Annual Meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology, January 2013

Leicester, England

Good afternoon, I’m pleased to be here today to present some of the findings from the

State University of New York, College at Oswego ‘s archaeological survey in the

Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park in the Bahamas.

My name is Doug Pippin and I am an assistant professor at the college and the project

director. As you can see from the title, I am presenting on the study of displaced

Loyalists in the Caribbean, but this project is part of a larger effort to investigate the

experience of Loyalists during and in the years after the American Revolutionary War.

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For more than a decade our research site was the British post on Carleton

Island, in the St. Lawrence River in northern New York State. Our project in

the Bahamas is still in its preliminary stages, and we are very excited for the

opportunity to expand our research in this region.

Estimates vary widely on the number of colonists who maintained loyalty to

Great Britain during the American Revolution. Many were forced to flee, but

the vast majority of Loyalists did not leave their homes in the colonies. Some

estimates indicate that as many as 10-15%–––or about 80,000 Loyalists–––

fled the colonies for other parts of the British Empire.

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In all the territories to which they relocated Loyalists made a significant impact

on the population, economy and landscape. Among those who chose to leave,

approximately sixty percent went to Quebec, the Maritime provinces, and what

is now the Province of Ontario, Canada. Those from a higher socio-economic

status––about twenty percent of those who fled––could afford to return to

Great Britain. The remaining twenty percent, mostly from the southern

colonies, moved even farther to the south….

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…..first to British East Florida at St. Augustine, and later to the British West

Indies after Florida was ceded to Spain in 1783. In the Bahamas–––where the

British awarded land grants in compensation for the Loyalists’ loss of

property–––the arrival of more than 7,000 white colonists, and free and

enslaved persons of African descent would signal a profound change.

Historians Michael Craton and Gail Saunders referred to this as one of the

most crucial phases of Bahamian social history.

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Their arrival tripled the population, more than tripled the number of islands

with permanent settlements, and dramatically raised the proportion of

enslaved persons to a significant majority of the population. The overall surge

in numbers in such a short time, however, put a strain on the limited

infrastructure and resources of the islands.

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The quote in the title of my paper, “It is promised to them” refers to a letter

from Governor General John Maxwell in 1784 looking for instructions

regarding the settlement of the Loyalists. He described the difficulties related

to their arrival, especially with respect to qualified surveyors to parcel the land

grants. Maxwell clearly has sympathy for the Loyalists, but his patience was

growing thin. In dealing with the demands from the new arrivals, he noted that:

…where they see a vacant pot, the Loyalists (with exceptions), say they must have it and will have it; it is “promised to them.”

A great number of the new arrivals remained at Nassau on New Providence

Island, but many others–––those mostly interested in farming–––established

settlements on Abaco, Andros, Cat Island, Long Island and in the Exuma

Cays. In addition, there was a large influx of Loyalists at the Turks and Caicos

islands, which were originally, but are no longer part of the Bahamas.

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But the focus of our research was in the Exuma Cays, the long string of barrier

islands more than one hundred miles from Great and Little Exuma in the

south, nearly all the way to Nassau in the north. Our research site was the

island of Warderwick Wells, in the center of the Exumas (note location on the

map), where a cluster of several ruins are located on the southern end of the

island. Oral tradition maintains that they were associated with the Davis family

and the Loyalist period in the Bahamas.

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In 1958 the Bahamas National Trust established the Exuma Cays Land and

Sea Park, and it was the first marine fishery reserve in the Caribbean. It is a

176 square mile park, which encompasses numerous islands and important

marine resources, was designated as a no-take zone in order to protect the

natural wildlife.

Warderwick Wells, and the Exuma Cay Land and Sea Park in general, have

been the location for numerous botanical, marine and ornithological studies,

but little or no other archaeological work.

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As Warderwick Wells is the at the center of the park, it is also the site of the

park headquarters. The only structures on the island however, are the Park

headquarters building, the warden’s and rangers’ residence, and a

maintenance building. But, despite the remote location and sparse population

of the Exumas today, Warderwick Wells is visited frequently by the sailboats

that cruise regularly through the Bahamas, using the mooring fields

maintained by the park staff.

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This island is just under two miles long, and just one third of a mile wide – the

elevation is so slight that at high tide, the northernmost part of Warderwick

Wells becomes a separate island unto itself. Most of the terrain is covered

with dense thickets and palm trees.

We were able to stay at this location (note Beryl’s Cove) aboard a

houseboat–––The OWL–––anchored in this cove, as no camping is permitted

on the island. We could obtain fresh water at the ranger station; all other

supplies and provisions were brought in by the field crew.

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As I mentioned, Warderwick Wells is home to several ruins that were the

primary focus of our archaeological survey. As I mentioned, local oral tradition

associates the ruins with a Loyalist family by the name of Davis. (Here you

can see some of the signage on the island trails that refer to the Davis ruins

and the Loyalist period).

Of course, the fundamental questions for us were straightforward–––was

there really a connection to the Davis family and the Loyalist period? No clear

historical evidence has been uncovered to verify the family connection. In fact,

were these settlements created by displaced loyalists at all?

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We began archival research in detail to determine if there was a foundation for

a connection to the Davis family. We conducted extensive research at the

Bahamian National Archives in Nassau, the College of the Bahamas Library

and the National Archives in London.

Here one of our students, Stephanie Hallinan, is working at the National

Archives for information related to Loyalists’ Bahamian Land Grants.

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Of those Loyalists who did choose to re-locate to the Bahamas, many had

land grants as compensation for the goods and property they lost as a result

of their loyalty to England. The amount of land initially granted depended on a

number of factors. A small parcel may be 20–40 acres (James 1988: 16), but

affluent individuals, of course, were able to secure much larger parcels of

land.  

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In the Colonial Office records, a list of grants to Loyalists revealed that George

Davis was, in fact given a grant of land…..but it was on Great Exuma.

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The plan of grants on Great Exuma from 1792, it was confirmed that plot 92

belonged to George Davis, and this matched exactly…

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with the hand drawn illustration on the Davis’ land grant document that we retrieved in

the Bahamian Archives.

So, we were able to make a family connection to the Exumas, but no definite link to

Warderwick Wells. As it turned out, we did find a second land grant made to George

Davis, also in the Exumas, but otherwise for an indeterminate location. The location

details and size of the plot are indecipherable, and there is no drawing of the land as

with the first plot. Davis’ name does not show up twice on the Great Exuma map, so

this could be the grant for our site on Warderwick Wells, but the historical research is

not yet persuasive. Most of the grants are for sites in the vicinity of Great Exuma, not

the outer islands of the Exuma Cays, so it is also possible that no land document

exists, or ever existed.

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So that left us with the latter question that I proposed, do the ruins on

Warderwick Wells correspond to the last quarter of the eighteenth century, and

could they have been occupied by newly arrived Loyalists? We undertook a

non-destructive artifact assessment and survey to determine if the features

and materials corresponded to the time period.

Here is our photo of the island again, and I want to show you where were

were working and tell you about the extant features of Warderwick Wells…

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The detail in this photograph illustrates where we were working on the island,

ironically near the landing spot known as Loyalist Beach.

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The ruins are located at the point of the arrow, and the two lines represent two

stone walls that bisect the island.

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This is one of the three ruins located on Warderwick Wells. As you can see,

they consist of limestone and mortar walls, that were likely topped with a

thatched roof.

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The three structures are occupy an area of approximately 50 meters in

diameter. All three have domestic materials adjacent on the surface. The small

amount of new soil deposition allows for productive surface inspection of the

artifacts.

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Here you can see the stone wall that was indicated in the satellite photograph,

bisecting the island approximately 200 meters south of the ruins.

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In terms of their physical appearance, this may be a good comparison. This is

a the remains of a cabin from the Loyalist-era Clifton Plantation on the west

end of New Providence, now part of the Clifton Heritage Park.

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The Clifton ruin and this full scale replica with a thatched roof may well

represent the type of structures found at Warderwick Wells.

The structures at Clifton seen here were occupied by slaves. That was also

possible for the structures on Warderwick Wells, but regardless of their

occupation, they do reflect a lower socio-economic status when compared

to…

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…the plantation house ruins at Clifton, seen here.

This emphasizes one of our primary questions about who was actually living

on Warderwick Wells (regardless of whose name appeared on on the land

grant)?

Were the occupants free or enslaved? Did they represent multiple households,

or an extended family? And how were they able to provide for themselves in

an area that is still today so poorly suited to agriculture?

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We were able to to address some of these questions in our preliminary survey,

but of course they will require ongoing research and investigation. Over the

course of our survey in March 2010, we discovered the remains of two

additional structures. Neither had surface remains of domestic artifacts and

may have been work areas or out-buildings associated with previously

described domestic foundations.

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As I indicated, surface inspection can reveal a great deal of information about

the material culture. We were able to map and catalog hundreds of artifacts in

the vicinity of the three foundations. The accumulated data on the surface

materials leads us to believe that the ruins are associated with the Loyalist

period.

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These next slides illustrate some of the surface materials that we recorded.

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Most artifacts were photographed in situ….

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….and with a scale for comparative purposes. The materials were not

collected. The scale photos were taken in the field and returned.

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Metal does not preserve well in this climate and is very poorly represented in

our catalog. When it was discovered, it was very fragmentary, as noted in this

slide.

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The conch shell middens on Warderwick Wells provide some information on

the economy of subsistence and provisioning in the Exumas. This is a

resource that was used in great quantities and was noted in several middens

nearby the domestic areas.

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So, in conclusion, our historical and archaeological investigations have

provided some solutions, but have prompted new areas of inquiry into the

subsistence strategy for the early occupation of Warderwick Wells.

I am showing you the picture of our houseboat as an epilogue to our survey

trip to Warderwick Wells…

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Sadly, in August 2011, the Owl was destroyed by Hurricane Irene.

Unfortunately, this necessitated a pause in our research last year as we

looked into alternative ways to support a field crew at Warderwick Wells.

Regardless, we look forward to additional research in the Exuma Cays.

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