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With hillsides and foliage as lush and abundant as the day Christopher Columbus first arrived at Salt River more than 500 years ago, St. Croix has survived tests of Mother Nature and e

St. Ann's Catholic Church -  Center Island Photo by Carol Lee

scaped significant modern development.  Colorful shops and fine restaurants housed in old Danish-built structures line the island's wide streets, and historic churches still remain from the days when the island was a prosperous commercial port. Throughout Christiansted and Frederiksted, the island's two waterfront towns, distinctly European 18th-century architecture reflects a period in history when seven flags - Spanish, Dutch, British, French, Knights of Malta, Danish and American - flew at different times over the island.

Once the capital of the U.S. V. I, Christians

Christiansted Lutheran Church 'Lord God of Saboath' Photo By Carol Lee

ted is the perfect place for travelers to begin their journey into St. Croix's past.  Standing sentry off of Christiansted Harbor and the Caribbean Sea is Fort Christiansvaern, an imposing, yellow-brick marvel built by Danes to ward off pirates an imprison those who were caught plundering the island's ports. Nearby, Christiansted's Steeple Building - the first church constructed by the Danes after their colonization of the island - is now a museum housing artifacts from St. Croix's Carib and Arawak Indian settlements and colonial sugar plantations. Other churches of historic note on St. Croix are Friendensthal Moravian Church and the Lutheran Church Lord God of Sabaoth, each of which is the oldest of its kind under the American Flag.

Information provided by USVI Department of Tourism