Love and loss abound in this NEW historical memoir, documenting a way of life that no longer exists. It’s heartwarming and heartbreaking all at once.
With 200 rare photographs, it’s a visual feast for those curious about St. John’s history under the Danish and US flags.
The Book's Blurb
When a prominent St. Thomas merchant accumulates 2,500 acres on the island of St. John to raise cattle and cultivate bay leaves, he has no idea that his generation will be the last to farm the land.
During the 1920s to the 1950s, Herman O. Creque's hard work pays off on his estates of Annaberg, Mary's Point, and Lamesure, but at the peak of their profitability, he dies, leaving them all to his wife, Emily.
Summer Fun at Francis Bay
Francis Bay is their children's favorite with almost thirty years of summer memories, fishing, hunting, and crabbing. One day, the beach and summer cottage will be theirs, or so they believe.
Laurance Rockefeller and Frank Stick
When two conservationists from the United States visit the island in 1952, they find the unspoiled nature of Emily's lands enchanting and "wish to preserve them for the enjoyment of the nation."
Little do Emily's children suspect that life as they know it is about to change forever, and the unthinkable will tear their family apart.
The Virgin Islands National Park
Vintage St. John is a collection of their heartfelt memories woven together from personal interviews. They paint a vivid picture of life before the establishment of the Virgin Islands National Park... and life shortly after.