Grand Fond (English: "Great Valley") is the fifth communal section within the picturesque, high-altitude commune of of Kenscoff in Haiti's West Department. Located within the northerly slopes of the Chaîne de la Selle (Saddle Mountain Range), Grand-Fond occupies a cool, mountainous setting that has shaped its environment, history, and livelihood.
Chez Sylvain, a local establishment of Grand-Fond
About[]
Historically, Grand-Fond was once part of Pétion-Ville’s rural territory before becoming one of Kenscoff’s five sections. It features a chapel at Dumulceau and a longstanding rural school located on the site of the former Guibert coffee plantation, known as Hatte Guibert. The landscape is rich with pine forests and valleys where songbirds—called musiciens—fill the air. Grand-Fond lies opposite Fort Jacques and remains a part of the greater mountainous ridge that defends the capital below.
The weather here is consistently chilly, a hallmark of Kenscoff’s upper elevations, with temperatures often cool enough to warrant sweaters even at midday. This steady mountain freshness, combined with fertile, volcanic-derived soils, sustains gardens that produce beets, cabbage, carrots, lettuce, potatoes, and other high-altitude crops. The section’s valleys form part of the ecological corridor that links to La Visite National Park.
Facing environmental pressures like soil erosion, the section benefits from agroecological training projects that promote sustainable farming, helping preserve both its productive land and its enduringly cool, scenic charm.
| Northwest 7e Laval, CRF |
2e Aux Cadets, PEV |
|
| West
12e Malanga, CRF |
5e Grand Fond |
East 2e Bongars |
|---|---|---|
| Southwest 8e Berly, CRF |
South |
History[]
During the Haitian Revolution, Grand-Fond became a stage for significant events. In 1791, freed men of the West, recently gathered in Port-Républicain and on the Diègue plantation, learned that a column of white militia from Grand-Fond, led by Jean-François Lespinasse, was advancing toward the capital. André Rigaud’s lieutenant, Beauvais, quickly assembled thirty of his own men, and the two forces clashed at La Coupe, near the Nérette plantation, on August 30.
After the departure of civil commissioners Polverel and Sonthonax, a black Frenchman named Dieudonné took control of the mountains of Grand-Fond in the name of the French Republic, holding the position of civil commissioner. In 1799, the formidable black warrior Lamour Dérance, influenced by Beauvais but acting independently, occupied the mountains of Grand-Fond without regard for any formal authority. He reappeared in 1802, this time aligned with the French against the supporters of Toussaint Louverture, and captured a battalion commanded by Pierre-Louis Diane as it attempted to pass through Grand-Fond on its way to the Cul-de-Sac Plain.
In 1803, Lamour Dérance established a camp at Guibert to resist the French. Dessalines, who had invited him to review his army, sought to show his appreciation for the commander’s role. Lamour Dérance arrived with his guards—dressed in tattered clothes, mounted on hairless horses, and armed with pikes—while he himself rode a steed adorned with luxurious accessories, wearing a hat with lace, gold-trimmed garments, and two large epaulettes. In front of Dessalines, he adopted an arrogant stance, reproaching him for entering his territory without permission. Dessalines listened in silence, then received him with equal courtesy. After reviewing the troops, Dessalines departed for Grand-Fond. Over time, Dessalines consolidated his authority in the West, while Lamour Dérance and his ostentatious yet ragged entourage became objects of ridicule among the population of the plain.
These episodes left an enduring mark on the area’s history, blending its agricultural heritage with a legacy of political and military intrigue in the turbulent years of Haiti’s fight for independence.
References[]
Tête Bois Pen - Pierre Ulrick Rico [1]
Chez Sylvain - Brice Dumanois [2]