A History of the Virgin Islands of the United States

by Isaac Dookhan

The Virgin Islands in the course of centuries have witnessed the coming and going of Ciboney, Arawak and Carib peoples, European discovery by Christopher Columbus, temporary occupation by pirates and adventurers, colonization, commercial and plantation development by Danes and other North European settlers, African slavery and its abolition, American purchase, colonial government, social and political change, and in recent years remarkable tourist and industrial developments.
These and other topics have been narrated and interpreted by Dr. Isaac Dookhan in this first comprehensive history of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Dr. Dookhan is eminently well qualified for this undertaking. He was born in the British colony of British Guiana, now independent Guyana, where he was educated in the public schools and served as teacher and headmaster. The author has drawn upon primary and secondary sources in recounting the experience of the Virgin Islands and their peoples. He is concerned with successive waves of immigrants, how they affected the physical environment and cultural life of the islands, the impact of international wars and politics, commodity price movements, and technological changes.

Genres: History, Historical

336 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1994

Reviews

[Chris J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mr. Dookhan has accomplished a most-remarkable feat of historical writing. Mr. Dookhan has succeeded in eschewing every last detail and event in the history of the US Virgin Islands that could have possibly been construed as interesting and saved for us what remained from his research strainer - 308 pages of aching minutia. Our Mr. Dookhan truly has honed the craft of modern historical research and writing - the hallmarks of which being a heavy emphasis on critique and in a voice for the few - quite admirably. Somewhere his department chair smiling.

[Travis Neal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only rank it so highly because of the dearth of adequate histories of the VI available. Dookhan has done some exceptional research, but makes no attempt to hide his judgements. It is history and maybe his sentiments made more sense in 1974 when he wrote the book, but I find him to be old fashioned and there are places where his opinions of the pace of reforms stand in for actual research. The chapter on emancipation was particularly painful and lacking.

[Emily St. Amant · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a very cool experience to read this while currently living in St. Thomas and having had lived in St. Croix prior. I’ve also been over to St. John many times, although don’t know it as intimately.

This was written 50 years ago. It’s a nice summary of what happened when and who did what and why. It’s also kinda tedious and the style is definitely academic. He’s not trying at all to make the history come alive. It’s also now quite outdated, for example, we know much more about the indigenous peoples who previously inhabited the islands.

The author tries but doesn’t accurately describe the brutality of slavery or its aftermath. In particular, he does quite an injustice to the topic of white men and their systematic rape of enslaved women of color that was so common it altered the racial makeup of the community. He talked about it as if all the women were willing partners, grossly erasing their dehumanization and trauma and preserving an inaccurate representation of the morality of the white male colonizers. One could say this book is a product of its time, but in 1974, if he wanted to do better he absolutely could have. I’m not one for ever excusing an author’s personal failing to accurately account such heinous things as slavery or rape.

It’s comically still relevant on one topic in particular- the absolutely atrocious conditions of the roads still are in 2024. I for one live on a “road” that’s mostly broken up pavement, dirt, and rocks, as do many others. Some potholes in St. Croix are the size and depth of kiddie pools.

I’m glad I read this. Island life today is full of high highs and low lows. The islands still face numerous serious challenges. Knowing some of the history helps me have a little better understanding of the how and why things are the way they are now.

[Stephen Morrissey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The American consciousness is, to a great degree, hemmed in by the continent, briefly flirting with Alaska to the North and Hawaii out in the Pacific. The Virgin Islands, though, have largely escaped close historical study, until Isaac Dookhan's trek through the history of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix. From the early history of native Caribs and Arawaks to Columbus's journey, Dookhan recites the history of the islands in clipped, informative prose. Upon the arrival of the Danish to the islands in the 1600s, St. Thomas (and eventually the other islands) become the domain of Denmark, providing the European nation with a valuable trading entrepot and sugar producer within the Caribbean.

Dookhan should be applauded for his focus on the slaves that came to occupy the Virgin Islands, from the feared passage across the Atlantic to slave uprisings and rebellions on the islands, all the while toiling under the most extreme and merciless of conditions. Much like the South, the history of the Virgin Islands is one of unspeakable cruelty, but also unimaginable bravery.

Eventually, the islands are purchased by the United States in 1917, more for military security than anything else. However, as the 20th Century marches on, the islands become one of many tropical tourist destinations, bringing countless mainlanders to the islands.

Dookhan's book is a nice overview of local Virgin Islands history and a worthwhile read for any tourist visiting. Every place, after all, has history; you just have to find it.

[Larkin Tackett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before and during our trip to the USVI, I read this simple and “first comprehensive history” of the islands, originally published in 1974. Other than wishing the book had more recent analysis, I appreciated the overview from the islands’ earlier inhabitants through the brutality of colonialism to near-politics independence. There wasn’t much soul to the book (I’m looking for that in the novel set in the USVI that I’m about to start), but I learned a ton. A few random facts I shared with my family during the trip, some of which I learned on the internet:
- St. Thomas had a Jewish governor in 1684, but he was a jerk, and the Dutch government recalled him back to Copenhagen in 1689, where he was beheaded!
- Alexander Hamilton moved to St. Croix (the birthplace of his teen mom and the only USVI we won’t visit) when he was 10. He moved to the colonies six year later. Historians believe he developed his opposition to slavery based on him seeing the horrific treatment of African slaves working on sugar plantations on St. Croix.
- About 80% of the USVI today is Black, which is about the same percentage when the slave trade ended in 1820
- Even though the land now known as the USVI was “owned” by Denmark from colonization in late 1600s until 1917, the Danish population was a small % of Europeans of the island (after the Dutch, English, Irish, and French)

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a brief history that describes the various periods in the history of the Virgin Islands from the natives before Columbus to the present day. European colonialism, slavery, and the sugar industry are also covered. This is a good introduction to the history of the island.