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The Rum Story(See also Whitehaven , Haig Colliery Mining Museum and The Beacon)
The office of the original business is just as it was left when the business was closed. The story of rum begins in a Caribbean rainforest and includes elements of the slave trade, American prohibition, the history and processing of rum, and the use of rum by the British navy. Stone barrel vaultspart of the warehousesare on view along with historic documents charting one of the rum trade ships and other interesting artefacts. The vaults housed the barrels and bottles of rum that were awaiting duty payments. The original machinery is still on view. A large rum barrel, still in the building, held £250,000 worth of rum.
The first sugar plantation in Antigua was established by Sir Christopher Codrington in 1674. Afterwards the whole island was turned into plantations160 in all. There was a shortage of fresh water on the island, and in 1731 a bucketful sold for three shillings. (10 shillings was all that was needed for expenses for a week to live life as a planter). The slaves lived at the plantations and created their own African villages. Rations were poor so they grew supplementary produce for their own tables. Some slaves traded fruit, vegetables, goats, and chickens at local Sunday markets, trading them for rum and tobacco. They were required to work 12 hours a day planting the cane. The planting season went from August to October. It took 14-16 months for the cane to grow. It was then harvested.
It was necessary to clarify the raw cane juice by boiling and cleansing it in huge vats. The liquid was then put into smaller and hotter vats and then into trays for cooling. The sugar would turn into brown crystals on top of molasses. Finally all was put into perforated barrels. These barrels allowed the molasses to drain off, leaving the sugar behind. The molasses was fermented and distilled into rum.
Rum was given to British sailors as part of their daily ration. It was said it was used to pickle Lord Nelsons body for the long journey home from the battle of Trafalgar. Lord Byron said of rum: "There's nought no doubt so much the spirit calms as rum and true religion".
Photos courtesy of Barbara Ballard © 1997-2008 by The Cumbria Directory. Reproduction of this work in whole or in part, including images, and reproduction in electronic media, without documented permission from The Cumbria Directory is prohibited. |
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The Rum Story is a fascinating
museum that tells the story of one of Whitehavens imports. Its housed in the original shop,
courtyards, cellars, and warehouses run by the Jefferson family. The coast of Cumbria was perfect
for rum smugglers. The museum tells about this part of the rum story.
As European demand for
sugar grew, Britain as a trading nation became involved. The country established plantations in
Barbados in the 1620s. Slave labour was used to cultivate the land, and the expanded cane crop
from this labour allowed the production of rum. By the 1770s the West Indian islands supplied ¼
of all Britains imports. On view in the museum is a mock-up of a slave ship.
A film shows the steps
in traditional rum making. Raw cane arrived in carts at the mill where it was crushed between
heavy rollers. The refuse from this stage of rum making was called bagasse, and it was burned to
produce the heat needed in the manufacturing process.
Other interesting rum information includes the fact that it was given
to sick babies in colonial America and also used to keep well babies quiet. Adults used it as a
painkiller. Rum was substituted for morning and afternoon tea breaks. Consumption ran so high
that the colonial government in America decided to ban rum as an import into Georgia between 1735
and 1743. In Massachusetts public drunks had to wear shirts with a big D on them standing for
drunkard.
The Rum Story