The First Settlement

In 1648, a group of dissident English Puritans - known as the Eleutheran Adventurers - made their way to The Bahamas in search of religious freedom.
Although the Adventurers gave the island they settled on its name, Eleuthera didn't give much back; food shortages, a lack of proper supplies, and irreconcilable internal arguments split the group into separate communities along Governor's Harbour and Preacher's Cave. Seeking peace, the Eleutherans' leader, Captain William Sayles, set sail for the American colonies to obtain survival supplies for the struggling outpost from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Returning triumphant, the decision was taken to better guard their provisions and possessions against marauding Spanish troops in the area by establishing another settlement on the nearby - and more easily defended - Harbour Island.