On 15 November 1494, Christopher Columbus discovered St Croix, naming the island Santa Cruz. It is the only place on US soil where a Columbus party landed and the site of his first hostile encounter with indigenous people. In 1620 the Dutch and the English shared the island unsuccessfully and in 1649, the well known Marquis de Poncy, the French Governor of St Christopher, took possession of the island with a force of 200 men. It was a period scarred by incessant fighting and regular epidemics and the Knights of Hospitaller of Malta had been helping the island to recover. The French definitively ceded St Croix to the Danes in 1733, and once the land had been cleared and divided into estates, St Croix began to prosper, with high output from its 375 plantations. The majority of the colonists were not Danish, but English, Dutch and a few French.
Due to the massive use of slaves, the Africans formed the majority on the island and in 1848 there was a violent slave uprising, which resulted in the Danes deciding to abolish slavery. However, the ex-slave labour continued to be worked hard and be underpaid and so abolishment of slavery was not the end of revolts. Slowly St Croix's wealth declined while the island continued its semi-feudal lifestyle, even after the USA bought the island in 1917. To counter the economic decline, the authorities implemented the creation of a petroleum-chemical storage and refinery and the worked on the development of tourism.
Tourism developed on the back of St Croix's fine 18th century Danish architecture and 3 fine golf courses were created on the rolling slopes. Luxury developments were built along its beaches and a large airport ensured American holiday makers came. Unfortunately in the 1970s, outbreaks of criminal violence created tourist insecurity and no sooner had the violence been managed, than a series of hurricanes struck the island, wrecking much of the economy and infrastructure. At some distance from St Thomas and St John Islands, St Croix , the largest of the 3 USVI, exists somewhat separately. Some tourists, apparently especially sailors, more or less ignore it....but not Trilogy!
Frederiksted is the second town on St Croix to be accessible to cruise liners. Rebuilt in 1878 after a fire, the small town has kept all the charm of the Danish period. It is quaint, charming and laid back town, with a mixture of the Danish and Victorian architecture, framed by beautiful parks along the waterfront. The town was established in 1751 and was originally protected by Fort Frederick, which dates back to 1700. Today the Fort is a museum. Frederiksted is locally referred to as 'Freedom City', because it is the site where the proclamation to abolish slavery was read in 1848.
Our night ashore celebrating the Full Moon with the locals was good fun. It had the ambience of laissez-faire, with Rastas featuring in the band and in the crowd gathered. When we arrived loud recorded music pulsed through the place and we headed straight to the tables in the sand, behind the speakers. Beach flares were scattered around, a huge moon image metal sculpture was ablaze with fire and once the live band started up, there were two bikini clad dancing girls, replete with fire balls that were skilfully swung by circling hands, twirling arms and flicking hips. At the end of each song, 'Ya Mon' was uttered by the vocalist as everybody clapped. The guests danced the night away, smoked something sweet smelling and imbibed an awful lot of strong rum cocktails, so ultimately they didn't know what they were celebrating! The 'Painkillers' were the favourite at our table! We caught up with Tom Elicker, who is a successful artist, particularly liking to do large scale figurative bronze sculptures. He once owned a foundry with 40 employees in Philadelphia, but the GFC sadly diminished the team to 4. Thanks Tom for your hand of friendship and inviting us!