positive about the changes ahead.
“They’re doing a nice job with the redevelopment,” he says. “You can see they are spending money. Jolly Harbour has already been transformed.”
Wife Lady Emma agrees. She too remembers the days that Dr Erhart – dressed in his signature “shorts, sandals and socks” – was a regular feature around Jolly Harbour, the place he conceptualised from passion and created from scratch.
“It’s a beautiful community and what the new developers have done so far is good,” she says. “They’re working hard, you feel the freshness, the newness.”
More than 30 years after the couple and their young children used to “cut a path” through the bush with jeep and machete to reach the beach at weekends, they say Jolly Harbour has fully retained the character, the safety and the welcoming ambience that so enticed its first residents.
“I love Jolly Harbour’s convenience – the supermarket, the restaurants are all right here,” Lady Emma adds: “I would definitely recommend it to other people, especially young families. It’s a lovely place for children to grow up.”