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Wellfleet Seasonal Residents Association
Uniting Voices and Strengthening Community
Since 2000
Support Jamaican Hurricane Recovery
Wellfleet has a deep historical connection with Jamaica and Jamaicans.
In 1870 the Wellfleet captain of a schooner that carried cargo to the Caribbean, Lorenzo Dow Baker, introduced bananas to the United States. Rather than return with an empty cargo hold, Baker filled the ship with Jamaican bananas. He later started a company that raised bananas on Jamaican plantations for sale in the United States. That little business grew and over time evolved into the Chiquita brand and the United Fruit Company.
Capt. Baker also built the Chequesset Inn at the bend in Kendrick Ave where it turns inland toward Chequessett Neck Road. Remnants of the pilings that supported the Inn are still visible on Mayo Beach at the curve near the cluster of cottages on Kendrick.
Baker hired Jamaicans during the summer months to work at the Inn, launching a seasonal migration that continues today. And, in the decades since, some of those seasonal workers have made Wellfleet their year-round home.
A group of Wellfleet businesses who rely on Jamaicans, especially during the summer months, is raising money for humanitarian aid to send to Jamaica in the wake of Hurricane Melisa. We are encouraging our members to support this effort. To make a donation online, Support Jamaican Hurricane Recovery.
A group of Wellfleet businesses who rely on Jamaicans, especially during the summer months, is raising money for humanitarian aid to send to Jamaica in the wake of Hurricane Melisa. We are encouraging our members to support this effort. To make a donation https://www.gofundme.com/f/rebuild-black-river-support-hurricane-relief?attribution_id=sl:ebcb2239-b35d-43a3-a0f6-a222ebe3e61e&lang=en_US&ts=1761749817&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp17_te&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link
SUPPORT LOCAL FOOD PANTRY
The Wellfleet Food Pantry supports our residents, especially now that the SNAP benefits are being withheld at the federal level. Here is the donation link for both PayPal and credit cards: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=PYZHWR72B7Q6Q&ssrt=1761932316159