Surama

History of Surama

For generations the payako ranged the area between Surama and Wowetta, abandoning an area only after the terrible epidemics, against which their traditional medicines would not work.

Mr. Peter Moses remembers his elders recounting that there were three major epidemics, separated in time, each forcing the payako to leave, first the Surama area and then Wowetta. He himself was born in Surama, and among the families who had returned to the area in his childhood were Ivan James’ and Theresa Joseph’s. When he was around 9 to 10 years old, another epidemic struck, killing most of the members of his and other families. Only one of his brothers survived and together they moved to Annai to live with friends, never returning to Surama. For years after that, Amerindians were afraid to return to the Surama area, with its associations of epidemic and death.

However two balata bleeding operations, Daylight and Garnett, located in the area, and at least 2 African Guyanese and 1 East Indiana family came to settle there. Later, by the 1920’s, one of the paddocks of the great cattle trail from Dadanawa to Takama was built in the Surama area, and gradually Amerindians returned—to work for the Rupununi Development Company, to bleed balata,etc. Susan Rufino, an Arawak resident of Surama, recalls that her father, James Hendricks, brought his family to Surama in 1937. By the date the African Guyanese families had left but the East Indian named Drew and Amerindian families (including the Croft family) remained. Many balata bleeders would come to Surama to sell their balata, which in a later period was shipped out from Surama by aircraft.

In time James Hendricks returned to Berbice. The Crofts left too, but Susan and her brother remained, working for the balata company. She worked as a domestic helper, later marrying Stanley Rufino who had been working with the Rupununi Development Company, until the company moved its base from Surama to Apoteri.

A few families continued to live in Surama even after the balata company had left. The 1969 uprising was a bad time for residents of this community. Surama resident, Mr. Nacka, was shot and Mr. Sutherland moved away after the uprising. In 1973 two brothers, Robert and Theo Allicock, moved to Surama with their large families. They had lived in earlier periods at Linden on the Demerara River, Kurupukari on the Essequibo River, Wowetta and Kwataman. Other savannah families, including the Captains, Salvador’s and Roland’s moved to Surama after Allicocks. For a time there was also a GDF station based in Surama. Since that date, surama has grown and prospered. A school was built entirely by self help in 1978, followed by many other development projects.

Surama is located north of Annai. It is one of the sub villages of Annai Amerindian Village. It has a population of 287.The Size of the sub village is about 7 square miles.

Surama was establish in 1974, when the Allicock brothers Mr.Theophalus and Mr. Robert Frederick Allicock and fire other families came together to start the village. The main economic activities at the time were Agriculture and fishing.

Residents depend mainly on farming for living. A few did fishing. Today this change the residents now are involve in Agriculture, forestry (lumbering), fishing and tourism. A few persons are employed by the Government as health workers, police and teachers.

The people of Surama are of various backgrounds. There are Makushi, Wapashina, Patamona, Awarks, Warrau, East Indian and mixed from by intermarriage between the various groups.

The first Primary school was built in 1978 with first enrolment at less than twenty children. The first Head teacher being Mr. Joseph Torres there when the school was opened and acting teacher Mr. Councilor Sccipio. There was no Nursery school at that time. Over the year the population of the school increases and so there was the need for a bigger and better school and so with the help of central Government both a nursery and primary schools were built. Today the leader on the resident and most of them are trained.

How Surama got its name

Once there lived two brothers who were magicians and leaders of their community. The elder was named Inskiran, the younger Anekî. One day Inskiran and Anekî invited the villagers to picnic by the lake called warekupî, now known as Surama Lake. They caught a lot of fishes and in the afternoon all returned home together and made a barbecue. The two brothers made their own barbecue, apart from the others. Suddenly their fire flared up and Anekî screamed, shu ra ma ta bî man, which roughly translates as ‘barbecue is burning’. That was the origin of the name Surama.