Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Barbados chattel houses

Barbados is known for its brightly painted chattel houses, and they are found all over the island in various stages of disrepair. They most commonly started with a single room house, and then behind the house were various additions, but they remain narrow and only one story high.
These nicer chattel houses are part of a series of local arts and crafts shops.
Most chattel houses date back to when the population was comprised largely of itinerant farm workers. People could move to a new location and take their home with them. They would be positioned on stacked cinder blocks until moved again. Although most are no longer relocated like that, many still remain a simple one room house on cinder blocks.