Some More Interesting Facts About Tobago:
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The name Tobago comes from the word tobacco which the earliest natives, the Caribs used to grow.
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The original known inhabitants of the island were the Amerindian tribe called Caribs. They were known to be aggressive and fought off many an enemy and even were known to invade other lands. However they were no match for the arrival of the Spanish and their might.
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The lovely island of Tobago is by no means a recent prime destination. Over hundreds of years this island has been prime real estate for many of the world’s old colonial masters. Amazingly, history shows that Tobago has changed ownership or rule over thirty times (some say thirty one others say thirty three).
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Tobago was first sighted by Columbus in 1498. He first called it Bella Forma.
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Around the year 1672, when fighting for Tobago was at a lull, plantations were formed. Crops such as Sugar, Cotton, and Indigo were grown in abundance. Africans were enslaved and brought in droves to Tobago.
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With the large level of production and low cost of labor, business flourished and so did the economy and by the year 1777, Tobago was recording high exports. This was short-lived as the French invaded in 1781 and destroyed many plantations.
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The islands of Trinidad and Tobago first became administratively linked in 1889 under the British. In 1890 the islands were politically linked.
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Independence from Britain came in 1962 and Tobago along with its sister isle of Trinidad became a republic in 1976.
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The center of the island is characterized by one of the loveliest natural rainforests in the Caribbean. It is claimed that this is the oldest protected reserve in the Northern hemisphere, reiterating the island’s administrators high regard for the eco-system and nature.
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Tobago gained more direct administration of its internal affairs with the formation of the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) in 1980. A THA secretary heads this entity and liaises with his/her Trinidad colleagues on matters of the island.
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