Originally called Rosenweg, the White Hall is one of The Magnificent Seven (a group of mansions located at the northwest corner of Queen's Park Savannah on Maraval Road, in Port of Spain), and was built by the cocoa planter Joseph Leon Agostini. The construction began in 1904, in accordance with Agostini's own design, influenced by the Moorish Mediterranean style and the architecture of Corsica from where the Agostini family originated.
One story say that the Agostini family lived at White Hall for two years after J.L. Agostini's sudden death in 1906, and remained in residence until 1910. Other sources claim that the Agostinis never lived in the building because they couldn't afford to complete it. Anyway, in 1907 the property was sold to Robert Henderson, an American businessman from Venezuela, who took up the residence with his family, and renamed it Whitehall.
At the beginning of the WWII, with the arrival of the U.S. Forces in Trinidad, Whitehall was commandeered and occupied as the headquarters of the Air Raid Precaution. In 1944, the British Council rented and occupied the building as a cultural center. In 1949, the lease to the British Council wasn't renewed and the building remained empty until 1954, when it was purchased by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. In 1963 it became the Office of the Prime Minister, and between 2000 and 2007 was restored, with costs that sparked many questions. Today, it still serves as Prime Minister's official residence and also as Diplomatic Center.
About the stamps
The stamps are part of the series Local Herbal Medicine, about which I wrote here.
References
White Hall (Rosenweg) - Citizens for Conservation, Trinidad & Tobago
sender: Nalini Mohammed (direct swap)
sent from San Fernando (Trinidad / Trinidad and Tobago), on 20.07.2012
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