Dunmore Town Harbour Island dates back to the 18th century and is one of the oldest settlements in The Bahamas. The town was named after the Earl of Dunmore, the former Governor of Virginia. Dunmore fled to The Bahamas when the Revolutionary War began where he was awarded the title of Lord Dunmore, Governor of the Bahamas. During this time Governor Dunmore laid out the boundaries of the town in the center of Harbour Island giving it the shape it is today. Dunmore Town is second in importance to Nassau. 

Like all of the islands in the Bahamas, the locals in Dunmore Town have their own unique lingo. The local dialect is much like Cockney, in the fact that they reverse the pronunciation of ‘V’ and ‘W’.  They also tend to add an ‘H’ to any word beginning with a vowel and the letter ‘H’ is often dropped in any word that begins with that letter. It is for this reason that the locals, known as ‘Brilanders’, refer to Harbour Island Bahamas as ‘Briland’. It’s how the locals quickly say Harbour Island…..’arbour H’Island’.