Inagua Republic

Inagua is a constituent republic of Lucaya Commonwealth.

Inagua Republic
Islands of Great and Little Inagua
Constituent Republic of Vekllei
Part of the Lucaya Commonwealth
Accession	2023, as part of the Bahamas Federation
Area	1,679 km²
Capital	Rake
Languages	English, Lucayan Creole
Population	12,308

The Inagua Republic is a constituent republic in the southern Bahamas, comprising Great Inagua and Little Inagua islands. It is the southernmost and third-largest of the Commonwealth Lucaya republics, sitting just 90 kilometres north of Haiti and 100 kilometres from Cuba. The islands are flat, arid and ringed by shallow banks that have claimed countless ships over the centuries.

Inagua is famous for salt and flamingos. The interior of Great Inagua is dominated by Lake Windsor, a vast hypersaline lake covering nearly 20,000 hectares. This inland sea, separated from the ocean by a narrow limestone ridge, has been worked for salt since at least the 1600s. The lake and surrounding salt ponds support the largest breeding colony of West Indian flamingos in the world, numbering over 80,000 birds. Their pink masses are visible from passing aircraft, and the sight of them rising in unison remains one of the Caribbean’s natural wonders.

The islands were known to the Lucayan Indians who fished and collected salt there, but they were depopulated within decades of Columbus’s arrival. Spanish ships occasionally stopped for salt but no permanent settlement existed until the late 1600s, when Bermudian salt rakers established seasonal camps. These operations remained small-scale until the arrival of Loyalist refugees after the American Revolution, who established the first permanent town at Matthew Town (now Rake) and expanded salt production considerably.

For 200 years, Inagua’s economy depended entirely on salt. Workers raked seawater into shallow crystallising ponds, where the fierce sun evaporated it over weeks, leaving behind coarse salt crystals that were gathered, bagged and shipped to fishing fleets and meat-packing operations throughout the Americas. The work was backbreaking and the profits modest, but Inagua salt had a reputation for quality. The Morton Salt Company operated the facilities for much of the 20th century before negotiations broke down during the Commonwealth transition and the salt works were municipalised.

Commonwealth accession transformed salt production from manual labour to automated industrial process. The salt works now comprise a series of engineered evaporation ponds covering over 5,000 hectares, their crystallisation monitored by sensors and their harvest mechanised. Production has increased tenfold while employment has dropped to a few dozen technical staff. Inagua salt is exported throughout the Commonwealth for industrial chemical processes, water treatment and winter road maintenance in northern republics like Kala and Helvasia. It is also exported for a handsome profit, and Inaguans are well known in Lucaya for their exotic foreign luxuries obtained through the Commonwealth export licensing scheme. Commonwealth Oil operates a medium-sized refinery known as the Chrome Refinery Complex, which specialises in oil processing into industrial grades that can be further refined or exported from the terminal in Bahama.

The flamingo colony, once simply a natural feature that workers lived alongside, has become central to the republic’s identity and economy. The Inagua National Park protects Lake Windsor and surrounding wetlands, managed jointly by the Bureau of Conservation and local wardens who monitor nesting sites and water levels. The park is closed to casual visitors during breeding season but permits are issued for researchers and serious naturalists. A smaller facility near Rake services tourists.

Little Inagua, lying 10 kilometres northwest of its larger neighbour, remains uninhabited except for a lighthouse keeper’s cottage and a small Littoral Service station that monitors the treacherous Crooked Island Passage. The island serves as a protected reserve for nesting seabirds and hawksbill turtles. Goats, introduced centuries ago, still roam wild across its scrubland.

Rake, the republic’s only settlement, sits on the southwest corner of Great Inagua where a natural harbour provides shelter from the prevailing winds. The town has about 12,000 residents, most descended from Loyalist families or Haitian immigrants who arrived throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Architecture reflects the harsh climate – low stone buildings with thick walls and small windows, designed to stay cool during the hot summer months. The town has a modest character, and its businesses serve locals rather than visitors.

The republic’s isolation has made it useful for operations requiring security and distance from population centres. A Commonwealth Laboratories marine research station occupies the northeast coast, studying Caribbean fisheries and coral reef ecology in waters that remain remarkably pristine. The facility operates a small aquaculture programme experimenting with conch and spiny lobster farming. The National Equatorial Training School, home to the Equatorial Ranger Programme and a Commonwealth Police College detachment, subjects recruits to desert survival exercises in conditions found nowhere else in the Caribbean.

Fresh water remains scarce. Matthew Town relies on a desalination plant and rainwater catchment, with strict conservation measures during dry periods. Most vegetation is scrub and cactus adapted to arid conditions, though scattered groves of coconut palms mark former settlements. The republic imports most food from neighbouring islands, though some residents maintain kitchen gardens and keep chickens.

Transport connections are limited. A ferry links Matthew Town to Caicos twice weekly, with additional service during salt shipping operations. There is a small airport with a gravel runway that handles cargo flights and occasional passenger service. The Mango Railway, a constituent of CommRail, services the island’s towns, national park facilities and the research station. Most residents get around by bicycle or light truck.

Inagua cuisine is simple and influenced by Haitian cooking. Conch prepared various ways – in salads, fritters or stewed – appears at nearly every meal. Rice and peas, often cooked with coconut milk, serves as the staple side dish. Local fishermen bring in grouper, snapper and lobster. Souse, a soup made from meat and lime juice, is popular for weekend gatherings. The local rum is rough but gets the job done.

Climate

Hot and dry year-round. Receives less than 700mm of rain annually, making it among the driest places in the Caribbean. Hurricanes occasionally pass nearby but rarely hit directly.

Public Holidays

• New Year’s Day 1 Jan
• Good Friday
• Easter Monday
• Whit Monday
• Commonwealth Day 1 May
• Emancipation Day First Mon in Aug
• Republic Day Second Mon in Oct
• Christmas Day 25 Dec
• Boxing Day 26 Dec

Points of Interest

• 🌿 Inagua National Park: Vast protected area centred on Lake Windsor, home to the Caribbean’s largest flamingo colony.
• 🏭 Free Salt Works: Massive automated salt production facility with evaporation ponds visible from space. Formerly Morton Salt Works.
• 🏛️ Inagua Lighthouse: Historic lighthouse on the southwest point, marking the dangerous approach to the Windward Passage.
• 🛡️ National Equatorial Training School: Specialised training facility of the Armed Forces, home to the Equatorial Ranger Programme and a detachment from the Commonwealth Police College.
• 🌿 Union Creek Reserve: Small protected inlet where sea turtles come to nest and juvenile fish shelter in seagrass beds.
• 🎓 Commonwealth Laboratories Marine Station: Research facility studying Caribbean marine ecosystems and sustainable fisheries.
• 🏛️ Man of War Battery: Historic 18th-century fortification built to protect salt workers from pirates, now used as a police station.
• 🌿 Little Inagua: Uninhabited island reserve accessible only by permit, with wild goats and seabird colonies.
• 🎓 Inagua Technical University: Technical education constituent of CUWI serving the southern Lucayan islands.
• 🏭 Chrome Refinery Complex: Commonwealth Oil refinery specialised in preprocessing crude oil for more sophisticated petroleum products.
• 🏭 Lucaya Cane Cooperative Corporation: Caribbea Cane sugar refinery site.