William Cartwright (Bahamian politician)

William "Bill" Cartwright (c. 1923 – June 7, 2012) was a Bahamian politician, realtor and magazine publisher. Cartwright, together with Sir Henry Milton Taylor and Cyril Stevenson, co-founded the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) in 1953, the first national political party to be established in the Bahamas.[1] He was the last surviving member of the PLP's three founders.[2]

Career and influence

Cartwright was a native of Long Island, Bahamas.[2] He was elected to the Bahamas House of Assembly, the lower house of Parliament, in 1949 as a representative of Cat Island.[1] He served in parliament for seven years.[1] Outside politics, Cartwright worked as a realtor before becoming a magazine publisher.[2]

In 1953, William Cartwright, who owned The Bahamas Review purchased the The Nassau Herald, on the death of it co-founder, Jack Stanley Lowe.[3] Cyril Stevenson, who worked as a journalist at The Nassau Guardian became editor of the Herald.[4] Later that year, Cartwright and Stevenson travelled to London to cover the coronation for The Bahamas Review.[5] While there, they met with representatives of the Labour Party.[5] They also travelled to Jamaica where they met with members of the Jamaican Labour Party and the People's National Party.[5]

When they returned to Nassau, Cartwright and Stevenson joined with Henry Milton Taylor to found the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), the first national political party in the Bahamas.[1][2] Taylor became chair, Cartwright became the treasurer, and Stevenson became the secretary-general of the new party.[3]

Death and legacy

Cartwright resided at the Good Samaritan Home in Nassau for the final two years of his life.[2] He died at Princess Margaret Hospital in Nassau at 4 a.m. on June 7, 2012, at the age of 89.[2]

Bahamas Governor-General Arthur Foulkes had visited Cartwright three weeks before his death.[2] Prime Minister of the Bahamas and leader of the PLP, Perry Christie, presented a speech in honor of Cartwright to the Assembly, calling him a "national hero" who contributed a "historical role he had played in laying the foundations for party politics in The Bahamas."[1][2] Loretta Butler-Turner, the deputy leader of the opposition Free National Movement (FNM) and MP for Cartwright's native Long Island, said that "He is in his own right a founder of the modern Bahamas."[2] Butler-Turner also called for the establishment of a national oral history project following Cartwright's death to preserve the modern, social and national history and national identity of the country.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Nixon, Celeste (2012-06-08). "PLP Founder Cartwright Dies". Bahamas Tribune. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Jones Jr., Royston (2012-06-08). "PLP Co-founder William Cartwright Dies at 89". Nassau Guardian. Retrieved 2012-07-01.
  3. ^ a b Saunders, Gail (2016). Race and class in the colonial Bahamas: 1880-1960 (1st ed.). Gainesville, Florida: University Press of Florida. ISBN 978-0-8130-5155-0.
  4. ^ Smith, Larry (15 November 2006). "The Contribution of Cyril Stevenson to Bahamian Politics and History". The Tribune. Nassau, Bahamas. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
  5. ^ a b c Galanis, Philip (Nov 13, 2023). "The PLP at 70, pt. 1". The Nassau Guardian. Retrieved 28 September 2025.
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