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82-462: Due to the growing staff strength and subsequent creation of workers settlements (CAMP I AND CAMP II), the need for standard schools arose. The women association of NIOMP staff established a day children's care. The pre-nursery school was established to help nursing mothers cater for their children while they were at work and to lay a solid educational foundation for them. The management of the then National Iron Ore Mining Project (NIOMP) then established

164-584: A bakery, small parks, fruit orchids, spacious houses, and a few swimming pools. The special guest house was a magnificent lodge for hosting VIPs like Heads of State or their representatives, Mynisters, and other VIPs. The Nigerian staff were given living quarters in Camp I and Camp II. The houses are of different styles with modern flats the most common. Most of the Nigerians wear traditional dresses. Main food crops are Yam, Cassava and Corn. Traders bring most of

246-637: A cape-gauge link from Kano to Maradi, the second-largest city in Niger, under the auspices of Portugal's Mota-Engil SGPS SA, with planned inauguration in 2023, which will be one of the first rail lines in Niger. In 2006, the government contracted with the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) to build the Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway . It was later decided to complete

328-408: A major part of Nigeria's colonial economy. The railway network expanded over the next few decades, and by the time Nigeria gained independence in 1960, there were over 3,000 kilometers of railway lines in the country. In 2022, Nigerian Railway Corporation transported 3.21 million passengers, an increase of 18.36% from the previous year. However, revenues fell by 20% to 4.55 billion naira . 80% of

410-707: A notorious massacre of hundreds of people at Calabar after inviting them onto their ships, ostensibly to settle a local dispute. In 1807, the Parliament of the United Kingdom enacted the Slave Trade Act , prohibiting British subjects from participating in the Atlantic slave trade . Britain subsequently lobbied other European powers to stop the slave trade as well. It made anti-slavery treaties with West African powers, which it enforced militarily with

492-483: A primary school, NIOMP Staff Nursery and Primary School (NSNPS) to meet the growing educational demands of the young mining community. Years later, the Management established a secondary school, initially called NIOMP Comprehensive High School. The name would later be changed to NIOMCO Staff Secondary School (NSSS) after the company was renamed National Iron Ore Mining Company. Although the schools were intended for

574-557: A progressive sequence of regimes, the British imposed Crown Colony government on much of the area of West Africa which came to be known as Nigeria, a form of rule which was both autocratic and bureaucratic . After initially adopting an indirect rule approach, in 1906 the British merged the small Lagos Colony and the Southern Nigeria Protectorate into a new Colony of Southern Nigeria , and in 1914 that

656-488: A reasonable amount for any portion they may require. The said National African Company (Limited) bind themselves to protect the said King and Chiefs from the attacks of any neighbouring tribes (Ibid.). The company considered itself the sole legitimate government of the area, with executive, legislative and judicial powers all subordinate to the rule of a council created by the company board of directors in London. The council

738-547: A small number of African converts. When direct Portuguese contacts in the region were withdrawn, however, the influence of the Catholic missionaries waned. By the eighteenth century, evidence of Christianity had disappeared. Although churchmen in Britain had been influential in the drive to abolish the slave trade, significant missionary activity for Africa did not develop until the 1840s. For some time, missionaries operated in

820-583: A social institution through fiat. Regardless, slavery had decimated the population and fuelled militarisation and chaos, thereby paving the way for more aggressive colonisation. Portuguese Roman Catholic priests who accompanied traders and officials to the West African coast introduced Christianity to the Edo Empire in the fifteenth century. Several churches were built to serve the Edo community and

902-399: A year by 1840—it was concentrated near the coast, where palm trees grew in abundance. Gradually, however, the trade forced major economic and social changes in the interior, although it hardly undermined slavery and the slave trade. The incidence of slavery in local societies increased. Initially, most palm oil (and later kernels) came from Igboland, where palm trees formed a canopy over

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984-577: Is in poor condition due to lack of maintenance. In 2019, the single operational standard gauge line from Abuja to Kaduna generated as much revenue as the entire Cape gauge railway network combined. The Nigerian government plans to extend the standard gauge to replace most of the Western Line, while the Eastern Line will be rehabilitated as a Cape gauge line. All trains in Nigeria are operated by

1066-728: The Baro–Kano Railway Station that was built by the government of Northern Nigeria between 1907 and 1911. The two lines were amalgamated in 1912 into the Government Department of Railways, the predecessor to the Nigerian Railway Corporation . The railway reached its northeastern terminus of Nguru in 1930. After coal was discovered at Udi , the Eastern Railway was built to Port Harcourt between 1913 and 1916. This railway

1148-593: The Bight of Biafra . West Africa also bought British exports, supplying 30–40% of the demand for British cotton during the Industrial Revolution of 1750–1790. At the same time, British scientists were interested in exploring the course and related settlements along the Niger River. The delta masked the mouth of the great river, and for centuries Nigerians chose not to tell Europeans the secrets of

1230-532: The CMS —succeeded in imposing peace settlements on the interior. Colonial Lagos was a busy, cosmopolitan port. Its architecture was in both Victorian and Brazilian style, as many of the black elite were English-speakers from Sierra Leone and freedmen repatriated from the Empire of Brazil and Spanish Cuba . Its residents were employed in official capacities and were active in business. Africans also were represented on

1312-601: The China Gezhouba Group . In order to remedy the poor condition, efficiency, and profitability of the nation's railroads, the government is also seeking to privatize the Nigerian Railway Corporation . Under the privatization plan, the railways will be split into three concessions, each to be awarded for a period of 25–30 years. In 2019, the Cape gauge railways had only 15 functional locomotives. The 187 km Abuja–Kaduna line generated as much revenue in 2019 as

1394-658: The Haitian Revolution . By the end of the Napoleonic Wars , it ended slavery in its possessions. Between them, the French and the British had purchased a majority of the slaves sold from the ports of Edo. The economy suffered from the decline in the slave trade, although considerable smuggling of slaves to the Americas continued for years afterward. Lagos became a major slave port in the late 1700s and into

1476-400: The Nigerian Railway Corporation . The first railway line in the country was constructed in 1891 between Lagos and Ibadan under the British colonial administration. Its primary purpose was to facilitate the exploitation of Nigeria's natural resources, such as tin, coal, and petroleum. The railway was also intended to promote trade between Nigeria and other countries, making the train port trade

1558-635: The Oil River Protectorate in 1884. British influence in the Niger area increased gradually over the 19th century, but Britain did not effectively occupy the area until 1885. Other European powers acknowledged Britain's dominance over the area in the 1885 Berlin Conference . From 1886 to 1899, much of the country was ruled by the Royal Niger Company , authorised by charter, and governed by George Taubman Goldie . In 1900,

1640-794: The Southern Nigeria Protectorate and Northern Nigeria Protectorate passed from company hands to the Crown. At the urging of Governor Frederick Lugard , the two territories were amalgamated as the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria , while maintaining considerable regional autonomy among the three major regions (Northern protectorate, Southern protectorate and the Colony of Lagos). Progressive constitutions after World War II provided for increasing representation and electoral government by Nigerians. The colonial period proper in Nigeria lasted from 1900 to 1960, after which Nigeria gained its independence. Through

1722-460: The blockade of Africa . Some of the treaties contained prohibitions on diplomacy conducted without British permission, or other promises to abide by British rule. This scenario provided an opportunity for naval expeditions and reconnaissance throughout the region. Britain also annexed Freetown in Sierra Leone , declaring it a Crown Colony in 1808. The decrease in trade indirectly led to

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1804-677: The 1850s. Much of the human trafficking which occurred there was nominally illegal, and records from this time and place are not comprehensive. According to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Voyage Database, 308,800 were sold across the Atlantic from Lagos in 1776–1850. British and French traders did a large share of this business until 1807 when they were replaced by the Portuguese and the Spaniards. By 1826–1850,

1886-619: The Abuja–Kaduna line had already opened. The line was conceived as an industrial railway to supply the Ajaokuta Steel Mill with iron ore from Itakpe and metallurgical coal imported through the port of Warri . Although construction was originally planned to be completed in five years, sporadic funding stretched out the construction period over more than 30 years. In August 2017, the Minister of Transportation announced that

1968-743: The Abuja–Kaduna section of the Lagos–Kano Standard Gauge Railway. The 157 kilometre Lagos–Ibadan section began construction in March 2017 and was inaugurated on 10 June 2021. It is the first double-track standard gauge line in West Africa. A Lagos–Ibadan journey takes two and a half hours, half as long as the equivalent car journey. All compartments (standard class, business class and first class) are air-conditioned and have three overhead screens. The window seats are equipped with power outlets and USB charging stations. Criticisms include

2050-644: The Bauchi Light Railway. Mention must also be made of the Lagos Steam Tramway (1902) and the Lagos Sanitary Tramway (1906), both of 762 mm ( 2 ft 6 in ) gauge. The construction of railways in Nigeria started from Lagos Colony to Ibadan in March 1896, by the British government. The Lagos Government Railway began operations in March 1901 and was extended to Minna in 1911, where it met

2132-470: The British Royal Navy was intervening significantly with Lagos slave exports. Whether British conquest of Nigeria resulted from a benevolent motive to end slavery or more instrumental motives of wealth and power, remains a topic of dispute between African and European historians. Many locals remained unconvinced of the Crown's authority to completely reverse the legal and moral attributes of

2214-587: The British pound sterling —which could be demanded through taxation, paid to cooperative natives, and levied as a fine. The amalgamation of different ethnic and religious groups into one federation created internal tension which persists in Nigeria to the present day. In the 1700s, the British Empire and other European powers had settlements and forts in West Africa but had not yet established

2296-564: The British were granted only extraterritorial rights that did not prevent similar arrangements with the Germans and the French and certainly did not surrender sovereignty. Even before gaining its charter, the Company signed treaties with local leaders which granted it broad sovereign powers. One 1885 treaty read: We, the undersigned King and Chiefs […] with the view to the bettering of the condition of our country and people, do this day cede to

2378-712: The Colonial Office. In 1891, the consulate established the Niger Coast Protectorate Force or "Oil Rivers Irregulars". The legitimate trade in commodities attracted a number of British merchants to the Niger River , as well as some men who had been formerly engaged in the slave trade but who now changed their line of wares. The large companies that subsequently opened depots in the delta cities and in Lagos were as ruthlessly competitive as

2460-582: The Kafanchan to Jos branch line. The 2 ft 6in Zaria–Jos section continued to operate until 1957 when it was abandoned. There was also the short-lived 762 mm ( 2 ft 6 in ) gauge Wushishi Tramway which connected Wushishi with Zungeru (19 kilometres or 12 miles) in 1901 and which was extended in 1902 from Wushishi to Bari-Juko (16 kilometres or 10 miles). It closed circa 1911 with its two Hunslet built 0-6-2T locomotives being transferred to

2542-894: The Lagos Legislative Council, a largely appointed assembly. The Colony was ultimately governed by the British Colonial Office in London. Captain John Glover , the colony's administrator, created a militia of Hausa troops in 1861. This became the Lagos Constabulary, and subsequently the Nigerian Police Force . In 1880, the British Government and traders demonetised the Maria Theresa dollar , to

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2624-684: The National Africa Company (Limited), their heirs and assigns, forever, the whole of our territory […] We also give the said National African Company (Limited) full power to settle all native disputes arising from any cause whatever, and we pledge ourselves not to enter into any war with other tribes without the sanction of the said National Africa Company (Limited). We also understand that the said National African Company (limited) have full power to mine, farm, and build in any portion of our territory. We bind ourselves not to have any intercourse with any strangers or foreigners except through

2706-466: The Niger River to establish stations in the interior. An example was that at Onitsha , where they could bargain directly with local suppliers and purchase products likely to turn a profit. Some European traders switched to legitimate business only when the commerce in slaves became too hazardous. The traders suffered from the risks of their position and believed they were at the mercy of the coastal rulers, whom they considered unpredictable. Accordingly, as

2788-570: The Niger and the Benue, sometimes becoming embroiled in serious conflicts when its British-led native constabulary intercepted slave raids or attempted to protect trade routes. The company negotiated treaties with Sokoto, Gwandu and Nupe that were interpreted as guaranteeing exclusive access to trade in return for the payment of annual tribute. Officials of the Sokoto Caliphate considered these treaties quite differently; from their perspective,

2870-528: The Royal Niger Company. The Royal Niger Company established its headquarters far inland at Lokoja , which was the main trading port of the company, from where it began to assume responsibility for the administration of areas along the Niger and Benue rivers where it maintained depots. It soon gained a virtual monopoly over trade along the River The company interfered in the territory along

2952-485: The Sokoto Caliphate, Scottish explorer Hugh Clapperton learned about the mouth of the Niger River, and where it reached the sea, but after suffering malaria, depression and dysentery, he died before confirming it. His servant, Richard Lander , and Lander's brother John were the ones to demonstrate that the Niger flowed into the sea. The Lander brothers were seized by slave traders in the interior and sold down

3034-612: The area between Lagos and Ibadan. The first missions were opened by the Church of England 's Church Missionary Society (CMS). Other Protestant denominations from Great Britain , Canada , and the United States also opened missions and, in the 1860s, Roman Catholic religious orders established missions. Protestant missionaries tended to divide the country into spheres of activity to avoid competition with each other, and Catholic missions similarly avoided duplication of effort among

3116-502: The children of company staff, children of non-staff from the neighboring community were later admitted after serious pressure from their parents was applied. The schools' academic prowess grew to legendary status, and children from towns dozens of kilometres away were admitted to became students. It is important to note that when the Iron Ore Project was inaugurated by Gen. Babangida, foreign expatriates were called in to manage

3198-563: The coastal area. In 1894 the territory was redesignated the Niger Coast Protectorate and was expanded to include the region from Calabar to Lagos Colony and Protectorate, including the hinterland, and northward up the Niger River as far as Lokoja , the headquarters of the Royal Niger Company. As a protectorate, it did not have the status of a colony, so its officials were appointed by the Foreign Office and not by

3280-641: The collapse of states like the Edo Empire . Britain withdrew from the slave trade when it was the major transporter of slaves to the Americas. The French had abolished slavery following the French Revolution , although it briefly re-established it in its Caribbean colonies especially Martinique under Napoleon . France sold Louisiana to the United States in 1803, the same year that it gave up on trying to regain Saint-Domingue from

3362-845: The considerable dismay of its local holders, in favour of the pound sterling . In 1891, the African Banking Corporation founded the Bank of British West Africa in Lagos. After the Berlin Conference of 1884, Britain announced the formation of the Oil Rivers Protectorate , which included the Niger Delta and extended eastward to Calabar, where the British Consulate General was relocated from Fernando Po. The protectorate

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3444-583: The current Nigerian railways were originally built by the colonial power , Great Britain . The railways were built to the 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ) Cape gauge , the same track gauge used in most other British colonies in Africa. The country has two major Cape gauge rail lines: There are also several branch lines: The NRC network does not yet connect to the rail network of neighbouring states. However, in February 2021, construction began on

3526-581: The delta towns themselves and frequently used force to compel potential suppliers to agree to contracts and to meet their demands. To some extent, competition amongst these companies undermined their collective position vis-à-vis, local merchants. In the 1870s, therefore, George Taubman Goldie began amalgamating companies into the United African Company, soon renamed the National African Company. Ultimately, this became

3608-596: The densely inhabited areas of the Ngwa , Nri Kingdom , Awka and other Igbo peoples. Palm oil was used locally for cooking, the kernels were a source for food, trees were tapped for palm wine, and the fronds were used for building material. It was a relatively simple adjustment for many Igbo families to transport the oil to rivers and streams that led to the Niger Delta for sale to European merchants. The rapid expansion in exports, especially after 1830, occurred precisely at

3690-444: The detailed reports of a pioneer German explorer, Heinrich Barth , who travelled through much of Borno and the Sokoto Caliphate, where he recorded information about the region's geography, economy and inhabitants. British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston detested slavery, and in 1851 he took advantage of divisions in native politics, the presence of Christian missionaries, and the maneuvers of British consul John Beecroft to encourage

3772-433: The entire 3,505 km Cape gauge railway network combined. Several metro systems are active or under construction: [REDACTED] Media related to Rail transport in Nigeria at Wikimedia Commons Colonial Nigeria Colonial Nigeria was ruled by the British Empire from the mid-nineteenth century until 1 October 1960 when Nigeria achieved independence. Britain annexed Lagos in 1861 and established

3854-440: The extended family of the trader, including retainers and slaves. As its head, the master trader taxed other traders who were members of his "house"; he maintained a war vessel, a large dugout canoe that could hold several tons of cargo and dozens of crews, for the defense of the harbor. Whenever a trader had become successful enough to keep a war canoe, he was expected to form his own "house". Economic competition among these "houses"

3936-579: The fact that tickets are not available online and only for cash payment, and that there are only three trips a day in each direction. There is praise for the punctuality and cleanliness of the trains. The "Red Line" of Lagos' Mass Rail Transit , which is currently under construction, will share the same corridor and right-of-way with the Lagos–Ibadan rail line. Modern station buildings have been constructed along all new standard gauge lines. The new main station of Lagos, Mobolaji Johnson , for example, offers air-conditioned waiting rooms, handicapped access to

4018-477: The full-scale plantation colonies which existed in the Americas. Adam Smith wrote in 1776 that the African societies were "better established and more populous than those of the Americas , thus creating a more formidable barrier to European expansion. Though the Europeans possessed many considerable settlements both upon the coast of Africa and in the East Indies , they have not yet established in either of those regions such numerous and thriving colonies as those in

4100-401: The interior. In 1794, the African Association in Great Britain commissioned Mungo Park , an intrepid Scottish physician and naturalist, to search for the headwaters of the Niger and follow the river downstream. Park reached the upper Niger the next year by travelling inland from the Gambia River. Although he reported on the eastward flow of the Niger, he was forced to turn back when his equipment

4182-421: The islands and continent of the America ." Earlier elements related to this were its founding of the Sierra Leone Colony in 1787 as a refuge for freed slaves , the independent missionary movement intended to bring Christianity to the Edo Kingdom , and programs of exploration sponsored by learned societies and scientific groups, such as the London-based African Association . Local leaders, cognizant of

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4264-399: The last quarter of the century. The slave trade was heaviest in the period 1700–1850, with an average of 76,000 people taken from Africa each year between 1783 and 1792. At first, the trade centered around West Central Africa, now the Congo. But in the 1700s, the Bight of Benin (also known as the Slave Coast ) became the next most important hub. Ouidah (now part of Benin ) and Lagos were

4346-427: The line from Itakpe to Abuja, where it will connect to the standard gauge network that is under connection. 07°36′52″N 06°19′7″E  /  7.61444°N 6.31861°E  / 7.61444; 6.31861 Rail transport in Nigeria#Standard gauge network Railways in Nigeria consist of a 3,505 km Cape gauge national railway network and 669 km of standard gauge . The Cape gauge network

4428-423: The local area. The company, as was common among European businesses in Africa, paid its native workers in barter. At the turn of the century, top wages were four bags of salt (company retail price, 3s 9d) for a month of work. Trade was also conducted through a mechanism of barter and credit. Goods were made available on credit to African middlemen, who were expected to trade them at a pre-arranged price and deliver

4510-434: The major ports on the coast. From 1790 to 1807, predominantly British slave traders purchased 1,000–2,000 slaves each year in Lagos alone. The trade subsequently continued under the Portuguese Empire . In the Bight of Biafra , the major ports were Old Calabar ( Akwa Akpa ), Bonny and New Calabar . Starting in 1740, the British were the primary European slave trafficker from this area. In 1767, British traders facilitated

4592-408: The missions. In large measure, European missionaries assumed the value of colonial rule in terms of promoting education, health and welfare measures, thereby effectively reinforcing colonial policy. Some African Christian communities formed their own independent churches. The missionaries gained in power throughout the 1800s. They caused major transformations in traditional society as they eroded

4674-401: The only operational segment of Nigeria's rail network was between Lagos and Kano . Passenger trains took 31 hours to complete the journey at an average speed of 45 km/h. A project to restore Nigeria's railways has been underway since 2009. The eastern line from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri was restored at a cost of US$ 427 million by Lingo Nigeria, Eser West Africa, and

4756-453: The overthrow of the regime. In 1851 deposed king Akintoye of Lagos sought British help in restoring him to the throne. Beecroft agreed on condition that the slave trade be abolished, and British merchants have a monopoly in commodities. The Royal Navy bombarded Lagos in November 1851, ousted the pro-slavery Oba Kosoko and established a treaty with the newly installed Oba Akintoye , who was expectedly more amenable to British interests. Lagos

4838-451: The project and train the Nigerian staff. The expatriates were naturally secluded and had their living quarters. The living quarters were further divided into colonies. Altogether, there are six colonies, viz: Koch Clemency Sofremines Special Guest House Camp I Camp II Koch, Clemency, and Sofremines were colonies for German, British, and French expatriates respectively. The colonies were designed to modern standards and feature sports clubs,

4920-467: The project in segments due to a lack of funds. After many delays, the segment from Abuja to Kaduna (187 km) opened officially on 26 July 2016. The total cost was US$ 870 million. The line, which begins in Idu, 20 kilometers west of central Abuja, requires two hours of travel time for trains with a maximum speed of 100 km/h. In August 2020, NRC reported that about 50% of the revenue of its entire rail network (about 4,000 km) would be generated by

5002-438: The railway would be completed by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and Julius Berger . On 29 September 2020, the Warri–Itakpe Railway was officially inaugurated by President Muhammadu Buhari in a virtual ceremony. Passenger trains have been running on the standard gauge line since October 2020 and freight trains since April 2021. Construction is underway on an extension to Abuja, where it will connect with

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5084-479: The religious institutions such as human sacrifice, infanticide and secret societies, which had formerly played a role in political authority and community life. The principal commodities of legitimate trade were palm oil and palm kernels , which were used in Europe to make soap and as lubricants for machinery before petroleum products were developed for that purpose. Although this trade grew to significant proportions—palm oil exports alone were worth £1 billion

5166-426: The river to a waiting European ship. Initial British attempts to open trade with the interior by way of the Niger could not overcome climate and diseases such as malaria. A third of the people associated with an 1842 riverine expedition died. In the 1850s, quinine had been found to combat malaria, and aided by the medicine, a Liverpool merchant, Macgregor Laird , opened the river. Laird's efforts were stimulated by

5248-474: The said national African Company (Limited), and we give the said National African Company (Limited) full power to exclude all other strangers and foreigners from their territory at their discretion. In consideration of the foregoing, the said National African Company (Limited) bind themselves not to interfere with any of the native laws or customs of the country, consistently with the maintenance of order and good government … [and] agree to pay native owners of land

5330-423: The several religious orders working there. Catholic missionaries were particularly active among the Igbo ; the CMS worked among the Yoruba . The CMS initially promoted Africans to responsible positions in the mission field; for instance, they appointed Samuel Ajayi Crowther as the first Anglican Bishop of the Niger . Crowther, a liberated Yoruba slave, had been educated in Sierra Leone and in Britain, where he

5412-421: The situation in the West Indies , India , and elsewhere, recognised the risks of British expansion. A chief of Bonny in 1860 explained that he refused a British treaty due to the tendency to "induce the Chiefs to sign a treaty whose meaning they did not understand, and then seize upon the country". The Headquarters of Gombe emirate was Gombe-Abba until when the then Emir of Gombe, Umaru Kwairanga (1898–1922),

5494-428: The standard gauge Abuja–Kaduna line. Nigerians like to take the train between the capital Abuja and the next largest city Kaduna because the highway between the two cities is a constant target for muggers. A train journey is thus the safer alternative to a car for residents of both cities. The Warri–Itakpe Railway was begun in 1987 as Nigeria's first standard gauge railway, but was only completed in 2020 – after

5576-466: The time slave exports collapsed. The Igbo redirected slaves into the domestic economy , especially to grow the staple food crop, yams , in northern Igboland for marketing throughout the palm-tree belt. As before, Aro merchants dominated trade in the hinterland, including palm products to the coast and the sale of slaves within Igboland. From 1815 to 1840, palm oil exports increased by a factor of 25, from 800 to 20,000 tons per year. British merchants led

5658-476: The tracks, airport-like display boards of departure times, clean toilets, trained personnel for medical emergencies, etc. The 762 mm ( 2 ft 6 in ) gauge Bauchi Light Railway operated between Zaria and Bukuru over a distance 230 km (143 mi) and was opened in stages between 1912 and 1914. In 1927 the 16 km (10 mi) section between Jos and Bukuru was converted to 1,067 mm ( 3 ft 6 in ) becoming part of

5740-602: The trade in palm oil, while the Portuguese and others continued the slave trade. Much of this oil was sold elsewhere in the British Empire. To produce all this oil, the economy of the southern region crossed over from mostly subsistence to the production of palm oil as a cash crop . The Niger Delta and Calabar , which once had been known for the export of slaves, became notable for the export of palm oil. The Delta streams were called "oil rivers". The basic economic units in each town were "houses", family-operated entities that engendered loyalty for its employees. A "house" included

5822-409: The vegetables from the city of Jose. People mostly use cow milk for their dairy products. Traders from various cities sell precious stones, wooden handicraft, leather items etc. for reasonable prices. Itakpe is the inland terminus of the Itakpe–Warri Railway , a standard gauge railway that passes by the Ajaokuta Steel Mill on its way to the Atlantic Ocean port of Warri . There are plans to extend

5904-599: The volume of trade increased, merchants requested that the Government of the United Kingdom appoint a consul to cover the region. Consequently, in 1849, John Beecroft was accredited as consul for the bights of Benin and Biafra, a jurisdiction stretching from Dahomey to Cameroon . Beecroft was the British representative to Fernando Po , where the African Slave Trade Patrol of the Royal Navy

5986-593: Was annexed as a Crown Colony in 1861 via the Lagos Treaty of Cession . British expansion accelerated in the last decades of the nineteenth century. The early history of Lagos Colony was one of repeated attempts to end the Yoruba wars. In the face of threats to the divided Yoruba states from Dahomey and the Sokoto Caliphate, as represented by the emirate of Ilorin , the British Governor—assisted by

6068-549: Was combined with the Northern Nigeria Protectorate to form the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria. Administration and military control of the territory was conducted primarily by white Britons, both in London and in Nigeria . Following military conquest, the British imposed an economic system designed to profit from African labour. The essential basis of this system was a money economy —specifically

6150-569: Was extended to Kaduna via Kafanchan in 1927, connecting the Eastern Railway to the Lagos–Kano Railway. The Eastern Railway was extended to its northeastern terminus of Maiduguri between 1958 and 1964. Years of neglect of both the rolling stock and the right-of-way have seriously reduced the capacity and utility of the system. Couplings of the ABC kind, vacuum brakes and non- roller bearing plain axles are also obsolete. By early 2013,

6232-417: Was forced to move from Gombe-Abba, a town founded by his grandfather and the founder of Gombe Emirate , Modibbo Bubayero, to Nafada town in 1913, and then to the current Gombe in 1919, that was after Gombe Emirate was conquered by British colonialists in 1903. European slave trading from West Africa began before 1650, with people taken at a rate of about 3,000 per year. This rate rose to 20,000 per year in

6314-741: Was headed by a Governor. The Deputy Governor served as political administrator for company territory and appointed three officials in Nigeria to carry out the work of administration. These were the Agent-General, the Senior Judicial Officer, and the Commandant of the Constabulary. However, the company did accept that local kings could act as partners in governance and trade. It, therefore, hired native intermediaries who could conduct diplomacy, trade and intelligence work in

6396-412: Was lost to Muslim Arab slave traders . In 1805, he set out on a second expedition, sponsored by the British Government, to follow the Niger to the sea. His mission failed, but Park and his party covered more than 1,500 kilometres (930 mi), passing through the western portions of the Sokoto Caliphate , before drowning when their boats overturned in rapids near Bussa . On a subsequent expedition to

6478-522: Was ordained before returning to his homeland with the first group of CMS missionaries. The Anglicans and other religious groups had a conscious "native church" policy to develop indigenous ecclesiastical institutions to become independent of Europeans. Crowther was succeeded as bishop by a British cleric. In the long term, the acceptance of Christianity by large numbers of Nigerians depended on the various denominations adapting to local conditions. They selected an increasingly high proportion of African clergy for

6560-413: Was organised to control and develop trade coming down the Niger. Vice consuls were assigned to ports that already had concluded treaties of cooperation with the Foreign Office. Local rulers continued to administer their territories, but consular authorities assumed jurisdiction for the equity courts established earlier by the foreign mercantile communities. A constabulary force was raised and used to pacify

6642-453: Was so fierce that trade often erupted into an armed battle between the crews of the large canoes. Because of the hazards of climate and tropical diseases for Europeans and the absence of any centralized authorities on the mainland responsive to their interests, European merchants moored their ships outside harbours or in the delta and used the ships as trading stations and warehouses. In time, they built depots onshore and eventually moved up

6724-414: Was stationed. In 1850, the British created a " Court of Equity " at Bonny, overseen by Beecroft, which would deal with trade disputes. Another court was established in 1856 at Calabar, based on an agreement with local Efik traders which prohibited them from interfering with British merchants. These courts contained majorities British members and represented a new level of presumptive British sovereignty in

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