Rarely does a document speak as loudly as the 1803 registration of the Free-colored community of Charlotte Amalie. It gives a remarkably complete picture of a distinct part of the population of the island of St. Thomas in the Danish West Indies at that time, and most of the information could not be gleaned from any other sources. The size, diversity and mobility of the Free-colored population of Charlotte Amalie in 1803 is astounding, as shown by the entries in this document and summarized by the charts and tables in the appendices to this book. The geographical diversity is extensive, ranging from the Caribbean basin to Africa, the United States, and almost all of the European countries that possessed colonies in the West Indies.
Genealogically, biographically and historically, this document is a treasure. St. Thomas 1803; Crossroads of the Diaspora, provides a detailed glimpse into the composition of the Danish West Indies’ Free-Colored community at the pivotal period of the turn of the nineteenth century.
 
Edited and Compiled by David W. Knight Sr. & Laurette deT. Prime. Translation of the Danish Text by Dr. Gary T. Horlacher. Introduction to the Register by Henry B. Hoff.
 
 
David W. Knight Sr. is a cultural resource consultant, historian and author. He has spent much of his life exploring the primary records of the Virgin Islands and Danish West Indies in libraries, repositories, and archives throughout the Caribbean and abroad. His professional goal has always been to bring the rich historical legacy of the Virgin Islands into sharper focus through broad-based public access, education, and awareness. Mr. Knight currently serves on both the St. Thomas-St. John Committee of the Virgin Islands State Historic Preservation Commission and the Presidential Advisory Council of the University of the Virgin Islands.
 
Softcover book