Mullins River
| Mullins River | |
|---|---|
 Mullins River
|
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| Coordinates: 17°06′N 88°18′W / 17.100°N 88.300°W | |
| Country |
 Belize
|
| District | Stann Creek District |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 198 |
| Time zone | Central (UTC-6) |
| Climate | Af |
Mullins River is the name of both a river and of a village on that river in the Stann Creek District of Belize.
The village of Mullins River is located at the mouth of the river of the same name on the coast of the Caribbean Sea, north of Dangriga. At the time of the 1904 census Mullins River had a population of 243 people, but by 2000 the population had dwindled to 198.
Mullins River was the locus of early missionary activity in 19th century Belize. Some Omoa residents from Spanish Honduras had settled there after the accession of the liberal Morazán to power in Honduras in 1830 In 1832 Fray Antonio began to work among them, building “a small Catholic chapel that was served intermittently by a Catholic priest.” This was the first Catholic chapel in Belize in modern times. In 1836 Fray Rubio from Bacalar replaced Fray Antonio.
During 1830 Baptist minister James Bourne began visiting Mullins River and Stann Creek. He reported the population of each of the communities as about 100. By 1832 the number had grown to 500. In November 1834 Methodists Thomas Jefferies and John Greenwood had arrived in Mullins River and by 1836 had a chapel and school.
In the mid-1800s, Mullins River was a village of Creole and Spanish people. The Creoles resided in Belize Town and maintained small plantations at Mullins River, which they visited occasionally. The Spanish tended to move between Mullins River itself and Spanish Town, a nearby settlement of immigrants.
In 1840 Apolonia Mejia brought to Mullins River from the Shrine of Nuestro Señor de Esquipulas in southern Guatemala the image of the crucified black Christ. The image was exposed in church for festivities during her life and donated to the church after her death, becoming “an object of public veneration ever since. Pilgrimages have been started from various points of the colony to visit the sacred image.”
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Wikipedia