Discovery

1492 to 1646: Columbus reigns terror over the Lucayan natives

During the Bahamas’ pre-history period, a population of Lucayan natives inhabited the islands and thrived on a civilization built upon fishing, farming and crafts. The ideal conditions of the island allowed for the population of settlers to rapidly multiply, until tens of thousands of natives called the islands of the Bahamas ‘home.’

Their prosperous era came to a startling halt when European explorers discovered the islands, and wrought destructive terror upon the islanders. A trio of European men viciously driven by greed would entirely alter the course of Bahamian history.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus set out with a fleet of three ships in search of a direct route towards Asia. Instead, he landed in the Bahamas. Although the exact location of his first landfall is controversial, many agree that Columbus likely first visited the island of San Salvador, which the natives referred to as Guanahani, on October 14, 1492. Columbus named the islands “Baja Mar,” which means “shallow sea.”  The European explorers traveling with Columbus noted that dense forestation covered the Bahamian lands. Columbus and his crew were anticipating interaction with people of Asia, and were quite confused upon their first encounter. Natives cautiously watched as the lavishly adorned foreigners approached the island from their enormous ships, and eventually left their hiding spots in the dense vegetation to make contact with the intruders. Efforts by Columbus to communicate using the widely accepted language of Arabic were unsuccessful, and eventually the Europeans realized that they had not properly calculated their location.

After a thorough search of the island, explorers deemed that the Bahamas yielded very few resources that could be utilized by the Europeans, with one exception: the Lucayans.  Columbus noted the gruesome scars many natives had on their bodies from violent interactions with their Carib enemies, and he took an interest in the gold ornamentation they wore through their noses. It is thought that the natives would have assumed the Europeans were demi-gods. Columbus wooed the natives with gifts of bells and mirrors in exchange for local food and beads. This peaceful exchange carried on for two days, but upon learning that the gold came from the south, Columbus quickly set sail towards Cuba. During his departure, Columbus took a small handful of natives with him, serving as both island guides and living exhibitions. As the European crews voyaged towards destinations they believed to yield gold, they stopped at many other Bahamian islands, abusing women and demanding all available gold jewelry and pieces.

The native people living in the Bahamas were blossoming in population size prior to Columbus' arrival, and the Europeans wasted no time in harvesting human labor from the islands. Alonso de Hojeda was the second Spaniard to journey to the Bahamas. His mission was simple: enslave the natives. Given the peaceful nature of the tribes, they were an easy target for the ruthless conquistadors; up to 40,000 of the island people were unwillingly captured and shipped off by the Spaniards as slaves to work in the mines of Hispaniola. The Spanish tricked the native people into believing that a grand celebration would be held one evening on the beach. Upon gathering on the shoreline, the Lucayans were ambushed by armed Spaniards who forced all able-bodied natives onto their ships. A second seizure of human labor occurred when Amerigo Vespucci came to the Bahamas from Italy and brutally kidnapped shiploads of Lucayans. Those who weren't sold into slavery suffered many hardships, and a large portion of the population met their demise by the diseases brought by the Spaniards. After the first encounter with Columbus, a strain of syphilis was spread to the many women who were sexually abused by the European men. This spread through the tribes like a plague, decimating an estimated 50% of the population.

Within two decades, the islands went from a bustling society to being almost entirely uninhabited. Reports claim that when the Spanish returned to the island with plans to evacuate the remaining natives, less than a dozen people remained. After this harrowing incident, the Bahamas remained deserted for more than a hundred years. The islands were abandoned and deemed useless due to their lack of gold or any population. The Bahamas would remain relatively untouched until a group of English settlers came to the islands seeking political and religious freedom.

The only group brave enough to utilize the land of the Bahamas during this period of abandonment were known as “the wreckers.” These rugged island inhabitants capitalized on shipwrecks, and some accounts claim that false lighthouses were constructed to lure unsuspecting vessels towards disaster. Wreckers dominated the barren Bahamian wasteland during the 16th century, but the biggest insurgence of piracy wouldn't occur until the next century, when pirates like Blackbeard and Anne Bonney took over.

Long before recorded history named the island group “the Bahamas,” indigenous tribes inhabited the land. Prior to their island habitation, the Bahamas island chain was a lush region of wild creatures and vegetation.

Over 200,000 years ago, gargantuan waves picked up boulders that weighed several thousand tons, and deposited them on the shores of Bahamian islands. Additionally, it is estimated that one of the earth’s oldest evidences of life is held within the limestone reef formations found off the island of Exuma. The exotic island chain was home solely to flora and small fauna. Typical plant life found in this region included sea oats, yellow elder, gumbo limbo, three varieties of mangroves, coco plum, plentiful species of vines, and low-lying shrubbery. The island’s only inhabitants at this time were small animals like bats, sea birds, iguanas, frogs and snakes. The distribution of these various plant and animal species was dependent upon the climate conditions of the various islands. The early Bahamas remained an untouched oasis until Lucayan Indians ventured to the islands and staked a claim on the territory.

Some researchers speculate that the first arrivals to the islands were Ciboney tribesmen, but there are no artifacts or evidence to support these claims. Radiocarbon dating has confirmed the possibility of Ciboney occupation in the Bahamas, but radiocarbon dating indicates that this habitation occurred during the same time period as the established Lucayan societies. These Lucayan tribes of Arawak origins traveled to the islands by dugout canoes made from the trunks of enormous trees that could carry upwards of twenty tribesmen. The Lucayans explored the Caribbean islands, coming from South America and Cuba. The migrations of Lucayan people occurred between the years 500 to 800. Many historians believe that the most popular route started on Hispaniola, advanced towards Cuba and eventually ended in the Bahamas.

Upon arrival in the Bahamas, the Lucayans found themselves surrounded by lush forests and plentiful ocean resources. They realized the beneficial assets that the islands provided, and settled across the area in varying regions. Although the island bore very few edible plants, and hardly any freshwater, the tribesmen compensated by turning towards the ocean for sustenance. The majority of the population was located on the southern coasts and central land areas of the island groups, although some inhabitants could be found towards the north. There are about twenty different locations in the Bahamas that contain confirmed sites of Lucayan settlement, most of which are either large islands or smaller cays within close proximity to the big islands. No settlements have been located in the southernmost islands, perhaps due to the harsh, dry climate. The alternative locations allowed for the Lucayans to establish prosperous societies with plentiful food, housing and more.

The diet of the Lucayans primarily relied on the sea at first, but eventually grew to a larger selection of sources. The peoples survived on a diet consisting of both land and sea foods. Hunters sought out land creatures like iguanas, lizards, crabs and birds. Their sea-based sustenance was fish, turtles and marine mammals. Fishermen caught everything from grouper and snapper to huge Jewfish that could weigh hundreds of pounds. Utilizing the land, farmers grew crops like cassava, sweet potatoes, peanuts, beans and arrowroot. They gathered fruits like guava and mammee apples from the wild. Gourds were used to store water. For general purposes, the tribes grew cotton and tobacco, which played a materialistic role in their societal practices.

Lucayan people were unique in their appearance, culture and practices. The tan-skinned tribespeople were free-spirited in their dress; women only wore tiny cotton skirts, while men donned loincloths. Individuals adorned themselves with body piercings, tattoos and paints, bone jewelry and head or waist bands. Interestingly, the customary hairstyle was short with small sections in the back that were never to be trimmed. The Lucayans also practiced head flattening, which aimed to create a more visually pleasing shaped skull.

The Lucayans used wood to create objects like canoes, weapons, utensils and ceremonial props. Pottery was popular, and clayware was crafted with a mixture of clay soil and charred shells. Remnants of ceramic pieces have allowed historians to get a better glimpse into the lives of the Lucayans; some pottery shards even contain the fingerprints of the tribesmen who shaped the clay. Trading of these handmade crafts and products often occurred between the larger islands.

Their homes were built from wood in a tent formation, and served as housing for multiple families. The Lucayans slept in hammock-style netting, which served as the primary furnishings in their thatch houses. Some estimates claim that up to twenty families resided in a single residence. Many historians hailed the Lucayan civilization as being utopian in nature, as they were a highly peaceful community.

During this blossoming period of Lucayan settlement, the population of the Bahamas grew to about 40,000 people, and continued to grow until the arrival of Christopher Columbus.