Women in Bahamian History: Gail Saunders

“You don’t have to be in high office to be a hero — people of very simple means can be heroes.”

-Dr. Diane Gail Saunders

Born to Edward Basil and Audrey Virginia (Isaacs) North on March 10, 1944, Gail was a superior student-athlete. She represented the country as one of the four women to first represent the Bahamas in an international sports competition, she participated on the sprint relay team at the 1962 Central American and Caribbean Games in Kingston Jamaica.

Gail earned a Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Newcastle and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from the University of Leicester in 1967. She worked at Government High School, shortly after she ventured into the role of Archivist. She then became the Director of Archives having served as Public Records Officer from 1970 to 1971, and Archivist and Chief Archivist from 1971 to 1983. Gail also became the President of The Bahamas Historical Society and served as Deputy Chairman of the Bahamas National Commission for the 500^th Anniversary of the Discovery of the New World.

She lectured for the Bahamas Host Programme on the history of the Bahamas and frequently lectures to College of the Bahamas students and university students from abroad. She has authored several books and articles, including A Family of Islands and Bahamian Loyalists and Their Slaves. She served as the Coordinator of Research and Curator for The Bahamas for the Smithsonian’s 28^th Annual Festival of American Folklore held in Washington DC in July 1994. Dr. Saunders has been awarded several awards such as the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce’s Distinguished Citizens Awards for Government in 1984. She served in various organizations such as the President of the Caribbean Archives Association, the Executive Council for the International Council on Archives, served as UNESCO Consultant to the Government of St. Kitts-Nevis. She was elected to the Board of Trustees to the International Research and Training for the Advancement of Women, she was also elected President of the Board.

She is highly recognized in The Bahamas as a prolific writer and researcher who seeks to highlight the development of the Bahamian slave society and its development. She was married to the late Winston Saunders.