What Was the Sponging Industry in the Bahamas?

By Sail Abacos, Editorial Team

Reviewed by Captain Ronald Rolle

Following the abolition of slavery in 1838, many freed Bahamians turned to sponge harvesting as a source of independent income. The vast, shallow, nutrient-rich waters of the Great Bahama Bank proved ideal for growing high-quality natural sponges prized in international markets.

The industry grew steadily through the late 1800s, eventually making the Bahamas a major player in the global sponge trade. By the turn of the twentieth century, the islands exported over one million pounds of sponge annually, accounting for more than a quarter of the world's total supply.

At its peak, more than 600 vessels worked the sponge beds, with divers using long poles to hook sponges from the sea floor or free-diving to harvest them by hand. In 1917, exports reached 1,010,239 pounds worth over $400,000, a tremendous sum for that era.

Greek sponge divers, primarily from the Dodecanese Islands of Kalymnos, Halki, and Symi, played a significant role in the Bahamian industry. These experienced divers brought techniques and trade connections that helped establish the Bahamas Greek community.

Disaster struck in 1938 when a mysterious fungus killed almost all the prized sponge beds throughout the Bahamas. Thousands of spongers lost their livelihood overnight, devastating communities that had depended on this harvest for generations.

The industry recovered modestly beginning in 1977, though it never regained its former scale. Today, small-scale sponge harvesting continues, with Greek exporters maintaining trade relationships established nearly a century ago.

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