Historical Spots

My family and I enjoy touring the island. There’s a cave on the same beach as Exuma Point Bar and Grille in Rolleville where revolting slaves hid.  You can visit other historic sites in Rolle Town (ruins of old cotton plantations and colonial tombs) and Rolleville (site of a revolt led by a slave named Pompey).

The story of Pompey and the 77 men and women who led the heroic rebellion that started the Bahamian anti-slavery movement can be easily missed. Situated ocean side (as many things are on Exuma) in the quiet town of Steventon, a memorial to Pompey sits at the bottom of a small hill where once was the jail where he was incarcerated, now in ruins.

In Williams Town overlooking Exuma Sound and the “Great Salina” there’s a thirty-foot tall marker on a low cliff which guided ships picking up salt harvested from Little Exuma’s three salt ponds. Designed as a Tuscan column, the marker was constructed in the Loyalist Era of the late 18th century.

Pick up the one page tourist map at the airport or at the Exuma Tourist Office above the RBC in George Town. The Exuma Visitors Guide is more common but has almost no information on historical spots.

Your comments and suggestions are always welcome!