Elbow Cay is an

cay A cay ( ), also spelled caye or key, is a small, low-elevation, sandy island on the surface of a coral reef. Cays occur in tropical environments throughout the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Oceans, including in the Caribbean and on the Great ...

in the

Abaco Islands Abaco is a variant Italian form of the Biblical name "Habakkuk" (but normally Abacùc or Abacucco). Abaco may refer to: People *Evaristo Felice Dall'Abaco (1675–1742), Italian composer and violinist *Joseph Abaco (1710–1805), Belgian compose ...

of the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

. Originally populated by British loyalists fleeing the newly independent

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

in 1785, it has survived on fishing, boat building, and salvage. Its main village of

Hope Town Hope Town is one of the districts of the Bahamas, districts of the Bahamas, on the Abaco Islands, Abaco islands as well as a small village on Elbow Cay, located in Abaco. The area had a population of 458 in 2010. Golf carts are the main mode of ...

surrounds a protected harbor with a noted red-and-white-striped lighthouse built in 1863. On September 1, 2019, Elbow Cay took a direct hit from Category 5 Hurricane Dorian, with sustained winds of 185 mph (295 km/h). The lighthouse survived.

Geography

Elbow Cay is located about east of Marsh Harbour on

Great Abaco Island Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" *Artel Great (born ...

. Most visitors fly into Marsh Harbour and take the ferry to either Hope Town at the Northern end of Elbow Cay or White Sound, a mid-island harbour and settlement developed in 1960. At the Southern end of the island is Tahiti Beach near Doros Cove. The

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

runs along the entire Eastern coast of Elbow Cay, while the South Abaco Sound is on the western coast. Elbow Cay is between

Man-O-War Cay Man-O-War Cay is a small island in the Abaco region of the Bahamas. It had a population of 215 at the 2010 census. History When the American colonies were successful in defeating the British in the U.S. Revolutionary War, some British Loyalis ...

to the north and Tiloo Cay to the south. Lubbers Quarters Cay is west of the southern End of Elbow Cay.

History

Although visited by Lucayan Indians earlier, the first known permanent residents arrived in 1785 in what was known as Great Harbour. Wyannie Malone, originally from

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...

and other British Loyalists left the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

for the nearest British territory in the Bahamas. Elbow Cay and the Abacos were very isolated until the Marsh Harbour Airport was built in 1959. Before that, the residents survived by fishing, limited trading, and salvage of ships wrecked on Elbow Reef. Since then, contact with the outside world has brought in additional residents and tourism. Hopetown originally served as the administrative centre of the Abacos, until it switched over to Marsh Harbour in the 1960s.History of the Abacos
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Today

Hopetown is the largest settlement which contains several grocery stores including Vernons Grocery run by a descendant of Wyannie Malone,"Happy to be Elbowed Out of the Way", James Owen, Telegraph.co.uk, January 21, 2002
/ref> rental properties and restaurants. Cars and golf carts can drive up to, but not through Hopetown. Further south, there are more residences and rental properties spread out along the roads to the narrow part of the island near White Sound. The Abaco Inn and

Seaspray Seaspray may refer to: * Sea spray, aerosol particles formed directly from the ocean Military * SEASPRAY, a clandestine U.S. Army special operations unit * Operation Sea-Spray, a secret U.S. Navy experiment in which bacteria were sprayed over th ...

properties offer rooms and restaurants. At the Southern end of the island is Tahiti Beach with a beautiful sand beach and nearby snorkelling in Tiloo Cut, the inlet separating Elbow Cay from Tiloo Cay. There is telephone service, but most residents depend on the VHF radios to communicate."Quiet Perch in a Scattering of Islands", Amy Harmon, New York Times, April 22, 2001
/ref>

Hurricanes

Elbow Cay suffered significant damage in 1999 from Hurricane Floyd. It nearly cut a new inlet near White Sound. The road remains damaged to this day. On September 1, 2019, Hurricane Dorian made landfall on Elbow Cay at 16:40 UTC with winds of 185 mph (295 km/h) and wind gusts up to 225 mph (360 km/h), tying Dorian with the

1935 Labor Day hurricane The Great Labor Day Hurricane of 1935 was the most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall on record by pressure, with winds of up to 185 mph (297 km/h). The fourth tropical cyclone, third tropical storm, second hurricane, and se ...

as the strongest landfalling Atlantic hurricane of all time in terms of sustained winds.

ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...

reported damage as "catastrophic" and "pure hell", throughout the island.

In popular culture

The episodes "My Soul on Fire" (Part 1 and 2) of the TV series ''

Scrubs Scrub(s) may refer to: * Scrub, low shrub and grass characteristic of scrubland * Scrubs (clothing), worn by medical staff * ''Scrubs'' (TV series), an American television program * Scrubs (occupation), also called "scrub tech," "scrub nurse," o ...

'' were filmed on the island for the Janitor and Lady's wedding. The lighthouse and other businesses were shown in the episode.

References

{{reflist

External links

Hope Town Museum

Hope Town Harbour Lodge

Hope Town Volunteer Fire Rescue

Islands of the Bahamas Abaco Islands