Accra: The Untold History Of Ghana’s Incredible Capital City

History Of Accra

Accra, like many of Ghana’s main coastal towns, originated as an offshoot of a key inland metropolis, but geography and history conspired to cause the split between parent and offspring to occur sooner than elsewhere. Archaeological evidence suggests that in the late sixteenth century, the Ga people settled in the grassy plains south of the Akwapem escarpment, establishing Ayawaso, also known as Great Accra to Europeans. 

Initially, the Ga were hesitant to allow Europeans to construct permanent settlements on the coast, but in 1649, they let the Dutch West India Company build Fort Crèvecoeur at “Little Accra.” In 1661, the Danes erected Christiansborg Castle at Osu, two miles east of the Dutch fort. Eleven years later, the Royal African Enterprise, an English enterprise, began building on James Fort in the settlement of Tsoco, half a mile west of Fort Crèvecoeur. 

Ga traditions suggest that the establishment of the coastline area occurred during Okai Koi’s reign (1610–1660), likely due to migrations over a longer period. In 1680–1681, the Akwamu invaded and destroyed Great Accra. Fifty years later, the Akyem vanquished the Akwamus, and shortly after, in 1742, the Asante invaded this territory and integrated it into their southern provinces. Consequently, they severed the link between the interior capital and coastal town at an early age.

Nonetheless, the presence of rival European commercial businesses on the coast hindered the development of a centralized state. Even in the nineteenth century, three distinct towns (Ussher Town, also known as Kinka, James Town, or Nleshi, and Osu), each with its own akutsei, or quarter, separated Accra.

It wasn’t until 1867 that the British ultimately bought all of the forts along the coast and unified the towns under one administration. Connections with Europeans increased the influence of numerous mantses, or governors of cities and quarters, with the Abola akutso mantse reigning supreme. However, this arrangement, hotly debated at times, would remain a fundamental topic in twentieth-century political life.

The history of invasions and conquests that made this one of the most culturally diverse locations on the coast, exacerbated these conflicts. Other than Ga, there were Adangme, Allada, Akwams, Akyem, Fante, and Asante. Additional individuals from what would become Nigeria and liberated slaves from Brazil continued to swell the population into the nineteenth century. Undoubtedly, the Akan element was most crucial, contributing to the Akanization of Ga institutions. 

For example, Ga patrilineal inheritance became intertwined with Akan matrilineal inheritance. Opposition to a British attempt to impose a poll tax in 1854 demonstrated the contestation of the spread of European rule. Only after two sea bombardments were the British able to restore control of the territories surrounding their forts. Nevertheless, in 1877, the British shifted the colony’s capital from Cape Coast to Accra. 

The area was healthier, and the broad plains of its hinterland allowed for far greater expansion than the tight, hilly Cape Coast. These advantages made up for the harbor’s unfavorable conditions, which were among the worst on the coast, as well as the region’s vulnerability to earthquakes, as the disastrous 1862 tremor showed. Accra was already the major commercial town on the coast, with a population of approximately 20,000 people. 

Also Read: Second Republic Of Ghana

Initially, growth was modest, but by 1921, the population had surpassed 38,000. Accra became the first town on the Gold Coast to establish a municipal government in 1894. The combination of high housing costs and an African minority in this body contributed to its substantial unpopularity. Not until 1898 were three Africans convinced to accept the nomination. 

Plague and yellow fever scares in the early twentieth century expanded the council’s role as an arm of government, with minimal African participation. These diseases also stimulated growth outside of the original, dense settlements. The 1908 plague prompted the development of new suburbs such as Kole Gonno, Riponsville, Kansehie, and Adabraka. British officials began moving to Victoriaborg in the 1870s. 

The 1910 yellow fever outbreak led to the creation of the Ridge residential neighborhood, which was slightly further inland. There were also significant infrastructure improvements. Construction on the harbor’s breakwater began in 1907. In 1909, construction began on a railway line to Nsawam, which was to reach Kumasi in 1923. Accra received piped water from the Weija reservoir in 1914 and received electricity two years later.

Compensating local chiefs for the land needed for these projects always led to heated litigation, and much of Accra’s political life was tied to the city’s expansion. In the 1920s, infrastructural development continued, with significant projects including the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (1923) and the Prince of Wales College at Achimota (1927). 

By the 1930s, Accra had emerged as the colony’s political center. The National Congress of British West Africa (founded in 1920) was dormant, but new political organizations emerged, including J.B. Danquah’s Gold Coast Youth Conference (1930 and 1937), the Central National Committee (1934), which organized protests against the “Obnoxious Ordinances,” and Sierra Leonean I.T.A. Wallace Johnson’s West African Youth League (1935). 

Also Read: Second Republic Of Ghana

Nigerian Nnamdi Azikiwe edited The African Morning Post, the first regular daily newspaper, in 1934. The town’s population doubled as newcomers from various parts of the colony and West Africa arrived. A severe earthquake in 1939 caused extensive property damage and prompted the government to build housing complexes in the suburbs, which aided the town’s spatial expansion. 
Following World War II, Accra became the epicenter of nationalist activism. In 1948, Accra’s chief, Nii Bonne, launched an anti-inflation campaign. Shortly after, a march of ex-servicemen resulted in shootings and widespread establishment theft. Building on these events, Kwame Nkrumah declared the formation of the Convention People’s Party at Accra’s Arena meeting place in 1949, eight years before Ghana gained independence. 

As the colony moved toward independence, Accra expanded at a rapid pace. A 1954 estimate put the population at just under 200,000, with an annual growth rate of about 10%. Kwame Nkrumah declared Accra a city in 1961, uniting previously independent suburbs like Adabraka to the center. Greater Accra is believed to have a population of more than two million people, and the metropolis, along with its many suburbs, stretches over eight miles inland. 

To address Accra’s harbor concerns, an artificial harbor was developed in Tema, 25 kilometers to the east, in 1961. More recently, there has been significant roadway construction to alleviate traffic congestion in this quickly expanding metropolis. The Accra Metropolitan Assembly, which dates back to the Town Council in 1898, is in charge of administering this enormous territory.

Also Read: Second Republic Of Ghana