Bahamian Boat Building

Bahamian boat building was a working trade for centuries, producing the sloops that carried sponge, salt and freight between islands, and it was done without drawings: the builder shaped the frames by eye and by rule of thumb passed down within families, using local madeira and horseflesh timber. Man-O-War Cay in the Abacos was the best known centre and yards there still build and repair in wood alongside fibreglass. The regatta rules, which require hulls to be built in the Bahamas of wood, have kept a demand alive that the working trade would not have sustained on its own, so racing has effectively preserved the craft.

What you actually see

• The yards at Man-O-War Cay - wooden building and repair still going on.
• Building by eye - frames shaped without plans, from inherited practice.
• Local timber - madeira and horseflesh, traditionally used for hulls.
• Regatta sloops - the class rules that keep the craft alive.

When to go

Year-round on weekdays. Regatta season, particularly the run-up to the April Family Island Regatta, is when new boats are being finished. Ask before entering a working yard; these are businesses, not attractions.

Honest expectations

There is no visitor centre or organised tour; seeing this means being on the right island and asking politely at a working yard. Man-O-War Cay is a dry island where alcohol is not sold and the community is conservative. Hurricane Dorian in 2019 destroyed several yards in Abaco and the recovery is partial. The number of builders working in wood is small and falling.

Nearby

Man-O-War Cay is reached by ferry from Marsh Harbour.