Ussher Fort, formerly called Fort Crevecoeur, is a component of the serial World Heritage property Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1979. It is also on the Mutual Heritage List established jointly by the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB) and the Netherlands Department of Conservation.
The fort was built by the Dutch in 1649 and is located in Accra, the capital of Ghana. It has a rich history of having been a trade post, slave dungeon, a police post and a prison. It was also used for military detention and served as a court Marshall unit, and a refugee camp for both Liberians and South Sudanese at some period in time. Most recently, it has been housing a museum of slavery that has been temporarily closed since 2014.
It has long been in urgent need of repair and through the rehabilitation and restoration of structures in the fort, this project contributes to having a safe, accessible and sustainable World Heritage property in order to ensure its effective protection for now and posterity as per the 1972 UNESCO World Heritage Convention on the Protection of Cultural and Natural Heritage.
Funded by the Netherlands through the Netherlands Funds-in-Trust (NFiT), the project seeks to enhance the experience of visitors in the museum and Accra in general as well as strengthen the capacities of GMMB staff and selected community members from Ussher and James towns in methods of preventive conservation. It also contributes to the ongoing preparation of a management plan for the Forts and Castles of Ghana, which is funded by the International Assistance under the World Heritage Fund.
The project culminated with the inauguration of the Ussher Fort Museum on June 8th 2021.
More information
- Partners
Ministry of Education, Culture and Sciences of the Netherlands
Ghana Museums and Monuments Board (GMMB)
- Resources
UNESCO supports Ghana for Forts and Castles management plan
Forts and Castles, Volta, Greater Accra, Central and Western Regions - COVID-19 management
Report on the joint World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM Reactive monitoring mission to the Forts and Castles
- Articles
UNESCO hands over equipment for rehabilitation of Ussher Fort Slavery Museum | Ghana News Agency
