History
Denmark chartered the Danish West Indian Company and began colonizing St. Thomas in 1671 and St. John in 1684. Denmark later purchased St. Croix from France in 1733. Except for a brief period of English occupation during the Napoleonic Wars, the Virgin Islands remained under Danish control until 1917. Denmark then sold all three islands to the United States for $25 million by Treaty. Water Island was transferred to the Virgin Islands by the Department of the Interior on December 12, 1996.

The islands were under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Navy until they were transferred to the Department of the Interior in 1931.

Political Status
The U.S. Virgin Islands, an unincorporated territory of the United States, was placed under the administration of the Secretary of the Interior pursuant to Executive Order 5566 in 1931. These islands are under the sovereignty of the United States.

The Organic Act of 1936 established local government under the control of the Secretary of Interior.  The Revised Organic Act of 1954 is the Virgin Islands analogue of a state constitution, replacing the makeshift Organic Act of 1936.

Under the territory's 1954 Revised Organic Act, the Governor of the Virgin Islands was appointed by the President of the United States and reported to the Secretary of the Interior

Under legislation passed in 1968, the Virgin Islands has had a democratically elected form of government since 1970.

In 1980, the Virgin Islands Commission on Status and Federal Relations was created to educate the public on various political status options. A referendum was held in 1993 with only 10,710 or 31.4 percent of the 39,038 eligible voters participating which was below the 50 percent plus one needed. As a result, the Commission was disbanded on December 31, 1993.

Government
The Government of the Virgin Islands is headed by a popularly elected governor and lieutenant governor for four-year terms. The current Governor is the Honorable Charles Wesley Turnbull. The Honorable Vargrave Richards is the Lieutenant Governor. The lawmaking body of the Virgin Islands is a 15-member unicameral legislature. Its members are called Senator and are elected by popular vote. The judicial power of the Virgin Islands resides with the Territorial Court and the U.S. District Court. The U.S.District Court is headed by Chief Judge Thomas K. Moore and Judge Raymond Finch. The Territorial Court is headed by Judge Verne Hodge.

The Member of Congress from the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Honorable Donna Christensen, possesses the same powers and privileges as Representatives from the States, with the exception of voting on the House floor.

Geography
The Virgin Islands are located approximately 1,000 miles southeast of Miami in the Caribbean Sea. The islands are of volcanic origin and all are mountainous, with many beaches and caves. Total land mass is 135 square miles.

Population
The estimated 1999 population of the Virgin Islands is approximately 120,000, with the majority living on St. Croix and St. Thomas. A person born in the Virgin Islands is a U.S. citizen at birth.

Culture
The inhabitants of the Virgin Islands represent a variety of races and cultural heritages. The occupants of the islands visited by Columbus were Caribe Indians, whose resistance to being conquered discouraged settlement of the islands for many years. Today's inhabitants are of many backgrounds--including African, Puerto Rican, American mainland, French, Danish, Scots, Portuguese, and Asians. English is spoken throughout the territory.

Economy
In Fiscal Year 1995, the U.S. Virgin Islands Government had an annual operating budget of about $500 million, of which about $342 million were local revenues and $158 million were federal grants.

The principal industries of the Virgin Islands are tourism and manufacturing (rum, oil refining, watch assembly, and pharmaceuticals).

In 1995, tourist expenditures were estimated to be over $800 million.

A tax incentive program is conducted by the government of the Virgin Islands to encourage new industries to locate there and special tax incentives on worldwide exports have enticed over 2,500 foreign sales corporations to be established. This has helped spur a related growth in financial service industries taking advantage of the Virgin Islands' good infrastructure, modern communications, excellent transportation links, U.S. currency and postage, and generous tax benefits.

Communications
Telephone communications are handled through the Virgin Islands Telephone Corporation (VITEL CO). The system utilizes total digital switching and has grown to over 60,000 telephones. VITEL CO offers many custom calling services such as conference calls, speed dialing, call-waiting, call-forwarding, beeper service, and facsimile transmission.

The U.S. Virgin Islands has one cable television station, one PBS-TV affiliate (WTJX), one commercial television station (Channel 8) and nine radio stations. It also has three local newspapers, the Daily News distributed on all three islands, the St. Croix Avis distributed on St. Croix and St. Thomas, and the St. Thomas Source.

The U.S. Postal Service provides mail services.

Transportation
United, U.S. Air, Delta, Continental and American airlines and several inter-island airlines serve airports on St. Croix and St. Thomas.

The harbor of Charlotte Amalie is considered one of the finest in the West Indies. It has two main docking facilities. St Croix has a new container port on its south shore and limited port facilities at Christiansted and Fredericksted.

Education
Subsidized by Federal grants, the Government of the Virgin Islands operates the public education system. The system provides education for school-age children from kindergarten through 12th grade. There are approximately 27,000 students enrolled in private, parochial and public schools.

Education is compulsory for children until they reach the age of sixteen years.

The University of the Virgin Islands is a four-year institution with a main campus on St.Thomas and a branch on St. Croix. There are approximately 4,200 full and part-time students. The University offers B.A. and B.S. degrees in 33 fields and a Master in Education, Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Administration.

Health Services

The Virgin Islands Department of Health operates health facilities on the islands, including major hospitals on St. Thomas and St. Croix.

Land Ownership
There are no specific restrictions regarding land ownership in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Travel Requirements
No passports or immunizations are necessary for U.S. citizens who travel to the Virgin Islands; however, some form of identification should be carried to evidence citizenship (i.e., passport, voter's card or original birth certificate).

Aliens traveling to the Virgin Islands are required to have a valid passport and appropriate U.S.visa.

Marriage Requirements
An eight-day waiting period is required for couples desiring to be married in the Virgin Islands. Information can be obtained by writing to:

Clerk of the Territorial Court
P.O. Box 70
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands 00802
(340) 774-6680

Pet Quarantine
You must obtain a pet certificate from your local veterinarian stating the animal has not been exposed to any communicable diseases and is not sick. The certificate must state that the animal is not coming from an area under quarantine for rabies. Your pet must be vaccinated against rabies at least 30 days prior and not more than one year before he arrives. Since most veterinarian are reluctant to give new puppies rabies shots, before they are six months old, its not necessary to have your puppy vaccinated. The vet should include this on your health certificate.

Emergency Contact
Contact the local police department to report a missing person. The telephone numbers are: St. Croix (340) 778-2211, St. Thomas (340) 774-2211 and St. John (340) 693-8880.

Weather Conditions
The temperature in the Virgin Islands ranges from 70-90 degrees year-round, with relatively low humidity. Prolonged periods of rain are rare, but the islands are subject to hurricanes. The territory has a "rainy season" from October until mid-December. The annual average rainfall is about 43 inches.

Currency
The U.S. dollar is the currency used in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Links

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USVI Economics
http://www.viber.org/publications.html