By 1772, Grenada was a British colony and Grand Bras Estate was owned by British expatriate plantation owners, with 450 acres and 139 slaves cultivating mainly sugar cane. In 1795, during the Fedon/Slave Rebellion, Grand Bras Estate (together with many others) was burnt to the ground. The uprising was eventually crushed by the British who brought in reinforcements and by 1819, three hundred and fourteen slaves labored on the estate producing 647,299 lbs of sugar and 26,177 gallons of molasses for the European market.
Even though slave labour was ended in 1838 through Emancipation, with the former slaves on GrandBras Estate becoming free wage workers, their working conditions and standard of living only barely improved. By 1880 cocoa had replaced sugar cane as the main crop on most estates including GrandBras. (Nutmegs were later also introduced on the island).
