Water Riots

The 1903 water riots took place at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago. As a result of the riots, the Red House, which was the seat of the Executive and Legislative Council was destroyed.

Following the building of national waterworks infrastructure, the Government passed an ordinance that increased the cost of water. A number of public meetings had been held to protest the increase, culminating in a demonstration on 23 March in Brunswick Square, located outside the Red House. Protesters threw rocks at the building, smashing windows (including a historical stained glass window commemorating the arrival of Christopher Columbus) and causing members of the legislature to hide under tables for protection. The protesters then set the lower floor on fire, at which time police opened fire on the crowd, killing sixteen people, and injuring forty-two others. The fire completely gutted the Red House.

References

• 1903:Riots Over Water Prices: In Our Pages:100, 75 and 50 Years Ago. International Herald Tribune, 25 March 2003.
• Mahoney, Michael (November 1, 2013). "The Trinidad Water Riots of 1903". The National Archives. Retrieved September 26, 2015.