CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia CommonsLandmark· Martinique· Windward Islands
St-Pierre Ruins and Memorial of the 1902 Catastrophe
14° 44.8′ N · 61° 10.6′ W
Saint-Pierre, Martinique's capital of culture and commerce until 1902, was destroyed in two minutes by Mont Pelée's nuée ardente, killing around 28,000-30,000 people. Its blackened ruins and the Memorial museum make it the Pompeii of the Caribbean.
Practical
Position is the ruined 1786 theatre (OSM; Wikipedia), a listed monument whose auditorium still has its acoustics. Next to it is the Cachot de Cyparis, the stone cell whose walls saved prisoner Louis-Auguste Cyparis (Ludger Sylbaris), one of only a few survivors. Further along are the Église du Fort ruins (the island's first parish church, about 1640), the Maison coloniale de santé and the Figuier warehouses (OSM). The Mémorial de la Catastrophe de 1902 - Musée Frank A. Perret, founded in 1933 by the American volcanologist and now modernised, tells the story with photos, artefacts and testimony. A 2019 ActiveCaptain review mentions €8 entry with audio narration in several languages (verify locally). The Centre de Découverte des Sciences de la Terre north of town covers volcanology (Martinique tourism). Pick up a walking-tour map at the tourist office (2024 blog). Noonsite reports the Train Cyparis tour (in French; €15 in 2018, verify locally). Saint-Pierre is the only town in Martinique with the 'Ville d'Art et d'Histoire' label, awarded in 1990 (Wikipedia; Martinique tourism).
Best for
Understanding the 1902 eruption on foot from the mooring
Nearby
- Laverie Automatique (St-Pierre, Rue Bouillé)0.1 NM away
- Le Figuier (St-Pierre)0.1 NM away
- Le Fromager (St-Pierre)0.1 NM away
- Self-Service Laundry (St-Pierre North)0.1 NM away
- A Papa D'lo Dive Centre (St-Pierre)0.2 NM away
- St-Pierre Clearance Terminal0.3 NM away
- St-Pierre Market0.3 NM away
- L'Alsace à Kay (St-Pierre)0.4 NM away