Stowe Estate

History

An estate on the south coast of Dominica near Grand Bay, originally 632 acres, owned in the 19th century by William Ellisonde, then later by Edward Bellot and since the early 20th century by the Fadelle family. It was originally a French held estate, taken over by the British after 1763 and named Stowe after a stately home and estate in Buckinghamshire, England. At the time of Emancipation it had 107 slaves and produced 106,500 pounds of sugar and 2500 gallons of rum. The estate buildings included sugar works, powered by water, and a great house overlooking the estate yard. These were constructed over a period dating from the 1770s. The grounds of the estate house also served as a military defence post to guard the only landing place at Grand Bay. A number of cannon were mounted upon a “half-moon battery” in front of the estate house. This battery can still be seen and some of the guns now lie near to the sea.