Emmastad

Groot Kwartier

Groot Kwartier

Neighbourhood in Willemstad, Curaçao, Kingdom of the Netherlands

Groot Kwartier is a neighbourhood of Willemstad, Curaçao. It is better known as Emmastad, a villa ward built by Royal Dutch Shell for its employees. Emmastad is officially part of Groot Kwartier.[3]

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History

Groot Kwartier started as a plantation in 1694. The plantation produced bananas, divi-divi and livestock, but was mainly known for its large fresh water supply.[4] In 1915, the nearby plantation Asiento was bought by Royal Dutch Shell. Initially the grounds were used as a harbour. In 1923, neighbourhoods were built on Groot Kwartier to house employees hired from other Caribbean islands. In 1929, the area owned by Shell was renamed Emmastad.[5]

Between 1945 and 1955, Emmastad was enlarged with residential neighbourhoods for the Dutch employees of Royal Dutch Shell.[6] The houses constructed during that period, were luxurious free standing villas.[6] Emmastad was a segregated and gated community where blacks and coloureds were only allowed entry with a special pass.[7] In the 1960s, Shell started selling the houses.[8] Emmastad is no longer segregated, and has become a popular neighbourhood for the middle class, however the older parts of Groot Kwartier are poorer.[9]

References

  1. [1]
    Buurtprofiel Groot Kwartier 2011, p. 12.
  2. [2]
    "Census 2011". Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
  3. [3]
    Buurtprofiel Groot Kwartier 2011, p. 8.
  4. [4]
    Buurtprofiel Groot Kwartier 2011, p. 10.
  5. [5]
    "Olie als water". Curaçao Maritime (in Dutch). pp. 1–2.
  6. [6]
    "Ontwikkeling huisvesting op Curaçao door Shell". National Archive of Curaçao (in Dutch). Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  7. [7]
    Anil Ramdas (1992). De papegaai, de stier en de klimmende bougainvillea. Amsterdam: De Bezige Bij. p. 120. ISBN 90 234 3282 7.
  8. [8]
    Buurtprofiel Groot Piscadera (2011). "Buurtprofiel Groot Piscadera" (PDF). Government of Curaçao (in Dutch). p. 13. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  9. [9]
    Buurtprofiel Groot Kwartier 2011, p. 11.

Bibliography

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Groot Kwartier.


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