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The peaceful Lucayan Indians had lived on Exuma and throughout the Bahamas for centuries prior to Columbus' discovery of the islands in 1492. After the Spanish enslaved the Lucayans to work in Central and South America, Exuma and the rest of the Bahamas were left empty and uninhabited until the arrival of the British to Eleuthera around 1648.
In the 1700's salt became a major product of Exuma. And, during this same period, there might have been an occasional visit by a buccaneer or two to the secluded cays and coves of Exuma's shores. These pirates certainly were creating havoc in Nassau during this time.
Beginning in 1783, British Loyalists from colonial America began arriving after the American Revolution to escape the political scene in the colonies. Since most had been farmers in the south, they planted cotton, their mainstay, and brought slaves in to work the fields.
In 1793 George Town was founded, and the island was prospering. However, the thin layer of topsoil could not sustain the years of over planting, and the weakened plants were then open to the attacks of insects. By the time of the abolishment of slavery and the Emancipation Act in 1834, Exuma was in decline. Most of the Loyalist farmers had left the island and the decimated land gradually became the property of the abandoned slaves. These hardy individuals subsisted, and persisted for more than a century by farming the weary soil and fishing. The advent of tourism after World War II has brought new jobs and a gradual prosperity back to the economy of Exuma. 
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