DU in the DR
By Charlotte Myers & Parker Litts
Page Title
Sugar Mill at Boca de Nigua
The sugar mill at Boca de Nigua has been around since before 1870. It is among the oldest and largest of the sugar mills in the Dominican Republic. Half of the site that we visited was reconstructed while the rest was left as ruins. This contrast helped to create an image of what the sugar mill would have actually been like during its functioning days. This excursion was an important one because it gave us so much insight about the history of slave trade in the Dominican Republic. We learned that, although it was a very real occurrence, this part of Dominican history is not often spoken about.
"I have never been so moved as I was when visiting this place. I’m not sure if I can describe what it feels like to have stood there next to where the furnace was, seeing where the slaves were chained as they toiled away next to the fire to process the sugarcane. I’ve never felt so much shame to know that our human race can enslave other people and dehumanize them to such a degrading level."
-Libby
We stood inside the reconstructed portion of the structure which is believed to have either been the bunkers where the slaves slept or a storage room. Beams along the walls from floor to ceiling indicated that either shelves or beds were stacked in a fashion to maximize the capacity of the room.
Moving on to the sugar production, we stood above the room were the mill itself was placed. In this room, slaves would be working to turn the mill to grind the sugar cane. Further along, we came to the boiling room. This portion of the tour is where the cruelty really strikes hard. The chains attached to the furnace still remain. This is where slaves were cuffed, working in the boiling room, under the hot sun for hours on end.
