Perhaps one of the most intriguing experiences on the tour route in Anguilla of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, was his visit to Heritage Collection Museum at East End, whose Curator is Colville L. Petty, OBE. The museum provides a peek in the island’s history that everyone visiting Anguilla must take and benefit from immensely.
The Earl, accompanied by Governor Alistair Harrison, Jerome Roberts, Elected Representative, and members of his entourage, paused to greet a group of school children and visitors outside the premises before making his way to the museum where he was welcomed by Mr. Petty.
The guided tour enabled the Earl to view artifacts tracing the island’s history from the days of the early inhabitants up through the 20th century. Room by room, the tour provided glimpses of the rich social and cultural past of Anguilla and its people expressed through valuable documents, photographs and a full range of historical items.
Of particular interest were artifacts of the modern history of the island featuring various aspects of the Anguilla Revolution, a turning point in the island’s history. The Earl was pleased to see photographs and other information relating to earlier visits to Anguilla by members of the Royal Family, carefully preserved and documented by the Curator.
The Earl showed an absorbing interest in the fine display and storehouse of artifacts and was obviously highly impressed by what is considered to be a great museum in Anguilla for local people as well as visitors.