Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ELEUTHERAN ADVENTURERS
The
National Archives of the Bahamas
(
www.bahamasnationalarchives.bs/index.html
)
has all sorts of maps, pic-
tures and documents dating back to the 17th century; it's an especially
good source for genealogical research.
In 1648, a group of English Puritans sailed from Bermuda to found a brave new colony in
the Bahamas. En route, their ship was wrecked on the Devil's Backbone reef at the north
end of what's now Eleuthera. The Eleutheran Adventurers limped along for several years,
farming the island's sandy soil, before branching off to settle New Providence and found the
city of Charles Town (later renamed Nassau). They then settled in to live a life of subsisten-
ce farming and wrecking - scavenging the wrecks that washed up on the islands' dangerous
shores.
