The Conch Shell House still stands

Mike Henderson stands outside the Conch Shell
House

Friday, November 12, 2004

The Conch Shell House was flooded with more than five feet of water in the recent Hurricane, but it is still standing as it has done for almost seventy years, on the North Sound Road.

Mike and Ginger Henderson, the owners, explained that the water entered from the back and also through the roof which was damaged during Ivan’s visit.

The gardens also suffered when the storm brought down several trees including breadfruits and mangoes.

“The garden is still open to the public,” said Mr Henderson, “but the house is a private residence. We have had some tourists around recently but the signs that the Tourist Department put up when they built the shell house monument, in front of our house, have blown down. 

It would be good for the signs to be replaced especially as tourists have started visiting the grounds again.”

The Conch Shell House where Mr and Mrs Henderson live with their 4 cats and 6 parrots, dates back to 1935, and served as a bomb depot for the US Navy during the Second World War.

In 1973, Mike Henderson refurbished the property, and has since added a carport and family room to the original layout. 

The conch shells were cleaned and covered with transparent lacquer to preserve their wonderful pinkish pigment.

   Back...