This photograph was taken on June 3, 1931; after service at the Brethren church (‘Meeting House’) in Sandy Bank.

That was 79 years ago, so even the youngest persons in the group would now be quite elderly while the older ones would have long passed on. Precious memories of them still linger, however, and there should be lots of pleasure in recognizing those whose faces can be made out.

I believe I recognize a few and some people who are older than me will no doubt know quite a few others.

So, have a go at it. Who knows; you might even discover one of your own loved ones!

The shortest young looking man wearing a white shirt and tie on top of the step look like he could be a Moxam,just guessing .

I think Miss Audrey from Sandy Bank is the tall lady...lol this is history alright.

Frenchman Girl, Miss Audrey would have been just a child then, so she could not be "the tall lady".

On the other hand, she could be the little girl in the white dress at the front. Not saying she is, but the features would be consistent with the "Miss Audrey" those of us who grew up in the 70's and 80's got to know.

I notice that all the females are wearing hats. This image is most different from the ones I've seen of the same period where it's the men who wear the hats. I enjoy the photo Earl; a picture still says a thousand words even in this Internet age.

Hi Mr Earl Moxam

I am looking for a picture of Novellete Crowe.

If you have any or know of anyone who would have one. Please can you contact me at Retutal@aol.com

Kind Regards
Prudence

Okay, I have been told that the tall lady on the left end on the photo might be my grandmother, Alice James Moxam. At the moment her face is still obscured by the shadow from her hat. I'm still trying to have the original restored even better so that I might be able to see her face.

In the meantime, this is the only other known photograph of her and it was only very recently rediscovered. None of her grandchildren knew her because she passed away more than half a century ago. So those relatives who have not yet had the pleasure of seeing what she looked like, please enjoy your first glimpse of her.

I suspect this one was taken sometime in the late 1920's/ early 1930's.

Hi Prudence,
I'll contact you privately to discuss your query.
Earl

I think she looks a little like your cousin Ketteh (not sure how to spell her name)or maybe I should say that Ketteh looks like her.

Or Jenny... or Aunt Loretta... So many members of the family!

(Responding to 'Mamma')

I think you could be right Earl. The way in which she stands reminds me of my late Aunt Loretta Moxam and my late grandmother Gerdine Ebanks. Thank you very much for sharing.

Yes my mom the late Loretta Moxam looks just like granny Alice{her mom}.Thank you Earl for the photoes.In the group photo the man at the back looks like the late uncle Gasten but its not him,he would,nt have been that old.

And what a beautiful looking lady she was!!. Thank you Earl.

wow! look at my pretty grandmother thats where it all comes from...luv u grand

Hey Fay, Kath and others (including you, great granddaughter, Natalie!):
I'm happy you are enjoying this picture of Granny Alice. She does look fine here, but it could not have been easy for her as she worked very hard to assist Grandpa Norman in providing for their large family.

I have written elsewhere about how he used to walk all the way from St. Elizabeth to Kingston to sell live chickens. She also did her fair share of traveling outside of Treasure Beach to make a living. She regularly journeyed to Maggotty to meet vendors who came by train from other parts of the island to sell their produce.
They purchased fried fish from her and she in turn would buy their ground provisions, fruits, coffee beans etc. Then, the following day, she would travel up to the market in Top Hill to sell her roasted coffee, fried fish and some of the provisions she had purchased in Maggotty. (A portion of that old market is still standing in Top Hill).

She did all of that while suffering constantly from asthma. Eventually that was the cause of her untimely death (We know how many of her children also suffered from asthma).

We all should be proud of Granny Alice. She was a very strong woman who passed on sound values to her children and (hopefully) her grandchildren… great grandchildren… great, great grandchildren!

Fay, if you haven’t done so yet, ask Uncle Hartwell about those days. He has lots of stories. And we know what a great story teller he is!

Thanks for sharing such rich treasures Earl, my father spoke so very well about his sister Alice, he even named his favourite mango tree up Pedro Plains for her.I see alot of her features in my sister Janice,again thanks.

Septy, I have indeed been told how much Uncle Andrew, your dad, cried when his sister, Alice, died. He was one of two people, I understand, who traveled to Clarendon on the 'milk truck' that night to inform her sons - Hartwell, Gosten and Carl - who were based at Forka beach at the time.

Earl,
I believe you got "stumped" in the spelling of that place in Clarendon. I believe it is spelt "FARQUAR" OR "PHARQUAR". Check it out.

To "I Believe", thank you for this timely reminder!

I was trying to ascertain the proper name of the community before writing that last item, but, failing to do so, I meant to write "Forka" with the quotation marks to indicate that I didn't believe it was the correct spelling, but one that people would understand.

Having said all of that, I have since checked with someone who should know and he has advised me confidently that the correct spelling is FARQUHAR'S. He says the name was derived from a prominent family in the area at the time by the name of Farquharson.

Hope I got it right this time, but cannot say for sure. Another item to research!

Wow! This is an amazing picture! Here are some possibilities: Grandpa Norman, Aunt Tis, Aunt Pindy, Aunt Jule (grandpa Norman's 3 sisters) Aunt Emmy, Uncle Alfred - If only we could know for sure. Thanks for sharing Earl.

Okay, time for an update on the “Meeting House” picture!
My cousin, Raymond James, has kindly assisted with identifying quite a few of the faces that are visible. Incidentally, he is one of them, so he should know!
First of all, though, he tells me that the photograph was taken, not in 1932 (I got that date from a penciled notation at the back of the original photo) but circa 1947, which would be 63 years ago.
Raymond is the fair skinned youth on the step of the church. Standing immediately behind him is Mr. Alvin James (Maas Alvin/ Ole James). Now, here’s a startling one for me: He says the gentleman beside Ole James is my grandfather, Norman Moxam! My recollection of Grandpa Norman is of a much older man (he died in 1979) and so I find it a bit difficult to relate to that photo. He does look like his son (and my uncle) Gosten, however; so that might explain it.
Here are some other names highlighted by Ray: Althea, Merdel and Veda Gordon, Stephen Ebanks (beside Raymond),Louis James (son of Uncle Mac) on the other side of Raymond, Leita Ebanks (Brother Stephen’s daughter), Lyn James (Alvin’s daughter), Mary James (Ray’s sister) and Deita Moxam (now Campbell).
As we can all see, some of the faces are no longer visible because of the faded state of the photograph, but he recalls that the following were also there: His mother, Amy James (Aunt Emmie), Emlyn Smith, , Gladys Reynolds and the two sisters, Agnes (Moxam) Gordon and Julia (Moxam) Ebanks (my grand-aunts).
And, yes; he did confirm the one name I was positive about from the beginning: Alice James Moxam, my paternal grandmother.
Of course, these might not be the final words on the matter. If anyone has other ideas, please feel free to share them, but I’m pretty confident that Ray has pinned down most, if not all of them.
Earl

Sorry; the year I originally cited was 1931, not 1932. Sometimes I type faster than I think!

Miss Daphney was a lady that took many,many pictures of her family and others in and around Treasure Beach.
She was so good at it.I do not think she would have taken this picture she probably was too young for this one,even though there are pictures of people and places taken by her in the late 1930-1940
Many pictures ,many pictures.

Loved One, it would be wonderful if some of Miss Daphney's photographs could be shared with this forum, where appropriate. Would love to see them!

I second that, Curious. I'd love to see some of those photos.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks to my cousin Raymond James for identifying the folks in the photograph. I thought I recognized my mother Gladys Reynolds, but because the date of the photograph was stated as 1931, I knew my mother would not have been included, as I do not think she was attending that church in 1931, but since it is 1947, I am sure I did identify her. Also, I am sure my father Claflin Reynolds and some of my older siblings were included as well. This sure brings back great memories and I knew just about everyone that Ray identified.

Thanks Earl for posting this photograph.
Does anyone else have any old photographs they may want to post?

I love this site.

God bless.

Loved one would like to make correction on the dates of taking pictures.
I meant to say 40's and beyond.
I will share some of them in the future, I promise.

Hi Carol,
Could you please put your email back on.

Equally important to the "who's who" of the photo, for me, is the "who" of who founded the Meeting House. I have long wondered who built the little church with the simple name. The Quakers in Flushing, New York, and other parts, call their church, meeting house, too. So was our Meeting House founded by descendeants of the abolitionist sect which came to Jamaica, or is it just a borrowed name with no connection to the freedom fighters? And when was it built?

I don't imagine that there are any public records relating to such structures. I suppose back then people just built what they built without having to file with a buildings department of any sort. If there are any Treasurites out there in cyberland with answers, please share with us, please.

Perhaps Maas Artie Parchment in Great Bay might know something about the origins of the Meeting House. He knows quite a bit about the history of the Brethren movement.

Is there anyone in that area who could pass on the question and then provide his answer?
That would be great!

In years gone by houses, shops, churches were all built without permits. No such thing then,just a little piece of land given by someone and up goes a structure.

What about the church..Calvary Assembly Of God across from brother Headley,s house who gave that land for that church to be built.

That church has to be about 90 years old.
In those days people were kind and thoughtful and everyone got along as family from Great Bay to Billy's Bay.
Those were the good old days.Things might have been tough but that's all we knew then and did our best with what we had.

Love to all.

Bev, you might be surprised. Checks with the parish councils and other sources of records sometimes turn up some startling information; so don't assume that there wasn't any permit given for some of these structures.

The British colonial authorities in Jamaica did have structures and systems in place to ensure orderly development. This might not always have worked in deep rural parts (which Treasure Beach was!) but it is not quite accurate that everything was done on a free-for-all basis.

It is because of those systems, for example, that you can successfully do genealogical searches and establish your family tree using the records at Twickenham Park. Those records go back hundreds of years.

Speaking of family trees, I am aware of an ongoing project which has mapped the origins of many of the family names in South St. Elizabeth/ Treasure Beach. It is quite fascinating!

Hi "Nostalgic,"
Thanks for that enlightening response! It is so good that this forum allows for such interesting discussions with our fellow-citizens of like mind.

Nostalgic for your info I know what I am talking about. Sometimes it was just a promissory note that was given.
I know for a fact that many people left Treasure Beach to travel abroad and was only able to do so with money borrowed signed by a promissory note.
Hopefully they were all paid back.

The reason I brought this up is just to give an example of how business was transacted then.
Out of Trust and Goodwill.

I know that legal documentations were available then but, they were not used. People just trusted each other and did good deeds for each other.
No harm intended.

No prob, Bev. Just a different perspective.

The Sandy Bank Meeting house is really old.It was built by Plymouth Brethren, who were very active missionaries in Jamaica over a hundred years ago.The land on which it stands was donated by my great uncle Charles James, (father of Arnold, Norman and Alfred James) It was a corner of his property. The building was maintained by successive generations of the membership. At one time it was the only place of worship other than St Peter's Anglican church in Cross Roads.
It was used as the school house when the school was destroyed by hurricane in 1933. In days gone by, people came from all over the area to worship there, from as far away as Bruce Field, Great bay, Belize Bay. Most of the prominent Treasure Beach families were members of that little church. As a child I lived across the road from it but we were scared to go near it after dark. Duppy?

Thank you for this remarkable bit of history in response to my question, Cousin Raymond James! Following your response I googled, "Plymouth Brethren" and got the following:

The Plymouth Brethren is a conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland, in the late 1820s.[1][2] The title, "The Brethren," is one that many of their number are comfortable with, in that the Bible designates all believers as "brethren." "Brethren assemblies" are commonly perceived as being divided into at least two branches, the "Open Brethren" and the "Exclusive."

There's more, but I think for our immediate purposes, this is great.

Wow, Ray! This is great! It is so important to document our history and you have just added some important elements. Now we have the answers to some of those questions we have been mulling over.

I always thought that little church represented more than its modest appearance might have suggested because I grew up knowing that generations of my relatives had been members.

By the time my generation came to young adulthood things had changed significantly, but nevertheless it is important for us as a community to know that history as part of our story, which should be preserved.

I love community history. It is from these stories that we can piece together a complete picture of a country and its people.

Would love to hear more!

Wow, so far this is truly amazing. I absolutely love hearing these stories of our history and the people that have made it happen and still happening. So many names are familiar and a few I do know. I was around Eight when I left Frenchman and Born in 1967. I can't shed any light on the picture's but I so love this "please tell us more". I will do my best to share some Pictures with you all. Lots of Love.
Miss Attily and Septy Ebanks Grandson
and son of the most special, wonderful and beautiful and so missed Genette nee Ebanks Stephenson Nigel.S

Where are all the other pictures Earl? I think Gladys Reynolds is the first one in the front row,and she looked pregnant,and if the year of the picture was 1947,it would definitely be me!!! I want to return to live in TB at the earliest opportunity, and would like to hear as many stories and see as many old pictures of people in TB as possible. Perhaps you can help in this regard.

Hi Carlton how you are? also Cynthia, Carol,where in TB would you like to lived? Aunty Gladys RIP.

Hi Carlton,
I'm sorry nobody else has contributed old pictures recently, as was hoped. Of course it is not late to do so. In due course I hope to be able to make others available as well, in collaboration with the web masters.

Regarding the persons in the "Meeting House" photo, our cousin, Raymond James, did verify that your mother was in the group. I'm pretty sure that he said that the lady at the left end (from the viewer's perspective) in the front row was my grandmother, Alice Moxam. Did you mean that end or the other end of the row, regarding your mother?

Since this was many years before I was born, however, I can only rely on the words of others; so your guess is as good as mine!

Best wishes.

Earl

Hi Carlton sorry I made an error in name I apologize

Artie Parchment in Great Bay seems to have a wealth of knowledge - even about the Plymouth Brethrens.
He is not on email
so you would have to go talk to him as soon as possible.

Hi TB native

Whats up with the alias.Man identify yourself! I didnt notice any error,maybe the site corrected it.My Email address is carlton.rennie.reynolds@gmail.com I had posted it but I notice it was not included. Contact me as soon as you can. Carol and Cynthia are OK.

Hi Earl

Are you Maas Norman son or grandson? I hope to meet you one day and fill in the gaps. I feel like a great part of my heritage is missing, and I hope I can recapture some of it. I believe that you and Rae must be wrong, as no one else in the picture fits mummy's profile.
Ask Rae what he thinks.
By the way, a lot of the ID it pictures are missing

Norman Moxam's grandson, Carlton. Son of Carl.

I'm certainly in no position to assert the identity of anyone in the photograph, by the way. I just present the information I have been given and there are others who have also said that the profile does suggest that it could be my grandmother, Alice and point as well to her daughter (and my aunt) Loretta as having the same body type to support that theory. But, who knows, you may be right.

Would certainly love to meet you. Best wishes.
Earl

Hi Carol & Carlton,
I was wondering who are you guys related to?
My name is Annie Reynolds, daughter of the late Astley Reynolds
and Audrey Moxam. Thank you.

Hi Annie

I am not familiar with the family connections,and I dont know if Carol is, but Elaine Hamilton our cousin in TB would know. Where are you located? I am sure we must be related. Our parents were Claflin and Gladys Reynolds

Hey TB Native!
Whats up! I would like to live at my old house if that were possible, or on the lot between that and Vinny. I think my cousin Daisy Hill owns it,and was saving it for her son Louis. Send me an EMail.

All the best
Carlton

Hi Annie,

I know the name Astley Reynolds, but I think all the Reynolds from Treasure Beach are related. Only yesterday I was attending a Wake here in Atlanta and the deceased brother who lives in Southfield asked me if I was related to the Reynolds' in Cross Roads. My answer was I think we are all related.

I guess now that some of us are getting older and living away from Treasure, we are getting more interested in our history, so please keep it alive.

Thanks to everyone.

Carol.

Hi Carol,

Thank you Carol for getting back to me. It is always good to know
Our history, so our children can know where they are coming from.


Annie NY.

Hi Carlton,

Carlton i am living in NY, but i am from Sandy Bank TB. I wish i
Could get to know all the Reynolds. just as i told Carol that our
Children need to know our history.


Annie NY.

Hi Carlton,you were like a big brother to me when Aunt Gladys lived in TB,I remember every thing about you guys very well,I even remember when you guys moved to Kingston.Just to let you know that i own some of the James land in TB If you ever needed to purchase a piece of property just let me know God bless.

Hi TB Native,

That's sweet to hear that one of my brothers was like a big brother to you.

Take care and Carlton will give you my email if your name does not start with a D. If you are the person I have in mind, you should have my email address. Would be great to hear from you by email.

God bless.

Carol.

Yow TB Native

I am going to be needing piece in the very near future. My email address is carlton.rennie.reynolds@gmail.com Let me hear from you.

Jenny re Carol Thanks Carlton for a good laugh.Is Annie of Sandy Bank Ms Winnies daughter?I noted the death of a Reynolds in Flaggerman and am sure he is a relative. Your aunt Iris and uncle Neville claimed that three brothers settled in Ja. spelling their names differently.They said that we are also related to the Renalls of Clarendon and another spelling and parish I do not recall.Am I related to you CUZ? I wish one of you eloquent writers would research and write our history. cry baby. jenny reynolds nelson

Hi Carlton


I email you few days ago I take it you did,t recieve it.Aunty Gladys old house is now own by Ronald Taylor.I also send one to Carol God bless you all .

Hi TB NATIVE

I haven't received your EMAil.Double check the address and send again

Whats up TB Native? Have not received your email-you, sure is not sea-mail?

Hi Carlton,

My name is Jerome Spence,also known as Junior Spence,i was wondering if you are the same Carlton Reynolds that went to Sandy Bank Primary School with me in the late 50s .Did you have a brother name Clinton or "B".If you are the same person i am thinking about,it would be like forty add years since i have not seen you guys.
Winnie Spence was my mother and Thomas Reynolds my grand-father.

Jerome Carlton Reynolds Email address is carlton.rennie.reynolds@gmail.com He is no longer posting on this site
You can contact him at the above address

Hi Carlton,

Why is it most people that post here would not remember you if they went to school with you.
I remember you all.Carmen, Clair, Cynthia,Carol, Carlton and Clinton.
When I was left in charge of a Famous Ladies Store in Kingston while the owners went off to New York to purchase their orders your sister Carmen worked with me.
I can even remember being taught as a little girl by your sister Carmen in the back yard of your home.
It was fun just about six of us was in attendance at that time.I would then go across to my cousin's next door, the Hamilton's, their father was my grandmother's brother.We called him Uncle Eric.Those were some of the good old days.On the way from the Calabash Bay market we would stop at Uncle Eric's to play and Miss Laurie would always try to find some kind of snack and a drink to give us before we start on our journey home.
As a child I would sleep there to be able to catch the bus early in the morning to go where ever my mission was at that time as her son Ervin was the driver at that time and even before then.
Take care Carlton.
Miss Atilly's Daughter.

Hi Murnel,

You sure remember us well. You left off C.Roy and C. B. It was nine of us. I remember you and your sibblings too, especially you and Pansy. I did not remember that you attended Carmen's little preschool in our back yard. WOW. I too enjoyed it, but I do not remember anyone else in attendance, except Kern and Truman, my cousins. I do not know if you knew that my mother and aunt Laurie were sisters.
I certainly agree with you. Those were some good old days. I guess some people may not remember Carlton too well, as he left at a younger age to attend High School in Kingston, before completing primary school at Sandy Bank, I think. It has been so many years now, but I think that may be the reason. He will email and correct me if I am wrong.

Carlton and I were just chatting on line and he is asking you to email him. His email is above your post.

You take care and God bless.

Carol.

Thanks Carol for replying to my little speech.I do remember clearly being taught by Carmen and you know what I remember quite well, we use to sit on a tomb but I do not know whose tomb that was.
I myself left Sandy Bank School and went on to Boarding School in Black River then on to Kingston where I attended Sutheremere Private School/ Secretarial College.I spent one year doing Maths and English then on to graduating my Secretarial studies.
My first job was Secretary to the Principal of Bethlehem Teachers College for six months then back to Kingston until I left at the age of 26 to join my siblings in Canada and the rest is history.

Tell Carlton I will email him and give my regards to the rest of your siblings for me.

Thanks again Carol,
God Bless.

PS:I do remember your mom and Miss Laurie were sisters.

Hi Carlton,
Miss Daisy only had two children. Rema and Lloydie.
Louis was her nephew.

Hi Murnel,

That is interesting. I do remember that two of the tombs were my grandparents on my father's side.
Not sure if you are still in touch with Madge, but one of these days you may visit her and I am sure I will see you, as you may know we both live in the same state, not far from each other.

Thanks for your regards and please do the same to your siblings.

God bless.

Carol

Hi Carol,

Thank God I still have a good memory.
Madge and I were corresponding in the 80's but for some reason we lost touch.I can remember she left California and went to live In Georgia.I left Ohio and went to live in Virginia.

When next you speak to her give her my love and tell her I always think of her and wonder how she is doing.
We are one State apart but I have no reason to really visit Georgia. My children live in New Jersey,Maryland and Canada.
Anyway one never know we might one day meet again
in TB I hope.

Wouldn't it be lovely to have a reunion of all the people our age and call it "The Oldies of Sandy Bank School"
Not suggesting we are old (Just Older)

What is life if we cannot make fun of ourselves and laugh and hug our school mates.
Now, those were the good old days also.

Hi Murnel,

Just reread your post and realized you also left off another brother Cyril.

Take care.

Carol you know what I just realized, all your names do start with a C.
I wonder what were your parents thinking.
Made it easier for them seeing there were so many of you guys. I would have gotten confused.
I have a Nicola,Susan and Sophia and always call Sue, Sophie and Sophia, Sue.

Sophia would always be the one to say (Mom you are doing it again calling me Susan)

What does it matter I love them all the same along with my six beautiful grandchildren and one more on the way.

Tell Carlton I will email him when I get my moving out the way.Heading north soon.Time for a change.I do not like staying in one place too long.
Bye for now.

Hi Murnel,
I wondered when you wrote all the names if it did not dawn on you that they we are all C's, as I thought if you did you would have commented. I was told that it was not intentional for the first few names, but they decided to continue with the trend. Of course they would call me Cynthia or vise versa, but I would answer anyway, as I knew they were talking to me, but just using the wrong name.

Congratulations on being a grandma soon to be seven times.

Wow back in the cold. All the best with your move. We are snowed in from yesterday and from all appearances, it seems we will be for the next few days. The snow is so beautiful though, but unfortunately it is freezing. This is the most snow I have seen at one time, since I am living in this state, which is 26 years.

Best regards.

This is a message to Annie Reynolds who was wondering about her family connections. Audrey Moxam's father Aubrey Moxam and Carl Moxam who is Earl's father were first cousins. Therefore Annie and Earl are distant relatives. On the Reynolds side of Your family,Annie, your relationship with Carlton etc is quite distant. Their grandfather came from Little Park, where there are tons of other Reynoldses, and It is said that all the Reynolds from St Elizabeth, black, brown, white or otherwise are all related. I am also related to you because your grandfater and I are first cousins.(aunt Dora was my Aunt).

This is truly amaising history of treasure beach myself over the years often wondered the information supplied here wasnt going to be forthcoming this is a good day for me keep up the good work Earl Best Wishes

There might be some uncertainty about the fate of the "Meeting House" in the first photograph above.

Its membership has dwindled significantly and in the not too distant future there might very well be nobody left, bringing to an end perhaps more than a century of worship at that site.

When that day comes, questions will no doubt arise as to what should be done with the property. I think it would be a great pity if that building - one of the oldest in the community - were to be demolished.

Could a trust be established to maintain the building and perhaps display story boards detailing the history of the church, its origins and the individuals and families who were associated with it?

Much of the history of the community is tied up with the lives and times of many of the persons who were associated with that church.

I hope the MEETING HOUSE survives as a place of worship and if not as a MUSEUM that will preserve an important part of TREASURE BEACH .The History and culture of a people who are strong ,kind,spiritual and talented.May GOD guide you today and always. If changes are to be made tell us how we may be of help.

I often wonder about the meeting house. From what i have learned it has so much family history. It would hurt to see it go a sunder. Lets all work together on this one!. And please remember it is still a place of worship. So if anyone has a couple of minutes on their hand on a Sunday morning please join the remaining members that is still there. I am sure they would be grateful.

"Where the two or three are gathered, there am I in the midst of them". I hope I will get the opportunity to be one of them. They should keep it open on days there are no formal meetings, for anyone who want to just stop by and reflect.