The Cayman Islands were first “discovered” by Europeans at the very start of the sixteenth century, when Christopher Columbus came upon them on his way to Hispaniola.  At that time, it was only the two smaller islands which were discovered, not actually Grand Cayman itself, and the Europeans passed on by the area without much concern.  The area was used as a stopping spot for sea voyagers but for little else throughout the sixteenth century and on in to the seventeenth century.

In 1655, the general area surrounding Grand Cayman was won by the British.  At that time, the British were primarily interested in Jamaica as far as any islands in the area were concerned.  Grand Cayman was considered to be a dependency of Jamaica and was largely ignored, although it was used off and on for exports, primarily based upon slave labor.  In 1835, slavery was abolished and the area was largely forgotten again. The end of the nineteenth century was a time when Grand Cayman was left largely to pirates.

In 1962, Jamaica gained its independence from Britain. This is important to the history of Grand Cayman which decided to remain a British Colony.  Since that time, Grand Cayman has been running its own local government under the British governing system.  The Cayman Islands Department of Tourism ( www.caymanislands.ky) was created shortly after that time and the area has been growing as a major tourist destination ever since.