The History of Bimini

The name Bimini is believed to have meant "two islands" in the language of the original inhabitants, the Lucayans, who never survived our islands' encounter with Europeans. After the emancipation of slavery in 1838 Bimini was re-settled by a few assorted families of West African ancestry, who had immigrated from nearby islands. Prior to that the island served as a base for a small number of "wreckers,” who made a living preying on hapless shipwrecks.

Other forms of economic activity over the years have included sponge and turtle harvesting as well as sisal cultivation. Bimini also once served as a useful staging point for rumrunners from Nassau during the Prohibition era in the United States, a time in which the Bahamian economy began to prosper.

“Islands in the Stream”

Ernest Hemingway made his way to The Bahamas settling on Bimini Island in the 1930s, where he often touted the world-class game fishing. His favorite watering hole and hotel was the Compleat Angler. The establishment had a room dedicated to Hemingway before it burned down.

Pappy and Papa

One Sunday morning in 1919, the citizens of Bimini were first alarmed by a loud buzzing noise overhead and then amazed to see a Curtis HS2L "flying boat" splash down in the harbour, from which Albert Burns "Pappy" Chalk emerged to usher in a new era of transportation between Bimini and the world. Later, when Ernest "Papa" Hemingway found his way here in 1935, Bimini began to develop its own tropical vacation allure. Since then famous names to have become associated with Bimini include: Martin Luther King, Adam Clayton.