Main Guard Clock Tower at The Garrison Savannah, Bridgetown , St Michael, Barbados
Thanks to John Clarke our First Member.
This shot taken at 10:30am on the 4th December 2010
Built in 1804 and located at what is approximately the center of the Garrison Historic Area, the Main Guard has a lovely clock tower and looks out over the original parade ground (Savannah). The clock was made by Dwerrihouse and Carter of London in 1803 and the coat of arms was added sometime between 1816 and 1837. The coat of arms is made of coade stone. Named after Mary Coade, who perfected its formula, this vitrified ceramic is more durable than stone and was poplar in Georgian times. The small guardhouse behind (to the north) was used to house prisoners during the courts martial carried out at the Main Guard. The building passed into private hands in 1906, to become the exclusive ‘Savannah Club’, during which time the gallery was added. It was purchased by the government in 1989 who undertook its renovation in 2000, where the original mechanism for the clock was replaced by a modern system and has provided quarter-hour chimes for the Garrison area ever since.
