Basic Information

Country: Commonwealth of The Bahamas, independent (1973 from UK)
Islands: Acklins and Crooked Islands, Bimini, Cat Island,
Exuma, Freeport, Fresh Creek, Governor's Harbour, Green
Turtle Cay, Harbour Island, High Rock, Inagua, Kemps Bay,
Long Island, Marsh Harbour, Mayaguana, New Providence,
Nicholls Town and Berry Islands, Ragged Island, Rock Sound,
Sandy Point, San Salvador and Rum Cay
Population (by 2000): 294,982
Ethnic groups: Black 85%, white 12%, Asian and Hispanic 3%
Languages: English, Creole (among Haitian immigrants)
Capital: Nassau
Area: 13,940 sq km
Geographic coordinates: 24 15 N, 76 00 W
Climate: Tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream
Terrain: Long, flat coral formations with some low rounded
hills. Highest point: Mount Alvernia, on Cat Island 63 m
Natural resources: Salt, aragonite, timber
Natural hazards: Hurricanes and other tropical storms that cause extensive flood and wind damage
Currency: 1 Bahamian dollar (B$) = 100 cents

History

The Bahamas were originally inhabited by a group of Arawak Indians known as Lucayan. Originally from the South American continent, some of the Arawak had been driven north into the Caribbean by the Carib Indians. Unlike their Carib neighbors, the Lucayan were generally peaceful, more involved in fishing than agriculture, and not cannibalistic.

When Columbus reached the New World in 1492, he is thought to have landed on San Salvador (also called Watling Island) or possibly Samana Cay, both in the Bahamas. The Spaniards made no attempt to settle but operated slave raids on the peaceful Arawak that depopulated the islands, and by the time the English arrived the Bahamas were uninhabited.

In 1629 Charles I of England granted the islands to one of his ministers, but no attempt at settlement was made. In 1648 William Sayle led a group of English Puritans from Bermuda to, it is thought, Eleuthera Island. This settlement met with extreme adversity and did not prosper, but other Bermudan migrants continued to arrive. New Providence was settled in 1656. By 1670 the Bahamas were given to the Duke of Albemarle and five others as a proprietary colony. The proprietors were mostly uninterested in the islands, and few of the settlements prospered. Piracy became a way of life for many.

The pirate community was large and well established. Because of it location relative to the British colonies in North America, it became a major concern for the Crown and a convenient location for smugglers and pirates of every nation. For this reason the British set up a Naval station to combat the pirates.

The colony reverted to the Crown in 1717, and serious efforts were made to end the piracy. The first royal governor, Woodes Rogers, succeeded in controlling the pirates but mostly at his own expense. Little monetary and military support came from England. Consequently, the islands remained poor and susceptible to Spanish attack.

Rogers was an exceptional pirate hunter. He offered pardons to pirates in an effort to get them to turn. While most were skeptical, they soon found him to be sincere and eventually 2,000 pirates accepted the pardons and made the Bahamas virtually pirate free. Rogers knew the habits of pirates and he was certain that many of the pardoned pirates would go back to their evil ways. But this concerned him little. Rogers recruited men from among those pardoned to hunt down those who returned to their old ways. The move was quite successful and eventually many of the brethren of the coast were "dancing the devil's jig" on the gallows.

Held for a few days by the U.S. Navy in 1776, and for almost a year by Spain in 1782-83, the islands reverted to England in 1783 and received a boost in population from loyalists and their slaves who fled the United States after the American Revolution. For a time, cotton plantations brought some prosperity to the islands, but when the soil gave out and slavery was abolished in 1834, the Bahamas' endemic poverty returned.

Two other periods of prosperity followed: the years 1861-65, when the Bahamas became a center for blockade runners during the American Civil War, and in 1920-33, when bootlegging became big business during the years of American Prohibition. But these were economic accidents; not until the tourist industry was developed after World War II did any form of permanent prosperity come to the islands.

The need to secure political representation for the islands' black majority led to the formation of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), which was able to form a government in 1967. The PLP worked to end racial segregation and secure independence for the islands, which was granted in 1973. Among the problems the government had to cope with after independence were drug trafficking in the Out Islands and the illegal entry of many Haitian refugees.

Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and investment management. By the early 1980s, the islands had become a major center for drug trafficking, particularly shipments to the US.

Bahamas today - Port Lucaya Marina

Nassau today