The
Turks and Caicos Islands are named after the indigenous Turk's
Head "fez" cactus,
and the Lucayan term "caya hico," meaning string of
islands. Columbus was said to have discovered the islands in
1492, but some
still argue that Ponce de Leon arrived first. Whichever it was,
the first people to truly discover the islands were the Taino
Indians, who unfortunately left little behind but ancient utensils.
The
Tainos were eventually replaced by another Indian people, the
Lucayans; but by the middle of the 16th Century they too had
disappeared,
victims of Spanish enslavement and imported disease. The 17th century saw the arrival of settlers from Bermuda, who
established themselves on Grand Turk, Salt Cay and South Caicos.
They used slaves to rake salt for British colonies in America,
and were later joined by British Loyalists fleeing the American
Revolution. The economy of the island revolved around the rich
cotton and sisal plantations, their harvests sold in London and
New York. Due to competition and the thin soil, however, the
cotton plantations slowly deteriorated, most of them finally
perishing in a hurricane in 1813. Solar salt became the main
economy of the islands.
In 1776, after being controlled by the Spanish, French and British,
Turks and Caicos became part of the Bahamas colony, but attempts
to integrate failed and were abandoned in 1848. London - Kingston
boats frequently visited Turks and Caicos, so links with Jamaica
were well developed. Turks and Caicos became a British Crown
Colony in 1962 and links were maintained to the Bahamas through
the Anglican Church.
The 1976 elections were won by the PDM, the People's Democratic
Movement, who were then to negotiate independence if they won
the next elections in 1980. But the other main political party,
the Progressive National Party (PNP), won the 1980 elections
and plans for independence have for now been set aside. |
