The philatelic and numismatic history of the Red House
Mr Albert W.B. Sydney, in Port-of-Spain.
A former philatelic advisor to the government of Trinidad and Tobago provides an engaging insight into the history of commemorative tributes to the home of the country’s Parliament, the Red House.
Mr Sydney is Vice-President of the Philatelic Society of Trinidad and Tobago. He was the former philatelic advisor to the government of Trinidad and Tobago and has been a practicing numismatic consultant for over 15 years.
“The Red House was the principal build- ing of the administration. It was one of the biggest buildings in the island and we all thought it was beautiful....It was one of the buildings that made Port-of-Spain Port-of-Spain.You saw it from the har- bour, from the hills and from across the Savannah.” From A Way in the World by Trinidadian-born author and Nobel laureate Sir V.S. Naipaul.
The Red House – whose architec- tural design is of Greek revival – is the seat of Parliament in Trinidad and Tobago. As part of the celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1897, the buildings were given a coat of red paint, which the public promptly referred to thereafter as
the Red House.The Wedgwood ceiling is the most striking feature in the chamber.
Historic timeline The original Red House building was completely burnt on 23 March 1903 during the water riots. On the same day, while the new ordinance regarding the distribution of and payment for water in the town was being debated in the Legislative Council, a protest meeting was held in Brunswick Square to express dis- satisfaction over certain clauses con-
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tained in the ordinance which would result in increased water rates.At the end of the meeting, the angry crowds threw stones resulting in all the windows being smashed, including a stained glass window in the chamber which was erected to commemorate the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1498.The governor, Sir Alfred Maloney, refused to withdraw the ordinance. When it became known that the lower storey of the building was on fire, the riot act was read, after which the police opened fire on the crowd. Sixteen people were killed and 42 injured, leaving the Red House completely gutted. Only the shell of the Red House remained. The work of rebuilding the
building began in 1904, whereby the present structure was erected on the same site. It was opened to the public on 4 February 1907 by the governor Sir Henry Jackson.The stained-glass window of the landing of Columbus was featured on a sin- gle postage stamp in 1898 for the 400th anniversary of the discovery of Trinidad.