Counties and parishes
Why is Jamaica divided into Parishes and Counties? Parishes Before the parishes came about the Spaniards divided Jamaica into two ranches; Yallahs and Morant. They were the largest ranches at the time, therefore they were used as border markers. When the English took over in 1655, they realized that these ranches were not only too large to have one name and boundary , but it was in desperate need for an administrative structure. As such, the English adapted the administrative structure from England, giving birth to the first parishes. The island was divided into parishes and most places from then had the designation of "St. (Saint)" added to its name. Each parish was given the name of wealthy and distinguished persons in the English regime. The first parishes were: Clarendon St. John's St. Andrew's St. Katherine's Port Royal St. David's St. Thomas T hroughout the years, th...