St. Kitts & Nevis – To Restore Alexander Hamilton Museum 

CHARLESTOWN, Nevis — The United States has awarded US$245,000 to help restore the historic Hamilton House and redevelop the museum dedicated to Alexander Hamilton, the Nevis-born founding father who became the first US secretary of the Treasury.

The funding, provided through the US Embassy’s Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation, will support conservation work on the historic building and the development of new exhibits exploring Hamilton’s Caribbean beginnings. The project will also establish a permanent exhibition honouring Constance Baker Motley, a pioneering civil rights lawyer whose parents were from Nevis.

Hamilton was born on Nevis in the mid-18th century and spent part of his childhood in Charlestown before leaving the Caribbean for North America. He later became one of the key figures in the founding of the United States and helped shape its early financial and political institutions.

Hamilton House is a two-storey Georgian stone building dating to approximately 1680. The structure was destroyed by an earthquake in 1840 and subsequently rebuilt. It was last restored in 1983 and has since suffered deterioration from age, earthquakes and the island’s salty air, which have damaged parts of the building and its wooden features.

Nevis Premier Mark Brantley welcomed the funding, saying local efforts to preserve the island’s historic landmarks had been challenging.

He described Hamilton’s legacy as evidence of the significant contributions people from a small Caribbean island can make to world history. Brantley said he hoped Hamilton’s achievements would encourage Nevisians, particularly young people, to recognise their own potential.

The project will also broaden the museum’s historical focus through an exhibition on Constance Baker Motley, who became the first Black woman appointed to the United States federal judiciary. Motley was a prominent civil rights attorney who helped challenge racial segregation through the courts before joining the federal bench.

The Nevis Historical and Conservation Society will oversee the project in collaboration with CyArk, a US-based nonprofit specialising in the digital preservation of cultural heritage. The organisation will support digital documentation and interpretation, while heritage expert Raimie Richardson will help develop the museum’s presentation of Hamilton’s early life in the Caribbean.

The restoration comes as the United States prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of its independence in 2026. The cultural preservation grant highlights the longstanding historical connections between Nevis and the United States and is intended to help protect the island’s heritage for future generations.

Local officials expect the redevelopment to strengthen educational opportunities, improve the visitor experience and support heritage tourism while preserving the stories of people whose lives connected Nevis to major developments in American history.