Matthew Town

Matthew Town is the chief and only settlement on Great Inagua Island in the far south of the Bahamas. It is located on the southwest corner of the island. It was named after Bahamian Governor George Buckley-Mathew (1844–1849) and first settled during his tenure in office. It has several buildings dating to the 19th century including the 1870 Great Inagua Lighthouse.

Matthew Town
Settlement
Matthew Town
Coordinates: 20°57′N 73°40′W
Country	Bahamas
Island	Great Inagua
Population  (2012)
• Total	430[1]
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern Time Zone)
Area code	242
Great Inagua Lighthouse Southwest Point
Coordinates	20°56′00.7″N 73°40′27.4″W
Constructed	1870
Construction	masonry tower
Height	34 metres (112 ft)
Shape	tapered cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern
Markings	white tower and lantern
Operator	Bahamas Port Department[2]
Focal height	37 metres (121 ft)
Range	22 nautical miles (41 km; 25 mi)
Characteristic	Fl (2) W 10s.

Almost the entire population of Inagua resides in Matthew Town (approx. 1,000 people), and many of them are employed by the Morton Salt Company,^[a] the island's largest employer.^[4]

Climate

Matthew Town has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh), being much drier than the northern Bahamas as it lies further from the wet western side of the North Atlantic subtropical anticyclone. The wettest months are May and September to November.

Climate data for Matthew Town
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	28.6 (83.5)	28.5 (83.3)	29.4 (84.9)	30.1 (86.2)	30.8 (87.4)	31.9 (89.4)	32.9 (91.2)	33.0 (91.4)	32.8 (91.0)	31.8 (89.2)	30.5 (86.9)	29.2 (84.6)	30.8 (87.4)
Daily mean °C (°F)	24.2 (75.6)	24.2 (75.6)	24.9 (76.8)	25.8 (78.4)	26.9 (80.4)	28.1 (82.6)	28.8 (83.8)	28.7 (83.7)	28.3 (82.9)	27.4 (81.3)	26.1 (79.0)	24.9 (76.8)	26.5 (79.7)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	19.9 (67.8)	20.0 (68.0)	20.4 (68.7)	21.4 (70.5)	22.9 (73.2)	24.3 (75.7)	24.6 (76.3)	24.4 (75.9)	23.8 (74.8)	23.1 (73.6)	21.8 (71.2)	20.5 (68.9)	22.3 (72.1)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	49.8 (1.96)	37.3 (1.47)	34.5 (1.36)	40.9 (1.61)	82.6 (3.25)	28.7 (1.13)	21.1 (0.83)	49.5 (1.95)	84.6 (3.33)	119.4 (4.70)	72.4 (2.85)	37.3 (1.47)	658.1 (25.91)
Average rainy days	6	5	4	5	6	4	4	5	7	10	8	6	70
Source: World Meteorological Organization[5]

See also

• List of lighthouses in the Bahamas

Notes

1. In 2008 Morton's employed about 60% of the island's working population.^[3]