Prince, All of my family were born in Georgetown, where my dad worked for some thirty plus years as a groundnut buyer and general trader. I remember there were many Aku families, including one Auntie Kaindeh, and a Coker family. Auntie kaindeh used to be the one who would use a spoon handle dipped in black pepper and vinegar to lift your tonsils up in the event that we kids had sever sore throats. A few trips to her place for that, and i used to be afraid to approach the woman even when i was not sick. This Mr Coker was the headmaster of the primary school and his wife was a teacher there also. My brother Musa Joh went to school there, and i started my first year of schooling there. I was in the same class with Njameh Mboge, Ex-president Jawara's second wife. I remember Njameh had great hand-writing, and we used to write on slates. I also remember bribing her with my lunch so she could write on my slate for me. Her mom ( Ya Arret Chareh) and mine were friends, and her dad, Inspector Mboge was stationed there at the time. It is amazing all the stuff I remember about that place. If anyone ever tells you that little kids cannot remember things in their past vividly because they were too young, do not believe it for a minute. Was this Mr Coker a relative of yours? I also know what Samba kuka is because my dad used to sell it in his shop, and my mothers used to make "work clothes" out of it.' Jabou Joh In a message dated 2/24/00 4:35:12 PM Central Standard Time, [log in to unmask] writes: << The first settlement of the Akus in the Gambia was in Georgetown (Janjangburrah). My great, great grandfather whose name was Sam Coker (Osseh and Pa Abdoulie), was a small-time trader in Georgetown. He gave us the name of the fabric "Samba-Kuka" derived from his name. >> ************************* ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------