Folktales can do many things. They can help explain the world around us. They can connect us to our past. They can tell us how to live our lives and how to tell right from wrong. They entertain us.

Folktales are often strange or magical. They are not necessarily meant to be taken literally. But often there is some truth in them. In several old folktales from St. Martin, we can learn something about people, nature and the connection between the two.

The book Folk-Lore of the Antilles, French and English collects folktales recorded in the 1920s on many islands. Many of them were recounted by young people, and many of them include birds and other animals.

The story Cockroach Fools Fowl was told by 13 year-old Samuel Saty of Marigot. In the story, a cockroach pretends to be sick so a chicken will feed it. The chicken gives it pap, a thick drink made from arrowroot or other starch. When the trickery is discovered, Fowl is so vexed he swallows the cockroach whole. Though chickens don’t make pap, they do spend much of their time looking for—and swallowing—insects.

Pigeon Wife was told by Hilton Liburt, an 18 year-old from Philipsburg. In this story, someone was stealing a farmer’s corn from his field. The thief was his wife, who was a pigeon. She was eating the corn in the field at night. People and birds sometimes do compete for food. When people replace wild areas with farms, birds may eat the crops because their normal food is gone. This can be a problem for both farmers and birds.

The story Bo Pigeon and Mountain Dove Race for the King’s Daughter comes from St. Croix. A pigeon and a dove agree to race for the chance to marry a princess. In a twist that may be familiar to many St. Martiners, they agree to each drink a demijohn of rum before the race, but the pigeon drinks water. The dove is too drunk to fly and loses the race. The native Blue Pigeon is usually seen high up in the sky, and the Mountain Dove is often on the ground so perhaps this tale was invented to explain why these birds act the way they do.

Do you have a favorite local folktale? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

Flowers brighten our lives and decorate gardens and landscapes. On a tropical island, there are countless beautiful varieties and something is always in bloom. Each flower also has a story, and here are three of them.

Yellow Sage is the national flower of the country of Sint Maarten. Also known as Orange-yellow Sage, it is a variety of the species known as West Indian Sage. Other varieties of West Indian Sage flower in a variety of colors. The plant can grow into a large bush—two meters tall and just as wide. Native here, it has also been brought all over the world. It is used in plant medicine, as a natural fence and to control erosion with its extensive roots.

The Flamboyant tree is known for its beautiful flowers. Each summer, these trees explode into brilliant reds, oranges and yellows. Though native to Madagascar, it has been popular in the Caribbean for hundreds of years. On St. Martin, this tree has a special connection to emancipation. When emancipation in Dutch colonies took place on July 1, 1863 the Flamboyant was in full bloom, and freed St. Martiners carried branches of its beautiful flowers as they celebrated.

Today, one of the most commonly seen flowers on the island is the bright pink blossom of the Coralita vine. This non-native vine has covered many parts of the island, especially areas that were once used for livestock but are no longer managed. Although the flowers are beautiful and their nectar is well-loved by insects of all kinds, this vine tends to cover and smother any plants in its path. It also has potato-like tubers deep under the ground so it quickly regrows after being cleared. Of all St. Martin’s flowers, it is one of the most beautiful and problematic.

What is your favorite local flower? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC provides an amazing look at the heritage of over 40 million people. A visit is a rich and rewarding experience for anyone. What would a resource like this look like on St. Martin?

The richness of the museum is a reflection of the richness of the culture it presents. The museum gives a detailed history of the black experience in America. But often cultural aspects are the strongest and provide us with our best connections to the past. Both African American culture and the Afro-Caribbean culture of St. Martin have countless facets to explore.

The histories of both places share the horrors of the slavery era and the challenges of sharing an era when black voices were suppressed and excluded from the record. One way of helping visitors connect with the lives of enslaved people was sharing objects and stories from everyday life, even an entire home that was brought into the museum and restored.

Another key method was using peoples’ own words to tell their stories and reveal history. From old letters and documents to recordings and interviews made more recently, much of the story was told by those who lived it. Seeing these words and hearing these voices helped visitors connect deeply.

The museum also drew heavily on culture and art. The African diaspora includes many of the greatest musicians, performers and artists of all time. Music and art were featured in their own galleries, but they were also used all over the museum, making other materials more engaging. Intangible culture and heritage were presented on equal footing with objects and documents.

The museum also had opportunities for visitors to share their stories and connect them to history. The Family Research Center helps visitors explore their genealogy to learn more about their ancestors. Reflections Booths located on the museum floor give visitors a chance to share their own stories.

All of these techniques could be used in a St. Martin Museum of Afro-Caribbean History and Culture. Right now, the story is not told as well as it should be, even though it is the history of most of the people on the island.

What Afro-Caribbean history or culture would you want to see in a St. Martin museum? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

Anyone who has spent even a little time on St. Martin is used to watching it change. Winter’s lush green hills are bare and bone dry in the spring. Beaches grow and shrink with shifting sands. Heavy machines cut into the hillsides to clear land for roads and buildings. Ponds are filled, great trees grow and die. Ruins collapse under the weight of centuries, or just the years since Hurricane Luis.

St. Martin may be almost unrecognizable to someone born here 80 years ago. But even a long human life is just a moment in the vast age of an island. St. Martin has been through even bigger changes, witnessed by people who are long since gone, and in the ages before anyone was here to see them at all. Here are a few of them.

Look in the direction of St. Barts and imagine not sea, but land, between here and there. Then imagine unbroken land continuing just as far on the other side of St. Barts. Imagine land extending for miles in almost every direction from the St. Martin of today, forming an island the size of Trinidad. It may sound impossible, but 12,000 years ago when the sea level was more than 100 meters lower, this is how St. Martin was.

Imagine your surroundings with every sign of human presence gone. Thick scrub full of thorny plants fills most coastal areas and lowlands. Explosions of bright blue flowers dot the landscape where Lignum Vitae trees are in bloom. In each ravine, massive trees have grown tall to capture sunlight in the canopy leaving a cool and open forest floor. Flocks of parrots fly over, chattering to each other, and huge colonies of egrets nest on the mangrove trees that surround every pond. This is the paradise that the first Amerindian people discovered here about 5,000 years ago.

Imagine a St. Martin 200 years ago, covered almost completely with fields of giant grass, with thick stalks twice the height of a person. The fields reach high into the hills, covering many places that have regrown trees in the centuries since. A few dozen plantation houses are spread around the island, built in wood on stone foundations. Somewhere near each one there is a raised ring where cows or donkeys circle, turning the giant rollers that crush the sugarcane. Near each mill there is a cluster of small wattle and daub homes. Most of the people on the island live in them, surviving day by day under an unimaginably terrible system of slavery that they would soon take a part in overthrowing.

What St. Martin era are you curious about? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

The idea of St. Martin as a two-nation island is central to its image. It is the one fact that appears in every article about St. Martin. It is technically true, in a political sense. The north of St. Martin is part of France, and the south is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. At the same time, it is also a myth that misrepresents the island in many ways.

No matter who was in charge, through most of history the people of St. Martin were mostly not French or Dutch. During the early colonial period, many people were English or Irish, possibly the majority at some points in time.

By the end of the 1700s, enslaved people from Africa vastly outnumbered Europeans. These people were not given the rights of human beings at all, much less the rights of French or Dutch citizens. The language of the island has always been English, and the culture is Caribbean with many influences. Many of the superficial trappings of French and Dutch culture arrived when tourism grew in the late 20th century, a marketing myth manifesting itself across the island.

A key part of the dual nation myth is the division of the island with the Treaty of Concordia in 1648. There is a notion that two nations have peacefully coexisted on the island since then. But they haven’t really. There have been frequent disputes over the border, which was only marked in 1772. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the French and Dutch governments broke the treaty to invade and take over the opposite half of the island six different times. The harmony of the island probably has more to do with the unity of the people of St. Martin, sharing culture and family across the border, rather than two “great nations” finding peace with each other.

Misconceptions about St. Martin come from many times and places. Older histories only recorded the lives of the wealthy and the powerful. We know the names of the white men who gave the order to build bridges and forts, but not the people who actually built them. In the modern era, the myth of a French and Dutch island was promoted as something tourists would find fun and sophisticated.

Of course, there is French and Dutch heritage on the island, and there are fascinating things to learn about it. The challenge is simply to escape the bounds of a single narrative. Smothered beneath the myth of French and Dutch is a far richer story waiting to be heard.

What St. Martin history and culture do you feel is overlooked? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

St. Martin looks like a tropical paradise, especially during the winter. Fall rains paint St. Martin in beautiful greens from hill to valley. But life isn’t that easy for plants on St. Martin. The ones that do well here are super tough and adapted to survive. Here are three plant stories that everyone should know.

St. Martin is a dry island. It is easy to forget during the green fall and winter seasons. The spring dry season pushes plants to the limit, and they all have strategies for survival. Some lose their leaves to save water. Some have deep roots to tap into hidden water, others have shallow roots spread out to catch as much as they can from a passing shower. Every single plant on the island has found a way to live through the dry season. Years of drought, which have become more frequent, can even push the best adapted plants over the edge.

Mangroves are protectors of both land and sea. Mangroves are a group of trees adapted to live in and near saltwater areas. Along coastlines, they absorb the power of incoming waves and keep beaches from washing into the sea. They also trap soil and leaves that wash down from the hills. This provides food for crabs and other pond animals. It also protects coral reefs. Without mangroves, nutrients from the land would wash out to sea and feed algae that would smother the coral. Living between land and sea, mangroves are vital to life both above and beneath the water.

From seaside scrub to forested hill, every landscape we see has been changed by humans. During the colonial period, especially when sugar cane was grown, natural vegetation was cut to make way for agriculture. Virtually every wild space on St. Martin is actually growing back after being cleared. As agriculture has declined, many spaces that were once farmed or grazed by livestock are slowly returning to a more natural state. But this process can take hundreds of years, and even a beautifully regrown forest will probably not have the same richness and mix of species as what was once there.

What St. Martin plant story do you think everyone should know? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

There are infinite interesting facts about St. Martin wildlife. But if you had just a couple minutes to tell someone what is so special about St. Martin, what would you choose? Here are three wildlife stories that everyone should know.

There are animals that live only on St. Martin. There are two lizards you can see today, and one that is extinct. These animals were stranded here thousands or millions of years ago and evolved right here to become unique species. If they don’t have the habitat they need here, they could disappear from the world. That’s a good reason to make sure we save some wild spaces. The unique animal you are most likely to see is the Bearded Anole, a small tree lizard that is usually tan with bright blue around its eyes. The Spotted Woodslave is harder to find. It is a giant gecko that lives in the forest.

About half our birds are long distance travelers. Some birds live here all year, but about half the species that have been seen here are migratory birds. Most spend their summer in North America raising their chicks. Many go as far north as Canada and Alaska. When it is too cold to find food there, they come to St. Martin, or stop here on their way further south. Out salt ponds attract many birds that come to hunt fish, crabs or snails. Many of these birds spend most of their year here, so we could think of them as St. Martin birds that summer in the north.

Non-native animals are transforming St. Martin. The island is now home to many animals that were not from here. Amerindians brought the Red-footed Tortoise in prehistoric times, rats arrived on the first European ships and the mongoose was introduced in 1888. These days, most species arrive with shipments of trees and plants. The Cuban Tree Frog, Giant African Land Snail and the Brahminy Blind Snake probably arrived this way. Some cause trouble for native species, others don’t. The mongoose exterminated our native snake and two lizards. Introduced snails can eat up both gardens and wild plants.

What St. Martin wildlife story do you think everyone should know? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

On St. Martin, countless stories have been lost to time. For most of recorded history, only the thinnest slice of life was documented. For the vast majority of people, not a single word was written about their life, toils, resourcefulness, beliefs or loves.

But even the things that were recorded are vulnerable. Things as important as the Treaty of Concordia, which split the island between the French and Dutch in 1648, have gone missing. One of the original copies is still missing today. Other records have been lost, or destroyed in fire, flood or hurricane.

Books written about St. Martin are crucial links to information that is lost, or locked away in distant archives. Dr. J. Hartog’s book, History of Sint Maarten and Saint Martin is one of those links. He made detailed notes of the Lieutenant-Governor’s Journals of Sint Maarten as part of his research. In 1974, those journals were destroyed in a fire. Hartog’s book is the last record of much of this information.

S.J. Kruythoff’s The Netherlands Windward Islands contains some historical research. But it also includes many things that wouldn’t be recorded at all without his book, like the local names of plants and animals. His observations about nature and culture in the first half of the 20th century are priceless and unique. Very little was being published about the island at this time.

The Making of an Island by Jean Glasscock contains stories from conversations she had with St. Martiners between the 1960s and early 1980s. This is hardly ancient history, but St. Martin was tremendously different back then. Many of the people she spoke to have now passed.

The list goes on. For the Love of St. Maarten by Will Johnson, L’Immuable et le Changeant by Yves Monnier, Windward Children by Dorothy and John Keur and Beyond the Tourist Trap by Sypkens Smit each include stories of the island that can be found nowhere else.

These authors have succeeded where even governments responsible for preserving the public record have often failed. These works can still be read. Thanks to the number of copies that exist, they will almost surely survive long into the future.

Although these books are on many bookshelves, all of them are currently out of print. Copies can still be found occasionally by those with patience and the money to pay rare book prices. Someday they will enter the public domain, but many of us will be long dead by then.

In the meantime, what can we do? It is crucial that local libraries, schools and cultural institutions have copies of these works so they are available to the people of St. Martin. If possible, perhaps some of them could be reprinted with the permission of the authors and publishers. These books may also inform new works that continue the grand project of telling the story of St. Martin.

What is your favorite book about St. Martin? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

2020 is a brand new year. It is a chance to make a change and to try new things. Many of us have made resolutions, plans to improve ourselves or our community in this new year. Whether you have made other resolutions or not, here are a few cultural resolutions that you might consider for 2020.

Experience culture. St. Martin has plenty of culture, and it is easy to access. There are museums, galleries, events and performances. Experiencing culture in person is enriching. It is a break from the everyday and a reminder of what the island has to offer. Going to an event is also a chance to connect with the community. St. Martin culture is a set of shared traditions. If you don’t share in them, you lose your connection to this culture.

Participate in culture. Culture is for and by everyone. The only limitation is who chooses to take part. Your story is part of the St. Martin story, and it is as important as anyone else’s. Write down a story told to you by a parent or grandparent. Share a family recipe. Scan your family photos. Record an interview with a relative. The story of St. Martin is incomplete without your contribution.

Support culture. There are a handful of people who have worked tirelessly to preserve and share St. Martin culture for years or decades. They’ve done amazing things, but they have also had a lot of help from countless other people. Museums, book fairs and festivals don’t happen by themselves. They are created by volunteers and supported by donors. They are everyday people like you and me, but without their generosity perhaps culture would disappear on St. Martin.

There are plenty of reasons why being culturally active today is important to St. Martin. Stories are lost each year as elders pass away. Letters, diaries and photos are lost or destroyed with no backup. Many of the cultural leaders of the 80s and 90s have retired without a new generation to carry on work in their fields.

But the most important reason to be culturally active is because it will improve your life. Culture links you to your past and makes you optimistic about the future. Culture is the thing that connects a community across time and space. Without culture, we are alone. And that’s no way to spend 2020.

What is your cultural resolution for 2020? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

Anyone in search of a deeper understanding of the recent protests would do well to read the book Saint-Martin: Destabilization of the French Caribbean by the late Daniella Jeffry. It focuses primarily on a period of great change on the island, from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.

Jeffry set the stage with an overview of colonial history, and what she called the “Traditional Period” between 1848 and 1963. In her view, the collapse of the sugar industry, the end of slavery and the departure of white plantation owners led to a time of relative peace during this period. People farmed, fished and did seasonal salt work. People were poor, but largely free to do as they wished. France had little interest in St. Martin, giving the island a kind of independence.

Things began to change as tourism developed. The Dutch side began first, building the new airport and pier and the first hotels. By the beginning of the 1980s and feeling 20 years behind, France was in a rush to develop their side of the island. 

The 1980s were a turbulent time, even though tourists might remember it as a golden age. There was massive development, immigration tripled the population of French St. Martin, and the French state increased its involvement in local affairs. Laws and zoning plans were changed to facilitate tourism development. 

Jeffry’s book describes one series of events in March of 1980 may help us better understand the current conflict over today’s natural disaster risk prevention plan (PPRN). In early 1980, there was a development plan to transform Sandy Ground into a tourist area. The homes there where people lived and raised their families were largely built without permits on land that they did not have clear title to. One of the first steps was to knock down buildings that the state considered illegal.

In response to the first houses being bulldozed, 2nd Deputy Mayor Albert Romney-Burnett bulldozed the French security police barracks in the same area. The next Saturday, March 8th, a meeting was held to discuss the transfer of Sandy Ground land to the government.

Mayor Elie Fleming explained to the the tense crowd that due to the position of Sandy Ground, between lagoon and sea, and the distance between the high water marks on each side, the land actually belonged to the state. He said “Sandy Ground, for those who do not know, is the result of the abuses of those people who came here to work but could not find a place to live.” He said that these “greedy and selfish people” would not be allowed to continue living there. The area to be retaken by the state would be marked by the following Monday.

Mrs. Berry Gumbs, who owned a home in Sandy Ground, spoke up to say that no one could take her property. Albert Romney-Burnett encouraged residents to get their property ownership legalized. He also said, “St. Martin people are a very understanding people. But one thing is for sure, we are going to stand up for what is rightfully ours. I feel that St. Martin people have been pushed in a corner and we are going to stand up and defend ourselves.” He also made a call to “protest in a peaceful way.”

The comments from the crowd and the heated atmosphere seemed to change the mind of government. The plan to take Sandy Ground was not implemented in 1980. Since then, questions of land ownership and zoning have often caused dispute. And the echoes of March 8th, 1980 can still be heard.

What are your memories of unrest in the 1980s? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

You can read Saint-Martin: Destabilization of the French Caribbean at Soualibra. You can buy it on Amazon or at Arnia Bookstore.

The guavaberry is an easy fruit to love. It is sweet and tangy and the tree itself is beautiful. It is native to St. Martin and other parts of the Caribbean, a natural part of the landscape.

The tree grows wild here, but it is also raised for its beauty, its wood, and especially its fruit. Guavaberry is made into tarts and jams, and it is used to flavor rum. It is one of the essential flavors of St. Martin.

Although it is found on many islands, only a few places use it so much. St. Martin perhaps most of all, and also the Virgin Islands. The fact that it is popular in the northeast Caribbean is a reminder of the cultural connections between these islands.

Guavaberry is also popular in the San Pedro de Macorís area of the Dominican Republic. In the early 20th century, St. Martiners and people from nearby islands came to this area to work in agriculture. At the time, the St. Martin economy was struggling. The guavaberry traditions brought with these economic migrants are still alive there today.

Here, the guavaberry is a key part of deep cultural traditions. It is strongly connected to the Christmas season. Some would say that Christmas time is the one true time to enjoy guavaberry in all its forms. Perhaps the most traditional Chrismas song on the island is the guavaberry song, with its lyric “Good morning, good morning, I come for me guavaberry.”

Christmas is celebrated in countless places, but it has some special meaning in St. Martin. It comes at the end of the rainiest season when many crops are ready to harvest. It comes after the hurricane season, when everyone can breathe a sigh of relief. Guavaberry rum is the perfect drink for this moment of sweetness, celebration, release and friendship.

The Guavaberry Festival in Colombier brings all of these ideas and feelings together. It is a celebration of the fruit and of the season. It is a chance to get a tree or some seeds and take part in the tradition of cultivation. The joyous music is a living celebration of this wonderful tree.

What is your favorite way to enjoy guavaberry? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

While scanning selections from Barbara Cannegieter’s enormous collection of postcards, it was interesting to see how they changed through the years. Postcards are made to represent a place, or the ideal of a place. But places change, especially St. Martin.

Very early postcards, from the late 19th and early 20th centuries mostly document “important” things. Marigot and Philipsburg are there because they are the capitals. Front Street is featured because it is Front Street. St. Martin was a faraway place back then, more remote than anyone today could probably imagine. A postcard may have been a way of proving that it existed at all.

Over time, postcard images became more diverse. Many highlighted the natural beauty of green hills and unspoiled beaches. Scenes of Caribbean life were also popular: fishermen with their catch and produce for sale at Marigot market. The unique architecture of the island along Rue de la République and other streets is often on display.

Eventually, St. Martin as a tourist destination became the subject of many postcards. Hotels and resorts were on postcards, from the extravagant fake Mediterranean village of La Belle Creole to a variety of boxy and inelegant hotel buildings. Tourists appear in postcards, doing duty free shopping and water sports.

Postcards reflect different views of the island. They were made to appeal to buyers, so they reflect what those buyers loved about St. Martin. At least, the ones that sold. They also helped create the image of St. Martin. These very specific images were how St. Martin was shared around the world.

How we see these images today can also tell us a lot. For St. Martiners, and others who love the island, postcards are powerful. Familiar views of towns bring a rush of nostalgia. People recognize the faces of fishermen and shopkeepers. Images of unspoiled landscapes often bring a sense of loss.

The St. Martin of all these old postcards is gone. Or at least, it has changed to the St. Martin of today. Simpson Bay will never be unbuilt, but we could protect the last few wild views. Some of the classic Caribbean houses of Grand Case, Marigot and French Quarter may be crumbling, but many could still be returned to glory. St. Martin may not have any fishing villages today, but it still has people who fish.

In every postcard, there is an element of St. Martin that is still here, whether it is a place, a tradition or a feeling. Perhaps it is hidden, perhaps it is in disrepair, perhaps it is hanging by a thread. But it is not too late to save a little bit of what we love from the past.

What do you miss from St. Martin’s past? What needs to be saved today? Tell us about it by writing in to The Daily Herald or to [email protected].

See more old postcards and photos at the St. Martin Image Collection.

Photos may be the most direct link we have to the past of the island. Photos capture people, places and things from the past. They capture culture and family history. They show us nature and the landscapes of the past. We can see what people were doing and the expressions on their faces.

Photos are also important because they contain stories that were never written down. Where written history features a handful of people, we have photos of many people. By preserving, sharing and studying these photos, we can build a more complete history.

Many people are already working on this project, perhaps without thinking of it in this way. There are people sharing photos on social media, and others commenting. Every time someone uploads a photo or identifies a person or a place or a year in a comment, our knowledge of the past increases.

Even the simple act of saving family photos, postcards and other materials is part of this process. Without these collections, there would be nothing to study or share. St. Martin is a land of 1,000 archivists who have protected these precious memories through the years.

A physical photo album has some limitations. It isn’t accessible to everyone. It could also be destroyed in a storm or thrown away by someone who doesn’t value it. Making images digital and sharing them brings them into the public sphere. It also ensures that at least some version of the image remains even if the original is lost.

Social sharing is a great way to help people connect to photos and share insights, but it also has limitations. Often photos are shared in low quality. This can be okay on a computer or phone screen, but some details may be lost. Also, social media is not very good for organizing photos. Many people may see and comment on a photo when it is posted, but it can be hard to find it again.

St. Martin may not have the resources to create a state of the art archive like those at the Library of Congress or New York Public Library. But it is possible to make a simple site where photos can be shared and information about them can be collected. You can find the beginnings of this site at http://image.amuseumnaturalis.com.

Right now, the St. Martin image collection includes photos and postcards from several generous people who offered to share what they have preserved. Others are welcome to contribute images or information about what is in the photos. Over time this can grow to a rich archive of images and stories that is accessible to all.

Do you want to learn how to find the stories in your family photos? There will be a free workshop on Saturday, December 7th at Amuseum Naturalis. You will learn how to find the story in a family photo you bring. You will also get a scan of your photo that you can share with family for the holidays. To sign up, email [email protected].

At the Museums Association of the Caribbean conference in Martinique last week, Hannah K Scruggs, Kamilah Stinnett and Doretha Williams from The National Museum of African American History and Culture gave a presentation titled Genealogy in Museums: Finding Family while Exploring Cultural Heritage. Their museum has a Family History Center that hundreds of people visit each day. They offer six sessions each day where people can come in and get help researching their own family tree.

Genealogy, the study of family history, is a way for people to understand where they come from. It is also a way to find one’s place in history and in a community. It connects people to their own family, but also to the world.

Usually, the starting place for making a family tree is asking other family members, especially older ones. Scrapbooks and memorabilia can also give key details. More and more, records are being digitized and may be searchable online. Public records, newspapers and archives are all important resources.

For anyone with ancestors who were enslaved, it can be hard or even impossible to trace family roots through this period. Not being able to trace family history is a part of the trauma of enslavement that still hurts people today. But many people find it rewarding to discover the family history that is available.

At the Family History Center, visitors can have access to databases and help learning how to research. On St. Martin, it would be very good to have a similar center. By helping individual people learn about their own history, we could enrich what we know about the history of the island as well.

On St. Martin, family research would surely reveal many connections between local families. It would also show how people from St. Martin are connected to relatives on Anguilla, St. Kitts and beyond. In these connections, we can find stories of survival and cultural connections. A handful of people researching their own family histories would enrich the lives of everyone interested in St. Martin.

A family history is like a map for the past. Combined with photos and documents that can be scanned at the heritage preservation station at Amuseum Naturalis, we can make that past come alive. The history of the island can be transformed to include the history of everyone on the island. This inclusive history has its roots in the family tree.

Are you interested in researching your family tree? Have you already started? Tell us about it by writing in to The Daily Herald or to [email protected].

On the first morning of the Museums Association of the Caribbean conference, John Angus Martin gave a presentation called Exhibiting Slavery in the Caribbean Museum. It is a challenging topic that many museums have avoided in the past. His presentation sparked animated discussion amongst the attendees.

Martin focused specifically on how small museums in the Caribbean can tackle this topic. These museums tend to lack funding, resources and space to address a topic so big and important in the detail it deserves. Making space for people with diverse perspectives and different ways of processing this history is also hard.

Despite the challenges, Martin had many suggestions. One key element is focusing on the people themselves. Exhibits that focus on artifacts or data tend to be cold and clinical. Stories should be personal. Humanity can be lost when exhibits focus on the magnitude of the slave trade. It is hard to tell personal stories when most names and lives were not recorded, but some records do exist.

Martin also highlighted the need to honor and memorialize. People should feel empathy and sorrow. There can be space for contemplation, and the hope of working towards a sense of closure. Featuring stories of resistance is part of this, but honoring how people survived is also important.

Martin suggested that the starting point of exhibits about slavery should be here and now. The story should be told starting from the present and working back into the past. It should highlight how this history has influenced life and culture today. The focus should be local, and the local story should not be lost by trying to tell a global history of slavery.

Slavery exhibits should be rooted in the local landscape, which often a key to telling the story. Although many of the signs of slavery on plantations are gone, the land itself remains. The places where enslaved people lived and toiled are still here. The landscape itself was transformed by their labor. Many of the plants were brought with them are still growing here, what does remain from this era was built by their hands.

What do you want an exhibit about slavery? What would you like to learn or see? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or to [email protected].

There’s too much plastic in the world. People have made almost 10 billion tons of plastic, and only 10% is recycled. The rest ends up in landfills, natural spaces and the sea. And there’s plenty of it on St. Martin. Some of the most beautiful places on the island are full of plastic garbage.

Plastic waste is ugly and it can cause problems for people. Mosquitos can breed in plastic containers full of rainwater. Plastic can also break down into tiny particles that are literally everywhere.

For birds, plastic is even worse. Many birds eat plastic. In the water, algae grows on plastic and make it smell like food. Birds eat it and feed it to their babies. Birds starve with stomachs full of plastic instead of food. Plastics also absorb toxic chemicals and poison birds. Sharp plastic objects can cause internal damage as well.

Plastic can also trap birds. Old fishing gear and other plastics in the sea can trap birds. If a bird gets tangled in plastics, it can drown. This is a serious problem for the Magnificent Frigatebird that fishes and forages for food that is on the surface of the sea. Frigates don’t dive into the sea. If they do get caught and pulled into the water they can drown.

Plastic gets in the way. Plastic bags fly in the wind and plastics float across the sea. They clutter up beaches and ponds. These are places where birds hunt for food or make their nests.

Plastics are a big problem on St. Martin, but there are many ways that you can help. Buy less plastic. You can connect with St. Martin traditions by using reusable bags, water bottles and food boxes like people did back in the day. You can recycle, and make sure your plastic never gets into wild spaces. Pick up plastic litter when you see it, or join a beach clean-up.

Your individual actions can help, but you can also encourage local government to make changes. Banning plastic bags and other single-use plastics can help everyone use less plastic. With laws to lead the way, people and businesses can find better alternatives for a cleaner and more beautiful St. Martin.

Do you remember the days when St. Martin was trash free? It could be that way again. To learn more about how plastics hurt birds and enjoy lots more fun activities, come to the Migratory Bird Festival from 9am-12pm on Saturday, November 9th at Amuseum Naturalis.

Written by Mark Yokoyama and César Escalona

Photos are a window into our lives. They show who we are and how we lived. They are a record of heritage, history and culture.

Some histories only record the lives of rich or powerful people. But most families have photos, so photos can tell the story of almost anyone. With photos, we can all be part of history.

Photos capture cultural heritage. You can see how people dressed and the houses they lived in. They show us events and places that were important to people.

They show traditions that built up over time that make this island unique. When families took photos at parties, events and jollifications, they were making a historical record—even if they didn’t think of it that way at the time.

These photos show us people’s expressions and what they were doing. They show us how people interacted with each other. They also show material culture. We can see what people were wearing and the objects around them.

Photos taken outdoors show us the cultural landscape. We can see architecture and nature, and how people are interacting with the island. On St. Martin we often see how much the island has changed in a very short period of time.

Photos are a window into the past. We can use them to learn what life was like. But they also show us where our traditions came from. We can see the roots of today’s culture in the photos of yesterday.

Photos are art. The photographer was expressing their vision, and their creative choices are captured in the photo. Family portraits were made with care. Each detail reflects a choice: how the people were grouped, what they wore, where the photo was taken and how they posed. The choices have symbolic meaning we can study, telling us about the family and their culture.

Every picture is important. Old photos and photo albums are precious family memories. But they are also important historical archives. Your photos can be a part of history. When we preserve photos, we build a richer history of the island. We make sure everyone’s story is part of the story of St. Martin.

Do you have old family photos? You can have them scanned at Amuseum Naturalis in French Quarter. You can also learn more about why photos are so important at the heritage preservation station at the Migratory Bird Festival from 9am-12pm on Saturday, November 9th at Amuseum Naturalis.

What is St. Martin culture? It is hard to put a finger on it. Local culture is the way things are said, or a proverb or a story. It is the way a food is cooked and on what occasions it is served. It is stories, crafts, games, songs, dances and much more. It can be hard to point to something and say “That is St. Martin culture.” But at the same time, it is all around us.

Over the last few years, the Sint Maarten National Commission for UNESCO has worked with the Department of Culture to write down the things that make local culture special. They created a survey and collected over 230 responses. The resulting list is the first National Intangible Cultural Heritage Inventory of St. Maarten.

The inventory is focused on five areas: oral traditions; performing arts; social practices; rituals and festive events; knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe; and traditional craftsmanship knowledge and techniques. The list includes over 200 different entries across these categories.

The list is rich. It includes jumbie stories and and songs like Mama Make Yo’ Johnny Cakes Christmas Comin’. It includes carnival, boat racing and dominoes. Foods like locri, conkie and guava cheese are there. Skills like making coconut oil and cooking on a coal pot made the list. You can also find crafts like making a fish pot or dry stone wall.

The inventory also notes which aspects of local culture are thriving or declining. Bull foot soup isn’t going to die out any time soon, but jollifications and horse races are less common than they were.

The intangible cultural heritage inventory is rich with things that make St. Martin special. There are also many things that still need to be added. The childhood game of rubbing a nickernut on a rock and then pressing the hot seed into a friend’s arm should probably be there. Also, the skill of making a noose from a blade of grass to catch a lizard.

The inventory is both a resource and an inspiration to those who have things to add to it. It is ready for your contributions. There is a copy at Amuseum Naturalis. You can also find it online at http://www.unesco.sx.

What intangible heritage do you want to add to the inventory? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].

Look out any window and you’ll see St. Martin. At least, you’ll see part of it. You might see your neighbors working on their house, cars passing in the street or clouds rolling in. Every window presents a slightly different view of the island.

If you don’t have a good view in the right direction, you might check Google for the weather. Beneath the forecast, you may see a section titled “People also ask.” Below are a series of questions that you can click to reveal the answers:

What is there to do in Saint Martin? What is the water temperature in St Maarten? What is there to do in Saint Martin? Is St Martin safe? Which side of Saint Martin is better? Do they speak English in St Martin? Can I use my credit card in St Maarten?

It is clear that a lot of the people asking questions about St. Martin are choosing their next vacation destination. As one of the world’s largest advertising platforms, Google is happy to help them find a place to spend their money. Hopefully some of it gets spent here.

Google says its mission is “to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.” It is a worthy goal. In practice, St. Martiners researching their heritage have a hard time. Authentic voices from and about St. Martin are buried under pages for and by outsiders looking to visit. These travel sites present a limited and often inaccurate view of the island.

This problem is not a surprise. Google is a company, not a library. The infinite potential of the internet promised a place for all voices. In practice, most voices are buried. As algorithms pick out the questions and answers for us, things may get worse. People ask Google, Siri or Alexa for answers, and they are less likely to know where those answers come from.

For the question “What is the crime rate in St Martin?” Google presents a page that generates a “crime rate” based on an internet survey that was filled out by two people. Questions about language, history and geography are answered from travel forums and hotel websites.

What can we do? We can get more St. Martin voices online and searchable. We could bring archives online and digitally republish books and articles. Amazing stuff is being shared on Facebook, and it deserves to be on the web for all to enjoy. Many great resources don’t even have a chance to be in web search results because they aren’t on the web yet.

St. Martin should also curate its own story. Anyone can edit Wikipedia, and information there makes its way all over the web. The island needs more web sites for and by St. Martiners. Libraries, museums and schools need the resources to safeguard and share the stories of St. Martin. The island needs to train its own experts for this crucial role. We can’t change Google, but we can change St. Martin.

How would you make sure St. Martin has a voice in telling its own story? Tell us by writing in to The Daily Herald or [email protected].