The History of Long Island

Originally called by the Arawak name 'Yuma,' Long Island was rechristened 'Fernandina' by Christopher Columbus on his first voyage to the New World in 1492. He said that it was "the most beautiful island in the world.” The island earned its current name because a seafarer felt that it took too long to pass the island when he was sailing by.

Archaeological evidence shows that the Lucayan Taino settled on Long Island as they did throughout the Bahamian chain of islands. After the demise of the Lucayans, who were carried as slaves to Hispaniola and Cuba, there was no large permanent settlement until the arrival of the Loyalists.

Numerous Loyalist families settled on Long Island, some setting up cotton plantations and others raising cattle and sheep. The plantations flourished for only a few years and, by the time of the abolition of slavery in 1834, most of them had collapsed and been abandoned. The names of the towns on Long Island were derived from the masters who owned the plantations. Many of those plantations ruins still exist and are interesting places to visit for a view into the island's past. There are also remains of some of the houses built after slavery, which are usually small and built of stone. Originally they had thatched roofs; today, most are shingled.

The major settlements, from north to south, are: Newton's Cay, Seymour's, Glinton's, Burnt Ground, Stella Maris, Millerton, O'Neils, Simms, Wemyss, Miller's, McKann's, Salt Pond, Grey's, Deadman's Cay, Cartwright's, Mangrove Bush, Clarence Town, Dunmore's, Hard Bargain, Roses, Mortimer's and Gordon's.