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This is a restored great house dating from 1780, when only 400 people lived on Grand Cayman. It outlasted all the island's major hurricanes but was destroyed by fire in 1970. It has been rebuilt and is now the centerpiece of a heritage park with a visitor center and an audiovisual theater. Because of its size, the great house was called "the Castle" by generations of Caymanians. Its primary historic importance dates from December 5, 1831, when residents met here to elect Cayman's first legislative assembly, making the house the cradle of the island's democracy. The great house sits atop a limestone bluff with a panoramic view of the sea. Guests enter via a US$1.5-million visitor center with a multimedia theater (shows are presented on the hour 10am to 4pm), a landscaped courtyard, a gift shop, and a cafe. Self-guided tours are possible. Check out the house's wide verandas, rough-hewn timber beams, gabled framework, mahogany floors and staircases, and wide-beam wooden ceilings. Guides (in 18th-century costumes, no less) are on hand to answer questions.
Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Portable Cayman Islands, 3rd Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.
, Cayman Islands
Pedro St. James National Historic Site
This is a restored great house dating from 1780, when only 400 people lived on Grand Cayman. It outlasted all the island's major hurricanes but was destroyed by fire in 1970. It has been rebuilt and is now the centerpiece of a heritage park with a visitor center and an audiovisual theater. Because of its size, the great house was called "the Castle" by generations of Caymanians. Its primary historic importance dates from December 5, 1831, when residents met here to elect Cayman's first legislative assembly, making the house the cradle of the island's democracy. The great house sits atop a limestone bluff with a panoramic view of the sea. Guests enter via a US$1.5-million visitor center with a multimedia theater (shows are presented on the hour 10am to 4pm), a landscaped courtyard, a gift shop, and a cafe. Self-guided tours are possible. Check out the house's wide verandas, rough-hewn timber beams, gabled framework, mahogany floors and staircases, and wide-beam wooden ceilings. Guides (in 18th-century costumes, no less) are on hand to answer questions.
Copyright: Excerpted from Frommer's Portable Cayman Islands, 3rd Edition, (c) 2008, Wiley Publishing, Inc.
, Cayman Islands
