Richard Toll

Richard Toll is a town in northern Senegal, lying on the south bank of the River Senegal, just east of Rosso. Originally a colonial town, it was named for the park of the Chateau de Baron Roger, laid out by botanist Jean Michel Claude Richard. A rice growing scheme was originally initiated by France's colonial development organisation, FIDES, in 1949 with an initial cultivated area of 6000ha. The town's main industry is sugar. Estimated population 2007: 70,000.Marie Laforêt has a song about Richard Toll.HistoryBefore Colonization there were only two villages Ndiangué, and Xhouma, which were inhabited by the Mbodi people descendants of Brack, and followers of the royal Walo Tradition. In 1817 the governor under colonial rule Schmaltz created L’Escale community on the Senegal River. In 1822, the new governor the Baron Roger sent a botanist and pépiniériste named Michelle Claude Richard to work in L’Escale and named it Richard’s Toll, meaning Richards Farm in local language. At this time there were 28 residents, and 1148 nomadic workers living in Toll. The size of toll then grew greatly in 1945 with the creation of the Mission Agricole du Senegal, which also brought other institutions such as a hospital, and chapel, and a school. There was then a rapid demographic growth in 1970 with the implementation of the Compagnie Sucriére Sénégalaise, which brought in around 15,000 inhabitants and brought about two phenomenon: the joining of the local villages, and the creation of new quartiers. By 1980 Richard Toll had six quartiers: Escale, Ndaingué, Ndiaw, Khouma Wolof, Khouma Peul, and Ndombo Alarba. Since then the city has grown and evolved into what it is today with the addition of quartiers such as Campement, Thiaback, GAE2, and Taouey.