Long Island – Lucayan caves, Loyalist farms and cotton plantations
Long Island's history reaches back to the Lucayan Taíno, who probably lived in the island's caves; ceremonial stools called duhos have been found here. Some historians believe the island was one of Christopher Columbus's landfalls in 1492, though this remains debated. After the Lucayans were taken away as slaves, the Simms family arrived in 1720. Following the American Revolution, Loyalists from New England and New Jersey started the first farms, and from the 1790s settlers from the Carolinas set up cotton plantations, most of which were abandoned by the abolition of slavery in 1834. Many ruins remain. Today Long Island, split by the Tropic of Cancer, is known for its scenery, with Clarence Town as its capital. Share your own Long Island stories with the community!