Local history Thread

[MG Man]

since 3rd-Gear_pull did not know Wallerfield was a WW2 American Air base, it got me thinking about what little sense of history we have in this country......trinidad's unique and colourfil past has given it an amazingly rich and diverse history, most of which is being lost on today's youth, so anyways, this thread will hopefully hope to fix that in a small way, so.............I'll go first:
who knw who Manny Dookie was?

[3rd_Gear_Pull]

oh gawd.........................


*runs away*

[Cjruckus]

Uriah Butler and the strike that spawned from a power outage (t&tec again), changed trini labor laws. Thats the last thing I remembered from Social Studies Class.

Dont know Manny Dookie Though

[Cjruckus]

Important Years found on Google:

1498 - Christopher Columbus claims Trinidad for Spain
1592 - Spanish settle in Trinidad and retain possession for two centuries
1797 - Trinidad is captured by British
1814 - Tobago is ceded to the British
1834 - Slavery is abolished in Trinidad
1845 - Indian indentured immigration begins; program lasts until 1917
1888 - Tobago is joined to Trinidad as a single Crown Colony
1956 - Trinidad and Tobago achieves self-government
1962 - Trinidad and Tobago is granted independence
1976 - Trinidad and Tobago is named a republic
1980 – Tobago House of Assembly is established

[MG Man]

google can work here......

[Val]

Tubal Uriah "Buzz" Butler dread

Man here in the oilfield dem kinda Violent Union Tactics still kinda fresh in them workers memories yes.

[sleepoytuner]

MG Man nice to see you on the thread... Don't know who Mannicoo Dookie was...

I have heard the name but can't recall ... but I like the idea of paying tribute where it's due, imagine years from now people will pay tribute to Guy Smily Khan and Eric Williams.... As two smart men who get away... hehehe

Sleepoy

[MG Man]

look who boi!!!!!!!!!!! I say like yu dead

[MG Man]

[Razkal]

manny dookie wasnt a runner? the barefoot runner guy?

[MG Man]

yeah, but his story is quite fascinating.........he was the first to represnt the country at an international sporting event, and even tho he did not earn a medal, he was welcomed as a hero.......its a truly inspiring story

[Razkal]

^heard the story in standard five really good if i remembered right...
but i got the answer easily cause i have u on msn remember?

[MG Man]

lol yeah, I forgot

[Razkal]

^not gettin the story on google boy MG i cant remember, was it ain a republic reader book? like the standard five one? i kinda wanna read it again now

[Rallyfignis]

Well MG run some more facts fuh we nah, I enjoying this

The only history I really know about is with the US, and that has pretty much been captured in the other thread

[Smokey]

wallerfield was a world war two base?????? yuh lie??

[Rallyfignis]

^^^No, it was a WWII bass

[crazychinee]

Yea it used to have Jet plane and thing flying in...up even until the 90's.
A time all the current in the area just dead, for like less than a minute and then BAM u just see this sheit fly towards that direction..and den the current come back

[MG Man]

I know its a lot, but worth the read.....

Mannie Dookie 1915-1968



MANNIE, THE MARVELOUS MILK BOY



People of the Century

By Michael Anthony

Part 1

Express

April 26, 2000

Pages 48 & 49



One of the unforgettable heroes of Trinidad athletics of our 20th century was the marvelous milk boy, Mannie Dookie.



In these days when Trinidad and Tobago's participation in international athletics is so common that no one wonders when it all began, it is good to repeat the story of Mannie Dookie - the boy who blazed the trail for other men to follow.



The story of Magnificent Mannie goes back to 1930, on the occasion when he left his milk-pail at home and took on renowned runners in a road race.



Mannie Dookie, who was born in St James and lived there, was only 15 at the time.



That race, coincidentally, was 15-1/2 miles around the Saddle Road - and the experienced runners who faced the starter must have been amused to see the frail, insignificant boy beside them.



But they later had the humiliating experience of seeing Mannie Dookie show them the way home. He completed the distance in one hour and 39 minutes, a fine mark at that juncture.



One of the peculiar things about Mannie Dookie, was that however rough the course, he never liked running in shoes. So competing barefoot in that 15-1/2 mile race around the Saddle Road, he became known as the barefoot runner.



But running without shoes was only a little distraction to Mannie Dookie's greatness. The amazing milk boy went to the Queen's Park Oval the next year, 1931, and at those grand Empire Day games, which came to be called "Championships," he lined up for the three-mile event.



To most people Mannie was going too far. While, it was amazing to see the frail youngster coming home in front of big, burly men in a 15-1/2 mile road race, how could he dare to go to the starting line, at "Championships" with Trinidad's renowned three-milers?



How could he survive at all in that company - especially with the champion Francis Dinzey?



On that day, May 24, 1931, the barefoot milk boy did not only survive, but running a sensational race, and spurred on by the thunderous applause of the crowd, he defeated Dinzey and the rest of the field to win in a time of 17 minutes 35 seconds.



In 1932 Dookie again held the attention of the sporting public when he beat all comers in a road race from St James Bridge to Teteron Bay. But it was in 1933 that he accomplished one of the greatest victories of his career.



Now known as a three-miler and a runner of road races, Dookie turned up at the Queen's Park Oval for 'Championships," and went straight to the one-mile starting point.



There, at the line-up, were the one-mile stars, two policemen: Alwyn Forde and Hypolite Sosa. At the sound of the pistol Dookie lunged ahead of the field, and yes, he was never to be caught.



Running the race of his life, he put distance between himself and both Sosa and Forde, winning the race in four minutes, 43 seconds.



And that very day, just to prove that he was still king of the three-mile event, he took part in that too, and crushed, not only Sosa and Forde, but also Francis Dinzey.



Part of his glory was that he could not have beaten them at a better point of time.



What was it that was so important and special about 1933? Well, it was the eve of the British Empire Games at White City in London, and all the athletes were trying to be at their best, hoping against hope that the Trinidad Amateur Athletic Association would send them to compete. Such a thing had never happened before.



Dookie maintained the spotlight in 1933, when, at the West Indies Olympiad held later that year in Georgetown, British Guiana, he again won the three-mile, this time setting a new West Indian record of 15 minutes 8.4 seconds.



He also won the mile, thus achieving a brilliant middle-distance double.



Dookie was now a sensation, not only in Trinidad, but also throughout the West Indies. And so at this time there rose the agonizing cry: "Who will send Mannie Dookie to the British Empire Games? Who will give Trinidad a chance to clash with the best of the British Empire's long distance men?"



While the plaintive cry in favour of Mannie Dookie rose all round, Mannie, between delivering milk, was minding his own business by training hard.



The year 1934 had already dawned, and when "Championships" came that May, the milk boy, now one-mile and three-mile champion, again defeated the cream of the island's three-milers, lowering the Trinidad three-mile record to 15 minutes 19 seconds, not far outside the standard of international games.



So the cry became even more strident: "Who will send Mannie Dookie to the British Empire Games?"



The games were to be held that August, and time was beginning to get short.



The Trinidad athletic authorities could not come up with an answer, maybe because of financial reasons. Could anything be done?

TOP



DOOKIE BLAZES A TRAIL FOR T&T


People of the Century
By Michael Anthony
Express
Section 2

May 3, 2000

Pages 22 & 23



This is Part II of the story “Mannie the marvelous milk boy”,

which appeared last week.



At last the answer came although at the proverbial eleventh hour. The leading Trinidad newspaper of the day published the following notice on July 1, 1934: Inspired by Dookie’s excellent record we are sending him to the British Empire Games.



This was great news for the country and for Mannie Dookie. Since no one had ever been sent to an international sports meeting, people were excited to see how the Trinidad runner would fare.



Mannie Dookie boarded the SS Coronado on Tuesday, July 11 1934, with large crowds on the wharf cheering him. Whether the name of the ship Coronado Spanish for Crowned brightened his spirit, there is no way of knowing, but the departure for London of the 19-year-old hero was one of the most emotional of the time.



Mannie Dookie arrived in England as a sort of curiosity in certain circles because word had already been put out that he ran without shoes. For running without shoes was unknown at international games.



Those, in whose care Dookie was entrusted, apparently asked him not to let them down by changing his mind and running in shoes. And this may have been the key to what eventually transpired.



After the parade of athletes which opened the games, Dookie, the Trinidad flag-bearer and sole representative, told a reporter: I’ll keep the flag flying for Trinidad. But if he had meant that figuratively, he could not have been thinking of the granite hard track he was going to meet later that day.



It was Sunday, August 5 1934, and when Dookie struck out in front in the three-mile race the 40,000-strong White City crowd broke into a roar for the barefooted boy. But before many laps his feet started to leave a trail of blood. The cinder-sharp track so cut him, that he soon trailed the field and then retired to tears.



But even in such agony, when the six-mile event was due to start the next day, courageous Mannie faced the starter. On setting off he got a thunderous ovation from spectators. But of course, he had not recovered, and in any case the cinder track was such a razor to his bare, sore feet that he rallied until the 14th lap, then limped off.



And that was to be the extent of Mannie Dookie’s participation at the British Empire Games of 1934. He was due to run the marathon also, but he was obviously in no fit physical state, and certainly in no mental state even to try.



One is left to wonder whether the milk boy would have brought us our first international sporting medal had he been advised to run in shoes.



Yet, as we look back, the ship that took Mannie Dookie to England had the right name, SS Coronado. For the Magnificent Milk boy has been duly crowned. Even in his failure, when he returned huge crowds were on the waterfront to pay tribute to him, and the Port of Spain City Council gave him a civic reception.



And today we remember him as one of the outstanding people of our 20th century. For he had done it. He had blazed the trail, not only by being the first to represent Trinidad and Tobago at an international sports meeting, but by showing the athletes of his time, what loyalty and courage mean.

[Greypatch]

mannie dookie was trhe bare foot runner...

that was his claim to fame

he was called the bare foot wizard...


as for wallers...

did you all know that trinidad had the 2nd most active airport in the world...

[InDeForest]

I was told:
during the latter part WW2, most cargo/supply/bomber planes between north america and europe could not make the transatlantic flight with the fuel and heavy loads etc, so a route of a series of shorter flights was arranged, from north america planes would land at wallerfield, swap cargo refuel and return, or refuel and fly east to africa (dunno where), then do the same and head north toward europe.
Since the german Uboats were doing such a great job sinking allied shipping across the atlantic, as much as possible sea cargo was changed to air cargo. The number of planes and volume of cargo flowing through wallerfield was massive.

[Greypatch]

yea boi true dat

[MG Man]

yep, we were also a prime target for invasion / attack had the war continued past 1945

[neckto]

i only hopw it don't need a next world war for we to get a track

[trini_ravi]

it was stated that during the war Hitler wanted to capture T'dad as oil was discovered in south and it was one of the biggest finds at the time.

just like George W.

[3rd_Gear_Pull]

[~˜VëgŲ˜~]

Can folklore be considered in this thread too???

[tr1ad]

bump for history buffs

[MG Man]

ok, here's one, and one of my pet peeves:
Princes Town, NOT princeSS town as many people think:

Princes Town
Originally founded as the Amerindian Mission of Savana Grande, the town was renamed after the 1880 visit by Queen Victoria's grandsons, Prince Albert and Prince George (later King George V). The Princes each planted a poui tree at the Anglican church in the area, which still survives to this day.

The princes were doing their tour, which included a stop to Devil's Woodyard.....for the Lighthouse crew, Devil's Woodyard is a field of mud volcanoes a few miles east of Princes Town, in the village of Hindustan....on their way back, they planted the Poui Trees, which still stand today!

[White CZ4A]