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Coordinates: 26°28′N 77°05′W / 26.467°N 77.083°W / 26.467; -77.083
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===Abaco Slave Revolts of the 1800s===
===Abaco Slave Revolts of the 1800s===
As told by the reporter Michael Harriot, in an informal language,
As told by the reporter Michael Harriot<ref>jd3</ref>, in an informal language,
"After the Revolutionary War, many of the white people who were loyal to Britain moved to the Bahamas, which was largely empty. A lot of those people brought their enslaved Africans with them.
"After the Revolutionary War, many of the white people who were loyal to Britain moved to the Bahamas, which was largely empty. A lot of those people brought their enslaved Africans with them.


Revision as of 14:24, 26 May 2023

Abaco
The five administrative districts of the Abaco
Abaco is located in Bahamas
Abaco
Abaco
Abaco is located in North Atlantic
Abaco
Abaco
Geography
LocationAtlantic Ocean
Coordinates26°28′N 77°05′W / 26.467°N 77.083°W / 26.467; -77.083
ArchipelagoBahamas
Major islandsGreat Abaco Island, Little Abaco Island
Area2,009 km2 (776 sq mi)[1]
Administration
IslandAbaco
Largest settlementMarsh Harbour (pop. 5,314)
Demographics
Population16,587[2] (2022)
Pop. density8.6/km2 (22.3/sq mi)

The Abaco Islands lie in the northern Bahamas. The main islands are Great Abaco and Little Abaco. There are several smaller barrier cays, of which the northernmost are Walker's Cay and its sister island Grand Cay. To the south, the next inhabited islands are Spanish Cay and Green Turtle Cay, with its settlement of New Plymouth, Great Guana Cay, private Scotland Cay, Man-O-War Cay, and Elbow Cay, with its settlement of Hope Town. Southernmost are Tilloo Cay and Lubbers Quarters. Another of note off Abaco's western shore is Gorda Cay, now a Disney-owned island and a cruise ship stop renamed Castaway Cay. Also in the vicinity is Moore's Island. On the Big Island of Abaco is Marsh Harbour, the Abacos' commercial hub and the Bahamas' third largest city, plus the resort area of Treasure Cay. Both have airports. A few mainland settlements of significance are Coopers Town and Fox Town in the north and Cherokee and Sandy Point in the south.[3] Administratively, the Abaco Islands constitute seven of the 31 Local Government Districts of the Bahamas: Grand Cay, North Abaco, Green Turtle Cay, Central Abaco, South Abaco, Moore's Island, and Hope Town.

Geography

The Abaco Islands consist of limestone with some elevation and are protected on the ocean side by the third-largest barrier reef in the world. The cays are primarily green with mangroves and white-sand beaches. Most of the islands are uninhabited. The Abaco Islands and their cays have are called Out Islands, Family Islands, and Friendly Islands.[3]

History

The Abaco Islands were first inhabited by the Lucayans, whom called the Aboca Islands as Lucayoneque, meaning "the people’s distant waters".[4] The first European settlers of the islands were Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution who arrived in 1783, as was also the Cat Island case. These original Loyalist settlers made a modest living by salvaging wrecks, by building small wooden boats, and basic farming.

Pre-Columbian and Spanish eras

The Lucayans were the first people to inhabit the Abaco Islands. They were a branch of the Taínos who inhabited most of the Caribbean islands at the time. The Lucayans were the first inhabitants of the Americas encountered by Christopher Columbus. The Spanish started seizing Lucayans as slaves within a few years of Columbus's arrival, and they had all been removed from the Bahamas by 1520. [citation needed] After the extermination of the Lucayans, there were no known permanent settlements in the Bahamas for approximately 130 years.[citation needed]

Spain laid claim to the Bahamas after Columbus discovered the islands but showed little interest in them. The Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci spent four months exploring the Bahamas in 1499–1500. Juan de la Cosa's first map of the New World, printed in 1500, shows the Abaco Islands with the name Habacoa. The map in Peter Martyr's first edition of 'De Orbe Novo' in 1511 shows the Bahamas' islands but does not name them. The Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León landed on Abaco in 1513. The Turin map of 1523 clearly shows Abaco, now named Iucayonique. The Turin map remained the most accurate map of the area until the Bahamas' first English maps were produced. [citation needed] Both John White's map of 1590 and Thomas Hood's map of 1592 show the islands, as did a map produced in 1630 by the Dutchman de Laet. At this time, the Spanish empire in the Caribbean was focused on Havana. Spain regarded the now-depopulated Bahamas as unprofitable and treacherous to navigate;- in 1593, a Spanish fleet of 17 ships wrecked off the Abaco. [citation needed] Also, English and French pirates and freebooters had begun preying on Spanish vessels north of Cuba. A Spanish ordinance of 1561 forbade any merchant ship to enter the Bahamas without an escort.[citation needed] Ownership of the Bahamas passed back and forth between Spain and Great Britain for 150 years. A treaty was established in 1783 by Great Britain. Great Britain ceded East Florida to Spain, receiving the Bahamas in return.

British colonial era

In 1783, a call for those wishing to help settle Abaco was published in the Royal Gazette in New York City. About 1500 Loyalists left New York and moved to Abaco in August 1783.[5] The Loyalists settled on a small sandy harbor about six leagues north of Marsh Harbour near modern-day Treasure Cay.[6] They planned and built the town of Carleton, named after Sir Guy Carleton.[7] Disputes over food distribution and misinformation about the resources available led some of these settlers to found a rival town near Marsh Harbour called Maxwell. The conflict between disgruntled settlers and the officials responsible became a constant life feature on the islands. Sea island cotton was sown by the settlers in 1785, and although both 1786 and 1787 produced good crops, the 1788 crop was blighted by caterpillars.[5] Other settlements on the islands were Green Turtle Cay, Man-o-War Cay, and Sandy Point.[1] In the 1790s, a group of Loyalists from the Carolinas arrived on the islands via Florida, founding the isolated settlement of Cherokee Sound.[8]

Abaco Slave Revolts of the 1800s

As told by the reporter Michael Harriot[9], in an informal language, "After the Revolutionary War, many of the white people who were loyal to Britain moved to the Bahamas, which was largely empty. A lot of those people brought their enslaved Africans with them.

But harsh conditions made many of the white people leave. Then, in 1807, Britain abolished the slave trade. Many of those freed Africans who were liberated on the open seas went to the Bahamas as free people. When the US basically bought Florida from Spain, thousands of enslaved Africans and Black Seminoles said “fuck this” and escaped to the Bahamas. So many ran to freedom that the US government had to build a lighthouse in Cape Florida in 1825. In 1834, Britain freed all the slaves in its territories and shit really got crazy. See, the Bahamas were a regular stop in the Atlantic. Plus, shipwrecked US vessels also ended up there. For years, when ships would pull up in the Bahamas (I think that’s the nautical term) Bahamians would tell the captains: “Umm, I don’t know if you heard but we don’t play that slave shit over here. Y’all can ride out but you gotta leave the Africans here. They’re free now. “Now we can handle this like gentlemen, or we can get into some Gangsta shit.” Well this was a problem because slavery was legal in the US. Despite what history whitewashers would have you believe about that freedom@and liberty bullshit, we were one of the last countries in North America to abolish the practice Well this was a problem because slavery was legal in the US. Despite what history whitewashers would have you believe about that freedom@and liberty bullshit, we were one of the last countries in North America to abolish the practice So word started getting around plantations about the Bahamas. Then, in 1840, the Hermosa, a US slave ship headed from Richmond going to New Orleans, wrecked in Abaco. Well, the Captain tried to explain that slavery was legal in the US, so technically these enslaved people were cargo. But the Bahamians wasn’t having that shit. They FORCIBLY FREED the entire ship and was like: “Now runtelldat.” Of course, these dumb white folks actually ran and told that. The US government got involved but something else happened. Enslaved Africans on plantations started hearing about that shit, too! (Yes, shit’s about to get good) So Madison was on this slave ship, the Creole, with 143 Africans and 17 white people who had ONE GUN! Dassit! Y’all know shit was about to pop off. This is the part of our history that is rarely told: In 1840, a black man named Madison Washington escaped slavery and made it to Canada. But Madison decided to return for his wife. (Of course he got caught) he was taken to Va, put on a ship and shipped to La. As soon as one of the crewmen lifted the grate to where they were holding Madison and his crew, they pounced. They killed one of the slave traders immediately (you gotta show muhfuckas you mean business). The wypipo didn’t even get a chance to fire their lil’ gun. First they tried to force the Creole’s captain to take them back to Africa, but the captain was like: “Y’all got some Africa gas money?” Plus, without Google Maps, they’d probably have to print out directions from Mapquest and the ship’s printer was out of ink or something. Then one of the revolters said: “Aye Madison, did you hear that story about the Hermosa in the Bahamas? Maybe we should see what they’re talking about.” *Not a literal translation So Madison and the slave rebellers get to the Bahamas and a bunch of black soldiers come on board. The captain tells the soldiers that the people were his property but the Bahamians attorney general was like: “y’all can go. You’re free now.” And the enslaved Africans were like: “Go where? Man, we’re a thousand miles from home! We’re on the goddamned ocean! Aside from what’s on this ship, we ain’t even got no food.” And the Bahamian attorney general was like: “Y’all straight. Just go look outside.” So they go above deck and look out on the ocean and witness something astonishing: The slave ship was surrounded by a “fleet” of tiny little boats manned by local Bahamians ready to take the revolters to freedom. They would be free forever. But the Bahamians atty. gen. held 17 of the men responsible for the white dude’s death on the boat. It became an international incident. The US even tried to organize an attack to REENSLAVE THE SLAVES, but a Bahamian was looking out and warned them that white people were coming. When the people in the US heard about the revolt, they were OUTRAGED. They demanded a trial. The British agreed. But the Bahamians were like: “Well we don’t have an extradition treaty with those filthy slave traders, so the trial will have to be in the Bahamas. Now they couldn’t be tried for murder because the British had already ruled that enslaved people could do whatever they deemed necessary to get free. So the Bahamians tried the Creole 17 for piracy. The court ruled, in essence, this: “How you gon’ charge them with pirating their own bodies? GTFOHWTBS Cased dismissed!” *again, not a literal translation Less than a year later, the Creole would sail no more after it wrecked again... In a hurricane. All told, 128 enslaved Africans aboard the Creole were freed. They will teach you about slave revolts by Denmark Vessey, Nat Turner and John Brown. But this is the story of Abaco, The Bahamas and what is called: The most successful slave revolt in US history."

Early 1970s

In June 1971, the Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Lynden Pindling, announced his government's independence from Britain. On Abaco, the Greater Abaco Council formed to lobby for continued British rule. In July 1971, the Greater Abaco Council submitted a petition to the Queen asking that Abaco become a 'completely self-contained and fully self-supporting' territory under British jurisdiction.[10] In August 1971, the British government refused to consider the petition. The September 1972 general election in the Bahamas showed a clear majority for independence across the country.

However, on Abaco, the results were less clear-cut. The pro-independence Progressive Liberal Party won one of Abaco's two seats by a small majority. In contrast, Free National Movement, which opposed early independence, won the other chair by a large majority. Starting in December 1971, all-party talks took place in London to draft a new constitution for the Bahamas. The Greater Abaco Council sent their representatives to London for a 'collateral conference' to run alongside the official talks. The British refused to consider making Abaco independent separately from the rest of the Bahamas. The GAC accepted this, and the group ceased activity at the end of 1972.[10]

Shortly afterward, Errington Watkins, the Free National Movement representative for the Abaco-Marsh Harbour seat, formed a successor group, the Council for a Free Abaco. A second petition was organized and signed by half the registered voters on the island. Errington Watkins took this petition to London in May 1973, hoping to influence the Bahamas Independence Order then debated in the British Parliament. A sympathetic MP, Ronald Bell, introduced an amendment that would have excluded Abaco from an independent Bahamas and have the islands remain a British colony.[11] Defeated in the House of Commons and the Bahamas Independence Order,[12] this amendment was approved on 22 May 1973. Three weeks later, a similar motion on Abaco was defeated in the House of Lords.

A last-ditch attempt by Errington Watkins to pass a resolution in the Bahamas House of Assembly calling for a United Nations-supervised referendum on Abaco was easily defeated in June 1973,[10] and the Bahamas became independent on 10 July 1973.

Abaco Independence Movement and onward

Main article: Abaco Independence Movement

In August 1973, shortly after the Bahamas became independent, the Abaco Independence Movement was formed as a political party whose stated aim was self-determination for Abaco within a federal Bahamas. Chuck Hall and Bert Williams created AIM.[13] They sought support from the US Libertarian Party and an American financier named Michael Oliver, who through his libertarian Phoenix Foundation agreed to support AIM financially. Mitchell WerBell, an American arms dealer and mercenary, also supported AIM. His talk of an armed insurrection and attempts to recruit mercenaries to go to Abaco greatly discredited AIM.[14] The Progressive Liberal Party victory in the 1977 general election effectively marked the end of the movement.[13]

Hurricane Dorian

Main article: Effects of Hurricane Dorian in The Bahamas

On 1 September 2019, Hurricane Dorian made landfall on Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands at 16:40 UTC with winds of 185 mph (300 km/h)[15] and wind gusts up to 225 mph (360 km/h), tying Dorian with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane as the strongest landfalling Atlantic hurricane on record.[16][17] There are reports of major damage throughout the islands which has been described as "catastrophic damage" and "pure hell".[18]

Hurricane Dorian caused 87 percent of the damage in the Abaco Islands. 75 percent of the island's homes were damaged or destroyed.[19] The total cost of Hurricane Dorian's impacts and effects on the Bahamas was $3.4 billion. As of October 18, 2019, there were 67 confirmed deaths as a result of Hurricane Dorian, with 282 people still missing. The damage also impacted the homes and assets of another 29,472 people. Hurricane Dorian wreaked havoc on Grand Bahama and Abaco, with damaging winds and storm surges, as well as the island of New Providence. The $3.4 billion in damages, losses, and additional costs were split as follows: 72 percent damage, 21 percent losses, and 7% additional costs, with the private sector absorbing nearly 90 percent of total losses. Abaco was responsible for 87% of the losses and 76% of the damage.[20]

Demographics

Topographic map of the Abaco Islands

The combined population of the islands was about 17,224 as of 2010, and the principal settlement and capital is Marsh Harbour.[citation needed]

In addition to Marsh Harbour there are several other settlements on Great Abaco including Cherokee Sound, Coopers Town, Crossing Rock, Green Turtle Cay, Hope Town, Little Harbour, Rocky Point, Sandy Point, Spring City, Treasure Cay, Wilson City, and Winding Bay.

Surrounding Great Abaco are several smaller islands known as cays, many of which are popular with tourists visiting the islands. A few notable cays include Castaway Cay (formerly Gorda Cay), Elbow Cay, the Grand Cays, Great Guana Cay, Green Turtle Cay, Man-O-War Cay, Moore's Island, Tilloo Cay, and Walker's Cay.[21]

Race (2010 census)[22] Number Percentage
Black 14,080 81.75%
White 2,370 13.76%
Black and White 384 2.23%
Black and Other 97 0.56%
White and Other 90 0.52%
East Indian 25 0.15%
Asian 24 0.14%
Other races 60 0.35%

Activities

The Bahamas National Trust maintains six national parks in the Abacos Islands.[23] These are:

The Great Abaco Family Fitness Weekend takes place every March in Treasure Cay, attracting both domestic and international tourism. The events include an open water swim, sprint and Olympic triathlons, a children's race, and a 5k/10k fun run/walk. The Abaco Club features an 18 hole championship golf course, designed by Donald Steel and Tom Mackenzie, which is home to Great Abaco Classic.

The red and white striped lighthouse at Hope Town in the Abaco Islands is a noted local landmark.

Fishing, diving, snorkeling, and boating are available in the Abacos. Green Turtle Cay has an interactive Bahamas Pig Tour and Hope Town has a historic lighthouse. Restaurants and bars serving Bahamian food can be found in the hotels on Abaco Island.[24]

Transportation

Marsh Harbour Airport (MHH) and Treasure Cay Airport (TCB) serve the needs of the Abacos, and all Abaco travel connects or originates in Florida or Atlanta. On the main island cars and boat rentals are available. On some of the cays, rental golf carts and boats are the main mode of transportation, along with bikes or scooters. Marsh Harbour Airport was the site of a plane crash on 25 August 2001, that claimed the lives of nine passengers, among them R&B singer Aaliyah.[25]

The cays can be reached by ferries. The southern cays can be reached from Marsh Harbour and another ferry leaves from the Treasure Cay ferry dock about a half-hour from Marsh Harbour by road. Ferry service is also to be found between Nassau and Sandy Point on the southern end of Great Abaco on weekends.

Sandy Point

Sandy Point is a small settlement at the tip of southwest Abaco, Bahamas. It is the location of "Sandy Point Airport", which has yet to serve any regular scheduled carrier, and a new police station. Sandy Point also has a few shops, some churches and a few bonefish lodges. The annual "Homecoming and Conch Fest" is held around Bahamian Labour Day, the first Friday in June. In the 1990s, The Walt Disney Company bought Gorda Cay and renamed it Castaway Island and made it a stop on their "Island in the Sun" cruise ship offering. Many Disney employees live in Sandy Point. There is no public access for tourists from shore. Also off shore and a little more to the north, lies Moore's Island. It has two settlements "Hard Bargain" and "The Bight". Hole-in-the-Wall, which is the site of a lighthouse, may seem nearby but should be a trip unto itself and only in a 4-wheel-drive vehicle when coming from Marsh Harbour.

Economy

The Abaco Islands have been long famous for shipbuilding.[26] Their chief exports are lumber, fruit, and pearl shells. Crawfish (Caribbean spiny lobster) are exported to the United States. Pulpwood is shipped to a Florida plant for processing. Tourism is a major portion of the economy.[1]

Tourism has grown to the 300,000 visitors mark in 2019. This growth makes the Abacos the second most visited destination in The Bahamas. The reason for the recent increase in tourism is because of the waters. Boating, swimming, and fishing are popular activities in the islands and cays that make up the Abaco archipelago, which have hosted fishing tournaments and regattas. The real estate sector has grown due to the growing tourism; Elbow Caw saw the most activity in 2018.[27]

Environment

The Abaco Islands boast important natural areas, especially important coral reef areas, barrier-island terrestrial habitats and large forests of Bahamian pine (Pinus caribaea var. bahamensis), some of which still contain old-growth trees. As development expands in the Abacos, local groups have begun to fight for the preservation of their natural resources, such as in the development case on Great Guana Cay.[28]

Species of birds include the Bahamian subspecies of Cuban amazon (Amazona leucocephala bahamensis), which exists only in Cuba, the Cayman Islands, the southern Bahamas and Abaco.[29] This population is unique in that it nests in limestone solution cavities rather than tree cavities.[30] Abaco is also known for its intact elkhorn and staghorn coral structures, and for a breed of feral horse, the Abaco Barb, which became extinct in 2015.[31]: 2 

Notable people

References

  1. ^ a b c Bower, Paul (1997). "Abaco Islands". In Johnston, Bernard (ed.). Collier's Encyclopedia. Vol. I A to Ameland (First ed.). New York, NY: P.F. Collier. p. 4.
  2. ^ "Census population and housing" (PDF). Bahamas Gov. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
  3. ^ a b Estabrook, Sandy. "Welcome to the Abacos". abacoescape.com. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  4. ^ Ahrens, Wolfgang P. (2015). "Naming the Bahamas Islands: History and Folk Etymology". Onomastica Canadiana. 94 (2): 101. ISSN 2816-7015.
  5. ^ a b Jasanoff, Maya (2011). Liberty's Exiles, The Loss of America and the Remaking of the British Empire. Harper Press. ISBN 978-0-00-718010-3.
  6. ^ Dodge, Steve (2005). Abaco, the history of an out island and its cays (3rd ed.). New Smyrna Beach, FL: White Sound Press. pp. 37–40. ISBN 0932265766. OCLC 70334700.
  7. ^ Craton, Michael (1969) [First published 1962]. A History of the Bahamas. Collins. OL 2653684W.
  8. ^ "Abaco Island, The Bahamas". North Carolina Language and Life Project. North Carolina State University. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
  9. ^ jd3
  10. ^ a b c Lowe, Rick (July 2010). "Forgotten Dreams: A People's desire to chart their own course in Abaco, Bahamas Part One" (PDF). nassauinstitute.org. The Nassau Institute. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  11. ^ "Bahamas Independence Bill". hansard.millbanksystems.com. Hansard. May 1973. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  12. ^ "The Bahamas Independence Order, 1973" (PDF). bahamas.gov.bs. Government of the Bahamas. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  13. ^ a b Lowe, Rick (October 2010). "Forgotten Dreams: A People's desire to chart their own course in Abaco, Bahamas Part Two" (PDF). The Nassau Institute. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
  14. ^ St. George, Andrew (February 1975). "The Amazing New-Country Caper". Esquire.
  15. ^ Fedschun, Travis (1 September 2019). "Hurricane Dorian, Category 5 storm, makes landfall in Bahamas with 185 mph winds". foxnews.com. Fox News Channel. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  16. ^ "Dorian Slows to a Crawl Over Grand Bahama". nesdis.noaa.gov. National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  17. ^ Turak, Robert; Ferris, Natasha (1 September 2019). "'Catastrophic' Hurricane Dorian makes landfall on the east of Grand Bahama Island". CNBC.com. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  18. ^ Wnek, Samatha (1 September 2019). "'Pure hell': Hurricane Dorian now Category 5 storm, makes landfall in northwest Bahamas". abcenews.go.com. ABC News. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  19. ^ "The facts: Hurricane Dorian's devastating effect on The Bahamas". reliefweb.int. Mercy Corps. 15 August 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  20. ^ "Damages and other impacts on Bahamas by Hurricane Dorian estimated at $3.4 billion: Report". IADB.org. Inter-American Development Bank.
  21. ^ "Diving in Abaco Bahamas". the-bahamas.net. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  22. ^ "Department of Statistics of the Bahamas" (PDF). bahamas.gov.bs. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  23. ^ Bahamas National Trust (2012). "The National Parks of The Bahamas". BNT. Archived from the original on 28 June 2012. Retrieved 17 October 2012.
  24. ^ "The Abacos". bahamasairtours.com. 9 October 2017.
  25. ^ NTSB Identification: MIA01RA225 (Report). National Transportation Safety Board. Retrieved 11 June 2009.
  26. ^ "Man-O-War's Boat Building Heritage". mowmuseum.com. Man-O-War Cay Museum. Retrieved 30 June 2013.
  27. ^ Morris, Catherine (1 September 2019). "Abaco on the upswing". The Bahamas Investor Magazine. Retrieved 14 December 2021 – via thebahamasinvestor.com.
  28. ^ Castle, Teresa (13 February 2006). "Reef defenders in Bahamas sue over mega-resort / S.F. developer sees Baker's Bay as model for sensitive construction on fragile islands". sfgate.com. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
  29. ^ "Rose-throated Parrot (Amazona leucocephala)". SCSCB.org. Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds. December 2006. Archived from the original on 13 January 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  30. ^ BirdLife International. (2020). "Amazona leucocephala". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T22686201A179212864. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22686201A179212864.en. Retrieved 25 May 2023.
  31. ^ Dutson, Judith (2012). Horse Breeds of North America: The Pocket Guide to 96 Essential Breeds. Pownal: Storey Publishing. ISBN 9781580176507.
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