Published: 15th of November, 2026 by Patrick Carpen
Last updated: November 15, 2026 at 4:57 amDartmouth is a farming village on the Essequibo Coast in Region 2, Pomeroon-Supenaam, in Guyana’s historic county of Essequibo. It lies between Perth and Westbury, north of Anna Regina and south of Charity. This is a community on the coastal road, not a remote settlement requiring a separate expedition upriver. From Georgetown, the usual overland-and-river approach is to travel to Parika, cross the Essequibo River to Supenaam, then continue north by road through Anna Regina towards Charity.
Map reference: approximately 7.3636° N, 58.5005° W. Open Dartmouth’s village area in Google Maps. The pin identifies the general settlement, rather than a particular home, farm entrance or visitor facility.
A village whose story begins with the land
A packet of red beans may seem an unlikely introduction to a place. For Dartmouth, it is a useful one. The village’s agricultural reputation connects family labour on the Essequibo Coast with meals prepared well beyond it. Behind a familiar ingredient are seasons of planting, drainage, harvesting and selling, and the knowledge passed between generations of growers.
Dartmouth belongs to the history of villages established by formerly enslaved Africans after emancipation. Land purchased for a community meant more than somewhere to build houses: it created room for independent livelihoods and a future less tightly controlled by plantation employers. That history gives the farms and village streets a significance which a quick drive along the public road can easily miss.
The community has continued to change since those beginnings. Schools, shops, places of worship and public services give Dartmouth a daily life extending beyond its fields. Eighth of May Secondary School is an important educational landmark, serving young people from Dartmouth and other communities along this part of the coast.
Getting to Dartmouth
For a first-time visitor travelling from Georgetown, think of the journey in three parts. First, reach Parika on the east bank of the Essequibo River. Second, take a suitable passenger-boat or ferry service across to Supenaam. Third, use the coastal road northwards, passing Anna Regina and continuing through the villages beyond it to Dartmouth. Confirm departure arrangements with the operator before leaving; ferry and speedboat travel have different boarding arrangements, luggage considerations and journey times.
An older official road gazetteer places Dartmouth about 48.5 kilometres north of the Supenaam River reference point and roughly 13 kilometres beyond Anna Regina. These are useful orientation figures, not a promise of an exact distance from today’s terminal or your accommodation. Tell your driver both the village name and the particular person, business or landmark you intend to visit. A village stretches farther than a single map pin.
Visitors already staying around Anna Regina can make Dartmouth part of a coastal outing. From Charity, approach in the opposite direction, travelling south. Arrange the return trip as carefully as the outward one, particularly if you also need a river crossing later that day.
Red beans, rice and the work behind a harvest
Red-bean cultivation is one of Dartmouth’s most distinctive agricultural traditions. In accounts recorded in 2017, older residents traced their involvement back to the 1970s, remembering work alongside their parents. Rice farming also forms part of the local economy. These activities connect the village to buyers, transport providers and markets elsewhere on the coast.
The agricultural story is still developing. In January 2025, the government reported that 300 acres of previously dormant farmland had been cleared at Dartmouth, with 180 acres intended for red beans and the remainder for other crops. That announcement describes land preparation and intended production; it should not be mistaken for a verified harvest total. In 2026, Dartmouth was also named among agricultural areas slated for all-weather-road rehabilitation.
Such investments help explain what farming demands here. Access to land is only one part of the task. Growers also need usable routes for machinery and produce, working drainage, planting material and dependable buyers. A field can be productive only when the practical connections around it work. Dartmouth’s reputation rests on that less visible effort as much as on the crop itself.
What a visitor can do
Dartmouth offers an opportunity to understand everyday coastal Guyana. A visit can centre on the village streets, local food and conversation, with a farm visit arranged beforehand through someone who knows the growers. If produce is being sold during your visit, buying directly from a local seller can make the connection between place and food pleasantly tangible.
Do not assume that farms operate as visitor attractions or that a farmer can interrupt a working day to provide a tour. Ask permission, agree on a suitable time and keep out of planted areas and machinery routes. A thoughtful visit might explore how beans are grown and prepared, how rice cultivation differs, or how produce reaches coastal markets. Those are possibilities to arrange with willing residents, rather than advertised activities guaranteed on arrival.
There is potential for community-led food and agricultural experiences: a demonstration, a meal built around local produce, or an account of the village’s beginnings told by residents themselves. Developing such experiences would require local interest and organisation. The appeal already exists in the relationship between people, food and land.
Making time for the quieter coast
Carry drinking water and sun protection, wear practical footwear if entering a farm, and plan accommodation separately rather than assuming a room will be available in the village. Ask before photographing people or entering school, church and community premises. Conditions on farm tracks can differ considerably from those on the public road, particularly after rain.
Dartmouth rewards a traveller willing to look beyond a list of famous sights. Its story is found in land made into a livelihood, in education carried forward by a village school, and in an ordinary crop that carries the work of the coast into other people’s kitchens.
