• Abaco's Fascinating History
• The Islands
• Population
• Abaco Lifestyles
• The Mainland
• The Cays
• North Abaco & Little Abaco
• South Abaco
• Abaco Is Unique
  

Abaco's Fascinating History

The first inhabitants of the Abaco Islands were the Lucayan Indians, described by Columbus upon his discovery of the New World in 1492, as gentle and kind.

Unfortunately, these indigenous people who had plied the beautiful Bahamian waters for hundreds if not thousands of years, were enslaved by the Spanish for work in Hispaniola. By 1550, the entire culture was virtually exterminated by overwork and European diseases . Abaco was probably a transient home for wreckers, fishermen, and pirates from time to time, but no permanent settlement was established for 200 years.

The first permanent settlers of recent history were Loyalists from the Carolinas and Virginia who sympathized with the British during and after the American Revolution. It was from this strong stock that today's oldest established families of Abaco descended.

The first group of these Loyalists arrived in Abaco in August of 1783, establishing a settlement named Carleton. Later abandoned, it has been recently determined that the colony was located at the north end of the Treasure Cay beach.

In 1784 many settlers moved to the Marsh Harbour Area, availing themselves of the well-protected harbour. The early settlers had great hopes of establishing a thriving agricultural economy. The shallow soil, coupled with the settlers’ lack of knowledge of foreign markets, soon dashed their hopes. Over the next 200 years they turned to the sea and made a modest but sustainable living from sponging, crawfish, and boat building.

In the twentieth century some success has been made in various timber operations and in crawfishing, but today the mainstay of the economy is the visitor, the yachtsman, and the foreign homeowner.

The Islands

The Abaco Islands are comprised of Great Abaco and Little Abaco, with a barrier reef and many small islands or “cays” on part of the east and north east sides. The main islands extend roughly 120 miles. When the northern cays are added, the Abaco archipelago extends a total of 165 miles. Abaco has a land area of 650 square miles, about half the size of the state of Rhode Island.

Population

The population of Abaco is roughly 14,000 permanent Bahamian residents. In addition there are approximately 2,000 vacation or retirement homes built and owned by foreign residents on Abaco and the Cays. The majority of these seasonal residents are American with some Canadians, and recently, a growing number of Europeans.

Abaco Lifestyles

There are two separate and quite different area types enjoyed in Abaco, the "Mainland”, that is, the island of Abaco itself, and the "Cays”.

The Mainland

The main islands of Abaco consist of Great Abaco and Little Abaco Islands, joined by a short highway bridge.

In the past ten years the Great Abaco Highway has been completed, linking Crown Haven on the northwestern tip of Little Abaco with Sandy Point on the southern coast of Great Abaco, a road distance of about 120 Miles. This road has broadened travel throughout the island and is opening up many possible development areas which previously were relatively inaccessible.

Even though there is very much an island atmosphere on the Mainland, the vast expanses of land, rock, and pine forest tend to prevent the sometimes restricted, and somewhat claustrophobic feelings that many associate with islands. The automobile is a major aspect of the Mainland lifestyle, thanks to a functional and constantly improving road system in populated areas.

The lifestyles on the Mainland can vary from one extreme to another, according to individual preference. There is something for everyone, from a simple rustic secluded self-built shack in the forest near a quiet cove, to a plush opulent beach, to a marina-front townhouse in Treasure Cay.

Mainland living with automobiles, proximity to varieties of goods and services - and ready access to international transportation - will appeal to many of the more conservative folks who do not wish too radical a change from the environment to which they may have been accustomed.

The two major visitor-oriented areas are Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay.

Marsh Harbour

The major population center of Abaco is the Marsh Harbour area.

Marsh Harbour is the seat of Government for Abaco and the major center of economic activity. The community is the third largest town in the Bahamas, with a population of roughly 6000 people.

There is quite a variety of shops, stores and markets provide most amenities, along with several excellent restaurants, a number of hotels ,and a wide assortment of rental houses and cottages.

The harbour and the east side have marinas, and the port is a popular provisioning center for visiting yachtsmen from around the world.

The Port of Marsh Harbour is serviced by four commercial shipping lines, three of which run weekly service from West Palm Beach, Florida. The long-standing traditional mailboat services run weekly from Nassau.

Marsh Harbour International Airport is serviced daily from Nassau, Freeport, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Orlando, by Bahamasair, USAir, American, Continental, and several small commuter airlines.

There are three other townships incorporated into the Marsh Harbour area, they are Dundas Town, Murphy Town, and Spring City. These mostly contain the homes of Bahamian professional and trades people.

Treasure Cay

The second largest population center on the Abaco mainland is the Treasure Cay area, about twenty miles north of Marsh Harbour.

The community area has a hotel and a large number of condominiums, townhouses and villas as well as a marina, which is a great favorite with sports fishermen.

Although there is no well-defined town, there are shops which sell necessities. Most Treasure Cay residents drive the half-hour to Marsh Harbour at least once a week to provision fully. The area is growing, and facilities are growing with it at a healthy rate.

Treasure Cay boasts an eighteen-hole golf course, the only course in Abaco. The area is also fortunate to have a spectacular three-mile crescent-shaped beach which has been formally designated as among the ten finest in the world.

Leisure Lee is a residential community seven miles south of Treasure Cay, and fifteen miles north of Marsh Harbour. Currently there are no shops, marinas or services, but there is a wonderful complex of dredged canals which provide excellent protection for pleasure boats.

For the yachtsman, it can be considered the only harbour on the Abaco mainland between Treasure Cay and Marsh Harbour.

Winding Bay - The Abaco Club

The Abaco Club on Winding Bay sits on 550 acres on a dramatic peninsula with more than two miles of powder-soft pink sand beach, natural dunes and an elevated headland on the east coast of Great Abaco Island.

The Abaco Club opened in December 2004 and features a world-class Scottish style “tropical links” championship golf course, bone and deep sea fishing, scuba diving and other water sports, a European style spa, horse riding, tennis, and a host of other leisure activities.

A limited number of lots of approximately two acres and a selection of fully-furnished turn-key Bahamian cottages are available for purchase. To own real estate, membership of the club is required.

The Cays

For the more adventurous, who are looking for a very different way of life the Abaco Cays are a magnet.

A string of small islands running southeast to northwest for approximately 120 miles from Little Harbour in the south to Walker’s Cay in the north, the Cays are between four and six miles from the mainland.

The protected body of water formed by these barrier islands is referred to as The Sea of Abaco, known by yachtsmen to be probably the finest sailing and cruising ground in the world.

The major population of the Cays is centered in the twenty-mile stretch between Elbow Cay and Green Turtle Cay. On these cays are four small towns, known as “settlements” - Hope Town on Elbow Cay, Man-O-War Cay, Great Guana Cay, and New Plymouth on Green Turtle Cay.

Hope Town, Man-O-War and Guana Cay are all within five to eight miles of Marsh Harbour and form what is called “The Hub of Abaco”. Green Turtle Cay is farther afield but within six miles of Treasure Cay.

The settlements are charming, quaint places, each with a character all its own, and totally different from each of the others. An octogenarian retiree was recently heard to remark that a settlement reminded him of a New England fishing village when he was a boy. For the most part the settlements are kept spotlessly neat and clean, it is quite obvious that the residents take great pride in their homes and communities.

The way of life in the Abaco Cays is quite different from the Mainland.

In the settlements there are few automobiles. The 10’ wide concrete roads or “waypaths” are better suited to golf carts, mopeds or small motorbikes. Some main government-maintained highways are little more than well worn and trimmed footpaths through the foliage.

A major transportation emphasis, however, is on the water in boats. Although there is reliable, regular passenger ferry service between the cay settlements and Marsh Harbour, if one wishes independence to get off the cay, it is essential to know how to operate a small power boat.

Many cay residents don’t even own land transportation, and their boats become their “cars”. Boats and a good working knowledge of seamanship is essential too, to enable one to take full advantage of the many pleasures that the surrounding sea has to offer.

With a dependence upon boats and sea conditions, there is a tendency to become far more conscious of weather than in other locations. Constant attention to weather leads to a rather wonderful, heightened awareness of nature and the environment.

The lifestyle of the Cays is generally even more laid back than the Mainland. Houses tend to be simpler and more typically Bahamian in design and character.. The emphasis of daily life revolves around the sea and the marvelous environment it envelops.

The four Abaco Cay settlements in the central region, going south to north, are Hope Town, Man-O-War Cay, Great Guana Cay and Green Turtle Cay.

Hope Town and Elbow Cay

Hope Town is located on a narrow portion of Elbow Cay's north end with a well protected harbour to the west. The settlement was founded by a North Carolina widow and other Loyalists in 1785, and the town retains a New England-like character with clapboard, pastel-painted homes - many lovingly restored.

Dominating the scene is the red-striped lighthouse, built in 1863; it's known as the single most photographed entity in the Bahamas. It is one of the last manned, kerosene-powered lighthouses in the world.

Island facilities include: four marinas, several fine small hotels, a number of excellent restaurants, several grocery stores, bakeries and gift shops. About three miles south of Hope Town is White Sound where the best surfing in The Bahamas is found just off the beaches.

In addition to hotel facilities, Elbow Cay offers over a hundred rental homes and cottages of varying sizes, sophistication and price ranges.

Man-O-War Cay

Five miles off Great Abaco Island, Man-O-War is a favorite stop for visiting yachtsmen, having one of the safest and best protected harbours in the world. The settlement has about three hundred native residents, descendants of loyalists who settled in Abaco after the American Revolution. They are friendly, honest, hardworking and deeply religious people.

The economy of the island is centered on the yachtsman and the many seasonal residents who have homes here. There are two grocery stores, a hardware and building materials company, two full service boatyards, a full service marina with dive shop, and a number of gift boutiques. There are three restaurants, however; Man-O-War is a dry island and alcoholic beverages are not served.

Life on the island is laid-back and easy going with none of the bustle and glitter often found in resort areas.

Great Guana Cay

Great Guana Cay Settlement is the smallest of the cay settlements with a resident population of about 100 people. For many years it had shown very little growth, however in the past few years a number of restaurants, resorts and developments have been or are being built which now make Great Guana Cay the area of most dynamic growth in the Abacos.

The island is 5 1/2 miles long, and its greatest asset is the spectacular beach that runs almost the entire length of the island. There is a grocery store, liquor store and several gift shops.

Baker’s Bay

Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club is located at the northern end of Great Guana Cay and offers more than six miles of pink sand beachfront, and sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean and Sea of Abaco.

The Club will feature a range of homesites and single-family residences, villas and marina bungalows available for purchase, an 18-hole Tom Fazio-designed golf course, world-class spa, pools, tennis courts, and fine restaurants. Outdoor activities offered will include boating, fishing, scuba diving and snorkeling, kayaking, wind surfing, and other classic beach and ocean pursuits.

Phase I of Baker’s Bay Golf and Ocean Club is expected to open in 2007.

Green Turtle Cay

Green Turtle Cay is has a population of about 450 gracious and helpful people. It offers exceptional variety for the visiting yachtsman with several different anchorages.

New Plymouth is the picturesque settlement with a wide array of services - three grocery stores, two hardware stores and a number of gift shops. There are a number of hotels, restaurants and marine services on the island as well as many rental homes and cottages.

Scotland Cay, between Man-O-War and Great Guana Cays, does not have a settlement, but does have a community of about forty foreign-owned homes. The cay has a 2,500 foot airstrip and two man-made harbours.

North Abaco & Little Abaco

From Treasure Cay north, and all of Little Abaco, Abaco remains virtually undiscovered by the visitor. There are a number of small settlements where most residents are involved in local services - carpentry and fishing for example - or work at the resort areas of Treasure Cay and Spanish Cay.

Settlements in North Abaco are Cooper’s Town -the seat of Local Government for North and Little Abaco - Blackwood, and Fire Road.

Settlements on Little Abaco are Cedar Harbour, Wood Cay, Mount Hope, Fox Town, and Crown Haven.

There are many beautiful and exciting cays off North and Little Abaco, most are privately owned and on some, homes have been built. Three Cays have been developed.

Grand Cay, with a population of about 200 people, is the most northerly of settlements in Abaco. It has a hotel and marina and some services. The majority of the population is engaged in fishing or in work at the near-by resort at Walker’s Cay.

Spanish Cay is a developing resort with a full-service marina, guest accommodations a restaurant and a 5,000 foot airstrip.

Walker’s Cay has long been known as one of the world’s premier sportfishing areas. It has a full service marina, grocery store, hotel, dive shop and an airport with regularly scheduled flights to Florida.

South Abaco

Like most of North Abaco, South Abaco has been virtually undiscovered by the visitor. The paving of the Great Abaco Highway ten years ago has improved access to the area, and some development is progressing.

In southern Abaco there are vast reaches of virtually unexplored forestland with miles of virgin ocean beach front. On the east, the area is an open ocean coast line. Therefore, unlike Central Abaco, there is no protection for boats. There is however, an incredible natural beauty, splendid beaches, a vast quantity of wildlife, and a wonderful serenity. There are several on-going settlements and developments in the area.

Bahama Palm Shores - a residential community with miles of beautiful ocean beach-front.

Casuarina Point - a residential community populated primarily by Abaco residents who work in Marsh Harbour. There is a resort nearby which caters to naturalists and bonefishermen.

Cherokee Sound - a small, picturesque settlement, formerly a boat building and fishing center.

Crossing Rocks - a small residential settlement that was devastated by hurricane Floyd in September of 1999. It is rebuilding slowly. The majority of the residents are local fishermen.

Little Harbour - a lovely, well-protected harbour, an art gallery and an open-air restaurant. There are a number of residences in the area.

Long Beach - a residential community with spectacular ocean views and a great beach.

Sandy Point - the seat of Local Government for South Abaco. Most of the residents are fishermen or work at the nearby Disney resort, cruise ship destination “Castaway Cay” (Formerly Gorda Cay).

The South Side

The area referred to locally as “The South Side” is actually predominantly the west side extending from Sandy Point to Crown Haven. When one flies over this area, it appears horribly barren and desolate. However, when one is on the surface there is an incredible innate beauty.

The area is teeming with fish and wildlife. Several bone-fishing centers are being developed and others are planned. We see an interesting future for this region.

Abaco Is Unique

When one hears of the Abacos in the Bahamas, one is told of the many wonders of the climate, the beauty, the water, the serenity, the fishing, the water sports, the charming villages, the laid back life style, and the warm and friendly people. Yes, Abaco does have all these marvelous attributes, and is second to nowhere in the world.

However, most tropical island paradises, from the Caribbean to the Pacific, have all of these things to one degree or another.

Why, then, is Abaco unique?

Abaco has three things that other island havens do not :

1. Proximity to the United States Mainland

When one chooses to settle even part time in the islands, no matter how much they may love the lifestyle, they will periodically wish to visit the United States. They will want shopping, gourmet dining, theater and other culture, specialized medical services or whatever, which may not be available locally.

From Abaco it is both relatively easy and inexpensive to travel to the U.S. It is only an hour and ten minute trip by one of the several daily scheduled airline flights, local charter carriers or by private airplane. For the yachtsman, it is a twenty-hour trip at ten knots, or a ten-hour trip at twenty knots.

2. The Sea of Abaco

Between the Abaco mainland and the offshore Cays and barrier reef lies the Sea of Abaco. The area extends for 120 miles from Little Harbour in the south to Walker’s Cay in the north and averages four to five miles in width. It is shallow with an average water depth of ten to twelve feet.

Throughout its length there are literally hundreds of quiet and often deserted bays, beaches, coves, creeks and anchorages to visit, relax, play in, and explore. There are a number of quaint settlements, each with its own distinctive character.

The prevailing southeasterly breeze generally blows at 10-12 knots for good and safe sailing. The geography is diverse enough to be interesting, exciting and even challenging at times for the experienced yachtsman, yet, it is well protected so that the novice may enjoy it with safety.

Yachtsmen with world wide experience agree that nowhere on earth is there another water sports area like the Sea of Abaco.

3. Security

In Abaco, due to its population and relative size, there is very little crime. It is safe to walk the streets or beaches at any time of day or night. There are no neighborhoods to be avoided.

Particularly in the Cays, it is very rare to lock one’s home except when leaving for an extended period of time. There are few areas anywhere that can claim the amount of personal safety and security as that found in Abaco.

~ Adapted from "The Wonders of Abaco" by D.A. Lee ~