At one time the small town of Frederiksted was St Croix's major commercial port. Today, the quiet village features pastel-colored colonial Victorian buildings, less crowded beaches, interesting shops and many of St Croix's best restaurants and bars. About 1,000 people reside in Frederiksted, the same number who did more than 200 years ago. In 175
2, both the town and the fort protecting it were named for Denmark's reigning monarch, King Frederik V.
While the town prospered slowly from the benefits of the sugar industry, some of St Croix's most interesting historic events took place in Frederiksted. A slave revolt in 1848 caused the emancipation of all the slaves in the entire Danish West Indies. A large hurricane in 1867 brought with it a tidal wave that carried a huge U.S. warship right into the center of town.
In 1878, former slaves angered by extremely low wages rampaged the entire island in a revolt known as the Fireburn. Frederiksted was reduced to ashes. In the 19th C, the burned neoclassical buildings were restored in the Victorian architectural style. In the 1920s communities of Puerto Rican immigrants began settling in Frederiksted, and the town remains a magnet for Spanish-speaking residents of St Croix.
Print this page
Add to Favorites
