Betty’s Hope is located in the limestone district of Antigua’s tranquil rural area, with beautiful vistas over the rolling landscape to the distant ocean. The founder of Betty’s Hope was Governor Keynell, whose widow inherited the estates upon is death in 1663, but had to flee Antigua during the French occupation in 1666. When Antigua was reoccupied by the British, Parliament annulled all land claims prior to the French occupation, (of those who had fled or been disloyal to the Crown). Instead, in 1674, Betty’s Hope was granted to the Codrington family, then residing in Barbados. Today an active restoration of Betty’s Hope is under way. New sails have been installed on the mill and the crushing machinery has been restored to working condition. The next phase of restoration involves repairing the cistern complex and the planting of trees and crops of former times.
A visitor center has been created by converting a former cotton house storeroom into a museum. This includes various aspects of the plantation’s history and shows early estate plans, pictures and maps, artifacts and a model of the central site to giving an overview of the of “Betty’s Hope”.
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