Janjanbureh, Gambia

Janjanbureh
Janjanbureh

Location in the Gambia

Coordinates: 13°32′2.87″N 14°45′58.15″W / 13.5341306°N 14.7661528°W / 13.5341306; -14.7661528Coordinates: 13°32′2.87″N 14°45′58.15″W / 13.5341306°N 14.7661528°W / 13.5341306; -14.7661528
Country  The Gambia
Division Central River Division

Janjanbureh or Jangjangbureh is a town, founded in 1832, on Janjanbureh Island in the Gambia River in eastern Gambia. It was formerly known as Georgetown and was the second largest in the country. It is now the capital of the Central River Division and is best known as home to Gambia's main prison. The Wassu stone circles lie 22 km northwest of Lamin Koto, on the north bank across from Janjanbureh.

It is also noted for being the site of the first church in Gambia and the first high school, according to one expatriate who was born there.

The island is known locally as McCarthy Island, and is located in what used to be called McCarthy Island Division. The island is accessed by bridge from the south bank, and small boat ferries or government ferry on the north bank. In 1995, both the city of Georgetown and MacCarthy Island were renamed Janjanbureh respectively.

Janjanbureh is also the name of the district in which the town of Janjanbureh is located.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Janjanbureh.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, November 24, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.