Whitewater Village is a community in Region One, Barima-Waini, just a few miles from the border with Venezuela. The community was established in the 1970s by a group of farming families from the Warrau tribe, who had been living on the border. The founding members included Phelomina David, Theresa David, Paul Daniels, Nash Thompson and Leonard Cyrus. The first Toshao – or what was known as Captain at that time – was Lewis Salvador.
The families used the settlement as a secondary, inland base, where they farmed, selling their produce to the Venezuelans. The crops cultivated in those days included paddy and corn but the residents have since diversified their activities. After the community grew in size, they decided to take up permanent residence in Whitewater , which is named after the creek which flows through it. In those days, there were no roads connecting the residents to the other satellite communities throughout the region, so boats were used to get around and transport some of their produce through the forest terrain.
The current Toshao, Ernest Samuels told Sunday Stabroek that Whitewater’s history is commemorated constantly. The fifth generation Toshao said that stories are told at family gatherings and community gatherings which are held frequently, since it’s a small, close-knit community. The village in its early days had a population of