These reminiscence resources have been created by the Caribbean Social Forum, in collaboration with the National Maritime Museum, to support people living with dementia and their carers.
Inspired initially by the Waterline Collection, a collection of 16,500 historic photographs, the resources have been created to prompt memories, spark conversation and support sharing.
The resources have been developed specifically for Caribbean communities living in the UK, taking into consideration the childhood experiences that these individuals may have had either in the Caribbean or in the UK during the 40s and 50s.
The resources are made up of:
- an introduction booklet
- 5 activity sheets that include memory prompts and conversations starters
- 5 themed packs of resource cards, linked to the activity sheets.
Tap the arrows and download all the resources below.
The Waterline Collection and other sources of inspiration
An important part of this project was the digitisation of the Waterline Collection, which consists of 16,500 photographs that tell the story of the leisure-cruising industry.
Within this are images taken between 1929-49 of the islands of Antigua, Barbados, Jamaica and St Kitts. These images became the starting point for the development of these culturally-specific reminiscence resources.
Below are some of the images that were digitised. Some of these resonated with the Caribbean Social Forum members working on this project, whilst others may resonate with others.
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Nassau, Bahamas
A man stands at the water's edge on a rocky shore at Nassau, Bahamas. He is looking seaward, has his trouser legs rolled up and is holding his shoes in his left hand. Another man is standing in the stern of a small boat poling it towards the beach. In the background is a wooden pier which has a small building and a wooden tower structure on the pierhead. Paradise Island is in the background.
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Kingston, Jamaica
The cruise ship Duchess of Atholl moored at Kingston, Jamaica. Four young men look at the ship from railway tracks on a wooden stage in the foreground.
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Nassau, Bahamas
Three men on board a sloop in the harbour at Nassau, Bahamas. The photographer is on the quayside, showing two men sitting on the cabin roof. A third man is working on something on the deck by the mast. Paradise Island is in the background.
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Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies
The beach and waterfront at Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies. A woman is sitting on the bulwark of a rowing boat drawn up under the trees and the beach is backed by a dense growth of palm trees and other vegetation. The single storey Growers Co-operative Association building has a crowd of people in front of it and a number of rowing boats in the water by the pier. Some of the buildings are scattered amongst the trees on the low hill beyond the landing pier.
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Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies
Three small diving boys in a locally constructed wooden rowing boat at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies
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Kingston, Jamaica
Women set up stalls to sell wickerwork and bamboo souvenir baskets, bags, hats and belts to tourists coming off the cruise ship in Kingston, Jamaica
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Tobago, West Indies
A family sits under palm trees on the shore of Tobago, with a cruise ship in the distance
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Kingstown, St. Vincent and Grenadines
Looking out to sea from the shore at a cruise ship moored at Kingstown in St. Vincent and Grenadines. A large tree is on the right, with a family of four people standing by its trunk. Two rowing boats are drawn up on shore
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Nassau, Bahamas
Two men in a boat at Nassau, Bahamas. One looks prepared to dive in to the water, with the other balancing behind him in the stern of the boat
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Nassau, Bahamas
Men and boats on the foreshore at Nassau, Bahamas. Three men in the foreground have stopped work to look at the cameraman. A two wheeled cart drawn by a horse is on the left
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Nassau, Bahamas
A pile of sponges on the quayside at Nassau, Bahamas
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Nassau, Bahamas
Men transfer liquor from a motor lorry to a schooner at the quayside at Nassau, Bahamas. Two men are aboard the schooner and three men are with the motor lorry which is numbered T.294 and belongs to Kelly's Ltd. The alcohol being transferred is Hiram Walker's Father Time Old Bourbon Whiskey
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Nassau, Bahamas
A group of women on board a single masted sloop in the harbour at Nassau, Bahamas. They are on the stern of the boat and one of them is holding a baby
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Nassau, Bahamas
A horse and cart on the quayside at Nassau, Bahamas. Men by a 2-wheeled handcart are on the right and a passenger motor launch is alongside the quay advertising trips to Victoria Beach. The photographer is looking north across the harbour to Paradise Island
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Saint Barthelemy, West Indies
Gustavia Harbour on the west coast of Saint Barthelemy, West Indies. People are gathered by a stone landing pier on the left and three donkeys with pannier packs are in the foreground. The negative is captioned 'St. Bartholamew'
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Saint Barthelemy, West Indies
Small boats drawn up on shore on the coast of Saint Barthelemy, West Indies. There are three rowing boats and one slightly larger boat which carries a sail and is named Jeanne D'Arc
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St. Kitts, West Indies
A small boatyard on the waterfront at Basseterre, St. Kitts, West Indies
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St. Kitts, West Indies
A donkey cart on the waterfront at Basseterre, St. Kitts, West Indies
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St. Lucia, West Indies
An aerial view of the harbour at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies. The photographer is looking north from high ground to the south. The main town is beyond the trees in the foreground
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St. Lucia, West Indies
The wharf at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies. The photographer is looking along the wharf at a group of men standing by a schooner. rowing boat alongside the wharf is named Silver Dollar
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St. Lucia, West Indies
Two boys in very small boats alongside each other in Castries harbour, St. Lucia, West Indies. The boys can only just fit in the boats and one of the boats is named Winterlark. The negative is captioned 'Boys will be boys'
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St. Lucia, West Indies
Castries harbour in St. Lucia, West Indies. The photographer is looking along the quay showing five rowing boats waiting for trade and one is named Bluebird. People are on both sides of an iron railing fence and a police sergeant is in the foreground. A wooden shed on the quay has a scrawled notice on it reading 'Ride the boat Ohio to the bathing beach'. To the left of centre are the premises of Carasco & Son and in the background is the Government Office
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St. Lucia, West Indies
Castries harbour in St. Lucia, West Indies. The photographer is looking from the cruise ship passenger landing place across to the quay showing three rowing boats waiting for trade. Tourists and locals are on the quay, the right hand end of which has workmen and a cement mixer on it.
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St. Lucia, West Indies
A small dinghy under sail off Castries harbour in St. Lucia, West Indies
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St. Lucia, West Indies
The Castries River and the cemetery at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies. The Castries River is partly contained within concrete walls and has a line of palm trees on the right
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St. Lucia, West Indies
A small lug rigged dinghy under sail in the outer harbour at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies
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St. Lucia, West Indies
Boys in the water at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies
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St Lucia, West Indies
A swimmer in his rowing boat alongside a passenger cruise ship in the outer harbour at Castries, St. Lucia, West Indies. 'Diving boys' would dive to retrieve coins thrown into the water by passengers on board cruise ships
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St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies
The coastline at Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies. The photographer is looking south from the passenger landing stage showing crowds of people on the beach and the waterfront road on the left
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St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies
The waterfront at Kingstown, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies. The top of the square tower of St. George's Cathedral is to the left of centre and forested hills are in the background
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Tobago, West Indies
The landing pier at Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies with the cruise ship Orford in the distance. A large crowd is gathered and a motor car is parked on Customs Street.
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Tobago, West Indies
The beach and waterfront at Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies
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Tobago, West Indies
The waterfront near Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies. The photographer is on a shore excursion from the cruise ship Orontes and is looking along the top of the beach, showing rowing boats and a small motor speedboat drawn up under the palm trees
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Tobago, West Indies
The waterfront at Scarborough, Tobago, West Indies. The photographer is on a shore excursion from the cruise ship Orontes and is looking along the beach, showing the waterfront buildings on the western side of the settlement including a Shell garage
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Port of Spain, Trinidad
The waterfront at Port of Spain, Trinidad, with the lighthouse in the centre
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Trinidad
An unidentified part of the coast of Trinidad. The photographer is looking along the shoreline showing two small rowing boats anchored offshore in a bay with land on the right and in the background. A couple of small buildings are partially hidden by trees just above the high water mark. This is probably the coast to the west of Carenage or to the east of La Brea
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Port of Spain, Trinidad
A Trinidadian seaman in uniform standing at the stern of a vessel off Port of Spain, Trinidad. He is probably a crewman of a customs or harbour master's vessel
Music and memory
Discover playlists created by members of the Caribbean Social Forum as part of the Memories of the Caribbean reminiscence project.
Partners and supporters
In 2021, the National Maritime Museum and Caribbean Social Forum were awarded funding by the Windrush Fund to deliver a project celebrating and commemorating the contributions of the Windrush Generation to British society. One part of this project was the development of culturally specific reminiscence resources, created in partnership and inspired by the collections of the National Maritime Museum.
A working group of members from the Caribbean Social Forum was facilitated by Urban Dandelion, with museum staff support, to explore the Waterline Collection, visit The Prince Philip Maritime Collections Centre, and to ultimately develop a reminiscence resource made up of activities, prompts and objects. The group selected the themes and discussed activities, prompts and objects over a series of workshops.
The final resource covers childhood in the 1940s and 50s, the journeys many took to come to England, settling in England, food and music. It's made up of objects that can be touched, looked at, smelled and listened to. Everything in the resource will support sharing, in turn ensuring people living with dementia feel valued.
