San Fernando Public Library

San Fernando Public Library Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from San Fernando Public Library, Library, Harris Promenade, San Fernando.

The Carnegie Free Library was established in 1919, after philanthropist Andrew Carnegie donated 2500 pounds for the construction of the building on land provided by the Mayor of San Fernando.

01/09/2025

Please be advised of the closure of NALIS' San Fernando West Indian Reference Library from August 04, 2025.

🙏🏽We’re grateful for the encouragement and engagement as we’ve traveled through the folklore and legends of Trinidad tog...
23/08/2025

🙏🏽We’re grateful for the encouragement and engagement as we’ve traveled through the folklore and legends of Trinidad together.🌿

The last few posts will wrap things up for now, but the series will be back hopefully later this year.

Until then, you can continue the journey with new stories every Friday on the writer’s page here: https://www.facebook.com/share/1C2647aC3R/

🌿Folklore Fridays: Back from the Dead—Waking up at your own funeral. A story from Caratal, Gasparillo (1940s)..............
23/08/2025

🌿Folklore Fridays: Back from the Dead—Waking up at your own funeral. A story from Caratal, Gasparillo (1940s)....................................
Jocelyn Trapp recalled a chilling tale from the 1940s her father would often tell, a story that had haunted her since childhood. Set in Caratal, Gasparillo... a quiet place with a restless past. A village that had seen more than its share of strange and unsettling occurrences since the Plein Palais Riots of 1832.....................................
It was about a man named Leonard, a shoemaker by trade, remembered by all as kind-hearted and generous.

"Deh used to call him Lennie," Jocelyn began, “Full name Leonard Wilkinson, an' he was a shoemaker. Everybody had known him as a good man. So when he died, a good bit of people an' more show up to de funeral in Caratal. It was big he say, plenty drummin', plenty singin'... de man was well loved.”

But as the celebration rose, one woman fell into fervent prayer. Her voice grew louder, trembling, until her body began to shake violently. She groaned and twitched, her cries piercing through the rhythm of the drums. Then, without warning, a scream tore through the air... a scream so sharp it silenced not only the mourners, but the drummers, and even the birds in the trees.

All eyes turned to the coffin.

"Yuh know Lennie get up!" Jocelyn remarked, " He sit up in his coffin lookin' like he jus' wake up from ah good sleep."

His eyes fluttered open, glazed and distant, his face a mask of confusion as though he had been wrenched back without warning. Gasps and shrieks erupted, people scattered in terror, stumbling over each other in their haste to flee. Some remained frozen in place, rooted in shock, unable to believe what they were seeing.

"After all that madness," Jocelyn continued, her eyes beaming, "I hear Lennie collapse later that day an' dead again... this time for true. People was frighten, vex, confuse, all kinda thing. Deh used to say he come back jus' to see who come his funeral."

The second funeral was nothing like the first. There was no music, no drumming, no celebration of his life. It was a hushed, uneasy gathering. This time, only his children came to lay him to rest, and even they said little.

Joycelyn shifted in her seat, a trace of sadness in her eyes as her tale wound to its close. It was clear she had relished every moment of telling it.

"Dad used to always bring it up, every so often. He had plenty stories, but this one always had me goin'. Maybe since it was so close to home." ...................................
Have you heard of similar stories? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

⚠️Want more stories, recordings, and documented accounts like this? Follow the writer’s page here for much more:
https://www.facebook.com/share/1C2647aC3R/

🌿Folklore Fridays: Mermaids - An Encounter ("Down D Islands"- 1997)................................................I sat...
22/08/2025

🌿Folklore Fridays: Mermaids - An Encounter ("Down D Islands"- 1997)................................................
I sat across from Charles Hammond, watching him gather his thoughts. What he was about to tell me wasn’t easy, it was the kind of story you hold close, unsure if anyone would believe. An encounter in 1997 he still wrestles to accept, yet recalls with striking clarity.................................................
Charles loved the ocean. It had shaped his life, carved him into the man he was. He had worked the oil rigs off Trinidad, sailed the shipping lanes, and spent countless hours diving beneath its surface. The sea was his constant.

When friends suggested a lime “Down D Islands,” Charles packed light, but one thing he refused to leave behind was his scuba gear. While they planned for drinks and laughter, he planned for depth and silence.

"Was a great opportunity to explore," Charles began with a wry grin, "Yes well that is what I get."

That afternoon, off Monos Island, the water was calm, yet stained with a greenish haze that turned everything below into a dream half-lit. From beneath, he could see the boat’s shadow on the sea floor. A turtle glided by. A small barracuda followed curiously. Below, the seabed pulsed with quiet life.

Then he noticed it, an octopus crawling lazily. He followed, drifting deeper. The light thinned, water turning darker, heavier. Then it struck him. He was not alone. The certainty wrapped around his neck like cold hands.

He scanned the gloom, mask fogging faintly with each sharp breath. At first, nothing. Then...movement. A shadow gliding fast to his left, too quick, too vague. He blinked against his mask, trying to focus. It was gone.

He folded back to the octopus, its body shifting in colour. But before his eyes settled, the shadow swept past him again, this time at incredible speed to his right. His heart pushed against the straps.

The shadow halted directly in front of him. At first it was nothing more than a blur. Then it began to hold shape.

It hovered in the water, not more than fifteen feet away. A silhouette, half-hidden by the green gloom. There was a long, sleek, tail of a fish, which climbed into a human torso, arms and all.

Its head tilted. Human. Unmistakably human. The tilt was curious, as if it were studying him, whilst long strands of hair uncoiled with the current like black smoke.

Charles’s chest locked. Blood thundered in his ears. Too human. Majestic. Terrifying. A vision dredged out of a broken fantasy.

"De thing looked unreal," Charles claimed, "I remember startin' to tremble bad, it wasn't a nice feelin'."

For a heartbeat, the world stopped. Then, the figure twisted sharply, and with a sudden brutal flick, it bolted sideways into the dark.

Charles panicked. His body convulsed into motion as he tore upward, every stroke frantic. He broke the surface with a guttural scream, thrashing for the boat like a man who couldn't swim. His friends hauled him in, wide-eyed at his state. He told them what he had seen. A mermaid, he swore.

"They laughed at me," Charles confessed, "Tell me I probably see ah shark or some big fish that confuse me. No one believe me, but I'm sure I see what I see."

Charles gave up diving after that. Men have spent lifetimes longing for a glimpse the mythical... he had stumbled upon one. And it robbed him of his peace, instead of filling him with wonder.........................................
Have you heard of any similar stories? Share your thoughts in the comments below👇🏽

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "V"This is a tough one. 🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either...
20/08/2025

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "V"

This is a tough one.
🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either found right here in sweet T&T or, for shows, seen on local TV or loved by Trinis!

Give us a Trini—
👦 Boy’s name
👧 Girl’s name
🦝 Animal
🗺️ Place
🥑 Thing
📺 TV show

Example:
👦 Vick | 👧 Veronica | 🦇vampire bat | 🗺️ Vessigny |🚲Vicks | 📺 Vikings

Drop yours below!

⏳Throwback: 1962—Texaco, Pointe-à-Pierre. In the distance, Naparima (San Fernando) Hill can be seen.Photo found in our a...
19/08/2025

⏳Throwback: 1962—Texaco, Pointe-à-Pierre. In the distance, Naparima (San Fernando) Hill can be seen.

Photo found in our archives.
Photo Credit: TEXTRIN (1962)

🇹🇹Trinis! Have you ever used the term "bite-up"? 👀...........................................Trini Words and Phrases: "b...
18/08/2025

🇹🇹Trinis! Have you ever used the term "bite-up"? 👀...........................................
Trini Words and Phrases: "bite-up"

ℹ️ To be in an angry or quarellsome mood. A person who is unapproachable. Unfriendly. ............................................
Share your thoughts in the comments below👇🏽

📚Sources:
Winer, L. (Ed.). (2009). The Dictionary of the English/Creole of Trinidad and Tobago: On historical principles. McGill-Queen’s University Press.

Mendes, J. (Ed.). (1986). Côte ci côte la: Trinidad and Tobago dictionary. Paria Publishing

🌿Folklore Fridays: Familiar Voices-The Boy Behind the Coconut Tree. (Clarke Road, Penal-1979) .............................
15/08/2025

🌿Folklore Fridays: Familiar Voices-The Boy Behind the Coconut Tree. (Clarke Road, Penal-1979) ..............................
Ravindra Jaikaransingh wasted no time in starting. The conviction in his voice was so sure, so unyielding, his words unsettled more than it explained. ..................................
“When I was small,” he began, “Every August vacation, I'd stay by my aunt Patsy in Clarke Road. Place used to feel quiet, but not normal quiet, yuh understand?

It started one night in 1979. A sweet, soft voice. Calling his name from the darkness outside. A familiar voice, yet he couldn't place it.

He’d ask his aunt and cousins if they heard it, but they’d just laugh, told him to "relax heself." And Ravindra, shy to his bones, never dared look for the source. Not until an evening a few years later.

His mood that day was bitter, like the caraille his aunt kept forcing on him... fourth serving that week. Angry, too, that he had to stay there a little longer than he wanted. Maybe that simmering frustration gave him a burst of courage he never knew he had.

The voice came again that evening, just as the sun was about to set.

This time, he got up. Walked out the open door. The air outside was heavy, damp, and still. No wind. Insects. No sound except—

“Raaaaaavindraaaaaaaaa…”

The voice came from behind the old coconut tree.

He walked towards it, heart throbbing, bare feet sinking into the cool earth. When he rounded the tree, his lungs seized.

"It was me. I was watchin' ah next me! Yuh understand? Same face, same clothes, same everyting! It was me!"

Ravindra was face-to-face with the impossible. Neither of them moved. Each staring at each other. Time stood still. Then the other Ravindra smiled... just a little.

That broke him. He turned and bolted, ran straight inside, scuttled under the bed and stayed there until he felt safe to emerge.

They didn’t believe him then. They don’t believe him now. His voice trembled at the end his story.

“Yuh understand? Dey didn't take me on at-all at-all. Is not no joke. Wat de jail was dat? Was me… but wasn’t me. Theif-head ting boy, yuh understand?”

I did not understand.

I turned the story over like a stone in my hand, and what crawled out from beneath was no comfort. Doppelganger. Mimic. The theories festered. At some point I thought perhaps it was simply the theatre of a young mind, that uncanny gift children have for giving life to the dark. Yet Ravindra still remembers the smile, and no one has ever convinced him it wasn’t real..............................
Have you heard of any similar accounts. Share your thoughts in the comments below👇🏽

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "B"🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either found right here in ...
13/08/2025

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "B"
🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either found right here in sweet T&T or, for shows, seen on local TV or loved by Trinis!

Give us a Trini—
👦 Boy’s name
👧 Girl’s name
🦝 Animal
🗺️ Place
🥑 Thing
📺 TV show

Example:
👦 Barry | 👧 Beulah | 🐝 bee | 🗺️ Biche |🚲bike | 📺 Baywatch

Drop yours below!

🇹🇹Trinis, have you ever eaten the cascadura? Legend says that “Those who eat the cascadura are bound either to return, o...
12/08/2025

🇹🇹Trinis, have you ever eaten the cascadura?

Legend says that “Those who eat the cascadura are bound either to return, or to end your days in Trinidad.”......................................
This little armored catfish, known to science as Hoplosternum littorale, is a local celebrity. It is known also as "hassa" in Guyana, "kwi kwi" in Suriname, and the busco or currito in Venezuela.

Found in our rivers, swamps, and marshes. It is covered in hard, bony plates and sports the classic catfish whiskers. Many a pot has simmered with its tender flesh in a curry, stuffed with pigeon peas and tomatoes, and well seasoned.

By day, the cascadura keeps a low profile in shallow, muddy waters, but come night, it’s busy scavenging for insects, tiny crustaceans, and whatever tasty morsels the mud hides. It’s a survival expert, able to breathe both in water and air by using its intestine, which helps it thrive even when water levels drop. Some are known to "walk" for miles on land in order to find water.

When rainy season comes, the males build frothy nests, fiercely guarding them and the thousands of eggs inside until the hatchlings emerge just a few days later.

Whether you believe the legend or not, there’s something intriguing about this fish. To some, it’s just dinner; to others, it’s a reminder... that no matter how far you roam, the taste of home can pull you back....................................
Share your thoughts in the comments below👇🏽

Further Reading:
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/221492-Hoplosternum-littorale

📚Sources:
Winer, L. (Ed.). (2009). The Dictionary of the English/Creole of Trinidad and Tobago: On historical principles. McGill-Queen’s University Press.

🇹🇹Trinis! Have you ever been to a blocko?................................Trini Words and Phrases - "Blocko-rama" ..........
11/08/2025

🇹🇹Trinis! Have you ever been to a blocko?................................
Trini Words and Phrases - "Blocko-rama" ...........................................
ℹ️ A large, loud outdoor party held on the block (street corner) where several Disk Jockeys vie for dominance. ............................................
📚Sources:
Winer, L. (Ed.). (2009). The Dictionary of the English/Creole of Trinidad and Tobago: On historical principles. McGill-Queen’s University Press.

Mendes, J. (Ed.). (1986). Côte ci côte la: Trinidad and Tobago dictionary. Paria Publishing

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "E"🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either found right here in ...
06/08/2025

Trini Challenge Time!🎯 Today’s Letter: "E"
🤔Every answer must be something truly Trinbagonian—either found right here in sweet T&T or, for shows, seen on local TV or loved by Trinis!

Give us a Trini—
👦 Boy’s name
👧 Girl’s name
🦝 Animal
🗺️ Place
🥑 Thing
📺 TV show

Example:
👦 Eric | 👧Elma | 🦢egret | 🗺️ Erin |🥚egg | 📺 ER

Drop yours below!

Address

Harris Promenade
San Fernando

Telephone

+18686239673

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