The evolution of the sugar industry in French Guiana from the 17th century to the 19th century

Author(s): Nathalie Cazelles

Year: 2013

Summary

The situation in French Guiana was not the same as in the other French overseas territories (West Indies or Reunion Island) where sugar was grown. Here, visible remains of the colonial sugar and rum industries are hardly found. Only the foundations of factory buildings and domestic housing can still be seen, and today in French Guiana,  there is only one factory which is still producing rum. Furthermore, very little archaeological research has been undertaken on the territory's colonial period.  We will develop a critical analysis of the archives via data from the recent excavations at the sugar factories of Loyola and la Garonne Plantations. The rum industry, which only occurs at the very end of the 19th century, is much less known than sugar industry.  Here archaeological research has been engaging with local inquiries from the descendants of rum-associated families.

Cite this Record

The evolution of the sugar industry in French Guiana from the 17th century to the 19th century. Nathalie Cazelles. Presented at Society for Historical Archaeology, Leicester, England, U.K. 2013 ( tDAR id: 428397)

Keywords

General
french guiana rum Sugar

Geographic Keywords
French Guiana South America

Temporal Keywords
17th-19th centuries

Spatial Coverage

min long: -54.604; min lat: 2.113 ; max long: -51.684; max lat: 5.755 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 237