With the decline of the plantations after the abolition of slavery Bequia's main industry came from the sea.
"You were a boat builder or a fisherman. If you had no business building boats you went fishing."
Herbert Ollivierre, Master Shipwright
As well as developing their unique style of fishing boat derived from double ended whale boats, Bequia's boat builders created a unique style of sailing schooner. These boats had a huge impact on the life of all the people in the eastern Caribbean.
From 1840 until just a decade or so ago, much of the cargo, mail and passengers moved from island to island aboard schooners built in Bequia.
"The whole island was seafaring. Cargo schooners or fishing boats, that's what was built and sailed in Bequia. When I grew up as a little boy the whole beach was littered with boats. Everybody had a boat."
Herbert Ollivierre, Master Shipwright
Only one example of a Bequia schooner still survives, Friendship Rose, named after Friendship Bay where it and many other Bequia schooners were built by hand more than forty years ago.
Bequia boat building is no longer the force that fed the maritime industry of the eastern Caribbean. Today only a handful of craftsmen retain the skills, but ask around and you will find one of them willing to share their secrets and relive the heydays. Time your visit right and there may even be a new Bequia dinghy taking shape.
Find a holiday in Bequia
Read about Bequia's Easter Regatta