The Danish government supplied convicts to work the plantations but soon allowed colonists from neighboring islands to settle there, as well to permit the importation of slaves from Africa. In , there were more black African slaves than white European settlers. It was the main port of the Virgin Islands Archipelago and was connected to about 50 plantations by one road, which remains the main highway today.
In the early 18th century, more than white settlers lived in town, and sugar production and slave trading were the economic mainstay. After the Danish government wanted direct administration of the archipelago in , the capital was moved from Charlotte Amalie to Christiansted on the island of Saint Croix. That partly made the economy in town to transition from slave trading and agriculture to general commerce. In , Charlotte Amalie was declared a free port by king Frederick V, and the town became the busiest harbor in the Caribbean.
The American Revolution in the s was good news for the city, as it was thriving times for the local businessfolk and the town begun to be filled by immigrants from Europe, Africa and the Caribbean, most of them from other islands of the Lesser Antilles. A growing share of the West Indian trade passed through the port in the beginning of the s, and the rise of steamships made Charlotte Amalie an ideal coaling station for ships sailing between North- and South America. In , Charlotte Amalie was struck by a horrendous fire that destroyed more than homes and stores throughout the town.
Two more fires came in and , and the densely settled town lost another thousand buildings. Neighboring islands gradually began importing coal directly from producers, and Charlotte Amalie was sidestepped in trade in the early s. During the American Civil War in the early s, the town evolved into a smuggling center for ships running the federal blockade of ports in the Confederacy.
The latter half of the s was also soon hit by a cholera epidemic that killed thousands. In , the United States became interested in buying the U. They were concerned over German infiltration in the Lesser Antilles. Charlotte Amalie was under U. Navy rule until During the Second World War , the city became a naval base to protect allied shipping to and from the Panama Canal.
When American tourists were barred from Cuba in , some began visiting Charlotte Amalie instead. During the mid 20th century, resorts began to be built and direct flights from the U. During the last half of the century, Charlotte Amalie experienced extraordinary economic growth, largely as a consequence of being a U.
Summary Take Me to My Paradise Tourism and Nationalism in the British Virgin Islands
The tourism has not only led to a growing economy, but also to preservation and conversion of historic buildings and homes. Many ancient commercial buildings were made into restaurants and shops.
During the s and 90s, many buildings were restored to how they looked years ago. The tourist industry has thrived on the island. The spread of hilltop homes overlooking the Caribbean crystal blue waters have been a recent trend as well. Located mid-island on the south shore of the mountainous island of Saint Thomas , Charlotte Amalie stretches about 1.
To the west, spanning the area between Waterfront Dr and Dronningens Gade Main street , are a score of alleys, each lined with colonial warehouse buildings that have been turned into stores and urban malls. The city has a short dry season that runs from January through March and a wet season that covers the remaining nine months, though technically June, with a monthly average precipitation of 2. While Charlotte Amalie does have a lengthy wet season , outside the months of September through November, the city generally does not see the heavy precipitation that is prevalent in many other cities with a tropical climate.
The city is generally very warm and humid. About one percent is of Asian descent. Saint Thomas is home to one of the oldest Jewish communities in the Western Hemisphere as Sephardic Jews began to settle the island in the 18th century as traders and merchants. Thomas Synagogue in Charlotte Amalie is the second oldest synagogue on American soil and oldest in terms of continuous usage. More than 95 percent of the population are literate. Although English is the official language, most people speak a dialect called Virgin Islands Creole , which differs from standard English in many ways.
Virgin Islands Creole is used informally and standard American English spoken with a uniquely Virgin Islands accent is usually preferred in school, at work and in more formal conversations. Most older children and adults can quickly switch between Virgin Islands Creole and American English.
Spanish is spoken by Barthelemy , Dominica and Haiti.
Tourism and Nationalism in the British Virgin Islands. But just whose paradise is it? Take Me to My Paradise looks at the many players in the BVI tourism culture, including immigrants working in a tourism economy, nationalists struggling to maintain some control, and the anthropologist trying to make sense of it all. The result is a richly detailed and accessible ethnography on the impact of tourism on a country that came into being as a tourist destination.
A Note on Notes and Names pp. Take Me to My Paradise pp. Making Paradise as a Tourist Desti-Nation pp. Marketing Paradise and Making Nation pp.
- Sign@l - Journal of Anthropological Research - Vol. 67, no 4, .
- Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands - Wikipedia;
- Pre zákazníkov!
- Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands!
- Arabella oder Die Bienenkönigin (German Edition).
- I Need a Little More Jesus: A Short Story?
- Project MUSE - Take Me to My Paradise!
The national literacy rate of 98 percent is a reflection of the value placed on education by British Virgin Islanders. Compulsory education was introduced for children ages five through twelve in , and secondary education was introduced in Today there are eighteen public schools and eleven private primary schools on four islands, and two public high schools. Both girls and boys are expected to complete their education through high school. A national college, H. Lavity Stoutt Community College, was opened in British Virgin Islanders place great importance on mannerly behavior.
The right of individuals to privacy also is held dear, so that one should not call out a person's name from afar, nor inquire about another person's whereabouts or business. Among the older generation, friends of either gender may be addressed formally as "Mr. Fishing was historically one of a man's household responsibilities. Christianity is the prevailing BVI religion, with 45 percent of the population Methodist, 21 percent Anglican, 18 percent Baptist or Pentecostal, and 6 percent Roman Catholic.
Rituals and Holy Places. BVI churches are the source of much social welfare and the center of regular social contact. The AM radio station opens its daily broadcast with a two hour devotional service, and public prayer opens the school day and most public events. During October and November, farm produce and home baked goods are brought into BVI churches, and children perform special hymns and recitations, in an annual Harvest Festival.
In August, congregations join in commemorating emancipation with a special service at the site where the emancipation proclamation was read on 1 August Death and the Afterlife. Deaths are principal occasions for family members to return home, and funerals and memorial services are announced and lists of relevant mourners are broadcast regularly over the radio.
A public hospital, opened in , provides surgical and emergency care as well as some outpatient services and ambulatory care. However, there is no national health insurance, and most health care must be sought through private health providers. As is the case in many Caribbean countries, care is taken to avoid exposure to the chill night or early morning air, in the belief that it can cause bodily imbalance leading to sickness. For similar reasons, hot liquid taken in the morning is believed to be essential to restoring the balance that is the basis of good health.
Seawater is believed to have healthful benefits, and many British Virgin Islanders start their morning with a "sea bathe. In November the Legislative Council replaced the holiday commemorating the birthday of the heir to the throne with a national holiday commemorating the birth of H. Lavity Stoutt 7 March. The most anticipated of national holidays are the three days of Festival in August that are set aside to commemorate the 1 August emancipation of African slaves.
BiblioVault - Books about Nationalism - T
Festival is celebrated with beauty contests and calypso competitions, food fair, parades, and public musical performances and dances and also is an occasion for family reunions. Support for the Arts. The work of BVI artists is prominently displayed in public buildings, but there is no formal support of artists in the form of public grants or vigorous school training programs. Lavity Stoutt Community College has instituted a program of Virgin Islands studies to encourage and develop local art forms, as well as to revive traditional BVI crafts such as strawwork, boat-building, and iron work.
The British Virgin Islands has rich oral tradition, which includes the recitation of folktales in homes and at family gatherings, and more formal poetic recitations in schools and churches. A local group of writers convenes regularly to share their poems and stories, and several BVIslanders have had their poems, folktales and stories published locally and regionally.
The memoir is another popular genre of BVI writing. A BVI folk dance troupe and local fungi bands bands made up of guitar, ukulele, washtub bass, scratch gourd, and triangle that play calypso and folk tunes perform regularly at local cultural events, and represent the BVI at regional cultural festivals and at BVI Tourist Board events abroad. Instruction in classical, jazz, and Caribbean music such as steel pan and fungi is offered as part of the school music curriculum, and local musical talent is showcased at school concerts, in public performance for tourists, and during the annual Festival commemorating emancipation.
Local and international calypso performers also are central features of Festival shows, as are BVI fungi bands, steel pan orchestras and brass bands. A musical series sponsored by the community college brings classical and jazz performers to the BVI bimonthly from October to March. The establishment in of a national tertiary educational institution has enhanced the development of BVI physical and social sciences. A nursing education program and a marine studies program contribute in the area of the physical sciences, and a Virgin Islands Studies program is developing a curriculum focused on the analysis of BVI cultural life and social and political institutions.
Representing and Siting Identity in a Postcolonial Caribbean. A History of the British Virgin Islands —, Why Does the Tourist Dollar Matter? Harrigan, Norwell, and Varlack, Pearl. The Virgin Islands Story, O'Neal, Michael, and Maurer, Bill. Culture Name British Virgin Islander. Historic and Ethnic Relations Emergence of the Nation. Food and Economy Food in Daily Life. Social Stratification Classes and Castes. Social Welfare and Change Programs Family and church play central roles in caring for the disabled, the sick, the indigent, and the elderly.
Nongovernmental Organizations and Other Associations Non-governmental organizations in the BVI provide assistance in areas as wide-ranging as environmental management and youth boating safety.
Upcoming Events
Marriage, Family, and Kinship Marriage. Socialization Child Rearing and Education. Etiquette British Virgin Islanders place great importance on mannerly behavior. Medicine and Health Care A public hospital, opened in , provides surgical and emergency care as well as some outpatient services and ambulatory care. The Arts and Humanities Support for the Arts.
The State of the Physical and Social Sciences The establishment in of a national tertiary educational institution has enhanced the development of BVI physical and social sciences. Also read article about British Virgin Islands from Wikipedia. Where can I find specific current information about the requirements for citizenship, residency and land ownership on Tortola?
My only visit to Tortola was delightful and I want to consider living there. I was born in California, raised in Texas and have been a resident of Puerto Rico since Very Respectfully, Oliver H. Tell me more about these people. I was told that my father Henry Gumbs was living there on the island and has many children there. Are there any Gumbs left there? This sounds like a great place and live and die. I am a 26 years old female,who got married four months ago,i am willling to come to BVI to study,can i get a good accomodation.
Gumbs and they called him chilli there i'm in search of my aunts and uncles that still live there