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St John USVI
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Saint John is the smallest of the three
main United States Virgin Islands (USVI), a
United States territory. St. John is located in
the Caribbean Sea about 4 miles east of Saint
Thomas and 4 miles south and west of Tortola,
part of the British Virgin Islands. It is
roughly 20 square miles in area and has a
population of 4,157. There is no airport on St.
John, so access to St. John is by boat. Ferry
service runs hourly from St. Thomas and daily
from Tortola; regular ferries are also available
from Virgin Gorda, Jost Van Dyke and Anegada.
History
St. John was first settled by the Arawak Indians
who had migrated north from coastal Colombia and
Venezuela around AD 300. The Arawaks inhabited
the island until around the year AD 1300 when
they were driven off by the more aggressive and
warlike Carib Indians. Extensive archaeological
work was done from 1996 to the present at
Cinnamon Bay and the artifacts from this dig are
just now being studied and should yield more
detailed information on pre-Columbus
civilization in the Virgin Islands (Taino).
Christopher Columbus is credited with being the
first European to see the Virgin Islands during
his Second Voyage to the New World in 1493. He
named the island group "Once Mil Virgins", or
Virgin Islands, in honor of the feast day of
Saint Ursula and the 11,000 virgins who were
said to have been martyred with her.
The Danish West India and Guinea Company was the
first to settle the island in 1672. They are
also credited with naming the island St. John.
The Danish Crown took full control of the colony
in 1754 along with St. Thomas and St. Croix.
Sugar plantations, such as the famous Annaberg
Sugar Plantation, were established in great
numbers on St. John because of the intense heat
and fertile terrain. The opening of sugar
plantations also meant the importation of slaves
from Africa. By 1775, it is estimated that
slaves outnumbered the Danish settlers 5 to 1.
The indigenous Caribs and Arawaks were also used
for slave labor to the point of wiping out the
entire population. Slavery was finally abolished
in St. John on July 3, 1848.
The United States of America bought the Virgin
Islands in 1917 in order to establish a naval
base to prevent German expansion in the western
hemisphere. The U.S. government paid $25 million
for the three islands. They also agreed to
recognize Denmark's claim to Greenland, which
had previously been disputed.
Virgin Islanders are now U.S. citizens, although
they are not able to vote in U.S. presidential
elections and have only non-voting status in
Congress. The Virgin Islands are an organized,
unincorporated territory of the US and, since
1972, have elected their own Governor and have a
large degree of self-rule through a small,
15-seat local legislature.
In 1956, Laurence Rockefeller donated most of
the land he had acquired on the island to the
United States National Park Service under the
condition that it be protected from future
development. The remaining portion, the Caneel
Bay Resort, continues to operate on a lease
arrangement while the park owns the actual land.
The Virgin Islands National Park borders
encompass 75% of the island, but various
in-holdings within the park boundary (eg. Peter
Bay, Maho Bay) reduce the actual land the park
owns to 60%. However, much of the islands
waters, coral reefs and shoreline are protected
by inclusion within the park and this was
expanded with the creation of the Virgin Islands
Coral Reef National Monument in 2001.
Tourism and Sites
Cruz Bay on the western coast of the island
serves as the principle port of St. John. From
there, a ferry runs throughout the day to and
from Charlotte Amalie and Red Hook in St.
Thomas. It is also home to (among other things)
a small shopping center, car rental locations,
several restaurants, and a supermarket. Coral
Bay on the eastern side of the island is another
town which offers most of the same amenities.
Most of St. John is National Park land, so the
majority of the island is undeveloped. Some of
the most popular beaches in the Caribbean are
located along the island's north shore. The most
spectacular and well known of these is Trunk
Bay, which has consistently been voted one of
the "Ten Best Beaches in The World" by Condé
Nast Traveler magazine and has received similar
recognition from other publications. Since the
beaches are on National Park land, they are all
open to the public and are not home to any
hotels or resorts. One notable exception to this
is the Caneel Bay resort on the north shore,
which lies on Rockefeller’s former personal
estate. The remaining coastal land, mostly in
the north and in the east, is private property
and is home to many secluded private villas and
cottages. The National Park Service also offers
two campgrounds on the island's beaches at Maho
Bay and Cinnamon Bay.
The beaches of St. John are also world famous
for their snorkeling, making them a popular
cruise ship destination. In some areas, such as
Trunk Bay and nearby Cinnamon Bay, signs
identifying the different sea life have been
placed by the National Park Service among the
many offshore coral reefs to assist visitors.
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The United States Virgin Islands are a
group of islands in the Caribbean that is a
dependency of the United States. These islands
are geographically part of the Virgin Islands.
The U.S. Virgin Islands are made up of the four
main islands of St. Thomas, St. John, St. Croix
and Water Island and many smaller islands. They
are the only U.S. territory where traffic drives
on the left.
In Denmark, they are also referred to as The
Former Danish West Indian Islands
History
The Virgin Islands were originally settled by
the Ciboney, Carib, and Arawaks. The islands
were named by Christopher Columbus on his second
voyage in 1493 for Saint Ursula and her virgin
followers. Over the next three hundred years,
the islands were held by many European powers,
including Spain, England, Netherlands, France,
the Knights of Malta, and Denmark.
The Danish West India Company settled on Saint
Thomas in 1672, on Saint John in 1694, and
purchased Saint Croix from the French in 1733.
The islands became royal Danish colonies in
1754, their name in Danish translating as
Jomfruøerne. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor,
drove the islands' economy during the 18th and
early 19th centuries, until the abolition of
slavery by Governor Peter von Scholten on July
3, 1848.
During the submarine warfare phases of the First
World War, the USA, fearing that the islands
might be seized by Germany as a submarine base,
approached Denmark to sell the islands to the
USA. On January 17, 1917, the United States
bought the Danish West Indies for $25 million
and took possession of the islands on March 31.
The Danish Crown may have felt pressure to
accept the sale, thinking that the USA would
seize the islands, if Denmark was invaded by
Germany. U.S. citizenship was later granted to
the inhabitants of the islands in 1927.
Geography
Main article: Geography of the U.S. Virgin
Islands
The U.S. Virgin Islands are located in the
Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, about 50
miles east of Puerto Rico. The territory
consists of four main islands: Saint Thomas,
Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island, as
well as several dozen smaller islands. The
combined land area of the islands is roughly
twice the size of Washington, D.C..
The U.S. Virgin Islands are known for their
white sand beaches, including Magens Bay and
Trunk Bay, and strategic harbors, including
Charlotte Amalie and Christiansted. Most of the
islands, including Saint Thomas, are volcanic in
origin and hilly. The highest point is Crown
Mountain, Saint Thomas (474m). Saint Croix, the
largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands, lies to the
south and has a flatter terrain. The National
Park Service owns more than half of Saint John,
nearly all of Hassel Island, and many acres of
coral reef. (See also Virgin Islands National
Park, Virgin Islands Coral Reef National
Monument, Buck Island Reef National Monument,
Christiansted National Historic Site, and Salt
River Bay National Historic Park and Ecological
Preserve.)
The Virgin Islands lie on the boundary of the
North American plate and the Caribbean Plate.
Natural hazards include earthquakes, tropical
cyclones and tsunamis.
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Background:
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During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided
into two territorial units, one English and the
other Danish. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor,
drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early
19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish
portion, which had been in economic decline since
the abolition of slavery in 1848. |
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Location:
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Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the
North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
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Geographic coordinates:
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18 20 N, 64 50 W
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Map references:
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Central America and the Caribbean |
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Area:
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total: 352 sq km
water: 3 sq km
land: 349 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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twice the size of Washington, DC |
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Climate:
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subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds,
relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature
variation; rainy season May to November |
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Terrain:
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mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little
level land |
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Nationality:
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noun: Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: Virgin Islander |
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Ethnic groups:
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black 80%, white 15%, other 5%
note: West Indian (45% born in the Virgin
Islands and 29% born elsewhere in the West Indies)
74%, US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 5%, other 8%
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Religions:
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Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%,
other 7% |
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Languages:
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English (official), Spanish, Creole |
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Currency:
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US dollar (USD)
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Currency code:
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USD |
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Exchange rates:
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the US dollar is used
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