10. Annaberg School Trail

Length: 0.2 miles. Time: 15 minutes. Difficulty: 1. Trailhead: The trail is on the left just before the North Shore Road (Rt. 20) intersects with the Leinster Bay Road. Be careful of the traffic.

This leads to one of the oldest public school houses in the Caribbean. Dating to the 1800s, the schoolhouse is just a shell and not really worth visiting unless you have a real affinity for ruins, and some people do.

The school site offers good views of Mary Point, Leinster Bay and Tortola. Interesting, schools like this were built after the Danes passed a law mandating education for all children, including slaves.

The government paid for construction of the schools, Moravian missionaries staffed them and classes were taught in English.

English was the chosen language because the area was occupied twice by British troops after 1800 and newspapers were published in English.

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