The USVI Islands In Retrospect by Garland Choate

If you are debating a move to the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) and the purchase of St. Thomas real estate or other VI islands, you may first want to learn something about the Caribbean culture.

The unique Caribbean culture of the USVI is composed of the heritage of its former inhabitants. Early USVI property owners included those from West Africa, Denmark, Spain, Ireland, Poland and Germany, as far back as the end of the 15th century. A large part of the Caribbean culture is reverberated in the USVI music. Here you will be plunged in cariso, calypso, reggae, soca and steel pan songs and melodies. Art is rampant in the local flavor of its drawings, paintings, photography and sculpture. Camille Pissarro, a noted Impressionist painter was but one of the achieved artists who owned property on St. Thomas and other USVI islands.

You will get a great look at Caribbean culture at the numerous festivities. On St. Croix Island there is a festivity called the Three Kings Day, St. Johns Island is the home of the USVI Fourth of July celebrations, and on St. Thomas Island is the yearly Carnival. There are tons of other celebrations annually which reflect the areas Caribbean culture.

Christopher Columbus discovered the U.S. Virgin Islands the year after he discovered the mainland in 1493. Possession all USVI real estate and the dominion of the area first went to the British, and then the Dutch, the French, the Spanish, the Knights of Malta and then the Danes. The United States purchased the Virgin Islands in the middle of World War one, for a payment of $25 million.

The history behind the Caribbean owners of St. Thomas property is engulfed in Caribbean history including the Pirates of the Seas and is best found at the island's historic Fort Christian national landmark. The oldest structure on the islands, Fort Christian is in the town of Charlotte Amalie. Here you can visit the Virgin Islands Museum and research the memorabilia of early islanders. The Fort Christian Market Square has been a bustling market since the 1700's. While food and other goods are sold there now, its first sales were of slaves. Emancipation Garden is near Market Square. It is named for Governor Peter von Scholten's 1848 emancipation of the slaves. The oldest tabernacle in the U.S. that has persisted in continuous use is on St. Thomas as well.

Nearby Blackbeard's Castle is a historical slice of Caribbean culture as well. It hovers over the small town, as it has since the 17th century. Once a bastioned castle called Skytsborg, it is today home to a hotel and restaurant.

Other interesting views of Caribbean culture can be found at Crown House on St. Thomas Government Hill. Still elegant, it was the home of the harbormaster and governor general of the West Indies when Denmark ruled the area. Seven Arches Museum, an additional bit of local Danish history, is a completely restored circa 1700 home, complete with slave billets.

Owning St. Thomas property is clearly buying a slice of history in a land engrossed in Caribbean culture.

Author Resource: GR is a retired Airline Captain who has been involved in real estate and building since childhood. Now, he is retired in the US Virgin Islands where he writes and does more marketing from home. A good place to learn about the islands and to find your home is http://www.TrafficForLifeOnline.com

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