Native Indian tribes inhabited St. John Island long before the clash of Europeans entered the clear Caribbean waters of the Virgin Islands. After Columbus’ initial interaction with St. John Island, Denmark was truly the first world power to take an interest in what is now the US Virgin Islands. The British, on nearby Tortola, were quick to protest the influence the Danish were trying to exert from St. John Island. An African slave trade established St. John Island as a plantation colony for the Danish following their official declaration over the territory in the mid-eighteenth century.

Sir Francis Drake, an English navigator and infamous plunderer of Spanish galleons, sailed through the sea passageway separating the British and American Virgin Islands and which is today known as the Sir Francis Drake Channel.

In the 1660’s, various European powers (Holland, France, England, Spain, Denmark & the Knights of Malta) all wanted to possess the Virgin Islands but in 1671 it was Denmark that clearly ruled St. Thomas. Denmark established the first permanent settlement there and by 1718 they expanded to St. John Island. A fort was constructed in Coral Bay on St. John Island, one of the safest harbors in the Caribbean. In 1733, Denmark purchased St. Croix from France and united the three Virgin Islands of today.

Though St. John Island came under US policy following World War I as the United States bought the islands in 1917 as part of a military defense strategy for $25 million. It was not until 1927 that St. John Island residents were granted U.S. citizenship and it was not until 1956 (when Laurence Rockefeller purchased the island) that the territory took a drastic turn. Currently, over half of St. John Island’s 21 square miles lies under national park protective care. The creation of a large national park changed St. John Island forever, making tourism an economic staple. The turnaround to St. John Island’s telecommunications and modern infrastructure was dramatic as throngs of guests came to this beautiful Caribbean paradise to be part of the unspoiled beaches and forest.