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Part of the craggy coastline at the eastern tip of Grand Cayman, this park commemorates the islands most legendary shipwreck. On a fateful night in February 1794, the Cordelia, leading a convoy of merchant ships bound from Jamaica to Britain, ran aground on the reef at East End.
In a tragic case of crossed signals, the warning issued from the Cordelia to the other ships was misinterpreted as a call to follow more closely, and one by one nine more ships crashed into the reef. Fortunately for the imperilled sailors, the able mariners living on the island's craggy East End sprang into action, showing great heroism in ensuring that no lives were lost. Popular legend states that as a reward for this, King George III granted the islands eternal freedom from taxation. Even though actual records do not entirely support this story, the tale seems permanently ingrained in Caymanian lore (and possibly served as an inspiration for the contemporary tax code).
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