Hotel-Restaurant De Plantage


Hotel-Restaurant De Plantage
is situated in the
Commewijne District in Suriname

Address for contact:
Oost-westverbinding km 23.5
District Commewijne
Suriname
Phone: +597(0) 356567
Info@deplantagecommewijne.com

Paradijs binnen hand bereik

History

Order: Montpellier, Mariendaal (next to the East-West route), Sans Souci, Mijn Geluk, Ma Retraite.
Plantage Monpellier (geel) op de kaart van Bakhuys en De Quant uit 1930.

The Montauban Plantation (green) was once combined with Montpellier to form a single unit. Montpellier was later incorporated into Mariendaal (green). Along the Orleanekreek a number of smaller plantations were established in the past, mainly coffee plantations and general market gardens. These days there is very little left of these and all plantations are completely overgrown. There will certainly be remains of various dwellings hidden in these woods. As far as we know, there remain no traces of the Montpellier Plantation. But the plantation is enjoying a renaissance and a new future in tourism. A small tourist oasis has been created on an 11 hectare plot of land. It is called ‘The Plantation’ (De Plantage) and has a lot to offer the discerning tourist.

Chronology of the Montpellier Plantation:
1764 – Creation of the plantation
The plantations along the Orelanekreek were allotted from 1744 onwards. It was a government scheme to which fortunates could subscribe. The land division comprised small, narrow allotments of 100 akkers each (1 akker = 4290 m2 approximately), 10 kettings wide (1 ketting = 20.72 m). This was too small for normal plantation production, but that was also not the intention. The plots were intended for normal food production, since there was a permanent shortage of normal, day-to-day food in the colony. The allotments were also intended to give the ‘little man’ a chance in this field. Little capital was necessary to establish such an allotment. This approach quickly failed, however. Within a few years most of the allotments had been fused into medium-sized plantations aimed at industrial-scale production. Jan Albus was allotted in 1764 a piece of ground of 200 akkers “situated on the Orelijns Creek on the right-hand side going upriver on the upper boundary of the land allotted to Johannes Diederiksen”. This is half of what would later be the Montpellier plantation. 200 akkers were added later to make a total of 400 akkers. One Elie Arabet was then named as co-owner along with Jan Albus. But Montpellier, lying largely on one of the great sandbanks that run laterally through Suriname, in all likelihood failed to become a successful plantation. Jan Albus arrived in Suriname in 1751 on the ship ‘Vreedenrijk’ under skipper Jan Laurids. By 1766 he was plantation administrator under Governor Crommelin, and treasurer for the church properties and possessions. But something somewhere went wrong. In an inventory of the Montpellier and Montauban plantations dated 1767 it is mentioned that he is “innocent”, meaning mentally ill. He died in 1768. “… 1768 October 8 Debit property Jean Albus – a donation for his own burial in the new Oranje garden by the Reformed Deaconry ƒ50,- …” (Registers of the Reformed Church) His affairs were settled after his death by his companion Elie Arabet.
1767 – Elie Arabet
Elie Arabet arrived in Suriname in 1751 on board the ship ‘Agatha’ under skipper Jurriaan Schouten. We find him in 1758 as director of the La Campagne plantation on the Orleanekreek. Six years later, in 1764, he laid out the Montauban plantation on the same creek. He entered into a collaboration with his neighbour across the creek, Jan Albus, owner of the Montpellier plantation. From 1767 onwards the plantations formed one single business. With 43 slaves, they were, however, of little worth. In 1767 they were valued at ƒ 48,292. In 1771 Arabet was murdered on his plantation by the Boni group. By this time there was a considerable group of escaped slaves living in the rain forest. Boni was their leader in regular raids on plantations. Sometimes the reasons were clear – often revenge against a cruel slavemaster. In the case of Arabet the reason is not clear. Maybe he was such a monster. But it seems that his own slaves did not co-operate in the raid and the ensuing murder, which was relatively unusual. Probably Boni had decided that, in view of the small scale of the allotment, reinforcements would not be needed. Arabet’s slaves seem to have put up some resistance, but Boni achieved his goal anyway. Arabet does not appear in the church registers (Reformed Congregation). There are two reasons for this being not so surprising: the registers are often incomplete, but more likely that Arabet never married and his children were never baptized. Plantation bosses generally lived in concubine with one of the plantation slaves. This was actually encouraged, ensuring that the boss would be better informed of what was happening among the slaves. What is rather strange, however, is his absence from the register of deaths. Possibly he was a Catholic.
After 1771 – Auction; Johannes Diederichsen
At the time of the raid, Montpellier and Montauban were subject to a mortgage arranged by Harman van de Poll & compangnie. After the raid the plantations could no longer support the repayment with interest on the mortgage, and eventually they were auctioned for a small sum. Montpellier passed to the family Diederichsen, owners of the neighbouring Mariendaal plantation, and Montauban was purchased by Aubin Nepveu, the owner of the Vrouwenvlijt plantation further downriver on the same creek. It was intended as agricultural land to support Vrouwenvlijt, but seems to have been unsuccessful, due to the sandbank problem. Johannes Diederichsen was owner of the Mariendaal and Montpellier plantations. He was married to Maria Haas. In 1778 he died on his Mariendaal plantation. In 1780 Montpellier was a small plantation with only eight slaves. Diederichsen’s estate was the owner. Maria Haas died on the plantation in 1780. The plantations were inherited by Ernst Coenraad Runge. He was “deliberating”, meaning that the plantations were the subject of debt and the inheritor was busy investigating whether it was worthwhile accepting the inheritance.

1793 – J.F. Friderici
The Montpellier plantation was producing coffee and cotton. Frederici managed the property himself. The neighbouring Mariendaal also belonged to him, and the plantations were perhaps united as one business.
1841 – Deserted
The plantation is not mentioned in the Almanac of 1821. The Mariendaal plantation was mentioned as deserted.
1843 – Military post
In 1843 a military post was established on the deserted Montpellier plantation. The surrounding plantations, including Mariendaal, had been bought by the owners of the Dijkveld plantation on the Surinam River. But no managers are named in the almanac, which means that the estates had been abandoned.
1863

1863 onwards – must still be researched

The sources of the information recorded here are records in Dutch. They are listed on the Dutch side of this website, under Geschiedenis (= History). Translated and abridged by Gerald Mettam, Almere, The Netherlands