How Chattel Houses Shaped a Nation
Discover Barbados' Chattel House History. The goods house is among the most recognisable symbols of Barbados-- a small wood home with bright Caribbean colours, high gable roofs, and verandahs that invite the breeze. However beyond their beauty, goods houses bring a powerful and distinctively Barbadian story. These homes emerged after emancipation, when previously enslaved individuals were totally free but still had little access to land. Plantation owners managed the majority of the island, so employees frequently lived on land they did not own. Their homes needed to be theirs-- but also needed to move with them if the landowner changed, the work shifted, or the family sought a brand-new start. The solution was innovative: construct a home that could walk. Set on coral stone obstructs instead of a repaired structure, the effects home could be raised, moved, and rolled to a brand-new area. Neighbours would collect to help, turning every relocation into a minute of community and cele...