Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, April 2, 1995 TAG: 9503310059
SECTION: TRAVEL PAGE: G-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SUZANNE MURPHY-LARRONDE
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Today, with about 90 percent of the refurbishing completed, the two-story brick and stone structure with its stunning views onto the harbor and adjoining bougainvillea-draped courtyard has developed into more than just a residence. Since its opening as the Seven Arches Museum about a year ago, the tranquil retreat has welcomed locals and vacationers alike for rare glimpses of a romantic bygone era when this cosmopolitan port town, with its raspberry-roof houses, fortress towers and cardiac-arresting step-streets, reigned as the Caribbean's commercial hub.
Seven Arches sits just behind the lieutenant governor's office along Knut Hansen Alley, a shaded passage off Kongens Gade or King's Street, in one of the town's original three quarters. With its buff-colored brick arches, adjoining cookhouse and breezy great room, reached by way of a welcoming arms staircase, the museum/ residence shares common stylistic elements with many of Charlotte Amalie's vintage buildings. As such, it is one of several dozen sites featured in a new walking guide published by the St. Thomas Historical Trust. Preservationists hope it will help spur restoration efforts on Charlotte Amalie's wealth of classic West Indian architecture which runs the gamut from imposing villas and massive dockside warehouses to modest wooden cottages known as vernaculars.
"Ironically, tourists seem to appreciate our town more than the locales do", observes Felipe Ayala Jr., vice president of the St. Thomas Historical Trust. That's a major dilemma, but one that could work in preservation's favor if government forces and the general public are made to see the economic benefits of sprucing up. "We need to educate people that preservation can pay for itself by drawing tourists to an island that lives from tourism," he explains.
There are success stories. The Historic Preservation Commission recently approved plans for the restoration of the Grand Hotel, a shopping and office complex occupying an entire block along North Gade. The project, which calls for reopening the original courtyard with its Danish kitchen and cistern as well as the revamping its second-story arcaded galleries, promises to return this Greek Revival gem to its former glory days of the mid-1800s.
Preservationists like Ayala and artist Edith deJongh Woods are also calling for the passage of tax incentive programs to encourage property owners to restore and maintain their historic buildings as well as programs to recruit and train young people in skills like woodworking and other crafts. But all this costs money and preservation is still not seen as a top priority by government.
The landfalls we know today as the Virgin Islands were first sighted by Columbus in 1493 on his second voyage to the New World although the Spanish Crown, with its eye toward bigger prizes, never seriously attempted their colonization. St. Thomas' large, protected harbor made it a natural for commerce. During much of the 17th century, marauding buccaneers like Captain Kidd found refuge here, successfully routing Danish merchants in their first attempts at settling the island in 1666. But the Danes were back less than a decade later and this time their Danish West India Company boasted the military and monetary support of King Christian V and his consort, Charlotte Amalie, for whom the port was subsequently named.
Denmark's neutral role in the ongoing conflicts that racked 18th century Europe ushered in an era of unbridled prosperity for St. Thomas. Foreign merchants flooded the island, erected sturdy stone warehouses and began supplying the warring parties with local products like sugar and cotton while filling their own pockets. Closer to home, Charlotte Amalie flaunted its clout as a contraband hub, furnishing forbidden goods to Spain's American colonies, hamstrung by decades of restrictive trade policies.
By the mid-1700s, St. Thomas, along with St. Croix and tiny St. John, had become colonies of the Danish Crown. Additional free port privileges stepped up activity to the ever-busy docks of Charlotte Amalie as a continuing flow of ships from around the world crowded the harbor to load and unload cargo. Their passengers and crews included a colorful cast of international characters who filtered through the town's narrow streets to the rhythm of exotic foreign accents.
Commerce and ship repair thrived into the mid-1800s despite a decline in the sugar economy. Steamships replaced sail-powered vessels and St. Thomas' population soared to 30,000. Before long, the port's borders had exploded beyond harbor warehouses and headed for the surrounding hillsides and valleys. Merchants and professionals, eager to display their wealth, looked to the heights in search of sea views and breezes. They constructed aristocratic mansions of ballast-brick or rubble masonry while the poor, among them many freed slaves, contented themselves with the small subdivisions of lower climes where houses were built of wood and sported intricate barge-board (gingerbread) designs.
In the larger residences, Georgian styles prevailed, just one legacy of several English occupations early in the 1800s. If symmetrical in proportion, they were also liberally garnished with cornices, columns and quoins, and invariably featured verandas or galleries, in deference to the tropical climate. Main entrances along with living areas and bedrooms were located on the cooler second levels, reached by way of flared outside staircases. Other standard equipment on most homes, big or small, included hipped or sloping roofs for trapping rainwater, separate kitchens or cookhouses with arched chimneys and jalousied windows to keep air flowing while filtering light.
|n n| Superb examples of these stately homes, some of which have been converted to offices, restaurants and hotels, plus other vintage buildings like Blackbeard's Tower, still reign from the heights of Government Hill in Kongens Quarter, focus of the new walking tour booklet. The island's oldest structure, Fort Christian, is found in the lower reaches of this popular district. The red brick and masonry fortress, begun in 1666, was home to early colonists and served variously as the seat of both church and state. Awaiting major renovations, this National Historic Landmark houses a small museum.
Kongens Gade, just up the hill, was home to Danish officials and other well-to-do citizenry like French sea captain Alexander Lavalette, who built himself a spacious two-story villa with terraces overlooking the port. In its present incarnation, it operates as the Hotel 1829 complete with a cozy bar/restaurant occupying the original brick kitchen. Farther along this street lies Government House, notable for its lacy, cast iron verandahs. This site still serves as the governor's official office, but its first two floors are open to the public. A few doors down is the turnoff for Seven Arches Museum.
The 99 Steps, the most celebrated of Charlotte Amalie's dozens of step-streets, take visitors still higher up Government Hill for spectacular views of the harbor and surrounding areas including neighboring Denmark Hill to the west, topped like a wedding cake by the gleaming-white Governor's Mansion, built in 1830 during the town's Golden Age. Other favorites in this area include the broad, gable-roof Crown House, home to two early governors, and the elegant ballast-brick villa known as Mark St. Thomas, with its ornate cast iron balconies and tropical gardens.
Higher still stands Skytsborg or Blackbeard's Tower, built by the Danes in 1678 to survey arrivals in the harbor below. Changing patterns of warfare rendered this cone-shaped fortress obsolete within 100 years of construction, but today it adds considerable atmosphere to an adjoining guest house, four-star restaurant and bar. To the east across a lush valley, lies the town's third fortress, Bluebeard's Castle or Frederiksfort, another ancient military keep now converted to inn keeping.
Exploration at an end, it's time to head downhill to digest all that history over a tasty lunch in an al fresco cafe. Then, it's on to the serious business of shopping.
Main Street, with its Danish warehouses and arcaded alleys, gives most visitors their first taste of the historic district as they shop for cameras, perfumes, liquor and clothing. A.H. Riise Gifts provides views of original building interiors with its exposed masonry, brick arches and beamed ceilings. Art lovers can also make a pilgrimage to the birthplace of Impressionist painter Camille Pissarro at 14 Dronningens Gade. Part of St. Thomas' Jewish community, he left the island at 25 to live in Paris. Last but not least, along this same street is infamous Market Square, undergoing restoration. Currently used as a produce mart, it was once the site of the busiest slave market of the 18th century.
Finally, visitors can take a stroll up Denmark Hill for a look at its beautifully-maintained Jewish synagogue, the oldest in continuous use under the American flag. All furnishings are original including the polished mahogany benches and European chandeliers. Nearby is Villa Santa Anna, operating as a guest house, where the Mexican president of the same name spent 10 years of exile in the 1860s.
For more information on historic Charlotte Amalie consult "Charlotte Amalie - Kongens Quarter". This self-guided walking tour of St. Thomas' oldest historic district, was compiled by Felipe Ayala Jr. of the St. Thomas Historical Trust. Other offerings include Edith de Jongh Woods' beautifully illustrated "The Royal Three Quarters" and "Historic Buildings of St. Thomas and St. John" by Gjessing and MacLean.
by CNB