Why it's the capital
English settlers founded Bridgetown on 5 July 1628, after an earlier settlement at Holetown further north. The town grew around its port on Carlisle Bay and became the capital and largest city of Barbados.
Bridgetown
Capital of BarbadosBridgetown lies on the south-western coast of Barbados, along Carlisle Bay, with a small harbour waterway called the Careenage at its heart. Barbados is the easternmost island of the Lesser Antilles.
Fun facts
- The first English settlers found an old bridge built over a swamp by the island's earlier indigenous people, so they called the place Indian Bridge.
- George Washington visited Barbados in 1751, and Bridgetown is the only city outside the present United States that he ever visited.
- In 2011 'Historic Bridgetown and its Garrison' was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Finding it on the globe
Barbados sits on its own, about 170 km east of Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent, out toward the Atlantic. Tap the south-west coast of that island.
Sources: Wikipedia: Bridgetown, Wikipedia: Barbados, Wikipedia: Holetown