{"title":"San Fernando","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"map-of-trinidad-motor-roads-us-leased-areas-chaguaramas-ww2-naval-base-1946-p-6-112547","title":"Map of Trinidad—motor roads \u0026 US leased areas: Chaguaramas WW2 naval base 1946","description":"\u003cp align=\"left\"\u003e'Map of Trinidad showing Motor Roads and Other Means of Communication'\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp align=\"left\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp align=\"left\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eTrinidad’s roads and railways share this 1946 map with a striking reminder of the island’s wartime importance: the north-west peninsula around Chaguaramas and Scotland Bay, west of Port of Spain, is explicitly marked “U.S. Leased Area”. Although not labelled as a naval base, this was the location of the American Chaguaramas naval establishment. The arrangement arose from the 1940 destroyers-for-bases agreement, under which Britain obtained 50 American destroyers in exchange for base rights, followed by detailed leases in 1941. Trinidad’s position made it strategically valuable for protecting Caribbean shipping, regional oil supplies and the approaches to the Panama Canal against German submarines. The original 99-year leases were intended to run until 2040, but the arrangements were renegotiated and the Chaguaramas holdings relinquished in stages, with the last American personnel leaving in 1977. Alongside this military footprint, the Lands and Surveys Department depicts Port of Spain, San Fernando and Pitch Lake within an island-wide network of settlements and communications. Clear colour coding and a scale of 1:250,000 make this folding map an engaging record of civilian travel immediately after the Second World War.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Antiquemapsandprints.com","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54274889711963,"sku":"P-6-112547","price":115.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0923\/9583\/1643\/files\/P-6-112547a.jpg?v=1791486037"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.antiquemapsandprints.com\/collections\/san-fernando.oembed","provider":"Antiquemapsandprints.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}