1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,679 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:04,800 --> 00:00:08,760 Speaker 1: Hello and Welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:12,240 Speaker 1: show for those who can never know enough about history. 4 00:00:13,119 --> 00:00:16,600 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Luesier, and in this episode we're talking about 5 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:21,360 Speaker 1: the only permanently occupied US territory to be purchased from 6 00:00:21,400 --> 00:00:32,680 Speaker 1: a foreign power. The day was January seventeenth, nineteen seventeen. 7 00:00:33,680 --> 00:00:37,680 Speaker 1: Denmark sold the islands of Saint Thomas, Saint John, and 8 00:00:37,760 --> 00:00:41,639 Speaker 1: Saint Croix to the United States. The sale had been 9 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:44,600 Speaker 1: in the works for more than fifty years, but due 10 00:00:44,600 --> 00:00:48,400 Speaker 1: to a number of political setbacks, the deal wasn't finalized 11 00:00:48,479 --> 00:00:52,000 Speaker 1: until the tail end of the Great War. The US 12 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:56,400 Speaker 1: Virgin Islands, formerly known as the Danish West Indies, are 13 00:00:56,440 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: located in the Caribbean, roughly forty miles east of Port 14 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:04,240 Speaker 1: Rico and just west of the British Virgin Islands. The 15 00:01:04,319 --> 00:01:09,200 Speaker 1: island group consists of three main islands, Saint Thomas, Saint John, 16 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:13,320 Speaker 1: and Saint Croix, as well as several dozen smaller islands 17 00:01:13,360 --> 00:01:17,759 Speaker 1: and keys. Like most Caribbean islands, Saint Thomas and Saint 18 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:22,600 Speaker 1: John were formed through volcanic activity and are characterized by rugged, 19 00:01:22,760 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: mountainous terrain. Saint Croix, on the other hand, was produced 20 00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:29,760 Speaker 1: by a build up of coral, giving it a flatter 21 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:32,800 Speaker 1: terrain and also making it the largest of the US 22 00:01:32,920 --> 00:01:37,679 Speaker 1: Virgin islands. In fourteen ninety three, Christopher Columbus landed on 23 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,679 Speaker 1: Saint Croix, making him the first known European explorer to 24 00:01:41,760 --> 00:01:45,880 Speaker 1: reach the archipelago. At that point, the islands were already 25 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:50,720 Speaker 1: inhabited by the Siboni, Caribe, and Arawak tribes, but over 26 00:01:50,760 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 1: the next two centuries most of the native population would 27 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:58,919 Speaker 1: be wiped out by diseases introduced by early explorers and settlers. 28 00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:04,080 Speaker 1: The island Chine alternated between French and Spanish rule before 29 00:02:04,120 --> 00:02:07,840 Speaker 1: finally coming under Danish control in the late sixteen hundreds. 30 00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:12,680 Speaker 1: Denmark's colonization centered on the lucrative sugar trade and was 31 00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:16,720 Speaker 1: fueled by the forced labor of enslaved African workers. The 32 00:02:16,720 --> 00:02:20,520 Speaker 1: country continued to profit from its island plantations until the 33 00:02:20,560 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 1: eighteen forties, when the price of sugar fell dramatically. The 34 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:28,760 Speaker 1: resulting downturn hurt the Danish government's bottom line and led 35 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:31,359 Speaker 1: many to wonder if having a colony in the West 36 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:35,200 Speaker 1: Indies was still worth the cost. That question would be 37 00:02:35,280 --> 00:02:38,519 Speaker 1: raised again in the summer of eighteen forty eight, when 38 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:42,600 Speaker 1: several hundred enslaved workers on Saint Croix led a successful 39 00:02:42,720 --> 00:02:46,880 Speaker 1: revolt against their oppressors. The loss of slave labor made 40 00:02:46,880 --> 00:02:50,720 Speaker 1: the larger plantations unsustainable, and many of the newly freed 41 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:56,119 Speaker 1: people struggled to support themselves, further exacerbating the islands struggling economies. 42 00:02:56,960 --> 00:03:00,280 Speaker 1: By eighteen sixty seven, Denmark was fed up up with 43 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:03,840 Speaker 1: the high cost and complicated logistics of running the islands 44 00:03:04,080 --> 00:03:06,960 Speaker 1: and began seeking a buyer to take them off its hands. 45 00:03:07,560 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 1: The United States expressed interest right away, with many officials 46 00:03:11,520 --> 00:03:14,320 Speaker 1: viewing the islands as the perfect chance for the growing 47 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:18,680 Speaker 1: nation to extend its influence into the Caribbean. Secretary of 48 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:22,280 Speaker 1: State William Henry Sewart drew up a treaty with Denmark 49 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:25,400 Speaker 1: to take possession of the islands that same year, but 50 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:28,359 Speaker 1: it was ultimately rejected by the U. S. Senate as 51 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:32,480 Speaker 1: payback for Seward's support of President Andrew Johnson during his 52 00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:36,560 Speaker 1: impeachment trial. Another attempt to buy the islands was made 53 00:03:36,560 --> 00:03:39,680 Speaker 1: in the early eighteen nineties, but it too fell apart, 54 00:03:40,000 --> 00:03:44,520 Speaker 1: this time due to the onset of the Spanish American war. However, 55 00:03:44,840 --> 00:03:47,760 Speaker 1: the US would return to the table following the war's 56 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:51,640 Speaker 1: conclusion in eighteen ninety eight. The country's victory had just 57 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:54,840 Speaker 1: gained it the territory of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean 58 00:03:55,080 --> 00:03:57,760 Speaker 1: and the territories of Guam and the Philippines in the 59 00:03:57,800 --> 00:04:01,720 Speaker 1: Western Pacific. Its next time target for expansion was to 60 00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:05,600 Speaker 1: build the Panama Canal, and owning the islands of Saint Thomas, 61 00:04:05,640 --> 00:04:08,840 Speaker 1: Saint John, and Saint Croix was vital to securing the 62 00:04:08,880 --> 00:04:12,640 Speaker 1: planned route for the canal. Once again, a treaty with 63 00:04:12,720 --> 00:04:16,520 Speaker 1: Denmark was negotiated, this time by Secretary of State John 64 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,039 Speaker 1: Hay and while the Senate eventually ratified it in nineteen 65 00:04:20,040 --> 00:04:24,040 Speaker 1: oh two, the Danish parliament did not. In the end, 66 00:04:24,160 --> 00:04:27,400 Speaker 1: it was the First World War that led both countries 67 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:30,440 Speaker 1: to finally strike a deal. After the sinking of the 68 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:34,320 Speaker 1: Lusitania in nineteen fifteen, the US started to worry that 69 00:04:34,480 --> 00:04:38,000 Speaker 1: Germany might seize control of the Caribbean islands and use 70 00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:41,640 Speaker 1: them as launching points for its submarines. With this threat 71 00:04:41,760 --> 00:04:47,000 Speaker 1: top of mind, Secretary of State Robert Lansing approached Constantine Brune, 72 00:04:47,240 --> 00:04:50,520 Speaker 1: the Danish Minister to the United States, about the possibility 73 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:54,240 Speaker 1: of purchasing the Danish West Indies, to his surprise, though 74 00:04:54,520 --> 00:04:58,839 Speaker 1: Brune rejected the proposal. Ceding the islands to the US 75 00:04:59,160 --> 00:05:02,880 Speaker 1: was an unpopular idea in Denmark at the time. The 76 00:05:03,000 --> 00:05:06,640 Speaker 1: United States was still racially segregated, and there was concern 77 00:05:06,720 --> 00:05:10,880 Speaker 1: among Danish leaders that the island's predominantly black population would 78 00:05:10,920 --> 00:05:16,160 Speaker 1: suffer similar treatment or worse under American rule. Brune asked 79 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:19,120 Speaker 1: for assurances that the black Islanders would be afforded the 80 00:05:19,160 --> 00:05:23,560 Speaker 1: same rights as white US citizens, but Lancing refused, claiming 81 00:05:23,600 --> 00:05:26,400 Speaker 1: that any such stipulations were beyond the scope of the 82 00:05:26,440 --> 00:05:29,000 Speaker 1: treaty and would have to be worked out by Congress. 83 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:33,120 Speaker 1: The deal likely would have died right there, but Lancing 84 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,760 Speaker 1: pressed the issue by insinuating that if Denmark didn't sell 85 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:40,640 Speaker 1: the islands, the US might forcibly seize them in order 86 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,080 Speaker 1: to prevent a German takeover. It was a jerk move 87 00:05:44,200 --> 00:05:48,440 Speaker 1: to threaten military action against a neutral country, but it worked. 88 00:05:48,880 --> 00:05:52,480 Speaker 1: The Danish government agreed to a peaceful transfer of power, 89 00:05:52,720 --> 00:05:55,200 Speaker 1: and the two countries signed a treaty to that effect 90 00:05:55,240 --> 00:06:00,720 Speaker 1: in August of nineteen sixteen. Five months later, on January seventeenth, 91 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:04,839 Speaker 1: nineteen seventeen, the treaty was ratified by both governments and 92 00:06:04,920 --> 00:06:09,160 Speaker 1: formally exchanged in Washington, d C. Control of the islands 93 00:06:09,279 --> 00:06:13,040 Speaker 1: was officially transferred to the US on March thirty first, 94 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:16,159 Speaker 1: at which time Denmark was paid the agreed upon some 95 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:21,080 Speaker 1: twenty five million dollars in gold coin. The U. S. 96 00:06:21,240 --> 00:06:24,560 Speaker 1: Virgin Islands were administered by the U. S. Navy from 97 00:06:24,640 --> 00:06:28,760 Speaker 1: nineteen seventeen to nineteen thirty one. During that time, the 98 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:33,239 Speaker 1: people living on the islands were confusingly granted American nationality, 99 00:06:33,600 --> 00:06:37,919 Speaker 1: but not the political status of citizens. That changed in 100 00:06:38,000 --> 00:06:41,000 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty two, when an Act of Congress granted them 101 00:06:41,040 --> 00:06:45,120 Speaker 1: American citizenship, though Virgin Islanders wouldn't receive the right to 102 00:06:45,200 --> 00:06:49,880 Speaker 1: vote for their own governor until nineteen seventy. Today, the 103 00:06:50,000 --> 00:06:54,200 Speaker 1: US Virgin Islands are a popular destination for vacationing tourists, 104 00:06:54,600 --> 00:06:58,240 Speaker 1: both those traveling abroad and those from the mainland US 105 00:06:58,440 --> 00:07:01,599 Speaker 1: who don't even need a passport to visit. Much of 106 00:07:01,640 --> 00:07:05,680 Speaker 1: the infrastructure and culture feels just like modern America, but 107 00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:08,719 Speaker 1: you can still find glimpses of the island's Danish heritage 108 00:07:08,960 --> 00:07:11,920 Speaker 1: in the form of preserved forts and monuments as well 109 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:15,520 Speaker 1: as in the Danish street names. But regardless of which 110 00:07:15,560 --> 00:07:18,800 Speaker 1: island you visit, if you're there on March thirty first, 111 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:22,000 Speaker 1: you'd better be ready for a party. Each year, the 112 00:07:22,080 --> 00:07:25,680 Speaker 1: Islanders celebrate the date as Transfer Day to commemorate the 113 00:07:25,680 --> 00:07:30,119 Speaker 1: transfer of power from Denmark to the United States. And yes, 114 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:34,200 Speaker 1: the sale technically went into effect on January seventeenth, but 115 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:37,920 Speaker 1: I guess Ratification Day just doesn't have the same ring 116 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:44,400 Speaker 1: to it. I'm Gabe Lucier and hopefully you now know 117 00:07:44,440 --> 00:07:47,760 Speaker 1: a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 118 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 1: You can learn even more about history by following us 119 00:07:51,480 --> 00:07:56,680 Speaker 1: on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at TDI HC Show, and 120 00:07:56,760 --> 00:07:59,520 Speaker 1: if you have any comments or suggestions, feel free to 121 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:04,760 Speaker 1: pass them by writing to This Day at iHeartMedia dot com. 122 00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:07,520 Speaker 1: Thanks to Chandler Mays for producing the show, and thanks 123 00:08:07,520 --> 00:08:09,880 Speaker 1: to you for listening. I'll see you back here again 124 00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:12,880 Speaker 1: tomorrow for another day in History class.