Tuesday, this week, February 3, was one of the busiest days at Heritage Collection Museum at East End, Anguilla, in recent times.
With the island becoming, a growing destination for small to medium-size cruise ships, many British tourists disembarked from the Saga Pearl ll on that morning to spend the day. The vessel started its journey from Southampton, England, and made its way across to a number of ports in the sunny Caribbean islands including Road Bay, Anguilla.
Saga Pearl ll has a length of 164.30 meters, a capacity for a maximum of 602 passengers and 220 crew members. The cruise ship (formerly Astoria and Quest for Adventure) has been operating for more than 28 years, making cruises world-wide.
The visit of the cruise ship was handled by Ms Sandra Rogers, and the island tour was done by Tour Operator, Ms Ann Gumbs of Malliouhana Travel & Tours in The Quarter. The tourists travelled through the island by special bus charters, and a number of them spent some hours on Sandy Island where they had lunch.
Large numbers of the visitors overwhelmed Heritage Collection Museum at East End whose Curator is Mr Colville L. Petty, OBE. There, through a mass of carefully-preserved artifacts – images and documents – they were able to obtain a first-hand comprehensive understanding of the rich social, cultural and political history of Anguilla.
Absorbed in their exploration of the exhibits in the several rooms of the museum, the visitors were in no hurry to leave. In fact, some of them remarked that they felt like staying all day, while lauding the museum for its wide scope of compelling artifacts covering various periods of Anguilla’s history.
Two couples with some knowledge of the island were among the visitors. The first were Mr James (Jim) Campbell, a former Deputy British Commissioner and his wife, Mrs Betty Campbell, who were in Anguilla from 1973 to 1975. During that period, Mr Campbell assisted in running the Anguilla Public Service, among other administrative responsibilities, in accordance with the role of the British Government in the affairs of the island at that time. Mrs Campbell was instrumental in founding the Friends of the Hospital which not only exists to this day, but which continues to make an impact at the institution to which it contributes through various fund-raising activities.
The other couple were Mr and Mrs Frank Moore. Mr Moore first arrived in Anguilla on an Andover Aircraft, as a member of the second batch of British police officers in March 1969. He served as a Beach Master, stationed at the Crocus Bay outpost. On viewing the exhibits at Heritage Collection Museum, he came across a well-preserved 46-year-old photograph in which he identified himself, among other British Police Officers swimming in the island’s inshore waters, wearing only their helmets. He recalled that at the time of his service, the British Royal Engineers were also in Anguilla, building schools and roads. Mr Moore and his wife returned to the island twenty years ago. According to him, their visit this week gave them an opportunity to see the significant leaps and bounds Anguilla has made over the years.
