To people unfamiliar with the length and breadth of Jamaica, places such as Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Negril and Portland usually spring to mind. Former capital city, Spanish Town, should be another. For one, it’s the place where Jamar ‘Chronixx’ McNaughton was born-and-raised.
The parish, originally dubbed Villa de la Vega, was founded by Spanish governor Francisco de Garay in 1534. He decided it was to be the capital of the colony. The English, who conquered Jamaica in 1655 following a tough battle with the Spanish, renamed the settlement Spanish Town. As the town was badly damaged during the conquest, Spanish Town had to be rebuilt before functioning as the capital once again. Spanish Town, located in the parish of St. Catherine, remained the capital until it was replaced by Kingston in 1872.
“A lot of Jamaica’s colonial history took place in Spanish Town,” Chronixx says about the “sad part” of its history. “But out of it is a lot of beautiful things. A lot of musicians, good athletes and sportspeople. It’s kind of like a rough training camp for people.” Singer/actress Grace Jones and former 100m World Record holder Asafa Powell were born there, 100m World Champion Yohan Blake and 400m gold medallist Melaine Walker were educated there amongst others including national hero, Norman Manley.
Naturally, Spanish Town had a profound impact on a young Chronixx. “Living in Spanish Town, you don’t have much outlook, but you become an avid dreamer just so you can make it through the day,” he reflects. “Your dream becomes your motivation sometimes. I never really travelled much of Jamaica so my only outlook was my dream. Imagination was my outlook.”
Spanish Town is commonly known to locals as "Spain" or "Prison Oval". The latter nickname is a reference to the local cricket pitch which is located just outside the St. Catherine District Prison. Football is also played at the Prison Oval with Rivoli United F.C. being the favoured local team. The pitch is also visible to a few inmates through their cell windows.
A young Chronixx spent much of his youth watching football and cricket, his favourite times being the finals of the football league played there. “I used to enjoy watching football at Prison Oval. I used to enjoy the scent of the peanuts roasting, the sound system and the football,” he recalls. “You see how those things create activity within a community because it creates employment for people.”
Prison Oval has also played host to many legendary dances where world famous sound sytems such as Killamanjaro, Stone Love, King SturGav and Volcano Hi Powa strung up their sounds armed with top artists to entertain the people. Reggae icon Barrington Levy eulogised about it on the Henry ‘Junjo’ Lawes-produced “Prison Oval Rock”.
“That used to make me happy as a youth. To go somewhere where a man is working or enjoying himself, which is the heights of living in the ghetto,“ he states. “For once, there’s a time when everybody is happy. When Spanish Town is groovy, even the dog is happy!”
But as he said, it’s like a training camp. “It can be depressing while you are going through, but once you get whatever you have learnt, that’s when you see the beauty of it,” says Chronixx, summarising the place where he’s from - Spanish Town.
