Towards the Preservation of the Hunt's Bay Cemetery

For Jews, it is a religious duty to respect the dead, to conduct burials with dignity and to maintain Jewish burial sites. It is not a matter of choice. Cemeteries are places where families go to remember their loved ones and Zachor, ‘remember’ is a commandment. By remembering, we show love and respect to our ancestors. By visiting them and reciting the prayer for the dead, the Kadish, we bring succour to our souls. But more than that, the maintenance of cemeteries becomes an obligation for the preservation of our heritage and history, for the lives that were lived in the land of our birth. It is a record that should be preserved.

On March 15, 1938, when people of ‘every denomination’ gathered at Hunt's Bay for a special Re-consecration Service, conducted by Rabbi Henry  Silverman, the Governor Sir Edward Denham gave an address. He said that it was a sacred place and he hoped that the trees that had been planted would grow, so that in the cool of the evening, people could perhaps go there and in silence contemplate the memories of those who have gone before. Sadly this was not to be.

For a period of almost 350 years, the 350 graves in the Hunt’s Bay Jewish cemetery have lain relatively undisturbed: far off the beaten track, bypassed by civilization and development and mostly forgotten by the majority of Jews on the island. Up to February 1937, this place was neglected and in ruins, known only to a few. In 1926, Mr L. J. Bertram, formerly the auditor-general of Jamaica, visited the site and described it as, “. . . practically hidden in well nigh impenetrable tropical bush and was in a most deplorable condition.”

Lost Stones

It is possible and even likely that this cemetery was almost unknown to the Jewish population of Jamaica during some periods. Once its Jewish residents left Port Royal in the early nineteenth century, Hunt’s Bay would have become isolated from Kingston and Spanish Town. It is probable that it was not until the third decade of the twentieth century that it was rediscovered.

Jacob Andrade’s book A Record of the Jews of Jamaica was published in 1941; it took 17 years to compile, so it is not known exactly when he recorded the 48 tombstones in the cemetery. Of the number recorded some have no names and/or dates and therefore cannot be tracked.

In 1937 Rabbi Silverman listed 48 names found in the cemetery. These were not the same names as listed by Jacob Andrade. Several of the names in Jacob Andrade and Rabbi Silverman lists were not found by Philip Wright in 1960.

Of the tombstones recorded by Rabbi Silverman circa 1937 the following were not found by Philip Wright: Daniel Lopes Torres (died 1780) and Abraham Levy (died 1680). Those recorded by Jacob Andrade at some time prior to the publication of his book that were not found by Barnett and Wright were: Esther, wife of Abraham Dias; (died 1707); […….] wife of Elysha Henriques; two members of the daSilva family, evidently parents of Mordechy daSilva; two brothers, Daniel (died 1699) and Aaron Pacheco (who predeceased Daniel); Hester Henriques Alvin, whose brothers Isaac and Abraham are Numbers 15 and 16; Abraham Melhado, merchant of Port Royal (died 1796); Abraham Silvo Ferro (1816); and Abraham Mendes (1728).

The loss of 11 tombstones during approximately 20 years is cause for concern regarding the security of this cemetery. Of the original 350 graves in the cemetery in 1960, as determined by Philip Wright, only 163 had surviving tombstones with inscriptions and several of these are incomplete and or unreadable. The question to be asked is, had Silverman listed all the stones in 1937, how many would now be missing? Further; it must be determined how many of those listed in Barnett and Wright still have readable inscriptions. It is now important that a full and accurate survey of the remaining stones be undertaken. Marble slabs have been removed and memorials on them lost to posterity. We must not lose any more of these memorials. Everything possible must be done to protect them.

The 163 tombstones found are a record of those Jews who lived in Port Royal. Historians such as Michael Pawson and David Buisseret have noted that Jews were not a significant proportion of the population of Port Royal and that may indeed be the case; however the findings that have come to light in this cemetery indicate that the Jewish community in Port Royal was not insignificant and was active and prosperous.