Aruba history begins about 1,000 A.D. with fragments of the earliest known Indian settlements. Aruba's first inhabitants were the Arawak tribe of Caquetios Indians. They fled from Venezuela to escape Attacks by the Caribs who, skilled in war and boatbuilding, dominated much of the Caribbean basin. Aruba lies just over 15 miles north of Venezuela, but, strong ocean currents made canoe travel difficult to more distant Caribbean Islands.
Aruba was discovered and claimed for Spain in 1499 by the Spanish explorer, Alonso de Ojeda. Deterred by its desert landscape, only a very small colony was established, and unlike many other Caribbean islands, no plantation society ever really evolved on Aruba. Instead, the Spanish sent many Caquetios to Hispaniola, the second-largest island of the Antilles, (between Cuba and Puerto Rico) where they were enslaved in the mines.
The Spanish and Dutch fought from 1568 to 1648 in what is now known as the Eighty Years War. In 1633, the Dutch, having lost the island of St. Maarten to the Spanish, retaliated by attacking Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao, now called the ABC Islands.
In 1805, during the Napoleonic wars, the British took control over the island, but it was returned to Dutch control in 1816.
In the early 19th century, Aruba’s economy was sparked by a gold rush, and then by the oil industry which included a crude oil transshippment facility in 1924, and 2 refineries. The smaller Royal Dutch Shell, Eagle refinery closed shortly after WWII, but the “Baby Beach” refinery, is still in operation. It was originally owned by Lago Oil & Transport Co., was bought by Costal Petroleum in 1975 and eventually sold to El Paso Natural Gas.
In the 1980’s, the tourism became Aruba's primary industry, with the construction of several luxury hotels and the sudden increase of the Time Share business in the Caribbean.
In 1986, Aruba broke away from the Netherlands Antilles and became a separate, self-governing member of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, under the Dutch crown. In 1990, Aruba chose to halt the movement toward full independence.
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