T. A. Marryshow

Who is T. A. Marryshow?

Theophilus Albert Marryshow, remembered across the Caribbean as the "Father of the West Indies Federation," was born in Grenada on 7 November 1887, the son of a small cocoa farmer. Orphaned early in life, he was raised by his godmother and educated first at a Roman Catholic primary school and later at a Methodist school. He entered journalism as sub-editor of the St George's Chronicle and Grenada Gazette in 1908, and in the years that followed co-founded the newspaper The West Indian with C. F. P. Renwick to campaign for closer political union among the British Caribbean territories. In 1918 he established the Representative Government Association, which petitioned the British government to allow elected representation in Grenada's Legislative Council, and in 1921 he traveled to London at his own expense to press the case, a mission that led to the Wood Commission. Marryshow was elected to represent the St George's constituency for 33 consecutive years and helped organize early regional integration conferences, including one held in Barbados in 1929. He lived to see the West Indies Federation formally established in 1958, calling it his dream come true, and died later that same year, before the Federation dissolved in 1962.

Sources: T.A. Marryshow, Wikipedia biographical entry (cross-checked) · Caribbean Elections, "Theophilus Albert Marryshow" biography · Caribbean Life, "Father of West Indies Federation"