History And Geography

History

On 10th May 1503, Christopher Columbus was the first to discover the island of Cayman on his devastating fourth and final visit to the new worlds. However, the records state that the first English visitor to the islands was Sir Francis Drake, who reached there in 1586 and named it the Cayman Islands drawing inspiration from the Neo-Taíno nation's phrase (caiman) for crocodile. Isaac Bodden, who was born on the Grand Cayman in 1700, was the first documented permanent citizen of the island. He was the grand child of the original settler called Bodden who was considered to be one of Oliver Cromwell's soldiers at the conquest of Jamaica in 1655.

A devastating hurricane that took place in 1932 was an important chapter in the island's history. The island was hit by the storm on 7th November with the winds estimated at 150 mph and a storm gush of about 30 feet. The storm then moved over to Cayman Brac a day later with winds of 200 mph and a storm gush of over 32 feet. The hurricane destroyed the islands and Cayman Brac suffered the most with 69 lives lost compared to only 1 lost on Grand Cayman. Many homes were wiped off into the sea and many lost their lives by drowning in the turbulent waters.

The infrastructure was rebuilt fast and life returned to normal in a short span of time. In the period that followed, the Cayman Islands as well as the neighboring island of Jamaica was handed over to England under the treaty of Madrid. Jamaica as well as the Cayman Islands was governed together as a single colony until 1962 after which the Cayman Islands separated from Jamaica and the latter was transformed into an independent commonwealth region.

Hurricane Ivan - a category five hurricane devastated the Grand Cayman Island in September 2004. It destroyed a lot of the island's infrastructure and damaged almost 70% of the buildings. It destroyed power lines, water supplies and communication lines. It is considered the worst hurricane witnessed by the island in more than 86 years. Ever since the hurricane occurred, the island has made rapid development and has got its entire infrastructure restored.

Geography

The three islands, Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, located in the Caribbean Sea make up the Cayman Islands. Their geographical coordinates are between 19o 15` and 19o 45` north, and between 79o 44` and 81o 27` west, and lie comfortably within the tropical zone.

The island of Grand Cayman is around 22 miles long and 8 miles wide (at the widest point). The highest point of elevation on the island is about 60 feet above sea level and the most impressive and striking feature is the North Sound, a lagoon protected by shallow reef having an area of about 35 square miles.

Cayman Brac is situated around 90 miles to the east of Grand Cayman. Its length is around 12 miles while its width is around 1 mile. The Bluff is the Brac's most famous attraction that draws a great deal of tourists every year. It is an impressive topographical feature that rises along the length of the island and reaches a height of 140 feet at the eastern end. It then falls of into the sea in the form of a steep cliff.

Little Cayman is situated 5 miles to the west of Cayman Brac and is 10 miles long and two miles wide. The topography of this island is relatively flatter as compared to the other two islands. The highest point of elevation on the island is situated at an altitude of 40 feet. A 7-mile channel to the west of the island separates the island of Cayman Brac from Little Cayman.