View source for New Providence

{{short description|Caribbean island of the Bahamas}}
{{other uses}}
{{Infobox islands
| name             = New Providence
| image_name       = Newprovidencenasa.jpg
| image_caption    = Satellite image
| image_size       = 
| map              = Bahamas
| map_caption      = 
| native_name      = 
| native_name_link = 
| nickname         = 
| location         = [[Atlantic Ocean]]
| coordinates      = {{Coord|25|1|48|N|77|24|18|W|display=inline,title}}
| archipelago      = [[The Bahamas]]
| total_islands    =
| major_islands    =
| area_km2         = 207
| width_km         = 11
| length_km        = 34
| highest_mount    = 
| elevation_m      = 5
| country          = Bahamas
| country_largest_city = [[Nassau, Bahamas|Nassau]]
| population       = 296,522<ref>{{cite web |title=Census population and housing |url=https://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/connect/c0d9fae8-54df-49e3-b4b9-92e29e0b264c/2022+CENSUS+PRELIMINARY+RESULTS_FINAL+April+12+2023.pdf?MOD=AJPERES |website=Bahamas Gov |access-date=17 April 2023}}</ref>
| population_as_of = 2022
| density_km2      = 1,325.6
| ethnic_groups    = [[African diaspora|African]] 89%, [[White people|European]] 8%, [[Asian people|Asian]] and [[Hispanic]] 3%{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}
| timezone1        = [[Eastern Time Zone|EST]]
| utc_offset1      = -5
| timezone1_DST    = [[Eastern Time Zone|EDT]]
| utc_offset1_DST  = -4
| iso_code         = BS-NP
|image_map=New Providence in Bahamas.svg}}
[[File:NewProvidence2021OSM.png|thumb|Enlargeable, detailed map of New Providence]]

'''New Providence''' is the most populous island in [[The Bahamas]], containing more than 70% of the total population.<ref>{{cite report |url=http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/connect/c17e5637-1f39-484b-8107-a7be2176c51b/NEW+PROVIDENCE+2010+CENSUS+REPORT.pdf?MOD=AJPERES |title=2010 Census of Population and Housing: New Providence |page=3 |date=August 2012 |publisher=Department of Statistics of the Bahamas |access-date=May 18, 2015 |archive-date=December 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220072543/http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/connect/c17e5637-1f39-484b-8107-a7be2176c51b/NEW+PROVIDENCE+2010+CENSUS+REPORT.pdf?MOD=AJPERES |url-status=live }}</ref> On the eastern side of the island is the [[national capital|national capital city]] of [[Nassau, Bahamas|Nassau]]; it had a population of 246,329 at the 2010 Census, and a population of 292,522 at the 2022 census. Nearly three quarters of The Bahamas's population lives in New Providence.<ref>https://www.blurtit.com/q702844.html {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130318055920/https://www.blurtit.com/q702844.html |date=March 18, 2013 }} ''Nassau, the capital city is located on New Providence island''</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bahamas-the/ |title=CIA Factbook |date=22 September 2022 |access-date=24 January 2021 |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126031906/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/bahamas-the/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.worldatlas.com/na/bs/np/where-is-nassau.html |title=World Atlas – Where is Nassau? |access-date=2016-04-16 |archive-date=2018-06-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180622220346/https://www.worldatlas.com/na/bs/np/where-is-nassau.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=April 2023 |title=Commonwealth of The Bahamas - Census of Population and Housing 2022 |url=https://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/wcm/connect/c0d9fae8-54df-49e3-b4b9-92e29e0b264c/2022+CENSUS+PRELIMINARY+RESULTS_FINAL+April+12+2023.pdf?MOD=AJPERES}}</ref>

The island was originally under Spanish control following [[Christopher Columbus]]'s discovery of the [[New World]], but the Spanish government showed little interest in developing the island (and The Bahamas as a whole).<ref name="Neglect">{{cite web |author=Bruce Taylor |title=Review of Johnson, Howard, The Bahamas From Slavery to Servitude, 1783–1933. |publisher=H-Lat Am, H-Net Reviews. |date=September 1997 |url=http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=1286 |access-date=2013-01-03 |archive-date=2013-10-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029200552/http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=1286 |url-status=live }}</ref> Nassau, the island's largest city, was formerly known as Charles-town, but it was burned to the ground by the Spanish in 1684.<ref>http://www.bahamasfinder.com/nassau.html {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150828183430/http://www.bahamasfinder.com/nassau.html |date=2015-08-28 }} ''Nassau was formerly known as Charles Town but was burned to the ground by the Spanish in 1684.''</ref> It was laid out and renamed Nassau in 1695 by [[Nicholas Trott]], the most successful [[Lords Proprietor|Lord Proprietor]], in honour of the [[House of Orange-Nassau|Prince of Orange-Nassau]] who became [[William III of England]].

The three branches of [[Politics of the Bahamas|Bahamian Government]]: the executive, the legislative, and the judiciary, are all headquartered on New Providence. New Providence functions as the main commercial hub of The Bahamas. It is also home to more than 400 banks and trust companies, and its hotels and port account for more than two-thirds of the four million-plus tourists who visit The Bahamas annually. New Providence is the only part of The Bahamas that lacks [[Local government in The Bahamas|local government]]. Local affairs are handled by the national government, but the island is divided into 24 [[supervisory district]]s.

Other settlements on New Providence include Grants Town, Bain Town, Fox Hill, Adelaide, Yamacraw, South Beach, Coral Harbour, [[Lyford Cay]], [[Paradise Island]], Sea Breeze, Centreville, The Grove (South) and The Grove (West Bay), [[Cable Beach, Bahamas|Cable Beach]], Delaporte, Gambier, [[Old Fort Bay]], Carmichael Road, and Love Beach.<ref name="A1">{{cite news |title=New Providence |publisher=Government of the Bahamas |url=http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/portal/public/About%20The%20Bahamas/The%20Islands/NEW%20PROVIDENCE/!ut/p/b1/vVTJkqJAEP0WP6CbYpPiWCwiWOwFAhcDRWhQFpVF_Pqx5zJLxHRfpjvzlBEv3ov3MiOphIqopEnHskj7sm3S8_ucLHcs0EyEOGhqPFgCPXAwcoQ1Y9M8taUiEjN3pdUnTffyzu2rYJpXvWzKWrGXtI0t3fOHi6otY4SGmJe3gYyZOASD3W9IXyVj5hlt4Vi-sGVS6wTjVZtj3rIwOSZGuxd3R9G6woN4Tc7Aye9eXAOsQH6IZiTbMDSDcB3s6O4w40056CPfv51VfUgr_yoGF9erUHr3taY2D1ksXbCyTTK9UWdPn-yzczygfn1rGg6lueHe3MXiaTj-wDAHPs8j-RDyzvATAP5RCHzCsGEoa93WRyp-woTfYCQEQKcB8nzaBdCiKUJFgNv51dzpj9PDq8B8NxWVsfYIgH0ASHANLLKyzMynfcXANAmxKcSTT-w7wTHwM-JkoRdISLnAJnT-FrQZIj4FZXq5CXjgA-6rBTXehs8gBOIgngGaTX-3IPutkWqODb7c4R9Hw7n_f4cGlZT7-nU61K_gFYpLmhcgJ8Il4DgoUGEVL3nlpk-q6u2MmMa3i9C5RaGXwU0v0pVUQ6KfoocRFRV03DiVEBuOVp1xrYaKGc8ujJ9-bi8CcyEW5Ka8clLvlogHma2wh302GDWNyYxtiyuZ4dRiXK_SRr-wbK4NPJHmk7c39nY3LJM66kQH1x3bHmde26zkYqeKDdha_Yk-b4_MQ9ymdM0x1yRspJxPxevGiszSs4Rp80aausuyjFO0olwrzPPlEEZQFSjrCqci5W6k8ghfdAkqZXQqno-mq0e89NYTDX_1hBaLH17e3Nw!/dl4/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/ |access-date=2011-09-11 |archive-date=2012-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120328112326/http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/wps/portal/public/About%20The%20Bahamas/The%20Islands/NEW%20PROVIDENCE/!ut/p/b1/vVTJkqJAEP0WP6CbYpPiWCwiWOwFAhcDRWhQFpVF_Pqx5zJLxHRfpjvzlBEv3ov3MiOphIqopEnHskj7sm3S8_ucLHcs0EyEOGhqPFgCPXAwcoQ1Y9M8taUiEjN3pdUnTffyzu2rYJpXvWzKWrGXtI0t3fOHi6otY4SGmJe3gYyZOASD3W9IXyVj5hlt4Vi-sGVS6wTjVZtj3rIwOSZGuxd3R9G6woN4Tc7Aye9eXAOsQH6IZiTbMDSDcB3s6O4w40056CPfv51VfUgr_yoGF9erUHr3taY2D1ksXbCyTTK9UWdPn-yzczygfn1rGg6lueHe3MXiaTj-wDAHPs8j-RDyzvATAP5RCHzCsGEoa93WRyp-woTfYCQEQKcB8nzaBdCiKUJFgNv51dzpj9PDq8B8NxWVsfYIgH0ASHANLLKyzMynfcXANAmxKcSTT-w7wTHwM-JkoRdISLnAJnT-FrQZIj4FZXq5CXjgA-6rBTXehs8gBOIgngGaTX-3IPutkWqODb7c4R9Hw7n_f4cGlZT7-nU61K_gFYpLmhcgJ8Il4DgoUGEVL3nlpk-q6u2MmMa3i9C5RaGXwU0v0pVUQ6KfoocRFRV03DiVEBuOVp1xrYaKGc8ujJ9-bi8CcyEW5Ka8clLvlogHma2wh302GDWNyYxtiyuZ4dRiXK_SRr-wbK4NPJHmk7c39nY3LJM66kQH1x3bHmde26zkYqeKDdha_Yk-b4_MQ9ymdM0x1yRspJxPxevGiszSs4Rp80aausuyjFO0olwrzPPlEEZQFSjrCqci5W6k8ghfdAkqZXQqno-mq0e89NYTDX_1hBaLH17e3Nw!/dl4/d5/L2dBISEvZ0FBIS9nQSEh/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Etymology==
The Indigenous [[Lucayan people]] called the island ''Nema'', meaning "middle-water".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ahrens |first=Wolfgang P. |date=2015 |title=Naming the Bahamas Islands: History and Folk Etymology |url=https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/oc/article/view/14910 |journal=Onomastica Canadiana |language=en |volume=94 |issue=2 |pages=101 |issn=2816-7015 |access-date=2023-02-21 |archive-date=2023-02-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230221041210/https://ojs.lib.uwo.ca/index.php/oc/article/view/14910 |url-status=live }}</ref> The name New Providence Island is derived from a 16th‐century [[List of colonial heads of the Bahamas|governor]] who gave thanks to [[Divine Providence]] for his survival after a [[shipwreck]]. The "New" was added later to distinguish it from [[Isla de Providencia|Providencia]] in Western Caribbean (now [[Colombia]]) used by [[Piracy in the Caribbean|pirates]].<ref name="A2">{{cite web |author=John Everett-Heath |title=New Providence Island |publisher=Encyclopedia.com |access-date=September 10, 2011 |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-NewProvidenceIsland.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130122070941/http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-NewProvidenceIsland.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 22, 2013}}</ref>

==History==
[[Image:Battle of Nassau.jpg|thumb|left|An artistic rendition of the [[Battle of Nassau]]]]

After 1670, [[Bermuda|Bermudian]] salt rakers gathering [[sea salt]] in [[Grand Turk Island|Grand Turk]] and [[Inagua]] became regular visitors to the island. The first lasting European settlement was on [[Eleuthera]] in 1648, and then New Providence in 1666.

By 1670, there were over 900 people on the settlement of Charles-Town. Due to ineffective governors, Charles-Town was attacked by the French and Spanish navies, became a home base for pirates, and was eventually destroyed by a Spanish attack in 1684. However, two years later in 1686, new English colonists from Jamaica came and settled. They were called back by the governor of Jamaica, but they ignored this order. In 1695, Governor Nicolas Trott rebuilt the town and added a fort, both were called Nassau. However, the fort was heavily damaged in a Spanish attack in 1700 and the colonists eventually abandoned the fort in 1703 after a French and Spanish attack. Due to the lack of cannon and soldiers in the fort, New Providence soon became a [[Republic of Pirates|home base for pirates]]. By 1713, there were over 1000 pirates in Nassau and they outnumbered the 400–500 law-abiding inhabitants; pirate [[Thomas Barrow (pirate)|Thomas Barrow]] even declared himself "Governor of New Providence".<ref name="CSP-VOL29">{{cite book |last1=Headlam |first1=Cecil |title=America and West Indies: July 1716 {{!}} British History Online |date=1930 |publisher=His Majesty's Stationery Office |location=London |pages=139–159 |edition=Vol 29 |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/cal-state-papers/colonial/america-west-indies/vol29/pp139-159 |access-date=15 October 2017 |language=en |archive-date=31 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831003904/https://www.british-history.ac.uk/cal-state-papers/colonial/america-west-indies/vol29/pp139-159 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1718, Governor [[Woodes Rogers]] (sent by King [[George I of Great Britain]]) came in and offered a [[1717–1718 Acts of Grace|pardon for any pirate]] willing to give up his ways. Using his intelligence and threatening to execute them if they did not take the pardon, Rogers was eventually able to rid Nassau of pirates.

In February 1776, [[Patriot (American Revolution)|American]] [[Esek Hopkins]] led a squadron of over seven ships to raid the British-held island in order to secure supplies and munitions. In an event known as the Battle of Nassau, on March 3 and 4, Hopkins landed the first-ever [[Amphibious warfare|amphibious assault]] by [[Military of the United States|American military forces]] consisting of 250 [[Continental Marines|Marines]] and [[Continental Navy|sailors]]. Under the covering fire of the [[USS Providence (1775)|''Providence'']] and [[USS Wasp (1775)|''Wasp'']], the attackers overwhelmed Fort Montague. The British retreated to Fort Nassau, but then surrendered to Continental forces. The Americans managed to secure 88 cannon and 15 [[Mortar (weapon)|mortars]], but most of the much desired [[gunpowder]] was evacuated before capture. Hopkins spent two weeks loading his ships with the booty before finally returning home.

The frigate [[Indien (1778)|''South Carolina'']], of the [[South Carolina Navy]], arrived at Havana on 12 January 1782. At Havana, after negotiations between [[Alexander Gillon]] and the Spanish, the ''South Carolina'' joined a force of 59 vessels carrying [[Spain|Spanish]] forces under the overall command of [[Bernardo de Galvez]]. On 22 April the expedition sailed to capture New Providence. By May 6 the whole fleet had reached New Providence and on 8 May the British colony surrendered. This was the third capture of New Providence by a foreign force during the American Revolutionary War.

After the [[American Revolution]], several thousand [[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Loyalists]] and their slaves emigrated to New Providence and nearby islands, hoping to re-establish plantation agriculture. The shallow soils and sparse rainfall doomed this activity to failure, and by the early 19th century The Bahamas had become a nearly vacant [[archipelago]]. Salt raking continued here and there, wreck gleaning was profitable in [[Grand Bahama]], but New Providence was the only island with any prosperity because of the large British military establishment. The fortresses began to crumble and were abandoned by 1850. New Providence afterwards had two periods of high economic success: during the [[American Civil War]] of 1861–65, when it was a highly popular port for blockade-runners serving the [[Confederate States of America]];<ref>"Mysterious Fate of the Blockade Runners" by J. W. A. Wright, The Overland Monthly, ed. by Bret Harte. 1885</ref> and during [[Prohibition]], when it was a smuggling centre for distilled spirits.

==Tourist destination==
By the late 19th century, New Providence had begun billing itself as the "[[Sanatorium|sanitarium]] of the western hemisphere". Testimonials by residents and visitors emphasized its extremely mild climate with minimal daily temperature fluctuations (often as little as {{cvt|5|F-change|C-change|order=flip|0}} in any given 12-hour period) and warm winters (a typical winter morning in the range of {{cvt|70|to|74|F|C|order=flip}}, excellent drainage, ample variety and number of Christian (Protestant) churches, well-tended and rectilinear roads, modern luxurious facilities, and native English speakers. Steam ships plied between the coastal southern United States, Cuba, and Nassau, and the popularity of the destination proceeded to grow.<ref>{{cite book |title=Nassau, island of New Providence, Bahamas |url=https://archive.org/details/nassauislandofne00newy |page=[https://archive.org/details/nassauislandofne00newy/page/26 26] |date=November 1877 |publisher=Murray, Ferris & Co. |isbn=978-5-87272-044-7}}</ref>

By the late 1920s, New Providence had become well-established especially as an American vacation destination with many tourist facilities, including a deepened harbour for short-visit cruise ship visitors and hotels offering gambling.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{sister project links|The Bahamas|voy=New Providence}}
*[http://www.nassauparadiseisland.com/ Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board – Official Nassau Paradise Island Travel Guide]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20150505080248/http://www.bahamas.gov.bs/ Official Website for Bahamas Government]

{{Local Government in the Bahamas}}
{{The Bahamas topics}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:New Providence| ]]
[[Category:Pirate dens and locations]]
[[Category:Piracy in the Atlantic Ocean]]
[[Category:1666 establishments in the British Empire]]