Depopulation of the TCI

One cannot forget that the early history of these Islands revolves around slavery. Not the African slave trade that preoccupies most slave research, but that of the early Spanish explorers. In 1492 Christopher Columbus “discovered” the new world, but in the Bahamian archipelago he failed to find the wealth he was seeking. What he did find though were the Lucayans, a peaceful people who were easily enslaved and shipped to work in the mines of Hispaniola. It is possible that the ship found wrecked on the Molasses Reef was taking part in this trade. The enslavement and the introduction of new European diseases saw the complete eradication of the Lucayans by around 1520.

This now left a chain of Islands devoid of people. Any future developments would require the immigration of all the manual workers.