Why a slavery museum should be built in ‘Sugaropolis’ Greenock
Greenock was ‘intertwined with the Transatlantic slave trade’ - we look at the efforts to get the town to reflect on its colonial past.
It was once the heart of the colonial sugar trade - known as ‘Sugaropolis’, Greenock became a global hub for sugar refining in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The town was the gateway for trading sugar, tobacco and rum throughout the UK and across the British Empire. But there was a terrible price to pay for this prosperity - it was built on the backs of slaves on Caribbean sugar plantations.
Greenock’s first refinery was built in 1765 on Sugarhouse Lane, and in the centuries that followed ships would arrive from the slave colonies with raw sugar. The town’s connections to the sugar trade continued right through until the last cargo of sugar was delivered 250 years later in 1997.
The area’s MSP Stuart McMillan believes it is now time for Greenock to face up to its past in slavery and colonialism by creating a national museum telling this story.
Speaking to Scotland on Sunday, Mr McMillan said: “Greenock was intertwined with the Transatlantic slave trade in sugar, tobacco and cotton, and in shipbuilding itself.
“It is widely recognised that Greenock was the global capital of the sugar trade which is why we are looking at the suggestion of having a museum here.”
This has been an ongoing discussion in the Scottish Parliament ever since the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020. There were suggestions of creating a network of museums on Scotland’s links to slavery, but Mr McMillan says a standalone national museum is the better option as it can delve into the full story of Scotland and the slave trade.
He said: “Communities across Scotland benefited from the Transatlantic slave trade, and it is clearly not just a central belt issue, I absolutely accept that.
“But having a museum in Greenock would consider how much sugar came into Scotland via Greenock. It is also documented that some ships left Greenock with slaves on board and other vessels left the area to go down to Africa to ship people to the Caribbean.”
Earlier this week Mr McMillan questioned Culture Secretary Angus Robertson on this issue, saying he wanted to keep Greenock and the idea of a standalone national museum “on the agenda”.
Mr McMillan said this is also an opportunity to get sugar refining companies that are in operation in 2025 to reflect on their legacy and their colonial pasts by getting involved in any future human rights and slavery museum in Greenock.
Mr Robertson said an empire and slavery steering group has supported multiple museums since publishing its recommendations back in 2022, and the government has invested £100,000 to establish a new organisation which will have its inaugural exhibition open next month.
He added: “The Scottish Government encourages all individuals and organisations with historical links to colonialism and slavery, including in sugar processing and refinery, to engage meaningfully with their past so the future representation of Scotland’s role in the Transatlantic slave trade and colonialism reflects the most inclusive picture possible.”
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.