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Houtgrond (1835-1863)
As sugar plantations on the more fertile
clays of the coastal area became more successful, and the
soils of more inland plantations became exhausted, also
plantation Berg en Dal gradually became a “Houtgrond” (wood
producing area), delivering firewood for evaporation
installations of coastal sugar plantations. On the map
of Teenstra-Mabe (1835), Berg and Dal is pictured as “Houtgrond”.
The plantations stayed in the hands of the descendants
of the Van Lith family until it was sold to the Moravian
Brotherhood in 1870 (see below under the heading Mission).
Abolition of Slavery (1863)
After the abolition of slavery (1863), Berg and Dal counted
315 inhabitants. At the same time, slave-households
received family names. Common names originating from
Berg en Dal are: Helstone, Herrenberg, Hongerbron, Horb,
Lemberg, Muringen, Seedorf and Walden.
The plantation was given up, but many inhabitants stayed
at the village, practicing woodcutting in the forests,
shifting cultivation on the river levees. Dutch and German
descendants of the Van Lith family owned the plantation
until it was sold to the Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine
(Moravian Brotherhood) (EBG).
EBG Mission Station (1870-1914)
Already in 1830, the Moravian Brotherhood
(EBG) started christianization among the slaves at Berg
en Dal. In 1839 the church (also used as a school) was
consecrated. In 1870 (and partly also in 1882) the entire
plantation was bought by the EBG firm Christoph Kersten
en Co. N.V. in Paramaribo, who used the plantation to
establish a main missionary station to christianize
the maroons living along the upper Suriname River. In
1870, Berg en Dal had a director’s house, a mansion
house (town house), a church/school, a small hospital,
carpenters sheds, about 80 small wooden houses, some
shifting cultivation areas and some cattle. According
to Benjamins and Snelleman (1914-1917) the houses were
built on poles because of frequent flooding of the lowlands
along the river. The total area counted 4,193 ha.
Second Gold Rush (1874-1912)
During the second gold rush in Suriname, Berg en Dal was
an important landing place for the access road to the
gold fields in the Gross-Rosebel and Brownsberg greenstone
belt. A scheduled steamship service maintained the route
Paramaribo-Berg en Dal (and further upstream). From
Berg en Dal, the American John Brown had built a road
(the Brownsweg) to his gold concession at Brownsberg
(known as Montana Gold Mine). This Brownsweg was used
to transport the heavy iron parts of steam engines and
dredges to his and other gold fields. Since that time,
Berg en Dal also got a Police Station where gold miners
had to register before and entering in and after returning
from the gold fields and where a court judged over criminal
acts in the gold fields.
Berg en Dal became less important when a railroad was
constructed (1905-1912) from Paramaribo to Kwakugron,
Brownsweg and the Sara Creek gold fields.
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