99 STEPS

A trip to one of St. Thomas’ most famous landmarks, 99 Steps, is a work out that will get your heart pumping. Admission is free so when you are in Charlotte Amalie make your way to Government House and Hotel 1829. Between these two buildings you will find steps built in the 1700's by the Danes. Some say they were built when Danish engineers demanded that the city be laid out in a grid format. Not having visited these engineers weren’t aware of St. Thomas’ steep topography yet demanded the grid so the staircase was built. The bricks used to construct the steps were originally brought from Denmark as ballast in the hulls of sailing ships. Some have said the steps were built as a way to use these bricks. Others have said the steps made the hillsides easier to climb.

As you climb the 99 steps count and you will learn that there are actually 103 steps leading you high atop the harbor were the stone remains of an old tower said to be used by Blackbeard as a lookout. It is now the Inn at Blackbeard’s Castle. Also at the top of the 99 steps is the statue of the Three Queen who lead the labor revolt of St. Croix in 1878. You will love the views of the harbor.

The Three Queens of St. Croix

Cruzan Women
Lead Labor Riot
In the Islands

For many years after slaves on the island of St. Croix won their freedom from the Danish colonial government in 1848, they languished. They officially were free to refuse to work on the sugar plantations or to choose which plantation they would join, but as free laborers they found living and working conditions little different from those of the slave era. In years when crops fared poorly, the workers suffered severely.

Frustrations boiled into violence in Frederiksted, the port city at the western end of the island, in 1878. A rowdy mob attacked the Danish fort. Soon the whole island was in turmoil as roaming bands of laborers raided, looted and burned the planters' estates.

Sugar cane growing and rum production represented almost the whole of St. Croix's economy--which provided an unique twist to the mayhem that occurred. While native men clashed with the Danish militia, women and children wielded a particularly effective weapon on behalf of their cause: fire. They were led by three "queens": Queen Mary, Queen Matilda and Queen Agnes. They torched Frederiksted's rum warehouses, which because of their flammable contents quickly exploded. Approximately half the city was destroyed, as were many of the island plantations.

The St. Croix labor riots of 1878 lasted five days and cost approximately 100 lives. The upshots included improved labor regulations and eased tensions between planters and workers. But sugar production was on the decline as a result of a conspiracy of factors ranging from European trade trends to tropical storms. When the United States bought St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John from Denmark in 1917, islanders hoped their economic lot would improve dramatically. Besides giving rum production a shot in the arm, the U.S. established a naval base in the islands. But Prohibition (1920-33) crippled the island's rum-making. Not until after World War II did the U.S. Virgin Islands attain a semblance of prosperity.

As for the Cruzan women who led the great Frederiksted "fire burn" of 1878, they were jailed in Christiansted (also called Bassin at the time). They reportedly were shipped to Denmark for trial. After a period of imprisonment there, they were allowed to return home. The queens of St. Croix's labor riots command a special respect in the fascinating history of the island.
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