Half Tree Hollow
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- 2 chapters
Related on Lably
Through Atlantic Ocean, East India Company and Napoleon
Description
The district is bounded by the contours of Ladder Hill and is essentially a flat plateau.
Half Tree Hollow is the largest settlement in Saint Helena, with a population exceeding that of the territory's capital of Jamestown. Its population has fluctuated from 901 in 1998 to 1,140 in 2008 and 1,034 in 2021.
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History
Ladder Hill was initially known as Fort Hill, even though it was not initially fortified. It was first used by the East India Company as an execution ground with the gibbet visible from Jamestown for the moral edification of the population. The first road to Ladder Hill was completed in 1770, and construction of fortifications on the seaward side of the hill began around 1790. Additional works were built over the next several decades, and the complex was known as Ladder Hill Fort by 1815. The fort was reinforced and expanded while Napoleon was in exile in St. Helena (1815–21), and the 20th Regiment of Foot is known to have been garrisoned there in 1819. Additional barracks and officer's quarters were built during the 1820s.
A funicular was built to connect Jamestown and the fort in 1829. The cars and rails were removed in 1871 and it was converted into a staircase, commonly known as Jacob's Ladder.