Ownership Timeline: Good Hope

The Grantee. Colonel Williams received the original land grant of 1,000 acres. He built the first Great House in 1755 as a home for his wife, Elizabeth, who sadly died shortly after its completion and is buried beneath the ground floor.

The Golden Age. Tharp expanded the estate into a 9,000-acre empire. He built the current support structures (hospital, counting house, aqueduct) and amassed a fortune of £4.5 million.

The Collapse. Following Tharp's death, the estate became trapped in the Court of Chancery. This was a notorious legal status where disputed estates were managed by court-appointed receivers rather than the actual owners.

Because Tharp's heir was declared mentally incompetent, the estate was frozen in a "legal limbo" for over a century. While lawyers in London drained the accounts to pay their fees, no money was spent on maintenance. The Great House rotted, the sugar works rusted, and the once-mighty empire degenerated into a simple cattle pen.

The American Renaissance. Thompson, a New York banker, purchased the ruinous estate and transformed it into one of the island's first luxury hotels. The "Good Hope Hotel" hosted royalty and celebrities, saving the Great House from destruction.

The Preservationist. Tenison acquired the property and ran it as a working farm and guest house. His family is largely credited with preserving the Georgian integrity of the buildings during the mid-20th century.

The Modern Era. The estate was purchased by Tony Hart in 1989 and later developed into a heritage adventure park. Today, it is operated by Chukka Caribbean, blending history tours with modern tourism.