The Maison de la Canne (House of Sugarcane), formerly known as the Sugarcane Museum, is housed in a former distillery. It traces the evolution of sugarcane over the past three centuries. Located in the Vatable district of Trois-Îlets, the museum spans more than two hectares.
The Maison de la Canne is the result of a research and archival project on Martinique’s sugar industry heritage, led by the Association Martiniquaise de la Maison de la Canne (AMMCA), with major contributions from teachers at Lycée Schoelcher.
The association aimed to preserve traces of Martinique’s sugar-producing past, which had suffered significant degradation of its plantation estates and the disappearance of central factories.
During your visit, you’ll learn more about the arrival of sugarcane in Martinique and its development through to its modern-day uses. When sugarcane was introduced to the French colonies, the entire economic and agricultural life revolved around this plant, which produced the sugar so prized on the tables of European nobility. Today, it remains a key crop, especially for the production of world-renowned rums.
Since 1991, the Regional Council—which supported the project—has been responsible for managing the museum, which has since attracted a large number of visitors.
