John Ernest Williamson (8 December 1881 – 15 July 1966) invented the “photosphere” from which he filmed and photographed undersea. He is credited as being the first person to take an underwater photograph from a submarine. Williamson created a film company, the Submarine Film Corporation. The equipment was taken to…
View More Bahamas Philately: Photosphere – Underwater Post OfficeCategory: Bahamas
Bahamas Philately: Ardastra Gardens
The site of Ardastra Gardens was originally designed by Jamaican horticulturalist Hedley Edwards in 1937. He named the gardens Ardastra, from the latin words ardua ad astra, meaning “striving towards the stars” because he felt that it depicted a ‘utopia of peace, beauty and tranquillity’. He developed the picturesque and…
View More Bahamas Philately: Ardastra GardensBahamas Philately: Prince George Hotel
The Prince George Hotel was constructed between 1935-36 on Bay Street, Nassau, by Roland Symonette and was designed by Albert J Lothian. The hotel was known for its Harbour Deck Restaurant and the Maury Roberts Co. Ltd shop. Between 1953-54 the hotel was renovated and extended. In 1964 it was…
View More Bahamas Philately: Prince George HotelBahamas Philately: Maury Roberts Co. Ltd.
Maury Roberts Co., Ltd was originally owned by J Maury (and later by his sons Marcel and Peter Maury) and J W Roberts . It was located on the ground floor of the Prince George Hotel on Bay Street in Nassau. The Maury’s were part owners of the hotel with…
View More Bahamas Philately: Maury Roberts Co. Ltd.Bahamas Philately: Bahamas Country Club
The Bahamas Country Club was originally established in 1925 by the Munson Steamship Line. In March 1928 it hosted The Nassau Bahamas Open; a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour. In 1935, Sir Harry Oakes, one of the richest baronets in the British Empire, moved to the Bahamas for…
View More Bahamas Philately: Bahamas Country ClubBahamas Philately: The British Colonial Hotel
The British Colonial Hotel sits on the site of old Fort of Nassau which was demolished in 1873. In 1900, the land was purchased by Henry M. Flagler. He built an enormous wooden hotel on the site, the Colonial Hotel, which opened in 1901. However, the hotel was gutted by…
View More Bahamas Philately: The British Colonial HotelBahamas Philately: Methodist Church (Bimini)
The first Methodist ministers came to Bimini in 1858. A leader from Spanish Wells, Clem Pinder and a local preacher from Nassau made the trip. By 1862 the congregation numbered 20 and the first Wesley Methodist church building was completed. In 1926, a hurricane destroyed the original church building but…
View More Bahamas Philately: Methodist Church (Bimini)Bahamas Philately: Water Tower
The Water Tower is located on Bennet’s Hill, Nassau – the same hill as Fort Fincastle. The Water Tower was built in 1928 of reinforced concrete to hold water for the island. It’s said that the tower was built using funds donated by the United States as repayment for Nassau’s…
View More Bahamas Philately: Water TowerBahamas Philately: Seventh-Day Adventist Church (San Salvador Island)
In 1919, an Evangelist and Bible Worker named Sister Somelliann, a Native of Crooked Island, visited the island of San Salvador. It was from this humble beginning that the Cockburn Town Seventh-day Adventist church was formed and an edifice build on Ward and 1st Street, Cockburn Town. Postcards 1977 –…
View More Bahamas Philately: Seventh-Day Adventist Church (San Salvador Island)Bahamas Philately: Trinity Methodist Church (Nassau)
Early records show that in 1796 a Methodist Chapel was built in the Western District of Nassau by a band of slaves under the leadership of a man named Joseph Paul. In the year 1814 a large house was adapted to make the original Methodist Chapel, seating 500 persons. This…
View More Bahamas Philately: Trinity Methodist Church (Nassau)