experience
The Tobago
Gang Gang Sara: The Witch From Golden Lane Tobago is about translucent waters, coral reefs and friendly people. It is also about delicious crab and dumplings, a shining example of good Creole food. And its oral history, which is a cultural patchwork of old world civilisation and new world adventures, is equally intriguing. Tobago’s folklore, myths, superstitious beliefs and stories of early African traditions date back to slavery. Every year, these stories form part of the islands’ rich Heritage Festival. At the village of Les Coteaux (the Knives) folk tales and superstitions continue to haunt the imagination, especially those about the mysterious Gang Gang Sara from Golden Lane. Gang Gang Sara, whose name at birth was Louisa, is reputed to have flown (levitated) from Africa to Tobago, sometime in the eighteenth century. Generally regarded as a witch, she landed at Les Coteaux. From there she moved to Golden Lane where she became the village midwife, which earned her the name of Gang Gang. Alvin James, allegedly one of Sara’s descendants, said, “She knew everyone in the village, especially pregnant mothers and she even had the privilege of naming the babies after they were born.” James is currently the keeper of the African cemetery at Golden Lane. The cemetery is said to contain the body of Sara, her husband and Grandpa Peter, a white English slave master from Nigeria. The unmarked tombs have been there for near two centuries. James’s house sits close to the tombs on Louisa Hill, where like sentinels they overlook Culloden Bay. James said his grandparents told him that Gang Gang Sara had supernatural powers as an obeah man (‘obeah’ is one local term for dark magic or witchcraft). “She knew exactly what potion to recommend to her female clients who wanted to get a man,” he said. Gang Gang Sara lived at Louisa Hill for many years before she met Long John, a man well over six feet tall, whom she married. After his death Sara became lonely and wanted to return to Africa. James said, “She climbed one of the tallest silk cotton trees in Culloden to make her return journey. Believing she could still fly, she took off from the top of the tree. She fell down and died on the spot.” According to James, Sara had lost the ability to fly because during her sojourn in Tobago she had eaten salt, which destroyed her spiritual strength, and she had become too fat to fly. Sara was buried at Golden Lane close to her husband’s grave. But since her death, the burial ground site has not been the same. Allegedly, the spirit of Sara continued to wander for several years. And it was not until the intervention of an African woman from Canada that her soul was put to rest.
by Louis B Homer
James said before the visit, there were several weird incidents at his home. The most disturbing was an attack by millions of ants. All efforts to destroy them failed. “Before the attack I found a clay smoking pipe in the house foundation. I took it upstairs, but it fell and broke. At the same time, the ants attacked the house.” he said. “We used all kinds of medicine to kill the ants, but they did not go away. The next day a woman came from Canada and told me Gang Gang came to her in a dream and told her to go to her grave and do certain things to release her spirit. After the ritual all the ants disappeared.” The base of the tree from which Sara had hoped to fly, continues to be part of the mysteries of Culloden. It’s known as the tallest tree in Tobago. Weird noises and screaming can be heard near the tree on full moon nights. The mystery of Gang Gang Sara may be legendary, but the existence of the tombs gives credence to a story that can only be explained by exhuming the bodies of the slaves buried at Louisa Hill. But the old heads of Golden Lane believe all the bodies were returned to Africa a long time ago, and the tombs are only symbols of the past. So we may never know if Gang Gang Sara’s restless spirit is real or merely Tobago legend.
Drawing by Peter Shim. Courtesy Paria Publishing
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