Notes on Sports and Community Life in the North End Neighbourhood

Creator: Ella Jean Downs Wilson

 

Date: Notes begun: 2009 (August 2). Document completed: July 12, 2018.

 

Provenance: Ella Jean Archives. This document forms part of the personal notes and recollections compiled by Ella Jean Downs Wilson and given to The Corn Islands Virtual Library to be preserved.

 

Physical Description: 1 handwritten sheet on paper. Pencil. Recto only.

 

Language: English (Creole-influenced). Original spelling and grammar retained.

 

Scope and Content

This document is a handwritten page (identified as Part 2) containing notes on sports, recreation, leadership, and community life in the North End neighbourhood of Corn Island. The content reflects collective memory and oral history, emphasizing youth activities, social organization, notable individuals, and community achievements.

The notes describe recreational practices such as horseback riding and dramatics, community involvement in church life, sports leadership, and the emergence of athletes who later gained regional or national recognition. The document also highlights the North End as a centre of civic importance, cultural activity, and leadership.

The writing is informal and list-based, suggesting it functioned as a memory record rather than a finished narrative. Several statements are presented without dates, corroboration, or full contextual detail.

 

Subjects documented include:

-Recreational activities among North End youth, including horse riding, moonlight riding, and dramatic performances.

Note: Dates and organizers of these activities are not specified.

-Community members Rachel and Ralie Prince, noted for involvement in dramatic arts and church activities

Note: Further biographical details are not provided.

-Boxing figures associated with the North End, including Mr. Baldo McLean, also referenced as Candido Johnson, known by the nickname “Samson of the Atlantic Coast”.

Note: Dates, competitions, and titles are not recorded.

-Recognition of the North End as producing outstanding sports figures.

Note: The specific sport referenced in one line is unclear due to handwriting.

-Football players associated with the North End neighbourhood, including Olive Brown, Alta Hooker, Muriel Bryan, Marie Rigby, and Clarindo Downs

Note: Levels of play and dates are not specified.

-Reference to a theatre (show house) located in the North End

Note: Operational dates and ownership are not included.

-Identification of the first home of the Civic Club as being in the North End neighbourhood

Note: Dates and organizational details are absent.

-Statement that the North End housed five mayors.

Note: Names, terms, and dates are not listed.

-Claim that the first two baseball players from Corn Island to sign with the Nicaraguan league originated from the North End neighbourhood: Deston Rigby and Reinald Downs

Note: League names, years, and teams are not specified.

 

A directional arrow at the bottom of the page suggests continuation or linkage to another section or page.

 

Administrative / Biographical Note

Ella Jean Downs Wilson is a living community knowledge holder whose writings document cultural expression, sports history, oral tradition, and lived community memory of the Corn Islands. Her notes preserve information often absent from formal written records and reflect intergenerational knowledge transmission.

 

Conditions of Use

For research, educational, and cultural preservation purposes. Attribution to Ella Jean Downs Wilson and The Corn Islands Virtual Library is required.

 

Preferred Citation

Ella Jean Downs Wilson. Notes on Sports and Community Life in the North End Neighborhood. 2009–2018. The Corn Islands Virtual Library.