Charlotte Amalie ( ), located on St. Thomas, the capital and largest city in the US Virgin Islands, was founded in 1666 as Taphus (meaning "beer house" or "beer hall"). In 1691, the city was renamed to Amalienborg (after Charlotte Amalie) after Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel (1650-1714), queen queen for King Christian V of Denmark -Norway. It has a deep water port that was once a haven for pirates and is now one of the busiest ports for cruises in the Caribbean, with about 1.5 million cruise ship passengers landing there in 2004. Protected by Hassel Island, the harbor has docking and refueling facilities, machine shops, and shipyards and was a US submarine base until 1966. The city has been inhabited for centuries. When Christopher Columbus arrived in 1493, the area was populated by Caribs and TaÃÆ'no Islands. It's on the south coast at the head of Saint Thomas Harbor. In 2010 the city has a population of 18,481, making it the largest city in the Virgin Islands Islands. Hundreds of ferries and yachts pass through town every week, and sometimes the population more than doubles.
The city is known for its Danish colonial architecture, its building structure and history, and a dozen streets and places throughout the city have Danish names. Charlotte Amalie has important historic buildings including St. John's Synagogue. Thomas, the second oldest synagogue in the Western Hemisphere, and Frederick Lutheran Church, the oldest Lutheran church in the Western Hemisphere. The city has a long history of pirates, especially the story of Bluebeard and Blackbeard (Edward Teach). In the 17th century, Denmark built Blackbeard Castle and Bluebeard Castle which is associated with pirates. Blackbeard's Castle is a US National Historic Landmark. Another tourist attraction is Fort Christian, the oldest structure in the Virgin Islands. A copy of Liberty Bell is at Emancipation Park, which is a tourist attraction.
Video Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands
Etymology
Prior to the time of the Danish West Indies (1754-1917), the city was known as Taphus for its many beer spaces. Taphus is Denmark and is directly translated into "beer house", "beer hall", or (most literally) "taphouse". In 1691 the city received a more honorable name given the name Amalienborg (in English Charlotte Amalie) in honor of the Christian V-king's wife, Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel (1650-1714). Between 1921 and 1936, the city was named St. Thomas. In 1936 his name was changed to Charlotte Amalie.
Maps Charlotte Amalie, U.S. Virgin Islands
History
On the second voyage to the New World, Christopher Columbus meets with Native Americans living on the islands of the United States in the Virgin Islands today. Archaeological records show that the islands have been home to Indian tribes, including the people of TaÃÆ'no, the Arawak, the Kalinago, and the Ciboney. Some of them live in Charlotte Amalie today in a small fishing community. As in most of America, indigenous populations died relatively quickly from diseases when Europeans settled. As the Spaniards concentrated their energy in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands, Saint Thomas remained unprotected for long periods, leaving Charlotte Amalie protected coves frequented by pirates, including Bluebeard and Blackbeard, as well as European sailors and settlers.
The Danish West Indies company chartered Charlotte Amalie in 1671 after King Christian V decided to secure them for the plantation. In early 1672, the Danish government began the construction of Fort Christian in Saint Thomas Harbor in Charlotte Amalie. In 1675, Denmark built four pubs near the water's edge on the western side of the fortress. The Danish government provides inmates to work on plantations but soon allows the colonists from neighboring islands to settle there, as well as to permit the importation of slaves from Africa. In 1680, there were more black African slaves than white European settlers. The adjacent Island Water and Buck functioned as grazing land for the city, and Taphus was renamed to Charlotte Amalie in 1691 after the wife of King Christian V. It was the main port of the Virgin Islands Islands and connected to about 50 plantations by one street, which remained the highway major today.
At the beginning of the 18th century, more than 3000 white people lived in the city, and sugar production and slave trade were the mainstays of the economy. After the Danish government wanted direct administration from the archipelago in 1754, the capital was moved from Charlotte Amalie to Christiansted on the island of Saint Croix. That partly made the economy in the city into a transition from slave trade and agriculture to general trade. Little can not hamper the growth of the city, as traders take advantage in arms and rum trading for belligerent countries.
In 1764, Charlotte Amalie was declared a free port by king Frederick V, and the city became the busiest port in the Caribbean. The American Revolution of the 1770s was good news for the city, as fertile times for local and city entrepreneurs began to be filled with immigrants from Europe, Africa and the Caribbean, most of them from other islands in the Lesser Antilles. In 1778, the Danish government had strengthened their military position by building Bluebeard Castle and Blackbeard Castle, the hilltop tower in both cities. The city prospered as a free port and import houses of America, Denmark, Sephardic, Germany, France, England, Italy and Spain operated here. At the end of the 18th century, American founder and future architect of the American Constitution, Alexander Hamilton, decided that the city was so rich that "gold moves in the streets in the ranks of the wheel".
The growing part of West India's trade passed through the harbor in the early 1800s, and the emergence of steamers made Charlotte Amalie the ideal guide station for ships sailing between North and South America. In 1804, Charlotte Amalie was struck by a horrendous fire that destroyed more than 1,200 homes and stores throughout the city. Two more fires occurred in 1805 and 1806, and the crowded city lost a thousand other buildings. Neighboring islands gradually started importing coal directly from producers, and Charlotte Amalie was ruled out in trading in the early 1800s. The abolition of slavery in 1848 further diminished the commercial role of Charlotte Amalie and the city suffered a brutal recession, as did most of the Caribbean after its abolition.
During the American Civil War in the early 1860s, the city evolved into a smuggling center for ships running a federal port blockade in the Confederates. In recognition of the success of smuggling of ports, the Danish government decided to move the archipelagic capital back to Charlotte Amalie in 1871. The final half of the 1800s was also immediately hit by a cholera epidemic that killed thousands of people. Charlotte Amalie fell into a failed dormancy until the United States decided to buy the islands from Denmark in 1917.
In 1915, the United States was interested in buying the US Virgin Islands. They are concerned over the German infiltration in the Lesser Antilles. The US bought the Danish West Indies in 1917 for $ 25 million. Charlotte Amalie was under the rule of the US Navy until 1931. The United States decided to make Charlotte Amalie the headquarters of the name of the US Virgin Islands. During the Second World War, the city became a naval base to protect allied shipments to and from the Panama Canal.
When American tourists were banned from Cuba in 1960, some began to visit Charlotte Amalie instead. As belonging to the United States, it is a haven for mainland Americans looking for luxury vacations or second homes in the Caribbean. During the mid-20th century, resorts began construction and direct flights from the US to Charlotte Amalie were boosting tourism. Over the past half century, Charlotte Amalie has experienced remarkable economic growth, largely as a consequence of being a US territory and growing US tourism. Tourism not only leads to economic growth, but also to the preservation and conversion of historic buildings and homes. Many ancient commercial buildings are made into restaurants and shops. During the 1980s and 1990s, many buildings were restored to how they were seen 200 years ago.
The tourism industry has grown rapidly on this island. Tourism in the city has now begun to drive the USVI economy, but the limited lowland in the mountainous regions will hamper economic growth and population of Charlotte Amalie. The spread of hilltop homes overlooking the blue waters of the Caribbean crystal is also a recent trend.
Geography
Located in the middle of the island on the south coast of the mountainous island of St. Thomas, Charlotte Amalie stretches about 1.5 miles around the Port of Saint Thomas from the Havensight district where cruise ships landed in the east, to Frenchtown and the Sub Base neighborhood in the west. The red walls of the Danish Christian Fort and the open space of the Emancipation Park and Vendor Market are the old city center. Many historic buildings and city businesses stand on the slopes of Government Hill to the north of Emancipation Garden. This is "Kwartal Kongens". To the west, covering the area between Waterfront Dr and Dronningens Gade (Main Street), is a gang score, each lined with colonial warehouse buildings that have been converted into shops and urban malls. Protected by the peaks of Air Island and Hassel Island, Saint Thomas Harbor creates a deep indentation on the island. The bay provides a view of the 1,500ft (460 m) observation points, including for example the Drake Chair.
Charlotte Amalie is built on three low volcanic spurs called Frenchman Hill (Foretop Hill), Berg Hill (Maintop), and Government Hill (Mizzentop). Charlotte Amalie is located at the coordinates of 18 Â ° 21 north and 64 Â ° 57 west.
Climate
The average year-round temperature of Charlotte Amalie ranges from 75 ° C (24 ° C) to 90 ° F (32 ° C) and the climate has a tropical wet and dry climate. The city has a short dry season that runs from January to March and the rainy season covering the remaining nine months, although technically June, with an average monthly rainfall of 2.35 in (59.7 mm) can be considered a month dry season. Although Charlotte Amalie has a long rainy season, outside of September to November, the city generally does not see the heavy rains prevalent in many other cities with a tropical climate. The city is generally very warm and humid. The average temperature at Charlotte Amalie is near constant, with an average temperature of about 88 ° C (31 ° C) and an average low temperature of approximately 75 ° F (24 ° C).
Population
Demographics
The US Census 2010 reports that Charlotte Amalie has a population of 18,481.
The majority of 76.2% are Afro-Caribbean, while the minority is 13.1% white. About one percent is of Asian descent.
Religion
According to the same 2010 census, more than 95 percent of people describe themselves as Christians. 42% were Baptist, 34% Catholic and 17% Episcopalian.
St. Peter's and Paul's Cathedral in this city is the episcopal place of Saint Thomas Catholic Diocese, which includes the Virgin America and is the only suffragan of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Washington (D.C.).
Saint Thomas is home to one of the oldest Jewish communities in the western hemisphere as Sephardic Jews began to settle on the island in the 18th century as traders and merchants. The St. Thomas Synagogue at Charlotte Amalie is the second oldest synagogue on American soil and the oldest in terms of continuous usage.
Language and literacy
More than 95 percent of the population is literate.
Although English is the official language, most people speak with a dialect called Virgin Islands Creole, which is different from standard English in many ways. Virgin Islands Creole is used unofficially and American English standards (pronounced with a typical Virgin Islands accent) are 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 16.8% and French Patois is spoken by 6.6% of the city's population. While Spanish is spoken by migrants from Puerto Rico (US) and immigrants from the Dominican Republic, creoles are spoken by immigrants from St. Petersburg. Barthelemy, Dominica, and Haiti.
Economy
Economics is based on tourism, handicrafts, jewelry, and the production of rum, bay rum, and jam. Aside from being the USVI's political capital, the city is the capital of the US Virgin Islands port. Charlotte Amalie is the most popular cruise ship destination in the Caribbean Sea. Up to eleven cruises can occupy the harbor on any given day, although there are usually about five.
Tourism
Approximately 1.5 million cruise ship visits on average per year.
Sights include Blackbeard's Castle which is one of the city's most visited attractions, Bluebeard's Castle, 17th-century Christian Fortress, a distinctive green and distinctive Legislative Building, 99 steps staircase, Emancipation Park, Market Square, Seven Arches Museum, St. Thomas Synagogue, Frederick Lutheran Church, and Weibel Museum. Tourists usually arrive by plane at Cyril E. King International Airport, about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of downtown Charlotte Amalie, or land on cruise ship ports in Havensight. In the 21st century, Charlotte Amalie has benefited from its proximity to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where passengers from larger aircraft can be relocated to smaller aircraft for a 30-minute flight to Charlotte Amalie. The city is also a leap for other islands in the US and the British Virgin Islands. In this century, there are more high-speed ferries every year leaving Charlotte Amalie for St. Croix, St. John and Tortola. The seaplane docks are near the inner west end of the inner harbor; plane carrying passengers to St. Croix.
Due to its duty-free policy, the city is sometimes referred to as "duty-free capital in the world". Charlotte Amalie has more jewelry stores and perfume vendors than anywhere else in the Caribbean and is known for its Vendors' Plaza which is out of town. On Main Street (Dronningens Gade) there are many great shops, including Tiffany, Breitling, Rolex, and Fresh Produce.
The Havensight Pier and Crown Bay are other shopping spots, with a number of shops adjacent to the cruise ship pier. Along Dronningens Gade there are over 400 stores, mostly selling jewelry and at Havensight Mall. The west end (near the intersection with Strand Gade) is called "Market Square." After the auction site of the largest slave market in the Caribbean Basin, today is an open cluster where local farmers and gardener gathered occasionally to sell their products.
Culture
Culture is a mixture of American and Afro-Caribbean cultures, with influences from Danish colonial history. There is an American fast-food chain in town, as well as local restaurants serving Caribbean cuisine only. The grocery store contains American items and local items like rum. Seafood and local produce can be found on the open market.
Danish influence
Named Amalienborg (Charlotte Amalie) in honor of Danish King Christian V's wife, strong Danish influence. This heritage is dominant in several ways at Charlotte Amalie today. The Danes left the palaces, graves, churches, forts, town houses, sugar mills and plantation houses still standing. Many geographical names have been stored in Denmark and many locals have Danish names. The most widely used language, Virgin Islands Creole, has many words and phrases left over from Danish. For example, Danish words like "skÃÆ'  ¥ l" (toast), "berg" (mountain) and "frikadeller" (meatballs) are usually used. Many of the historic colonial architecture still stands and words like "path" are more often referred to by the Danish "gade" translation, pronounced "gah-dah".
Charlotte Amalie has the largest collection of colonial buildings in the Caribbean. Most of the buildings are a classic Caribbean adaptation of Georgian English architecture built by Danish people, dating from the 1830s.
Transportation
There are three main streets in Charlotte Amalie. Waterfront Drive, also called the Veteran Drive, is in front of the harbor and extends from Havensight Mall to Frenchtown. This four-lane road is best navigated by car or taxi. Main Street, also called Dronningen Gade and Norre Gade, runs parallel to the waterfront. Back Street, also called Wimmelskafts Gade, is one block farther inland, parallel to the coastline. Street names in the city are the remains of Denmark's past on the island. Charlotte Amalie is famous for being the only US capital (either from region or country) where traffic drives on the left side of the road - this is despite the previous fourteen years in accordance with the principle of the right side of America, which is returned to the left side by popular demand.
Highway 30 (Veterans Dr) passes Charlotte Amalie. In addition, Charlotte Amalie holds one of two airports in the US Virgin Islands. Cyril E. King Airport (IATA: STT ICAO: TIST) offers regular nonstop services to destinations along the east coast of the United States.
Education
St. Thomas-St. John School District serves the community. First High School Addelita Cancryn and Charlotte Amalie High School serve the area. The University of the Virgin Islands, located in Charlotte Amalie, was founded in 1962.
Famous people
- Alton Adams - the first African-American band master for the United States Navy
- Edward Wilmot Blyden - an ambassador and credited by some as having laid the foundations of West African nationalism or Pan-Africanism
- Callix Crabbe - Baseball Baseball Player
- Hannah Davis - fashion model
- Kelsey Grammer - actor, director and producer
- Emile Griffith - the boxer who won the world championship in the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions
- Alexander Hamilton - born on the neighboring island of Nevis; moved to the Danish West Indies (now the British Virgin Islands), where he grew up
- Elrod Hendricks - Baseball Baseball Player
- Julian Jackson - boxer
- J. Raymond Jones - political activist
- Al McBean - Baseball Baseball Player
- Ralph Moses Paiewonsky - governor
- Calvin Pickering - Baseball Baseball Player
- Jasmin St. Claire - a former porn actress
- Charles Sainte-Claire Deville - French geologist
- Henri Sainte-Claire Deville - French chemist
- Camille Pissarro - the main member of the French Impressionist painter
- Rashawn Ross - the trumpeter who toured with Dave Matthews Band
- Roy Lester Schneider - governor and doctor
- Morris Simmonds - German doctor and pathologist
- Karrine Steffans - New York Times best selling author
- Terence Todman - ambassador
- Denmark Vesey - the leader of a planned slave uprising in Charleston, South Carolina
- Peter von Scholten - the governor general
- David Levy Yulee - the first Jew member of the United States Senate
Gallery
References
External links
- Media related to Charlotte Amalie on Wikimedia Commons
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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