Stacey
03-30-2004, 02:12 PM
Nassau Island was first settled in the 1660s by British immigrants. Some had left nearby Eleuthera in search of better farmland. Other immigrants came from Bermuda in search of establishing a commercial port.
The population of the Bahamas, mostly living in Nassau/New Providence, grew to 4,000+. The number of whites to blacks being nearly the same. Then, those opposed to U.S. independence, called Loyalists, left America looking for British settlements in the Bahamas Islands. Numbers of these were rich plantation owners who owned slaves. This resulted in the population increasing two twice its number-and for the first time by 1785, the black population outnumbered its white inhabitants.
During the years 1808-1860, there were nearly 6,000 african people added to the population of New Providence. They had been rescued from slave ships by the British navy.
In the latter part of the 19th and early 20th century, there was a necessity for skilled labourers. A migration of people from China, Greece, Lebanon and the West Indies met that demand.
Due to the chaotic state of their homeland, and the lack of economic security, many from Haiti also sought refuge on Nassau/Paradise Island area during the fifties.
The population of the Bahamas, mostly living in Nassau/New Providence, grew to 4,000+. The number of whites to blacks being nearly the same. Then, those opposed to U.S. independence, called Loyalists, left America looking for British settlements in the Bahamas Islands. Numbers of these were rich plantation owners who owned slaves. This resulted in the population increasing two twice its number-and for the first time by 1785, the black population outnumbered its white inhabitants.
During the years 1808-1860, there were nearly 6,000 african people added to the population of New Providence. They had been rescued from slave ships by the British navy.
In the latter part of the 19th and early 20th century, there was a necessity for skilled labourers. A migration of people from China, Greece, Lebanon and the West Indies met that demand.
Due to the chaotic state of their homeland, and the lack of economic security, many from Haiti also sought refuge on Nassau/Paradise Island area during the fifties.