Benzdorp | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Benzdorp Location in Suriname | |
| Coordinates:3°40′26″N54°5′6″W / 3.67389°N 54.08500°W /3.67389; -54.08500 | |
| Country |  Suriname |
| District | Sipaliwini District |
| Resort (municipality) | Tapanahony |
Benzdorp is a village in theSipaliwini District ofSuriname. It is named after the Dutch consul andbullion dealer Henry Albert Wilhelm Benz (1889–1962).[1]
The village lies in the jungle of theTapanahony resort, near theLawa River that forms theborder withFrench Guiana, an overseas region and further north, in the Marowijne. Near Benzdorp is the rapids of Oemankrassiabra.Downstream (to the North) lies the town ofCottica and upstream isAnapaike. To the east isNouveau Wakapou.[2] To the Southeast, across the Lawa River is the French Guyanesecommune ofMaripasoula.
Southwest of the village isFatu Switie, a mountain ridge with an altitude of about 375 meters.[3]
Around 1885, gold was found in this area between the Lawa and theTapanahony rivers, but because there was a disputed border between the Dutch and the French colony, the case was submitted to Russian TsarAlexander III who in May 1891 awarded the area to Suriname. In 1902, then-GovernorCornelis Lely in Suriname, decided that theLawa Railway would be built by the government. The railway line would transport gold from the Lawa area to Paramaribo. The proposed 350-kilometre (220 mi) railway line was only half completed from Paramaribo due to disappointing gold finds.[4]
Around 1974, the population of the village shrank to about 10 inhabitants.[5] More recently, gold seekers have returned to the village, including a relatively large number ofgarimpeiros (Brazilian gold miners), and it became a gold extraction area since the early 1990s. Thegarimpeiros andgowtuman (Surinamese gold miners) moved inland, founding a new village referred to as Benzdorp, though it is kilometers away from the original village Benz founded on the banks of the Lawa River (which is now called "the landing").[6] An estimated 600 people live in the contemporary Benz village, of which two thirds come from Brazil and the others aremaroons.[5]
Benzdorp is originally anAluku (or Aloekoe or Boni) village; both banks (but especially the French) of the Lawa on this height have been inhabited by the Aluku Maroons for hundreds of years. These people have been active as gold miners in this part of their habitat. The Surinamese government has the rights to gold mining in the Benz village and surroundings and has issued a concession toGrassalco, which provides contracts to the (Brazilian, Surinamese and French) gold miners for a monthly fee.[6]
In May 2006, the village was flooded when the water of the Lawa reached far beyond the banks as a result of heavy rainfall, where also many other Surinamese villages suffered from then.
On April 3, 2008, an airplane operated byBlue Wing Airlinescrashed upon landing atLawa Antino Airport near Benzdorp in which 19 people were killed. The Lawa Antino airport is 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) west of Benzdorp.
On May 17, 2013, a private helicopter fromFrench Guiana, tasked with transporting gold during an unregistered flight in the interior ofSuriname, crashed near Benzdorp gold mining settlement of Boewese, in the concession ofNaNa Resources. The pilot got injured with a leg fracture and was transferred for treatment toMaripasoula in French Guiana.[7][8][9]
3°40′26″N54°5′6″W / 3.67389°N 54.08500°W /3.67389; -54.08500