Dessalines

Dessalines is a commune in the Artibonite department of Haiti. It is named after Jean-Jacques Dessalines, a leader of the Haitian Revolution and the first ruler of independent Haiti. It is known as the First Black Capital of the New World.

Dessalines, commune of the department of Artibonite was formerly called Marchand. Marchand was the name of a former settler who owned his dwelling on this site before the arrival of Dessalines. It is a historic city, in that it was the first capital of Haiti under the first empire. It is located in the heart of the department 175 km from Port-au-Prince. According to the number of forts in the commune, this area was a strategic point for the fighters of the war of independence. This commune is bounded on the north by Gonaïves and St-Michel, on the south by Petite-Rivière de l’Artibonite, on the east by Maïssade and St-Michel and on the west by L’Estère, Desdunes and Grand-Saline. She has six communal sections.

Originally called Marchand, in 1804 the town was made capital of the newly independent state of Haiti. It was shortly renamed after Jean-Jacques Dessalines in honor of the first Haitian head of state. Jean Dessalines loved the town so much as it became the capital of the First Black Free Country, which was established in 1804. He lived there for two years, with his wife Marie-Claire Happy Félicité Bonheur Dessalines. The main street of the urban part of this town, which until recently was called Marchand-Dessalines, bears the name of Jacques Ier.

Jean Jacques Dessalines was the first person to lead Haiti after gaining its independence. He was a key figure in giving freedom to the black race by opposing slavery and colonialism. The imperial constitution of 20 May 1805 was proclaimed from the city of Dessalines. After the emperor’s assassination in October 1806 Port-au-Prince was declared the new capital of Haiti.

Geography: the Dessalines spans 259 square kilometers and is 16 miles from the Caribbean Sea and 134km from the capital Port-au-Prince. Around 127,529 people live in Dessalines.

In terms of its configuration, the relief of the town of Dessalines is dominated by the plains and the hills. Its climate varies from normal to cool. By its position, it is an inland border town, with two of its communal sections. The population of the municipality of Dessalines was estimated at 157 820 inhabitants in 1998 and reached nearly 178 000 inhabitants in 2004, for an area of ​​459.81 km2. Duri

Demographics Change: The town is populated by 181,903 inhabitants. This population is very young: more than 60% of the population is under the age of 18, especially in rural sections (census by estimate of 2009).

Economy: Regarding Economic and Financial Institutions, there was no bank. Ten restaurants, a credit union and a marketing cooperative were counted in this municipality. Its economic development potential is strongly focused on agriculture, agribusiness and ecotourism with productions such as rice. There are other goods produced in the town such as tomato, onion, pepper, lalo (okra), beans, coffee, sugar, cotton, banana, mango, and wood used to make cabinets.

Transportation: The city of Dessalines is located on Route 112 off of Route Nationale 1, 19km southeast of Johanisse.

The nearest airports in the town are the Cap-Haitien International Airport and the Toussaint L’ouverture Airport, which serve as the entry points for people who want to travel by air.

Education: The Ministry of National Education of Youth and Sports is represented by a school inspection office. The manager is an inspector responsible for coordinating the ministry’s activities in the area. The commune has two schools at the kindergarten level, 16 at primary level with numerous private and three congregational. For the secondary level, there were one public school, seven private schools and a congregational school.

Health: The Ministry of Public Health and Population is not represented in the commune of Dessalines. The community has a hospital and two clinics. In addition, six doctors and dentists, 47 nurses and auxiliaries, 36 matrons and two laboratory technicians provide the sanitary service at the communal level.

Utilities: As for water availability, seven rivers, 35 springs and a lagoon have been inventoried. For the other water points, 30 single wells, 25 artesian wells, two taps and 18 pumps were recorded. Water taps is the most used, it is used for domestic use and especially for drinking. The city of Dessalines and some localities of the communal sections are electrified. Electricity of Haiti (EDH) is the institution responsible for the distribution of electricity in this municipality. It provides an average of 42 hours per week.

Security: With regard to the Administrative and Judicial Infrastructures, the commune of Dessalines has a court of peace, located in the city at the rue Morolie. There is no prison, but preferably a guard room.

Health: When it comes to health services, meanwhile, the town has one hospital, the Claire Heureuse Hospital. It offers pediatric, obstetric, surgical and general medical services. It can accommodate 50 in-patients.

Religion: More than 143 temples of all beliefs were counted in the commune of Dessalines. These confessions are: Catholic, Baptist, Adventist, Pentecostal and Jehovah’s Witness.

Communication: In terms of communication, the commune of Dessalines has neither newspapers nor television station, but has six radio stations.

Organizations: As for the political parties and organizations, they are distributed throughout the municipality. Eight grassroots organizations, three peasants groups, a women’s group, three non-commercial co-operatives and an NGO were counted in this commune.

Thanks to the help of partners of international cooperation, especially the French department of Savoy, the small town located at the foot of the Cahos mountains, in the plain of Artibonite, teems with original initiatives to ensure its development . The commune of Dessalines has signed two partnership agreements with the Youth Platform – an umbrella organization grouping 87 youth associations – and is working to implement a local development plan drawn up after consultation with the entire population, a rarity in Haiti

Leisure: As for the places of entertainment and leisure, the gaguères are six in number. For other types of entertainment, a movie theater, six football (soccer) fields and a basketball court have been counted in the municipality. Concerning the cultural patrimony, six monuments and sites of historical and natural type, located in the different communal sections of the municipality, have been registered.

Tourism: The town’s tourism potential is also good, as it houses several attractions and fortifications that remain in pretty good condition. Though its roads were damaged by the 2010 earthquake, Dessalines is still considered a great tourist site.

The city center of Dessalines, inhabited by about 20,000 people, is surrounded by six forts that are part of a score of military works built on the territory of Haiti after independence in 1804: this defensive system was directed against a possible return of the French, former masters of the colony of Santo Domingo.

The historic sites are made up of forts, located at the top of the mountains that guaranteed the safety of the ancient imperial city and were residences of famous people in the history of Haiti. Among the listed historic sites, it is worth highlighting the five forts made by engineer Lafayette on the summit of the mountains overlooking the city and the valley of Artibonite. Located on the highest point of the doldrums, the fort “The End of the World” is the largest fort of the imperial city. The fort “Innocent” was placed under the orders of the first son of Dessalines, who was called Innocent. Its location allowed to control the whole valley of Artibonite. The fort “Ti Madam” was the hobby place of the Empress while the “Doco” fort, located in Morne Docomond, was designed to secure the Fort “Ti Madanm”. Finally, the fort “Culbuté” rose on the slope of the morne adjoining the Imperial Source. It was destroyed in 1946 during the construction of the Marchand-St Michel-de-l’Attalaye road. Today, only La Poudrière remains, but the place is frequented for voodoo ceremonies.

City of Dessalines: The whole city is dotted with pretty houses that belonged to historical figures or places of memories marked by famous people whose house (with a tiled roof) of Marie-Claire Heureuse Félicité, wife of the Emperor, the house of Charlotin Marcadieu, the tomb of General Brutus, the tomb of Colonel Gabart, the tomb of Benoît Batraville, and the remains of the house of Dessalines, amongst others.