During the Beaufond family’s plantation years, records of life on North Island are scarce. The plantation used guano as fertilizer, with the island’s abundant bird life contributing to this. It is believed that crops like vanilla, cinnamon, and ylang-ylang were grown, and essential oils were distilled for trade. By the 1840s, coconut farming had become more prominent due to the labour efficiency of copra production. The Beaufond family lived on Mahe, with many workers buried at Bel Ombre, and possibly some slaves in a cemetery at East Beach.
Life on the Plantation
