Senegal and The Gambia. NEVER AGAIN! Slave Forts of Africa’s Guinea Coast
Between 1501 and 1866, more than 750,000 African men and women were captured or kidnapped from West Africa’s Senegambia Region (modern-day Senegal and The Gambia) and subsequently loaded on ships bound for the Americas. In lieu of raiding villages, European slavers purchased captives from warring tribes or Africans acting as middlemen. Before being shipped across the Atlantic, prisoners were often held in fortified structures. Located about 3.5 kilometers southeast of Dakar in present-day Senegal, Gorée Island was one of the largest slave holding centers in West Africa during the 15th through 19th centuries. At its height, more than a dozen slave warehouses on the island held men, women, and children in crowded, windowless cells.
About 160 kilometers south of Gorée, British slavers purchased captives near the banks of the Gambia River. Located within the river’s channel and about 30 kilometers from the Atlantic coast, James (aka Kunta Kinteh) Island served as a fortified transfer station similar to Gorée. In 1807, Great Britain abolished slavery. In an effort to enforce the ban, the Royal Navy’s West African Squadron began intercepting slave ships operated by the Portuguese and other nations. Today, Gorée and James Islands draw thousands of international tourists including some who came to learn about West African ancestors.
Our ferry ride from Dakar, Senegal to Gorée Island took 25 minutes. Surrounded by a rock jetty on the island’s north end is Fort d'Estrées, now a museum. As the ferry entered the harbor we could see a small beach just in front of colonial-era buildings painted in pastel colors. The island has no automobiles, so our exploration was on foot. Following narrow streets for a few blocks, we reached Maison Des Esclaves (House of Slaves) and ascended its curving staircase to the main floor, that has been adapted to serve as a slavery museum. On the building’s back side and facing the ocean is the “door of no return” where captives were taken before being loaded on large ships for the “Middle Passage” across the Atlantic. We continued our walking tour towards the island’s south end and a plateau with rusting naval guns used by Vichy French forces against British ships during the September 1940 Battle of Dakar. The battle took place after an unsuccessful attempt to persuade Vichy French forces in Dakar to join the Allies.
It was a six-hour car ride from Dakar to the north side of the Gambia River. Turning east, we reached Albreda where we arranged for a boat ride to James Island, visible 3.2 kilometers away near the middle of the river channel. The trip to the island took about 15 minutes. At the half-way point we could see masonry walls below massive baobab trees. Disembarking at the small pier, we walked around the ruins of Ft. James, built to protect the island from an attack coming from the river. Severe erosion has taken a significant toll. Today, the island’s land area is only 20% of what it was in the 17th century. Returning to Albreda, we walked through the nearby village of Juffure, described in Alex Haley’s Pulitzer Prize winning book, Roots, as birthplace of his ancestor, Kunta Kinteh. As described by Haley, Kunta Kinteh was captured near the village in 1767 before being transported across the Atlantic Ocean to Maryland. Before leaving Juffure we stopped at the statute of a figure with shackles hanging from raised arms above the words “NEVER AGAIN!”
Returning to Barra late in the afternoon, we joined a large group of people waiting to board the car/passenger ferry across the Gambia River to Banjul. Cars and trucks were allowed on the ferry first followed by foot traffic. Although appearing packed beyond capacity, we watched the crew usher more people onto the severely overcrowded ferry. Carrying our luggage to a place on the upper deck, my travel companion and I were soon being pushed and squeezed from all sides. I tried not to think about the ferry sinking or capsizing during our one-hour ride.
Formally known as Bathurst, Banjul (population 400,000) is located on St. Mary’s Island, connected to the mainland by Denton Bridge. Gambia’s capital city was founded in 1816 as a military garrison in support of anti-slavery naval operations. On the city’s northeast side is Six-gun Battery, built to discourage slave ships from entering or exiting the Gambia River. When it was discovered that the battery’s cannon had insufficient range to strike ships hugging the river’s north side, the British built Fort Bullen on the opposite shore adjacent to Barra. Completed in 1826, Ft. Bullen had an open courtyard and four circular bastions that housed several large cannons. Following our return ferry ride we walked around the sea-facing side of Ft. Bullen before departing for Dakar. A rusting cannon lay in the sand below one of the fort’s sea facing walls.
If you are interested in learning more about slave forts in Senegal and The Gambia, please see my co-authored article: Landscapes of the Slave Trade in Senegal and The Gambia (© 2014 American Geographical Society).