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St. Croix also houses the prison for all three islands.  Before the prison was renovated, there was a problem with prisoners getting drugs.  When the prison was renovated, a small hole was discovered in the fence that allowed cats to get onto the grounds to eat food scraps.  Some enterprising person tied drugs around the cats' necks and they served as "mules" to transport drugs into the compound.

In the early days on the island, the flat land was used for agriculture, sugar cane and other produce.  Now land is too expensive for agriculture and most products are imported.

Population on the island ranges between 65-70,000.  In the early 1960's, there were only 15,000 people here.  When the oil refinery was built, construction boomed and the population mushroomed but has now stabilized.

At the height of the sugar cane production, there were about 200 windmills attached to stone silos and used to grind the cane.  The wooden vanes of the windmills are long gone, but most of the stone silos still stand., dotting the island's landscape.  A few of the structures have been converted to homes or offices.  The only structure with wooden vanes is at Estate Whim.

Remains of sugar mills dot the landscape.  To the right, the only sugar mill complete with windmill is at Estate Whim, a museum.

On his second voyage to the new world, Columbus put in at Salt River on St. Croix to get fresh water.  There are different versions of this story, but one is that the soldiers went to the Caribe village, and finding no one home, helped themselves to whatever they found.  The Caribes came out and fought fiercely to protect their homes and goods but were beaten by the looting invaders.  The Caribes called the island Cibuquiera (stony land) but Columbus named it Santa Cruz (Holy Cross).  This area is of archaeological interest since it contains evidence of prehistoric cultures dating back to AD100.

Vine from Mexico on trellis at Tommy's ancestral home.

Tabiabouilla is a beautiful flowering tree from South America, mainly Venezuela.  Its name means cross of gold. 

St. Croix was owned by Denmark in the 18^th and 19^th centuries.  The Danes gave the towns and streets Danish names but English names were later added.  For example, Fort Christiansted is also called Fort Christiansvaern.  The fort at the sea entrance to the town of Christiansted was built in 1749 by the Danish to defend against pirates, to discourage smugglers, and to maintain a presence against slave insurrection.  The fort is now a National Historic Site, maintained by The National Park Service.,

Another national monument is Buck Island Reef, just off the north coast of St. Croix.  Cruisers and locals go there to snorkel the coral reef.

A special breed of cattle has been developed on St. Croix.  The cattle are brown, sturdy, have no horns, tolerate heat, and are resistant to many diseases.  These cattle are shipped around the world.  Holsteins are used for the dairy industry providing the island's dairy products.

Tommy stopped for a break at a seaside bar called Off the Wall.  Tourists were gathering hermit crabs for crab races that afternoon, a favorite activity at St. Croix bars and restaurants.  These crabs adopt any empty shell for their home.  If they outgrow it, they abandon it and find a larger one.