About Us
Our story
Costa Arriba Historic Preservation (CAHP) is a not for profit, volunteer organization dedicated to improving the communities of the Costa Arriba region (Atlantic Coast of Panama South of Colon) through Cultural Tourism. Incorporated in 2018 and based in Panama City, Panama.
CAHP is engaged in the investigation and development of a Spanish Colonial Sixteenth Site, African Diaspora Sites and collection of oral histories and Ancestry DNA to connect the residents of the community with their African Heritage.
Through archaeological and anthropological research, CAHP hopes to create Economic Development through Cultural Tourism in the community of Costa Arriba, Panama.
One of CAHP future goals is to promote youth sports and life character values in the Costa Arriba community.
Our experts believe that the information we plan to develop will allow the sites in this area to qualify and be recognized as a UNESCO Slave Route Remembrance Sites.
The process of connecting the local Cimarron community with their heritage will be exhilarating and with our expert team we will make the project a tremendous success.
Please support us by clicking on the Donate link. Your contribution and support will help us really make a difference.
This project is sponsored by the Institute of Maritime History a 501 (c) 3 not for profit organization, so all donations to this project are tax deductible in the US.
Costa Arriba Region History
The history of the Costa Arriba region of Panama begins in the early Sixteenth Century
Photo of original Peter Schenk Wood Engraving Print c. 1752
The Spanish arrived in 1510 and founded the settlement of Nombre de Dios.
Today it is one of the oldest continuously inhabited European established settlements on the mainland continent of the Americas.
In the sixteenth century the Spanish needed a route to move their captured gold from Peru to Spain.
The fastest route was a land route crossing the Isthmus in Panama.
The natives for centuries had used a trail to connect their village of Panama on the Pacific to the site of Nombre de Dios on the Atlantic.
Following the path of the trail, the Spanish utilize captured natives as enslaved labor to build a stone road. This road would be called the El Camino Real.
Photo of Potential Site of Camino Real Road at Nombre de Dios
The Spanish needed vast amounts of labor to move goods on the Camino Real.
Initially, indigenous labor was used. Due to maltreatment and disease, the indigenous population was decimated and by 1517 the enslaved labor trade from Africa was under way.
Enslaved Africans used the isolated nature of the El Camino Real as an opportunity to escape their Spanish guards.
By the middle of the sixteenth century, it is estimated that over 3,000 Africans had established settlements in the sparsely settled terrain of Nombre de Dios.
The name given these groups by the Spanish was Cimarrón meaning “wild” or “untamed.”
The Cimarrones lived in well organized settlements and in hideouts concealed in the inhospitable coastline and mountains.
Costa Arriba Coastline
They used guerrilla warfare tactics in organized raids to plunder the Spanish treasure mule trains.
By the mid 1570’s, Cimarron raids had become a major problem for Spain and the Spanish Crown declared war on the Cimarrones.
The war lasted two years and ended in a peace treaty, the Cimarrones received land to establish settlements exchange for not attacking the Spanish.
In 1579 in the bay of Nombre de Dios, Santiago del Principe was established as one of the first free African settlements in the Americas.
View of Nombre de Dios Bay from potential Fort Site
In this isolated region, the community must rely on the sea and the land for survival.
Local Fisherman in Palenque
A Local in Palenque
The community supports and believes that Cultural Tourism can spark economic development where currently a better future for their children is limited.
The central government has forgotten this region, this community with a population of 3,000 has a school system that ends at ninth grade thus giving the area youth a limited education.
The school facilities are in dire need of repair and we plan to make improving facilities a priority.
Outside of School in Nombre de Dios
Baseball Field in Palenque
We have been working closely with the Mayor of the Distrito to ensure our project plans address what the community wants.
Director Janneth Castillo and Mayor Nolis Boris Gondola
Learn More
CAHP has developed the five branches described below to allow us to improve the communities of the Costa Arriba region.
Colonial Nombre de Dios
Colonial Nombre de Dios
The sixteenth-century port of Nombre de Dios, Panama played a crucial role in the colonization of America. From 1519 to 1597, Nombre de Dios was the Atlantic port connecting Spain with the southern Pacific colonies in America.
In 1509, Spanish conquistador Diego de Nicuesa was attracted to a bay that was easy to access and had rich vegetation.
He found the bay suitable for a colony and thus he said “detengamonos aqui en nombre de Dios” (Let us stop here in the name of God), and that is how the bay acquired its name (Jay 2002).
It appears that Nicuesa and the rest of the expedition spent the time to build a settlement and fort in Nombre de Dios. The days of Nicuesa in Nombre de Dios ended when he departed to claim rights to a rival settlement in the Darien Gulf.
Nicuesa left behind many of the people in his expedition in Nombre de Dios. Nicuesa faced profound resistance to his authority, he was exiled and sent out to sea and never heard from again.
The events following Nicuesa’s departure from Nombre de Dios are not clear but it seems that the Spanish left the area or died.
After a decade of exploration, Panama was selected as the ideal location for the transatlantic route that allowed the transportation of treasures from American colonies to Spain.
In 1519 Diego de Alvitez was authorized by Carlos V to establish the town of Nombre de Dios.
Even though the importance to Spain’s New World of the colonial settlement has been widely recognized, there was never a systematic historical or archaeological research study undertaken, until recently.
In 2007, Dr. Maria Fernanda Salamanca-Heyman performed her thesis work on the Nombre de Dios site. Her team began to document this colonial town and describe its establishment and subsequent development and abandonment.
Maria has now joined the team at Costa Arriba Historic Preservation. CAHP plans to build on her 2007 work to preserve the Nombre de Dios site and develop it into a world class Colonial Archaeological Site.
The Archaeological work program will begin with non-evasive geophysical surveying and then be expanded to small excavations.
All investigations will be carried out following the procedures and with permission of the Instituto Nacional de Cultura of Panama, Dirección Nacional del Patrimonio Histórico.
Cimarron Sites
Cimarron Sites
Enslaved labor brought to Panama by the Spanish from Africa used the isolated nature of the El Camino Real as an opportunity to escape their Spanish guards.
The first known enslaved African revolt in the Isthmus occurred in the city of Panama in 1525. Although the revolt was suppressed and the Cimarrones executed, the danger to the Spanish was not eliminated.
In 1552 a Spanish ship carrying Bayano (enslaved African Royalty) and 400 other enslaved Africans ran aground off the coast of Panama. Bayano and numerous others escaped to shore. Bayano who could not abide by the horrific ill-treatment carried out by the Spanish, emerged as a formidable leader of the Cimarrones. He organized the Cimarrones to fight the Spanish and attacked the Treasure Mule trains for over five years.
In 1556, the Spanish conquistador Pedro de Ursua was charged with stopping Bayano. Ursua realized he was incapable of defeating the Cimarrones, so under a truce offered Bayano a peace agreement in which Ursua would agree to split Panama into two territories: Bayano’s independent kingdom and Spanish territory. Bayno and his group came unarmed to the peace negotiations. Ursua poisoned Bayano’s men, and only a very few escaped as Bayano and his closest men were imprisoned by the Spanish.
While Bayano may have been vanquished in 1556, the Spanish wrestled with the problems of the Cimarrones for decades after his death.
A report to Philip II stated that in 1574 the number of Cimarrones living in Panama was more than 3,000.
Under the Cimarron leader Luis de Mozambique, the Spanish agreed to sign a peace treaty with the Cimarrones. The Cimarrones received land to establish settlements in exchange for not attacking the Spanish.
In 1579, in the bay area of Nombre de Dios, Santiago del Principe was established as one of the first free African settlements in the Americas.
Using historical accounts and descriptions, we plan to perform an Archaeological work program starting with non-evasive geophysical surveying.
Working with UNESCO and ICOMOS, we hope someday that our investigations will lead to the recognition of an UNESCO Slave Route Remembrance Site.
All investigations will be carried out following the procedures and with permission of the Instituto Nacional de Cultura of Panama, Dirección Nacional del Patrimonio Histórico.
Offshore Sites
Offshore Sites
In 2005 investigations were initiated by the Nautical Archaeology Program at Texas A&M offshore of Nombre de Dios, unfortunately these investigations were never completed. The maritime archaeologists working on this project believe there could be at least 4 other Sixteenth Century wreck sites offshore of the Costa Arriba.
As part of CAHP’s maritime cultural protection mission, we are facilitating a Collaboration Agreement between the Governments of Spain and Panamá for joint research investigations and the protection of Panamanian Maritime Sites.
African Diaspora
African Diaspora
The African Diaspora heritage is strong in the present day communities of the Costa Arriba.
One of the best community examples is the Congo Dance which can be enjoyed during Costa Arriba celebrations.
The Congo Dance which is passed on from generation to generation is a colorful and unique example of the area African Diaspora with its roots in Africa.
The Congo is not just a dance, but it is also a form of expression by which the Cimarrones convey their feelings of anger, pain and joy.
The dance is also a way to strengthen their spirit.
CAHP Team and Dance Group from Palenque
Since most of the history of the area was written by the Spanish and English the African Diaspora history of the area needs to be collected orally from the community.
The CAHP team and our Genetic Anthropologists plan to meet with local residents and begin the documentation of the oral history and DNA Ancestry sampling.
Test results will only be used for ancestral research purposes and individual privacy will be protected at all times.
We also plan to document our entire project with the help of professional cinematographers.
Youth Sports Program
Youth Sports Programs
The goal of this CAHP branch is to promote youth sports and life character values in the Costa Arriba community.
The youth baseball/ softball program in the Costa Arriba region is made up of nine teams serving over 250 boys and girls (ages 5 to 15). Sports Equipment is limited in the area because it is too costly to purchase for most of the families of the Costa Arriba.
Our plan is to bring donated Youth Sports equipment from the US to the youth programs of the Costa Arriba Region.
To date we have received over one thousand pounds of donated youth sports equipment from Roberto’s Kids.
Roberto’s Kids is a volunteer based not for profit organization, that collects and stores new or well-worn sports equipment which is then redistributed to disadvantaged youth in need world-wide.
We are working with Rotary Clubs in Panama and the US to fund the cost of transportation of equipment from the US to Panama. Please refer to our Facebook page for the latest program update.
The youth of the Costa Arriba need role models and to learn life values.
If we can accomplish this we will not only improve the lives of the youth but we will also improve the future of the community.
CAHP believes that a themed character education program like the 22 year old Major League Baseball sponsored “Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life” is a great way to teach the Costa Arriba youth important life values.
The curriculum is based on the values demonstrated by barrier breaker Jackie Robinson:
Citizenship, commitment, courage, determination, excellence, integrity, justice, persistence and teamwork.
CAHP has received permission from Major League Baseball to use the program in Panama and is working on the funding and implementation phase of this project.
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