Life On The Lumber Farm

Product Description Andros is known as the largest island in the Bahamas. It was named after Sr. Edmund Andros, who was married to Marie Craven, sister of Sir William Craven one of the Lord proprietors to whom the islands were granted by Charles II in 1670. Sir Edmund Andros was named governor of New York and governor of New England. When William and Mary took the throne in 1689, Sir Edmund was imprisoned and forced to return to England for trial, because he enraged some of the colonists who despised his strong leadership. However, he was later released without going to trial. To show their sympathy for what had happened to Sir Edmund, the Lord proprietors of the islands named the island Andros after Sir Edmund Andros. Andros is 104 miles long and 40 miles wide. It is a low lying-island indented by many mangrove-bordered creeks, some of which lead to an extensive lake that occupies a large part of the center of the island and may be reached by the Wide Opening from the west side or Fresh Creek from the north. Some of the following settlements were once considered major settlements of Andros: Nicolls Town, Mastic Point, Stafford Creek, Stanyard Creek, Fresh Creek, Berring Point, Mangrove Cay, Long Bay Cays, Driggs Hill, Kemps Bay and Pure Gold. A line of reefs run along the whole east coast of the island at a distance of approximately two miles from the shore, forming a harbor. Andros is the only island where saltwater meets freshwater. In addition to many mangrove swamps and creeks there are over thirty Blue Holes, some with a depth of over 250 feet. These Blue Holes are becoming more and more popular every day and are constantly being explored by daredevils from all over the world. Andros however, is capable of much, much more as you will learn from Life On The Lumber Farm. Life On The Lumber Farm is about a once thriving lumber industry on the island of Andros in the Bahamas since the 1940 s. It tells about the people who lived there, their way of life and their struggle for survival. It is my hope that this book will be informative and an educational tool for many. Review It is said that the wealth of a nation is found in the collective experiences of its people and the documentation of their journey through the passage of time. It is sad to admit that the weakest aspect of the developing nations is the recording on their own history and the loss of so much of their rich heritage. For this reason I am proud, pleased and grateful for the privilege of writing the foreword to this very important and valuable manuscript, Life On The Lumber Farm, penned by Cynthia H. Ferguson Fowler. Reading this work was a breath of fresh air that filled not just my physical lungs, but blew a wind of inspiration and pride into my spirit. Cynthia, in her graphic and poetic style captures the spirit, passion and perseverance of a people who not so long ago exemplified the tenacity, creativity, resourcefulness and drive of the Bahamian spirit. The educational content and benefit of this work was also surprising as I was amazed that there was a valuable piece of Bahamian history I knew nothing about. Life On The Lumber Farm will become a classic in the halls of Bahamian literature, and I expect it will find its way into the classrooms, boardrooms, and staterooms of our communities. I encourage you to peel these pages, enter the world of a Bahamas long ago and explore the rich lifestyles and human stories of a people struggling to make life in the island environment of their God-given archipelago. I am proud of this work and congratulate Cynthia on a job well done. --Dr. Myles MunroeLife on the Lumber Farm aims to help students and teachers experience what life was for someone growing up in Andros during the 1940 s through 1960 s. The author focuses on local industries such as sisal, sponging, oil and lumbering as well as survival skills like charcoal manufacturing, handicrafts, and fishing. The Lumber Farm, as the title suggests, is