Fishermen Swam for their Lives Two local fishermen swam for their lives using nothing but the buoys from their fishpots to stay afloat. It happened over a hundred years ago on a blustery, Saturday morning in September, in the midst of hurricane season. Between 9 and 10 am, Thomas Rymer, and his friend, Alexander Benjamin […]
St. Jan 🇩🇰
Pass It On, An Inspirational Poem by Reverend Henry Burton ~ 1913
Here’s a little poem to brighten your day, found in the Danish newspapers. 🗞 Pass It On by Rev. Henry Burton Have you had a kindness shown? Pass it on T’was not given for thee alone. Pass it on Let it travel down the years, Let it wipe another’s tears, Till in heaven, the deed appears— […]
Africa Arise, An Inspirational Poem by Charles A. Emanuel of St. Thomas ~ 1912
The following poem was found in a little book called, A Souvenir by Charles A. Emanuel from St. Thomas. ~ 1912 There are so many wonderful poems written long ago about the Virgin Islands. I love discovering them and sharing them here on the blog. Africa Arise By Charles A. Emanuel Africa arise! The dawn […]
11 Different Uses for St. Johns Bay Rum ~ 1917
Different Uses for St. Johns Bay Rum According to this old advertisement, St. Johns Bay Rum was a popular remedy for everything! It was used as fragrant toilet water, hair lotion, shampoo, shaving disinfectant, an invigorator, a headache cure, for rheumatism, dyspepsia, heartburn, protection against mosquitoes, and as a remedy for seasickness! To learn more about […]
How Whit Monday was Celebrated in St. John ~ 1906
Discovering a Clue to this Postcard’s Identity Unbeknownst to me, this postcard image held one important clue to its date and occasion.🔎 I’ve been trying to identify it for a long time until a friend from St. John, spotted the schooner, Viking anchored in the background. With this information, I was able to find the […]
A Historical Account of the Slave Insurrection on St. John ~ 1733
Today marks the anniversary of one of the darkest days in St. John’s history. Below is an account of that fateful day found in a book entitled, A Historical Account of St. Thomas West India Islands by John P. Knox. The Slave Insurrection of 1733 By John P. Knox A large body of slaves had […]
New Book! ~ Runaway Virgins by Enrique Corneiro
Runaway Virgins I recently purchased this brand new book entitled, Runaway Virgins by Enrique Corneiro. It is incredibly moving! Enrique shared over 250 slavery-related advertisements that he curated from the old Danish newspapers to help shine a light on what life was like for the enslaved people of the Danish West Indies, now the US Virgin Islands. More than 300 specific […]
Cultural Adaptation & Resistance on St. John Book by Karen Fog Olwig
Here’s an interesting book about the history of St. John that I’m planning on reading this summer. Below you’ll find the Amazon review with a link to the book. Three Centuries of Afro-Caribbean Life This book covers three centuries of St. John history from the plantation economy of the early 1700s through the peasant economy […]