The "Pirates Are Coming" Story

Early waterfront view of Marigot.

It was an ordinary day.  Telling Carol that we're almost at the top.  A few steps more!  We decided to take a day of our vacation to St. Martin in the Caribbean and visit the city of Marigot.  Neat town which is the capital city of the French side of the isle of Sint Maarten/St. Martin and is one of the most French, in spirit, of all the cities and towns in the Caribbean.  The main street is the rue de la Republique and offers facades that date from the 1700s.  Most of the buildings have a ground floor of stone with the upper floors of wood construction.

Another view of the waterfront from the 1980s.

For many years the city was the hub of activity on the French side of the island and defending it's warehouses in the port of Marigot was of great importance.  Products raised and harvested and stored in the warehouses years and years ago included coffee, salt, rum and sugar cane and to protect these products, a fort was needed.  It was originally developed in 1767 on the leeward side of Marigot Bay as three batteries of cannons and named after the famous crusading king of France, Louis XVI.  

Wasn't until 1789 that the walled fort was constructed with help from the

Fort Louis in Marigot, St. Martin

inhabitants of the city as well as their slaves.  During the 19th century the fort was restored, but at times fell into the hands of the English who inhabited the nearby island of Anguilla.  In 1993 the current restoration was completed with the help of the Hope Estate of Saint-Martin.  Great way to defend the town of Marigot, since it sat way up on the hill that overlooked the town.  Carol and I found that out today when we headed up the steps to the fort.   Lucky it was an overcast day and we didn't have to contend with the heat and humidity we normally would have.  Well, I got some really neat shots of the French side of the island as well as the city of Marigot below me.  Check them out!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

View from Fort Louis looking toward the town of Marigot.

Another view from the Fort.

Similar view as the first from the Fort.

LDub keeping an eye out for pirates!

View of waterfront as it appears today.

This is a photo of the old Post Office.  No date found for this photo.

The Post Office (in the distance) as it appears today.