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Information about Jacmel

Jacmel
Enlarge picture
Skyline of Jacmel
Country Haiti
Department Sud-Est
Founded 1698
Government
 - Mayor Edo Zenny
Population (2003)
 - Metro 40,000
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
Enlarge picture
Location of Jacmel


Jacmel (Jakmèl in Kréyòl) also known by its indigenous name of Yaquimel is a city in southern Haiti founded in 1698, it is the capital of the department of Sud-Est. Considered a cultural capital of Haiti, Jacmel is a quiet city but very charming nonetheless situated on Horseshoe Bay. Its population is estimated at 40,000. The city has not changed much since the late 19th century when this charming port city was home of wealthy coffee merchants living in gracious mansions which later influenced the home structure of New Orleans; the architecture of the city boasted cast iron pillars and balconies purchased in France. Today, many of these homes are now artisan shops that sell vibrant handicrafts, papier-mâché masks and carved-wood animal figures. In recent years, efforts have been made to revitalize the once flourishing cigar and coffee industries. The city is a popular tourist destination in Haiti due to its relative tranquility and distance from the recent political turmoil in the capital.

History of Jacmel

The city was created in 1698 as the capital of the south eastern part of the French colony Saint-Domingue. The area now called Jacmel was Taíno territory of the Xaragua chiefdom ruled by cacique Bohechio. With the arrival of the French, and the later establishment of the town, the French renamed Yaquimel as Jacmel.

The War of Knives

Toussaint Louverture fought over Jacmel in the so-called War of Knives between him and André Rigaud. This war began in June of 1799. By November the rebels were pushed back to this strategic southern port, the defence of which was commanded by Pétion. Jacmel fell to Toussaint's troops in March of 1800 and the rebellion was effectively over. Pétion and other mulatto leaders went into exile in France.

Francisco de Miranda creates the Venezuelan flag

A predecessor of Simón Bolívar in the liberation struggle from colonialism in Spanish ruled South America, Francisco de Miranda, created the first Venezuelan flag near Jacmel. Anchored in the Bay of Jacmel (Baie de Jacmel), he first raised the flag on March 12, 1806 on the Corvette Leander. This day is still celebrated as Venezuelan Flag Day.

Ramón Emeterio Betances seeks an Antillean union

Puerto Rican pro-independence leader Ramón Emeterio Betances spent a short interval in Jacmel in 1870, from where he channeled support for an uprising in the Dominican Republic, seeking to install a liberal government there. Then-president of Haiti Nissage Saget supported Betances' ideals of a pan-Antillean union, and gave the uprising his support.

Jacmel today

Enlarge picture
Taximotos (taxi motorcycles) on a busy Jacmel street.
The port town is internationally known for its vibrant art scene and elegant townhouses dating to the 1800s. In recent years Jacmel has been host to a large film festival, the 'Festival Film Jakmèl' started in 2004 and in 2007 the international music festival 'Festival Mizik Jakmèl' was successfully launched. Its carnival, the nearby Bassins Bleu (blue water pools), and the beaches attract many visitors. They have a beached ship right outside the quaint Jacmelian Hotel. This Hotel is 15 feet from Horseshoe Bay and hosts many locals playing soccer, running, playing music, and is a great place to see local activity. Jacmel is regarded as one of the safest cities in the country and so many incoming foreigners that enter the country in hope of a tranquil time, often head for Jacmel. Jacmel's urbanization has been increasing in large part due to economic finance generated through tourism.

February 2007, newly elected mayor was installed into office: Edo Zenny

Notable residents

Media

Radio

  • Radio Ambiance FM
  • Ambiance TV
  • Radio Anacaona
  • Radio TeleDiffusion Jacmelienne
  • Radio Tele-Express Continental
  • Radio Vibration Inter
  • Radio Jacmel Inter
  • Radio Détente
  • Radio Négritude

Gallery


Mardi Gras Papier-mâché masks.

Vodou ceremony in Jacmel.

A beautiful beach at Jacmel.

Jacmel as seen from the pier in the bay.

External Links

Coordinates:
In political geography and international politics, a country is a political division of a geographical entity, a sovereign territory, most commonly associated with the notions of state or nation and government.
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Motto
"L'Union Fait La Force"   (French)
"Unity makes Strength"
Anthem
La Dessalinienne
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A department (French: département, Spanish: departamento) is a geographically defined area of a centralized state which functions as an administrative unit, usually at provincial level, with
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Sud-Est (English: South-East) is one of the ten departments (French: départements) of Haiti. It has an area of 2,023 km² and a population of 518,200 (2002). Its capital is Jacmel.
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A mayor (from the Latin māior, meaning "larger", "greater") is the modern title of the highest ranking municipal officer.

In many systems, the mayor is an elected politician who serves as chief executive and/or ceremonial official of many types of
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metropolitan area is a large population centre consisting of a large metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence, or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central cities and their zone of influence.
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time zone is a region of the Earth that has adopted the same standard time, usually referred to as the local time. Most adjacent time zones are exactly one hour apart, and by convention compute their local time as an offset from UTC (see also Greenwich Mean Time).
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Eastern Time Zone (ET) of the Western Hemisphere falls mostly along the east coast of Northern America and the west coast of South America. Its time offset is UTC-5 during standard time and UTC-4 during daylight saving time.
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UTC−5 is the time offset used in the North American Central Time Zone during Daylight Saving Time.

For North America see also Eastern Standard Time and Central Daylight Time.
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Daylight saving time (DST; also summer time in British English) is the convention of advancing clocks so that afternoons have more daylight and mornings have less.
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Eastern Time Zone (ET) of the Western Hemisphere falls mostly along the east coast of Northern America and the west coast of South America. Its time offset is UTC-5 during standard time and UTC-4 during daylight saving time.
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UTC−4 is the time offset used in the Atlantic Standard Time Zone in Canada in winter and the North American Eastern Time Zone during daylight saving time (DST), as well as other countries.
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Haitian Creole language (kreyòl ayisyen), often called simply Creole, is a language spoken in Haiti by about 8.5 million people (as of 2005), which is nearly the entire population, and via emigration, about 3.
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Motto
"L'Union Fait La Force"   (French)
"Unity makes Strength"
Anthem
La Dessalinienne
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8th century - 9th century - 10th century
850s  860s  870s  - 880s -  890s  900s  910s
885 886 887 - 888 - 889 890 891

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Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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The Republic of Haiti is divided administratively into ten departments (département in French). The departments are further divided into 41 arrondissements, and 133 communes.
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Sud-Est (English: South-East) is one of the ten departments (French: départements) of Haiti. It has an area of 2,023 km² and a population of 518,200 (2002). Its capital is Jacmel.
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For the periodical, see .
The 19th Century (also written XIX century) lasted from 1801 through 1900 in the Gregorian calendar. It is often referred to as the "1800s.
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Motto
Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity"
Anthem
"La Marseillaise"


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cigar is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco, one end of which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the smoker's mouth through the other end. Most cigar smokers do not inhale the smoke.
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Coffee is a widely consumed beverage prepared from roasted seeds, commonly called beans, of the coffee plant. Coffee was first consumed in the 9th century, when it was discovered in the highlands of Ethiopia.
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History of Haiti

Before 1492

1492-1791

1791-1804

1804-1843

1843-1915

1915-1986

1986-present

Saint-Domingue
Haitian Revolution
United States occupation of Haiti
2004 Haiti coup d'tat

Timeline
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Taínos were pre-Columbian indigenous inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and some of the Lesser Antilles. It is believed that the seafaring Taínos were relatives of the Arawakan people of South America.
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François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture pronunciation   (help info ) , also Toussaint Bréda, Toussaint-Louverture
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War of Knives (French: Guerre des couteaux) eludes to the conflict between the great Haitian revolutionary Toussaint L'Ouverture who is dark skin and his adversary André Rigaud who is a mulatto in June 1799.
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André Rigaud (1761-1811) was the leading mulatto military leader during the Haïtian Revolution. Among his protégés were Alexandre Pétion and Jean-Pierre Boyer, both future presidents of Haïti.
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8th century - 9th century - 10th century
850s  860s  870s  - 880s -  890s  900s  910s
885 886 887 - 888 - 889 890 891

:
Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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Jérôme Pétion de Villeneuve (1756 - 1794) was a French writer and politician.

Jérôme Pétion de Villeneuve was the son of a procureur at Chartres. He became an advocate in 1778, and at once began to try to make a name in literature.
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8th century - 9th century - 10th century
850s  860s  870s  - 880s -  890s  900s  910s
885 886 887 - 888 - 889 890 891

:
Subjects:     Archaeology - Architecture -
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