cassidain
Senior Insider
WoodenBoat FB
The Caribs are indigenous people of the islands of the southern Caribbean whose ancestors immigrated to the region from the Orinoco River Delta. Traditionally, they traveled around the islands in dugout canoes. GLI GLI, a 35' dugout canoe, was launched in 1996 with the goal of reuniting the Caribs with their ancestral Orinoco River homeland and celebrating their endangered culture. Read about GLI GLI and the Carib people in WB No. 201.
History of St. Barths Island (Wimco)
In the first millennium the island was largely uninhabited due to its lack of freshwater, and arable land. Two tribes, the Taino and Arawak Indians spent time on the island on a seasonal basis, most likely using it as a base for fishing. The Arawak are thought to be the ones who gave St Barthelemy island (now commonly known as St Barths, or St Barts) its first name as "Ouanalao", which may refer to the iguanas that resided on the island.
Early settlement by the French
The French made the first attempt to settle in 1648. Colonization was encouraged by the French West India Company, and led to a small settlement on the island. The settlement was not a great success; in part because the St Barts has no source of freshwater, and has very little level ground for farming.
Two years later the island was sold to the Knights of Malta, who attempted to grow indigo and cotton, and developed salt farming, fishing, and livestock breeding programs. Their colony struggled, and in 1656 the Carib Indians destroyed the settlements, and the Europeans left the island.
The 1656-1763 - The Era of the Carib Indians
While many islands in the Caribbean were colonized, St Barts remained part of France on paper for over 100 years. Because of this, the island was largely left alone by the European powers. The Carib Indians were the only inhabitants, and they may have only resided here on a seasonal basis.
