Sugar production in the United States Virgin Islands
Encyclopedia
Sugar production in the United States Virgin Islands has been an important part of the Economy of the United States Virgin Islands
for over two hundred years. Long before the islands became part of the United States
in 1917, the islands, particular the island of Saint Croix, was exploited by the Danish from the early 1700s. and by 1800 over 30,000 acres were under cultivation, earning Saint Croix a reputation as "The Garden of the West Indies". Since, the industry has declined considerably but is still the island's principal crop.
was a major sugar producing area from at least 1734 when the Danish West India and Guinea Company bought the islands from the French. The Danish colonists exploited the island, including the area around Belvedere
on the north coast of the island from 1763. There is a historic sugar plantation located at Belvedere and sugar mill which was built by the Danish. When the Danes arrived on Saint Croix they found a number of British families raising cane and making rum. The Danes divided the islands into 150 and 300 acre plantations and into nine quarters but faced stiff competition from the British who at one point owned 5 times as many plantations as the Danish. Due to extremely low land costs and tax benefits, planters came to Saint Croix from the surrounding islands of St. Thomas
, Tortola
, Virgin Gorda
, Montserrat
and elsewhere and by 1755 the island had a population of over 10,000. Although the Danes almost went bankrupt in 1753, they steadily grew to dominate Saint Croix, operating 375 plantations not only cultivating sugar, but also cotton
, indigo
and tobacco
. The sugar industry reached its peak between 1795 and 1800 after the Danes declared the slave trade in 1792 which ensured a plentiful supply of African labor, cooinciding with high prices on the world market. At the peak of output in sugar production in the Virgin Islands at the close of the 18th century, more than 30,000 acres of Saint Croix were under sugar cultivation. The island of St. Croix contained nearly 150 sugar mills during this period; 115 of which are still standing today.
The Danish Crown formally abolished the slave trade in the Virgin Islands in 1803, just 11 years after declaring it which began to mark a decline in the sugar industry. However, it is evident that slaves continued to be used to propel the industry, even if illegally, as in 1848, Governor von Scholten freed the slaves on St. Croix, after rioting broke out. During the first half of the 19th century, the Danish were at odds with the British, snatching the island back off of them after a conflict in 1801 and again after the Napoleonic Wars
in 1815. However over the next few decades the economy declined miserably, with the sugar industry plagued by drought and coinciding with political and economic uncertainty in Europe, its most important market and after 1810 faced serious competition from beet sugar producers and from the East Indies. In the 1860s and 1870s a series of disasters deeply affected the sugar industry in St. Croix, with a major fire in Christiansted in February 1866, an earthquake and tsunami in 1867, and a major hurricane which destroyed crops and buildings in 1872. In 1875, the Danish government funded a Central Sugar Factory on St. Croix in a bid to help the industry out of depression. However, prices continued to fall due to the increasing competition from beet sugar and from the East Indies. After the United States annexed the islands in 1917, production diminished considerably. According to the 1930 census, in 1929, only 5823 acres were under sugar cultivation and the annual yield was 56, 400 tons as compared to 84,000 in 1917.
Economy of the United States Virgin Islands
This article is on the economy of the United States Virgin Islands.-Economic history:During the slave days, the islands cultivated cash crops to earn money. When the African slave trade began in 1673, the difficult conditions and inhumane treatment slaves were subjected to bred discontent. In 1733,...
for over two hundred years. Long before the islands became part of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1917, the islands, particular the island of Saint Croix, was exploited by the Danish from the early 1700s. and by 1800 over 30,000 acres were under cultivation, earning Saint Croix a reputation as "The Garden of the West Indies". Since, the industry has declined considerably but is still the island's principal crop.
History
The island of Saint Croix has long been associated with sugar production and has been the dominant cash crop for the economy for over two hundred years. Due to its considerable accomplishments in agriculture, the island of Saint Croix became one of the wealthiest sugar producing islands and gained a reputation as "The Garden of the West Indies". The Caribbean island of Saint Croix in the United States Virgin IslandsUnited States Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands of the United States are a group of islands in the Caribbean that are an insular area of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located in the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles.The U.S...
was a major sugar producing area from at least 1734 when the Danish West India and Guinea Company bought the islands from the French. The Danish colonists exploited the island, including the area around Belvedere
Belvedere, United States Virgin Islands
Belvedere is a settlement on the north coast of the island of Saint Croix in the United States Virgin Islands. Belvedere lies along North Shore Road or Route 80.-History:...
on the north coast of the island from 1763. There is a historic sugar plantation located at Belvedere and sugar mill which was built by the Danish. When the Danes arrived on Saint Croix they found a number of British families raising cane and making rum. The Danes divided the islands into 150 and 300 acre plantations and into nine quarters but faced stiff competition from the British who at one point owned 5 times as many plantations as the Danish. Due to extremely low land costs and tax benefits, planters came to Saint Croix from the surrounding islands of St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
, Tortola
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
, Virgin Gorda
Virgin Gorda
Virgin Gorda is the third-largest and second most populous of the British Virgin Islands . Located at approximately 18 degrees, 48 minutes North, and 64 degrees, 30 minutes West, it covers an area of about...
, Montserrat
Montserrat
Montserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline...
and elsewhere and by 1755 the island had a population of over 10,000. Although the Danes almost went bankrupt in 1753, they steadily grew to dominate Saint Croix, operating 375 plantations not only cultivating sugar, but also cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
, indigo
Indigo
Indigo is a color named after the purple dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. The color is placed on the electromagnetic spectrum between about 420 and 450 nm in wavelength, placing it between blue and violet...
and tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
. The sugar industry reached its peak between 1795 and 1800 after the Danes declared the slave trade in 1792 which ensured a plentiful supply of African labor, cooinciding with high prices on the world market. At the peak of output in sugar production in the Virgin Islands at the close of the 18th century, more than 30,000 acres of Saint Croix were under sugar cultivation. The island of St. Croix contained nearly 150 sugar mills during this period; 115 of which are still standing today.
The Danish Crown formally abolished the slave trade in the Virgin Islands in 1803, just 11 years after declaring it which began to mark a decline in the sugar industry. However, it is evident that slaves continued to be used to propel the industry, even if illegally, as in 1848, Governor von Scholten freed the slaves on St. Croix, after rioting broke out. During the first half of the 19th century, the Danish were at odds with the British, snatching the island back off of them after a conflict in 1801 and again after the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
in 1815. However over the next few decades the economy declined miserably, with the sugar industry plagued by drought and coinciding with political and economic uncertainty in Europe, its most important market and after 1810 faced serious competition from beet sugar producers and from the East Indies. In the 1860s and 1870s a series of disasters deeply affected the sugar industry in St. Croix, with a major fire in Christiansted in February 1866, an earthquake and tsunami in 1867, and a major hurricane which destroyed crops and buildings in 1872. In 1875, the Danish government funded a Central Sugar Factory on St. Croix in a bid to help the industry out of depression. However, prices continued to fall due to the increasing competition from beet sugar and from the East Indies. After the United States annexed the islands in 1917, production diminished considerably. According to the 1930 census, in 1929, only 5823 acres were under sugar cultivation and the annual yield was 56, 400 tons as compared to 84,000 in 1917.