A run-down structure standing on Ross Road once served as an important institution in Freetown’s history. Fourah Bay College’s original building, now a national monument, has evolved several times since its creation in 1845. The evolution of this iron-trimmed, four-story building made of laterite blocks in many ways represents Freetown’s own evolution. What began as Western effort of ideological expansion became a center of West African educational and societal advancement. The effects of the Sierra Leone Civil War in 1999 and a fire shortly afterward have left the building in poor condition. Today, it serves only as a reminder of its past cultural significance.

In 1827, the Anglican Church Missionary Society (CMS) created a grammar school in Freetown known as The Christian Institution, then developed it into a training center for ministers. Its name changed to Fourah Bay College when this building’s 1845 construction began in the Clinetown neighborhood under the supervision of its first principal, by Rev. Edward Jones, an African-American from Charleston who graduated from Amherst College. Timber from slave ships was repurposed to form the building’s roof. In this way, the journey of the Liberated Africans was represented as a story of resilience and prosperity. Imported glass fashioned its many windows, including dormers on the top floor.

Its first student was Samuel Ajayi Crowther (ca. 1809-1891), a Nigerian-born Yoruba enslaved when he was about twelve, and rescued by the British Royal Navy’s West African Squadron for resettlement in Freetown. Fourah Bay emphasized Classical studies, and Crowther studied Greek and Latin, as well as Temne. He taught at the school for some time, then became a missionary in Nigeria, famed for his Yoruba translation of the Bible. His facility for languages led him to also create primers in Nupe and Igbo, and he became West Africa’s first Anglican bishop, completing a doctorate at Oxford University. Christian Cole, another Fourah Bay graduate, had already become Oxford’s first African graduate in 1876. He later became the first African lawyer practicing in the English court system. Numerous other Yoruba graduates of the school became prominent missionaries and education leaders in Nigeria.

CMS was responsible for the management and cultural metamorphosis of the Liberated Africans, freed West and Central Africans the British transported to the colony from their interceptions of other nations’ slave ships, once they had ended their own participation and began to suppress the slave trade.

CMS felt it imperative that the new British colony be founded on Christian morals and Western traditions and intended that Fourah Bay College should serve as a self-supporting Christian center, served by members of Sierra Leone’s own clergy. Fourah Bay College drew students from other colonies, including what are now the nations of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, and Nigeria.

Eventually, Freetown developed into a stronger community as the Krio settlers—freedman of mixed African backgrounds who left British colonies in North America and the Caribbean, as well as London itself—and Liberated Africans began to intermingle. This growing sense of unity motivated CMS to advance further, and educational issues became a topic of discussion. Citizens desired a place of learning where one could obtain a full university degree. In 1874, Reverend Henry Seddall documented the impact of higher education on society. He stated that “educated Africans are beginning to long slip away from their European leading strings, and they are proving themselves perfectly capable of discharging all their duties as citizens, and as Christians without foreign aid.”

In 1876, the college became an affiliate of England’s University of Durham, and it remained the only West African tertiary educational institution until World War II. Those Freetown citizens who were former slaves or their descendants had entered a new class of educated elite.

Fourah Bay College’s legacy was significant throughout Anglophone West Africa, since many of its graduates established educational institutions in Nigeria and elsewhere. The British colonial government did not establish even an elementary school in Sierra Leone until 1908, so the CMS and other missionary efforts spoke to a cooperation between church and civic efforts for development.

During WWII, the university was temporarily relocated to S. B. Thomas Agricultural Academy outside Freetown, then was moved to former army barracks in the Mt. Aureol neighborhood of Freetown from 1945 until 1962, where its current buildings were constructed.

The university’s move away from Clinetown changed the original building’s function. In 1945, it became the Sierra Leone Railway Corporation’s headquarters, then in 1980 served as a Magistrate Court, falling out of use a decade later. During the Sierra Leonean civil war, it housed citizens displaced by the conflict.

Since 1999, it has remained a roofless ruin, although squatters made their home there, despite missing wooden floors and board windows. The Bunce Island Coalition, a group that proposes to restore that island’s slave fort, had wanted to use the building for a future museum about the slave trade, but has abandoned these plans.

Since 2012, the Sierra Leonean Office of the Minister of Tourism and Cultural Affairs has sought to have the building placed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list, but it remains on the “tentative list.” In late 2017, the Sierra Leonean Monuments and Relics Commission—which had remained moribund for some time after the civil war—cleaned the site, removing vines and other vegetation that were attacking the building’s surface. Unfortunately, they have returned and are actively destroying the structure. The laterite stone is breaking down due to chemical weathering because of heavy rainfall, high temperatures, high humidity, and the salty air from the nearby ocean.

Hope that restoration funding will be forthcoming remains alive.

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The Residency was the home of the British colonial Resident in Kumase, initially sited next to the Fort, the administrative and military center. First erected temporarily in 1895/96 from wood, by 1896 it had transformed into a three-story stone building. The upper two stories had wrap-around verandahs, typical of British colonial style. Both verandahs and the elevated site it stood on allowed surveillance over much of the town. These first two incarnations of the Residency were part of the palisaded military compound of the Kumase Fort, erected during a period when colonization was still shaky.

The granite used for its construction had come from the coast, transported by Asantehene Kofi Karikari for his stone Aban. After its destruction, the stones had been stored on the hill above the Muslim Zongo community, but were moved back to be mortored together again. Glass windows were imported, and the building included four similarly-sized rooms on the first two floors, with a large central entry and staircase. Construction costs for the more permanent structure amounted to 13,816 pounds, the equivalent of over $2 million today. Home to both acting and permanent Residents, it was also the site of palaver discussions with Asante chiefs during the exile of Asantehene Prempeh II.

In 1900, both the Residency and the rest of the fort compound were filled with the British, their employees, missionaries, Hausa forces, allies, and some Asante hostages during a two-month siege prompted by the Governor's demand for the Golden Stool. Governor Hodgson and his wife, who had been visiting Kumase, stayed in the Residency during this period, as did two officers, three doctors, and two mining engineers, while others were housed in the fort, outbuildings and the gardens. As they awaited military relief, Armitage noted, "there would be a rush to the top room of the Residency, where every one would stand at the windows listening and looking intently at the tree-tops, far below which the Cape Coast road wound along." Dinner and tea parties with limited rations, as well as card games, were directed by Lady Hodgson as the conflict continued. The siege's end marked a British consolidation of power in Kumase.

From 1922-24, a new Residency was built further from the fort--though still in an elevated area--the need for defense abrogated by a now firmly established colonial presence. This broader two-story structure included multiple arched loggias on its ground floor, echoed by the second floor terrace's arcaded balustrade. Several wings expanded its size, the overall effect emphasizing the imposing. Freed from military associations, its increased grandeur spoke to cultural imperialism and both social and physical distance from the bulk of the town's citizens.

It had become the pinnacle of British social life in Kumase. Queen Victoria's granddaughter, Princess Marie Louise, stayed at the Residency during several points of her 1925 Gold Coast tour. She referred to it as "charming, a really comfortable house," noting its "luxury" of electric lighting and fans, soft carpets, upholstered chairs, gardens, and newly laid-out trees.

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In 1817, Asantehene Osei Tutu Kwame Asiba Bonsu relayed his dreams of a new palace to Bowdich, the first European to reach Kumase. The structure would have a brass roof and be built on ivory columns, with gold and silver lining the windows and door. These dreams, stoked by conversations with his Muslim advisors from the north, were still on his mind three years later, when he talked to the British consul, Joseph Dupuis.

Although the monarch continued to refer to brass and ivory, his attention had turned to the European coastal forts for inspiration. He had begun construction, but had shifted his plans for brass, gold, and ivory to the interior, stating, “I am building a fort like Cape Coast Castle; but I shall make it very high that I may look out and see all the town.” His intention was to subvert European perceptions for political reasons, for he added, "Now white men know me, I must live in a great house as white kings do; then I shall not be ashamed when more white people come."

The structure was made of stone that had to be brought by hand from the coast, and its foreignness was underlined by its height, which dwarfed even two-storied earthen structures. It did not begin to approach Cape Coast Castle or any of the other forts in size, but included a tower, paved inner courtyard, far more shuttered windows than most Asante structures, several staircases, and decorative balustrades at three levels. In addition, its flat roof stood in contrast to the sharply pitched thatch of surrounding palace buildings, allowing for elevated viewing. Along with the earthen palace buildings that surrounded it, it stood behind a palisade fence of lashed bamboo-like posts.

Upon its completion in 1822, the Asantehene named it after King George IV, the reigning British monarch, and Dupuis suggested suitable sacrifices for its dedication, supplying a silk British flag to fly. Though he wrote about it as "a private token of friendship," it is difficult to believe a state envoy would see it as anything other than a sign of conquest, despite Britain's continued struggles with the Asante.

Two new Asantehenes followed. Kwaku Dua I was on the throne during an 1839 visit by Methodist missionary Thomas Birch Freeman. The fort, known by its Twi name, Aban, was still the only stone structure in Kumase. in 1841, Freeman compared its size to one of "the small villas in the vicinity of London," and noted a table bearing 31 gold-handled swords, as well as others with the ruler's gold-covered drinking calabashes or imported glassware, gold chains, and nuggets.

In 1872, Asantehene Kofi Karikari requested the British governor at the coast send him chalk and oil colors to refurbish the "stone house." The monarch soon directed his paroled prisoner, Rev. Frederick Ramseyer, to build him an additional two-story European-style house--this time from sun-dried brick--with a crew of Fante workers. Heavy rains later that year, however, damaged both the new house and the stone Aban.

By 1874, Kofi Karikari's conflicts with the British resulted in the latter's successful invasion of Kumase and the British collection of gold dust and other loot from the palace and chiefs' homes. Stanley remarked that the Aban's rooms were "lofty and commodious, and those occupied by his Majesty are furnished with European and native articles. The presents he has been continually receiving diplomatically have assisted in supplying him with unusual luxuries. Pictures adorn the walls; sumptuous sofas are ranged round his walls; thick carpets cover his floors; his tables are loaded with a thousand costly knick-knacks."

Stanley inventoried the items found on the upper floors of the Aban, which he considered the Asantehene's residence. They included gold nuggets, locally-made gold jewelry, stools, gold-decorated rifles, and linguist staffs. European goods were varied, ranging from silver flatware to porcelain and Delftware, carpets to an oil painting and prints.

Boyle observed that "the palace is apparently used as a treasure-house exclusively. The King prefers his native architecture, which is not without elegance," noting the monarch's earthen residence, site of his bedroom, stood immediately behind the Aban; Sir Garnet Wolseley, who led the British troops placed the Asantehene's bedroom and four-poster bed in the Aban itself.

In the stone house, Boyle saw Dutch engravings, a magic lantern, an ivory ship's model, and busts of the Duke of Wellington, as well as silver-decorated calabashes, velvet state umbrellas, and four gold "masks", (Stanley recorded seven) which were actually ornaments. In addition, the shaded courtyard area stored his palm wine, champagne, and brandy.

Some of the booty--the Asantehene's wives' ornaments, two of his gold pipes, a silver coffeepot, and a sword from Queen Victoria--was packed up and taken to Cape Coast where it sold for between 5000-6000 pounds (in the neighborhood of half a million 2017 dollars). Other valuables were considered part of the indemnity paid to the Crown by the defeated monarch, and the famed Garrard jewelry house auctioned them in London.

Wolseley destroyed the Aban with dynamite and had the town torched. He stated, "I believe that the result will be such a diminution in the prestige and military power of the Ashantee monarch as may result in the break-up of the kingdom altogether."

The city's recovery from the 1874 conflagration was slow. Although some palace buildings were rebuilt or refurbished, the stone structure was not. Some of its stones were salvaged and stored xxx, and in 1897 they were incorporated in both the newly-built Residency and Fort, which shared a wall. Henderson noted, however, that most of the Fort itself was built from bricks. This structure spoke to both the permanence the British hope they had achieved in their occupation of Kumase, as well as their unease regarding the current political situation. After the 1874 war, his counselors forced Asantehene Kofi Karikari to resign. Several brief reigns and regencies followed, until internal conflicts were resolved and the teen-aged Asantehene Prempeh I was enstooled in 1888. Britain tried to coerce him into agreeing to a Protectorate, and his repeated refusals led to an 1896 invasion and annexation, as well as Prempeh I's deposition and arrest. The fort and residency together marked the center of Kumase's colonization, both militarily and administratively.

The Fort had a deep well and storage buildings, but its most notable features were its gun towers, their corrugated roofs painted white, with wooden roofs and an air space under the metal--the whole designed to create a cooler vantage point. Henderson noted that all "the arrangements are admirably adapted to enable the guns and Maxims [ a mounted rapid-fire machine gun invented in 1883] with which it is provided to sweep a space which has been cleared all around it."

On March 25, 1900 Kumase saw the first visit of the Governor of the Gold Coast, Sir. F. M. Hodgson. He proceeded towards the fort under a triumphal arch, passing an assembly of Asante chiefs and provincial rulers who then processed past the governor, who was seated on the Residency's verandah like an emperor reviewing the troops. They reassembled three days later, when he informed them they needed to begin paying towards the 1874 indemnity demanded of Asantehene Kofi Karikari. His next statement was incendiary. As Armitage, an eyewitness, put it, "The Governor proceeded to ask where the Golden Stool was, and why it had not been given up to him as representative of the Great White Queen."

By April 2, the Asante at Bali village engaged a small British party who had come lookng for ammunition and the Golden Stool in gunfire, singing (in Armitage's "rough translation"), "The Governor came up to Kumasi on a peace palaver. He demanded money from us and sent white men to bring him the Golden Stool. Instead of money the Governor shall have the white men's heads sent to him to Kumasi. The Golden Stool should be well washed in the white men's blood."

Although they fought their way back to Kumase and the fort, the Asante were massing for war under the direction of Queen Mother Yaa Asantewaa of Ejisu, a kingdom about ten miles northeast of Kumase. The fort became a refuge for the Governor, his wife, a handful of British officers, missionairies, mining engineers, clerks, servants, and Asante officials (some loyal to the British, others detained by them), as well as about 500 Hausa troops and their families. Telegraph lines had already been laid in Kumase, but after a plea for reinforcements from Nigeria had been sent, the Asante cut the line. A two-month siege began. Negotiations in May included an Asante demand: the Fort should be destroyed. British reinforcements arrived in Kumase on May 15, and at the cessation of fighting Queen Mother Yaa Asantewaa was exiled to the Seychelles Islands. She died there in 1921, but when Prempeh I returned from the islands to Kumase, he had her body and those of other exiled Asante who had died returned to Kumase for proper burial.

The fort continued to house colonial military forces, although unfortified barracks were built nearby, until 1952-53, when the British Army converted the structure into a military museum. It became a Ghanaian museum at the country's 1957 independence, and its exhibits consist of arms and related objects, many confiscated during wars with other nations. Swords, tanks, planes, photographs, and other military memorabilia from Ghana, Italy, Japan, and elsewhere.

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When the British allowed Asantehene Prempeh I to return from exile in the Seychelles Islands and resume his position as "Kumasihene" (a term that attempted to limit his sovereignty to Kumase), their former actions left him no palace to return to. Upon his return in 1924, he took up temporary quarters in the new neighborhood known as Asafo. The British decided a "bungalow" in their own style would be most suitable, and planned to build it in Manhyia, rather than in the old palace site of Adum, which has since been commercialized.

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St. Matthew's Cathedral is part of the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion, and the oldest surviving church in Benin. It opened in 1902, just after the Church Missionary Society (CMS) established itself in the city. The land for the church was donated by a convert, Madam Arokunbo Ovoranmwen,  one of Oba Ovoranmwen's widows, for it had been the site of her father's house. Interest in Christianity increased rapidly; in only its sixth year of operation, it witnessed 85 baptisms. 

The Cathedral's basilica form is flanked by twin belltowers, a typical floorplan for Christian churches, but its hasty erection meant its form was streamlined, without the decorative features that marked its counterparts in EuropeAt the time it was built, however, it was the tallest structure in the city, giving it architectural primacy. It became the royal church in 1931, when Oba Eweka II began to attend regular, a habit continued by Oba Akenzua II, who held a thanksgiving service at St. Matthew's the day after his coronation. At least nine additional Anglican churches are now in Benin, as well as numerous Catholic, Protestant, and Pentecostal Christian churches. 

Its associated school, the St. Matthew's CMS Day School, was the only mission-run educational institution in Benin for a decade; with only one public elementary school (the first public secondary school in Benin did not open until 1937). Western education in the city lagged far behind that of western Nigeria, where the British had established a Board of Education in Lagos as early as 1877. 

St. Matthew's marks a memorable location, for the land near it marks the current dynasty's takeover of the inner city in the 14th century. Oba Ewedo, the dynasty's fourth ruler, came to terms with the city's republican leader Chief Ogiamien after a battle between their two forces. Their agreement took place at Ekiopagha market by St. Matthew's. Until Oba Ewuare II's 2016 coronation, the treaty between the Oba and the incumbent Chief Ogiamien was reenacted a week after every coronation. its location had marked a border of sorts between the territories until the indigenes, led by Chief Ogiamien, and the area nominally controlled by the monarchy. The initial treaty acknowledged the sovereignty of the Oba and he established his palace within the city.

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