Five Cowrie Creek, LagosCirca: June 1962

Five Cowrie Creek, Lagos
Circa: June 1962

Five Cowrie Creek, Lagos
Circa: June 1962

The Legend of Five Cowries: Lagos’ Timeless Waterway
Before bridges stretched across its expanse, Five Cowrie Creek served as Lagos’ lifeline—a conduit for commerce, a marker of authority, and a silent observer of history. Its name originates from the toll of five cowries once required to cross its waters, linking Lagos Island to Victoria Island long before roads and modern transit reshaped the landscape.

On February 28, 1852, Oba Akitoye brokered an agreement with European traders: in return for a 3% levy on exports, he assured them unhindered passage through the creek—an essential trade corridor separating Lagos from the vast Atlantic. Cowries, once a treasured form of currency introduced by the Portuguese, remained in circulation even after Lagos was annexed by the British in 1861.

Today, Independence Bridge, Falomo Bridge, and the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge stand where boatmen once paddled, yet the creek’s waters continue to whisper tales of the past—a testament to Lagos’ enduring spirit of trade, transformation, and tenacity.