Timeline of Accra

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Accra, Ghana.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by editing the page to add missing items, with references to reliable sources.

17th–19th centuries

• 1570 - Portuguese build a trading lodge called St. Vincentia. ^[1]
• 1576 - Portuguese lodge destroyed. ^[2]
• 1640s - Civil war in Accra. ^[2]
• 1649 – Fort Crèvecœur built by the Dutch West India Company.
• 1661 – Fort Christiansborg built by the Dutch trader Henry Caerlof in Osu. ^[3]
• 1673 – Fort James built by the English. ^[3]
• 1677 - Akwamu attacks the Accra Kingdom and sacks the capital. King Okai Koi killed, with Ofori leading the refugees to Osu. ^[2]
• 1680-1 – Akwamu sponsors a munity in Christianborg, then conquers holdout Accrans. Accra becomes a province of Akwamu. ^[2]
• 1693 - Akwamu take Christianborg by subterfuge. They hold it for a year before selling it back to the Danes. ^[2]
• 1731-2 - Akwamu defeated by Akyem, who take control of Accra's trade routes. ^[1]
• 1742 - Akyem defeated by the Asante Empire, who take control of Accra. ^[1]
• 1807 – Slave trade abolished. ^{[4] [5]}
• 1850 – Dutch Fort Crèvecœur ceded to British control. ^[6]
• 1851 – Denmark sells its forts to Britain.
• 1871 – The Netherlands sells its forts to Britain.
• 1871 – Jamestown Light built at Fort James.
• 1874 – British capture Accra.
• 1876 – Capital of British Gold Coast relocated to Accra from Cape Coast. ^[7]
• 1883 – N. Walwin Holm photography studio established. ^[8]
• 1889 – Lutterodt photo studio in business (approximate date). ^{[9] [10]}
• 1894 – Holy Trinity Cathedral (Accra) construction begins. ^[11]
• 1896 – Bank of British West Africa branch established. ^[12]
• 1898 – Accra Town Council established. ^[13]

20th century

• 1908 – Town boundaries expanded.
• 1909 – Anglican Diocese of Accra founded.
• 1910 – Accra Central Station and railway line to Mangoase opened.
• 1911 – Accra Hearts of Oak Sporting Club formed.
• 1914 – Excelsior Orchestra formed. ^[14]
• 1918 - The Grand Orange Lodge of Ghana was established. ^{[15] [16]}
• 1920 – March: National Congress of British West Africa organized. ^[17]
• 1922 – Construction of Wesley Methodist Cathedral commenced.
• 1923
  • Gold Coast Hospital opens.
  • Kumasi-Accra railway completed ^[17] and bridge across Korle Lagoon constructed.
  • Accra High School founded.
• 1927 – Achimota College opens.
• 1929
  • National Congress of British West Africa meets in Accra. ^[18]
  • Gold Coast Youth Conference meeting held. ^[18]
• 1931 – Accra Academy established.
• 1937 – Population: 72,977 (estimate). ^[6]
• 1939 – The 1939 Accra earthquake occurred on June 22 with a surface wave magnitude of 6.4 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Twenty-two were killed and 130 were injured, with 1,500 homes destroyed in the region. A damaging aftershock occurred on August 18, causing additional damage northeast of the city. ^[19]
• 1941 – U.S. military installed at Accra airfield. ^[17]
• 1943 – Catholic Apostolic Prefecture of Accra established.
• 1945 – African Morning Post newspaper begins publication. ^[17]
• 1946 – Gold Coast Bulletin,Spectator Daily, and Daily Echo newspapers begins publication. ^[17]
• 1948
  • February: 1948 Accra Riots.
  • Accra Evening News and Ghana Statesman newspapers begin publication. ^[17]
  • University College of the Gold Coast founded. ^[20]
  • Population: 135,926. ^[21]
• 1949
  • Convention People's Party headquartered in Accra. ^[22]
  • Gold Coast Express newspaper begins publication. ^[17]
  • Gold Coast Film School founded. ^[23]
• 1950
  • Daily Graphic newspaper begins publication. ^[24]
  • Ghana Library Board headquartered in Accra. ^{[25] [26]}
  • United States Information Agency resource centre established. ^[26]
• 1953 – Accra Municipal Council established. ^[13]
• 1954
  • Gold Coast Broadcasting System headquartered in Accra.
  • Bomaa Accra Great Olympics football club formed.
• 1955 – Ghana International School founded.
• 1956
  • Accra Central Library established (approximate date).
  • Ghanaian Arts Council headquartered in Accra. ^[27]
• 1957
  • 6 March: Accra becomes capital of independent Republic of Ghana. ^[3]
  • State House, National Museum of Ghana, and Independence Arch built. ^{[28] [29]}
  • Catholic Holy Spirit Cathedral opened.
  • Semi-autonomous area councils created: Ablekuma, Ashiedu Keteke, Kpeshie, Okaikwei, and Osu-Klottey (approximate date). ^[13]
  • Ghana Drama Studio founded. ^{[30] [31]}
• 1958 – All-African Peoples' Conference held. ^[32]
• 1959 – National Symphony Orchestra Ghana, Ghana Press Club, ^[33] and Ghana School of Journalism founded. ^[34]
• 1960
  • Accra Sports Stadium opens.
  • Population: 388,000 (approximate). ^[32]
• 1961
  • Black Star Square Arch erected. ^{[28] [35]}
  • Accra attains city status. ^[13]
  • Goethe-Institut branch founded. ^[36]
• 1962 – Ghana Dance Ensemble formed. ^[20]
• 1963
  • Accra-Tema Development Corporation established. ^[13]
  • November–December: 1963 African Cup of Nations held.
• 1964
  • Greater Accra administrative area created. ^[13]
  • Boxer Muhammad Ali visits city. ^[37]
• 1965
  • GTV (Ghana) headquartered in Accra.
  • Kwame Nkrumah Conference Centre built. ^[38]
  • October: Organisation of African Unity summit held.
• 1966 – 24 February: Coup at Flagstaff House.
• 1967 – Association of African Universities headquartered in city. ^[39]
• 1970 – Population: 564,194 city; 738,498 urban agglomeration. ^[40]
• 1971 – Soul to Soul documentary film of concert at Black Star Square.
• 1974 – Napoleon Night Club active. ^[14]
• 1975 – Union of Writers of African Peoples inaugurated in Accra. ^[41]
• 1978 – March: 1978 African Cup of Nations held.
• 1980 – Population: 1,000,000 (estimate). ^[32]
• 1982 – Greater Accra Region (administrative area) created.
• 1985 – W.E.B. Du Bois Memorial Centre for Pan-African Culture established. ^[42]
• 1987
  • Accra Milo Marathon begins.
  • Integrated Social Development Centre established. ^[43]
• 1988 – Pan-African Orchestra founded.
• 1989 – Ghana Stock Exchange headquartered in Accra.
  • Pan African Writers' Association (PAWA) founded.
• 1990 – Population: 1,197,000 (urban agglomeration). ^[44]
• 1991 – Accra International Conference Centre built. ^[38]
• 1992
  • National Theatre (Accra) opens. ^[35]
  • Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Park laid out.
• 1993 – Centre for Policy Analysis ^[43] and Artists Alliance Gallery ^[45] established.
• 1994 – Uniiq FM radio begins broadcasting.
• 1996 – Ghanaian Chronicle newspaper begins publication. ^[46]
• 1998 – West Africa Network for Peacebuilding headquartered in Accra. ^[43]
• 1999 – Ako Adjei Interchange opens.
• 2000
  • January–February: 2000 African Cup of Nations held.
  • Population: 1,674,000 (urban agglomeration). ^[44]

21st century

• 2001 – 9 May: Accra Sports Stadium disaster.
• 2003 – Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT established.
• 2004
  • Stanley Nii Adjiri Blankson becomes mayor. ^[47]
  • Mormon Temple dedicated.
• 2005 – Population: 1,985,000 (urban agglomeration). ^[44]
• 2006 – American International School of Accra and Nubuke Foundation founded.
• 2007 – Accra International Marathon begins. ^{[48] [49]}
• 2008 – Golden Jubilee House inaugurated.
• 2009
  • Alfred Vanderpuije becomes mayor. ^[50]
  • Population: 2,263,785 (urban agglomeration). ^[51]
• 2010 - Population: 1,594,419 (city proper). ^[52]
• 2011 – Google office in business. ^[53]
• 2014 – September: United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response headquartered in Accra. ^[54]
• 3 June 2015: Flood and Fire Disaster

See also

• Accra history
• List of rulers of Gã (Nkran) (Accra, Ghana)
• Neighbourhoods of Accra
• List of universities in Accra
• List of senior secondary schools in Accra
• List of hospitals in Accra
• List of radio stations in Greater Accra Region

References

1. Anquandah, James (2006). "THE ACCRA PLAINS c. AD 1400 – 1800 AN OVERVIEW OF TRADE, POLITICS AND CULTURE FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY". Research Review. Supplement 17. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
2. Wilks, Ivor (1957). "The Rise of The Akwamu Empire, 1650-1710". Transactions of the Historical Society of Ghana. 3 (2): 25–62. JSTOR   41405705.
3. Appiah 2005.
4. "The 1807 Act and its effects: The Abolition of Slavery Project". abolition.e2bn.org. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
5. "The National Archives | Exhibitions & Learning online | Black presence | Rights". nationalarchives.gov.uk. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
6. Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Springfield, Mass., USA: G. & C. Merriam Co., 1960, OCLC   3832886, OL   5812502M
7. Britannica 1910.
8. Kobena Mercer (2010). "African Photography". In Kwame Anthony Appiah; Henry Louis Gates (eds.). Encyclopedia of Africa. Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780195337709.
9. John Hannavy, ed. (2007). Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-Century Photography. Routledge. ISBN   978-1-135-87326-4.
10. Erin Haney (2013). "Lutterodt Family Studios and the Changing Face of Early Portrait Photographs from the Gold Coast". In John Peffer and Elisabeth L. Cameron (ed.). Portraiture and Photography in Africa. Indiana University Press. ISBN   978-0-253-00872-5.
11. England, Church of (1897). Official Year-book of the Church of England, 1897. London.
12. Glyn Davies; Roy Davies (2002). "Comparative Chronology of Money" – via University of Exeter.
13. "Historical Background". Accra Metropolitan Assembly. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
14. "Ghana's Highlife Music Collection". Daniel Langlois Foundation . Retrieved 30 August 2015.
15. "BBC World Service - Heart and Soul, Discovering an Orange Order sash in Ghana". BBC. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
16. "Grand Orange Lodge of Ireland Grand Orange Lodge". www.grandorange.org.uk. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
17. Florence M. Bourret (1952). The Gold Coast: A Survey of the Gold Coast and British Togoland, 1919–1951 (2nd ed.). Stanford University Press.
18. A. Adu Boahen, ed. (1990). Africa Under Colonial Domination, 1880–1935. General History of Africa. Vol. 7. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. ISBN   978-0-520-06702-8.
19. National Geophysical Data Center / World Data Service (NGDC/WDS) (1972), Significant Earthquake Database, National Geophysical Data Center, NOAA, doi:10.7289/V5TD9V7K, archived from the original on 29 September 2006
20. "About Us". University of Ghana. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
21. "Population of capital city and cities of 100,000 or more inhabitants". Demographic Yearbook 1955. New York: Statistical Office of the United Nations.
22. Shillington 2005.
23. "Guinea Coast, 1900 A.D.–present: Key Events". Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art . Retrieved 30 August 2015.
24. Jennifer Hasty (2005), The Press and Political Culture in Ghana, Bloomington: Indiana University Press, ISBN   0253345243
25. "About Us". Ghana Library Board. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
26. World Guide to Libraries (25th ed.), De Gruyter Saur, 2011, ISBN   9783110230710
27. Albert S. Gerard, ed. (1986). European-language Writing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Budapest: Akademiai Kiado. ISBN   9630538342.
28. Mark Crinson (2003), "Dialects of internationalism: architecture in Ghana, 1945–66", Modern Architecture and the End of Empire, Ashgate Publishing, ISBN   9780754635109
29. "Museums". Accra: Ghana Museums and Monuments Board. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
30. Martin Banham; et al., eds. (1994). "Ghana" . Cambridge Guide to African and Caribbean Theatre. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   0521411394.
31. "Drama Studio". University of Ghana. Archived from the original on 9 April 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
32. Adedze 2003.
33. Christina Seyd (2002), Die Zivilgesellschaft in Ghana (in German), Hamburg: Institut für Afrika-Kunde, ISBN   392804981X
34. "History". Ghana Institute of Journalism. Archived from the original on 19 January 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
35. "Accra". ArchNet . MIT School of Architecture and Planning. Archived from the original on 10 December 2012.
36. "Goethe-Institut Accra" . Retrieved 24 May 2013.
37. "Champ's African 'Love Affair'". Ebony . USA: Johnson Publishing Company. September 1964. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
38. Richard Trillo (2008). Rough Guide to West Africa (5th ed.). Rough Guides. ISBN   9781405380706.
39. "About AAU". Association of African Universities. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
40. United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistical Office (1976). "Population of capital city and cities of 100,000 and more inhabitants". Demographic Yearbook 1975. New York. pp. 253–279.
41. Wole Soyinka (1990), "Twice bitten: the fate of Africa's culture products", in Olusegun Obasanjo; Hans d' Orville (eds.), Challenges of leadership in African development, New York: Crane Russak, ISBN   0884816699
42. Jemima Pierre and Jesse Weaver Shipley (2007). "The intellectual and pragmatic legacy of Du Bois's Pan-Africanism in contemporary Ghana". In Keller; et al. (eds.). Re-cognizing W.E.B. Du Bois in the Twenty-first Century: Essays on W.E.B. Du Bois. Mercer University Press. ISBN   9780881460773.
43. "Organizations". International Relations and Security Network . Switzerland: Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich . Retrieved 30 August 2015.
44. "The State of African Cities 2010: Governance, Inequalities and Urban Land Markets". United Nations Human Settlements Programme. 2010. Archived from the original on 17 June 2013.
45. "Artists Alliance holds anniversary exhibition". Daily Graphic. 6 April 2013.
46. International Coalition on Newspapers. "Newspaper Database". Center for Research Libraries. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
47. "Adjiri Blankson gets the nod". Adenta: Modern Ghana. 26 February 2004.
48. "News at Ashesi University College, Ghana". archives.ashesi.edu.gh. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
49. "AthleticsAfrica.Com - Regions". www.athleticsafrica.com. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
50. "Accra Metropolitan Assembly". City of Accra. Archived from the original on 28 July 2013. Retrieved 24 May 2013.
51. "Population of capital cities and cities of 100,000 or more inhabitants". Demographic Yearbook 2011. United Nations Statistics Division. 2012.
52. "Table 8 - Population of capital cities and cities of 100,000 or more inhabitants", Demographic Yearbook – 2018, United Nations
53. "Corporate Information: Google Offices". Google Inc. Archived from the original on 29 May 2011.
54. "UNMEER won't provide direct medical care – UN official". Global Post. 30 September 2014.

Bibliography

• "Accra"  . Encyclopædia Britannica . Vol. 1 (11th ed.). 1910. p. 125.
• Accra City Handbook. Accra City Council. 1977.
• Jones J. Tetteh; C.S. Botchwey, eds. (1989). Accra, capital of Ghana. former members of the Interim Management Committee of the Accra Metropolitan Authority. ISBN   9964905041.
• Katherine V. Gough; P. Yankson (2001). "Role of Civil Society in Urban Management in Accra, Ghana". In Arne Tostensen; et al. (eds.). Associational Life in African Cities: Popular Responses to the Urban Crisis. Sweden: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet. pp. 127+. ISBN   978-91-7106-465-3.
• Agbenyega Adedze (2003). "Accra, Ghana". In Dickson Eyoh; Paul Tiyambe Zeleza (eds.). Encyclopedia of Twentieth-Century African History. Routledge. ISBN   0415234794.
• Kwame Anthony Appiah; Henry Louis Gates, eds. (2005). "Accra". Africana: The Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 18. ISBN   978-0-19-517055-9.
• Kevin Shillington, ed. (2005). "Accra". Encyclopedia of African History. Taylor & Francis. p. 15. ISBN   978-1-57958-245-6.
• John R. Weeks; et al. (2007). "Can we spot a neighborhood from the air? Defining neighborhood structure in Accra, Ghana". GeoJournal. 69.
• Alex Boakye Asiedu and Godwin Arku (2009). "The rise of gated housing estates in Ghana: Empirical insights from three communities in metropolitan Accra". Journal of Housing and the Built Environment. 24 (3): 227–247. Bibcode:2009JHTRW..24..227A. doi:10.1007/s10901-009-9146-0. JSTOR   41107466. S2CID   154912183.
• David P. Johnson Jr. (2010). "Ga". In Kwame Anthony Appiah; Henry Louis Gates (eds.). Encyclopedia of Africa. Oxford University Press. ISBN   9780195337709.
• Mobile City of Accra: Urban Families, Housing and Residential Practices, Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa, 2012
• Improving Participartory Water Governance in Accra, Ghana, Canada: Centre for International Governance Innovation, 2013 – via International Relations and Security Network
• Ato Quayson (2014). Oxford Street, Accra: City Life and the Itineraries of Transnationalism. Duke University Press. ISBN   978-0-8223-7629-3.
• Marleen de Witte (2016). "Encountering religion through Accra's urban soundscape". In Jonathan Darling; Helen F. Wilson (eds.). Encountering the City: Urban Encounters from Accra to New York. Routledge. pp. 133+. ISBN   978-1-317-14395-6.

External links

• "(Accra)". Directory of Open Access Journals . UK. (Bibliography of open access articles)
• "(Accra)" – via Europeana. (Images, etc.)
• "(Accra)" – via Digital Public Library of America. (Images, etc.)
• "(Accra)". Internet Library Sub-Saharan Africa . Germany: Frankfurt University Library. (Bibliography)
• "(Accra)". Connecting-Africa. Leiden, Netherlands: African Studies Centre. (Bibliography)
• "(Accra)". AfricaBib.org . (Bibliography)
• "Accra, Ghana". BlackPast.org . United States. 6 July 2010.