H. D. Carberry, 1921-1989

Images of the Caribbean Diaspora: Book Jacket Art

(from the H.D. Carberry Collection of Caribbean Studies,
University of Illinois at Chicago)

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The Caribbean Covers Database

Hugh Doston (“Dossie”) Carberry was born July 12, 1921, the son of sir John Carberry, a former Chief Justice of Jamaica, and Lady Georgina Carberry, in Montreal, Canada. He came to Jamaica in infancy and spent most of his life there. He had his primary education at Decarteret school in Mandeville, Jamaica and then attended Jamaica College. After working with the Civil Service, to which he qualified as second out of over 100 applicants, Carberry went to St. Catherrine College, Oxford University, where he obtained his B. A. and B. C. L.. He read Law at Middle Temple and was called to the Bar in 1951, then returning to Jamaica to engage in private practice.

In 1954, Carberry married Dorothea, and they had two sons, Martin and John, and a daughter, Christine. In addition to his career in law, Carberry was a poet and gave outstanding service in the cultural field, being a member of the Managing Committee of the Little Theatre since 1951. A devout Christian, he was also a pillar of the Providence Methodist church as Class Co-leader. Carberry was Clerk to the Houses of Parliament from 1969-1978 and a member of the commonwealth Parliamentary Association. He was appointed Judge of the Jamaican court of appeal in 1978 and served for a decade. H. D. Carberry died on June 28, 1989.


This project was made possible through the generous gift of the Janice and Gary Buslik Fund for Caribbean Studies and of the skill and time of Richard A. Stack.

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