Bahamas Historical Society — Attraction in New Providence

If you are excited to learn the culture and history of places you visit, then BHS is an absolute MUST when in Nassau! Skip the boring and superficial "pirate museum" and plan to spend some quality time here. The history of Bahamas is unique and truly fascinating with many twists and turns, unexpected surprises and high drama! From the ancient Lucayans first contact with Columbus through the golden age of pirates and privateers; from the "saltwater underground railroad" delivering escaped slaves to freedom, to the absolute gangster windfall of contraband rum production during US prohibition, in this 50th anniversary of independence, Bahamas history is well worth discovering, and no one does it better than the Bahamas Historical Society. Thank you to Andrea Major (current President of BHS) for sharing her time, deep knowledge and precious personal memories with me. This is not a busy, bustling place full of cheap souvenirs, but a quiet, unassuming space with treasures...

I adore learning about the history and culture of any city I'm in, so this stop was a must for me and I'm so glad I did it!

Andrea was an absolute delight! She is incredibly knowledgeable about the history of the Bahamas as a whole as well as local herbs, crafts and important figures to New Providence. I really hope you get a chance to meet her and chat with her while you're here!

Since the artifacts are all stored within one main room, you can spend less than an hour quickly walking around--OR--if you love personal tours and stories and have time to spare, you can spend multiple hours here just reading and listening. We had the latter experience and were very happy we did! If you're approached and asked how much time you have to spare, just say, "plenty!": you...

The Bahamas Historical Society is a fascinating museum suitable for all ages. If you want to learn about the true history of the Bahamas from a local perspective, you must stop here. The museum is essentially one large room but you can easily spend an hour plus looking at the collections, including a few astonishingly rare items that you would never be able to approach in a large museum. If you happen to stop while Tom Wardle is volunteering, so much the better—he is a fount of information. But either way way, skip the canned cruise ship tour and take the short stroll over. The admission price is nominal and anyone interested in history won’t be...