Maroon Town: Established by Jamaican Maroons Who Arrived in Freetown in 1800

by | Jan 25, 2022 | Historic Settlers

The Arrival of the Maroons in 1800

The Maroons from Jamaica arrived in Freetown in the year 1800, less than 10 years since the American Settlers had arrived from Nova Scotia. About 600 Maroons, including women and children settled around parts of central Freetown with their households. They later named their settlement “Maroon Town”.

The Maroons who settled in Freetown, originated from Cudjoe’s Town (now Trelawny Town) in Jamaica. They had been engaged in several Maroon wars against the British in Jamaica since the mid-1700s. They had been sent to Nova Scotia in the late 1700s as a means of expelling them from their homeland in Jamaica and lessening the tensions they created for the British there. In 1800 they sailed for Freetown and arrived there just as the American Settlers were revolting against the British there. Ironically, they would help the British in stopping the revolution.