Raid on Charles Town Raid on Nassau Republic of Pirates Battle of Nassau Raid of Nassau 1782 Capture of the Bahamas
Spanish Bahamas
1783 Capture of the Bahamas
British Bahamas
1783 Peace of Paris Abaco Slave Revolt Slavery Abolition Act 1833 Creole case American Civil War
Independent Bahamas
Abaco Independence Movement Hurricane Dorian COVID-19 pandemic
Caribbean portal
v
t
e
Despite being a territory of the British Empire, the Bahamas was affected by the American Civil War. Much as it was during the Golden Age of Piracy, the Bahamas was a haven for swashbucklers and blockade runners that were aligned with the Confederate States. Although Florida is only 55 miles away, the state then had few ports of any real consequence and so blockade runners would make their trips from Nassau to Charleston, South Carolina, the largest Confederate port on the East Coast.
Grand Bahama Island had a decreasing population in the 19th century because of Nassau, but after the Civil War began in 1861, Grand Bahama Island's population doubled because of the blockade runners' actions.[1]
Nassau was also altered by the war. The first blockade runner docked there on December 5, 1861. By the end of the war, 397 ships sailed from the Confederacy to Nassau, and 588 went from Nassau to the Confederacy.[2] Nassau imports were valued at £234,029, and its exports were worth £157,350. In 1864, at the pinnacle of trade from the Confederacy to Nassau, imports were valued at £5,346,112 and exports at £4,672,398.[3]
Blockade runners would take cotton from Charleston to Nassau, a trip of 560 miles with 48 hours of sailing.[4] As the Union had blockaded all Confederate ports, blockade runners had to be fast. They traded cotton at Nassau for British goods, with the cotton eventually finding its way to British cotton mills.[5]
After the end of the war, the Bahamas fell into hard times and would not recover from until another period of American turmoil. During American Prohibition, Scotch whisky was exported illegally to the United States. Like the end of the Civil War, the end of Prohibition also ended the fortunes of the Bahamas.[5] A considerable number of Bahamians can trace their ancestry back to Southerners who left America before and during the war.[6]
^Grand Bahama Island – American Civil War Archived 2007-10-25 at the Wayback Machine Islands of the Bahamas Official Tourism Site
^Stark, James. Stark's History and Guide to the Bahama Islands (James H. Stark, 1891). pg.93
^Stark pg. 94.
^Stark pg. 93
^ abCivil war and prohibition benefited The Bahamas Archived 2008-06-01 at the Wayback Machine The Islands of the Bahamas Official Tourism Site
^Barlas, pg. 59.
and 28 Related for: Bahamas and the American Civil War information
territory of the British Empire, theBahamas was affected by theAmericanCivilWar. Much as it was during the Golden Age of Piracy, theBahamas was a haven...
At the time of theAmericanCivilWar (1861–1865), Canada did not yet exist as a federated nation. Instead, British North America consisted of the Province...
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland remained officially neutral throughout theAmericanCivilWar (1861–1865). It legally recognized the belligerent...
The earliest arrival of people in the islands now known as TheBahamas was in the first millennium AD. The first inhabitants of the islands were the Lucayans...
During theAmericanCivilWar, blockade runners were used to get supplies through the Union blockade of the Confederate States of America that extended...
in theAmericanCivilWar (1861–1865) reflected the conflict's international significance among both governments and their citizenry. Diplomatic and popular...
The Second French Empire remained officially neutral throughout theAmericanCivilWarand never recognized the Confederate States of America. The United...
The national flag of the Commonwealth of TheBahamas consists of a black triangle situated at the hoist with three horizontal bands: aquamarine, gold...
The diplomacy of theAmericanCivilWar involved the relations of the United States andthe Confederate States of America with the major world powers during...
The economy of theBahamas is dependent upon tourism and offshore banking. TheBahamas is the richest country in the West Indies and is ranked 14th in...
The following is an alphabetical list of the islands and cays of the Commonwealth of TheBahamas. Contents 0–9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T...
The Nepali CivilWar was a protracted armed conflict that took place in the former Kingdom of Nepal from 1996 to 2006. It saw countrywide fighting between...
government in TheBahamas exists at two levels: 32 districts and 41 towns. The boundaries of districts are defined by the First Schedule of TheBahamas Local...
TheBahamas is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy headed by King Charles III in his role as King of theBahamas. The politics of TheBahamas takes...
use of privateers. However, the US did offer to adopt the terms of the Declaration during theAmericanCivilWar, when the Confederates sent several privateers...
to unify the various German states under its banner, Prussia did not participate in theAmericanCivilWar. However, several members of the Prussian military...
This is a list of Bahamians, who are identified with TheBahamas through residential, legal, historical, or cultural means, grouped by their area of notability...
The English CivilWar refers to a series of civilwarsand political machinations between Royalists and Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from...
The Seminole in theAmericanCivilWar were found in both the Trans-Mississippi and Western Theaters. The Seminole Nation in the Trans-Mississippi Theater...