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•""lJ1'"8 on Tiit ~IT~ AT R!lr •T ESTAU A!lD FORT~ HUJ,. ST. JCllM, 'l!IGIN ~SUNOO STUOJ'SI~· qual1t&ee . Ree! Bey F.et.at.e ?"etaine aore- h111ldinp thaQ ~rall~ fcund in U. old estate•. Thi Min ~~ag i• or epeoial .. nt. The factory witb ite aacl'.ine17 and t.be tther utild.ty be1ld1.ns:s elearl7 The rlrt a.t FoJ't~ef'g Hill 1.a a t7i;1c&lr·l8th cMt1u"f lortitka\iOG aiait· payed an i.Jlport.an\ p.rt in itrl • ! ••-- ··-- ··- . Description Reef Bay estate is located in a narrOll ~alley on ' '. ~ tQI south coast or St. Johno · The estate co:Yera most of .·the. valley and ~~s ot the steep hills which form it. The ,estate buildings tall in three groups: the Esta~ Jil~e group, the "N~ Factory" gr_oup, and the "Village." Trails connecst the groupe and lead . to Lameehur Pay on the east'g the Main Line to the north ·and _Genti Bay to tbe west. In addition, a trail leads to the Indian Falla, on a small b.re>ok within the estate that cascades oTer a seriM of rock outcrops on the west wall or" the valley., General H:tstory The present estate canbinea in part or ~ ·· .. completely t~ , two older ~states ·or. _Little~. ··, Reef Bay and Perforce sb01Jn in the III Quadrant . . ; r of · St. John on Po :&. Oxho].s.•s map of 17SOo Parf orce aeems to ban been the first aettled and is 1nenti~~ in, local court records of . the. 18th cen t~ry. Lit tie Reef Bay is rked On the I aame map, i but is no mentioned bef re 183:3 in . ! . .· ' aTailable I record•.' The present Es te Hou.Se is 1 I • located o*1 land whi h aeems to ha been part of the Estatf Par!qrct twice duzi_ng the ye r 1844. It w s first. ~cquired by Ao M. t! o,,..h. f·r. om Ao Eo Ve. tter, !!<I thri. gh ~· latter in the •al!le ar by L. D .. S 1th. Tillis d~t· ~· .,i.laoli 9n t • ga~ pOSt 0 Estate Holee and is probably the ·"" te bf :!,it.a ! I erection· I During t e middle of t .19th ~entury both Esta~e;·.Parfo {1864) and ittle Re,et Bay (1856~ were acqfired by W. H: arsh, ;i overseer hr the ea tea for the p i . ' At th.- t1'e of his ~eath (1909) i . estate w•I »I inheri tedl ·ti~, hi• datghters wh~ so d the pr-operty t :- Il'o Fau~ko , I I , I Aoool'dingj to Mra. E Daniela and r sister, Mrwo Jens~n, t~re re two addit l-uild_ingal beai:(,ies t c tbl"&e menti 2 of The ·Eetate llolise Group group called "Cow-Cow" beyond the vilJa';::-e to- wards the !lain Line and some .· etabh.s by tne 'Vangos." They identified areas t:y their r... ... •- tionship to specific tree~ and natural lanc:Mlarb not observed du~ing my stay at the Bay o How~Ter , it is possible that Cow-Cow are the ruins of one of the two mills shown between Parforce and the "Old Worka 11 on the Main Line on Oxho11!' 1 s map" The Mangos seem to have been west of the estate house in the valley. The Estate House group h l ocated on a spur or the eaet flank of the valley appr:ximately 3/4 miles in fran the beacho A steep trail branches off from the main trail to r..a.meshur Bay and swinging north and east arr,und the spur approaches the Estate House frOfil. the ncrtho The p:r--:up consists of the Estate House proper and the ruin• of 'the serTant.s quarter11 ll the kitchen~. the stable and the outhowie o The Estate House is backed up againllt the rising hill nth the ' ,.\, ': . stables and tihe ,.outllouf!le to the nortneast and the ki tcpen and servants quarters to 'the westo The servattta qua.rte are located fn the same level as ihe main h e and sligh~ly to the nortn.; t4 kitchen n llne with t+ quart.e'rs but l01'er~ . A retai ing wall separy..tes the Esta~e Ho+,se fran t e kitcheno I I The selec~ion of si ings and their plan I ror the iraie. To the notth there it .narrow and fold I south thejview is I . e, the placing of t~ 'build- 1 ' show a fine ap reciatijon s a view of th valle~ u into the hill . To the ' with Fren~h Man~ Ca and St. Croix in the ~aek- i I ground •11fle the In ·an Falls aero~s the valley face the *state Ho e. The narrow! back yard against t~ natural rock wall of the steeply . i I rising hip is comp imentary to th~ wider views on the otter sides 'f the !louse a~. given • variety t? the epae al experience rncountered This may ~ve been lack of fl.a.ti 1.and suitable tor build However, t~e builder 4 1- Reef Bay Estate House, front 2- · Reef Bay Estate House, back porch looki ng south. 3- Ser!Vants Quarters showing masonrt type and cond~tion of'] stucco. L- Estate House seen fr ~oof is 1/4 way down I the to. pl I or the the.' hill +ert or I. ndian ~ails center.I has cap:itali~d on them by using theni . to drama-. .• . I '· - .. · ' i .. ~- tiz.e . t1-e apw-o•ch to the ~9eo They bf Jc_ t.he view or .the house from the access t~il 'so t~t . after the gl~es .or the house from the ,l.olr !Section or th,e trail y0u do not eee it· api!'I until you turn the corl'Er of the seryant.s ~ . ~ ~ qua.rte rs and . are immediately in front . or th• < Jt• ·• - - • ..-- ' ga~ .. post looJicing up· at stair of t.he t"r.nt entr.ance~ · The .Main House 1e small, but '~bas a. ~~ deal of arehiteeturaJ_ quality.; !t is tol"ll!U and .' . , . ·'.i( symetr:i.cal, with claesical ren val details care.funr balanced' insid~ and ou-tt~ . I-ts plan •' t;;l .11'-akes full ~dval)tage of t hE> ~8~ te ~d 1 ts end ~ . - . . . galleri-8, an· 'l'in~al feature, iQ .·a Welt .' ~ . _ ~ • ,/. ' - . - 1' . _. ~ • ~ . ... i . Indian house; are ~ c°'1ee~i6n to it~ ''All . the · struc:t~s of this. group '&re bu,ilt fr(lll ·. a · ie?Oal ·-·etort. .-with· briok-uaec:\ in co}iner1nt: .· •, ,ji~.--> ) . !' . . " { ; . . ' "lit , archies and trim • . ~hey .are all s~uceoiMi. and_ ~ > : • • ... ,;. • • ' .~. • - \ ' , .. ;\ ~ ~ ~· ·. . . J•intedo the" ~ii house has 8: flat brick •.-.! - ' ,- -c - • ; - ro'o! <:t'ler its entrance qanop1-s ·And over i ttr galleries while the cen~ral section ~s • hipped roOt~ ,The other s,tructures, ·as far as The "new• :factory group ! 'rhe wall factory ~fters fact.ory mined, eem to have h d saddlft roofs. All iroofa ' good conditi n. he floors and the wooqwork • . cistern was ot deteil'mined. ' . i he hotl8e will be habi~able. either pl robing nor. ele trici ty ~ The I in ruins, how ver, tnices of i .till clear. he walls of s and the sta le stand to located at a prqximaiel.y 200' ' west side o the vatley. ' s of the actory build g, a gr~nding 11 houses (s e plo\ pl.an). I sonry structu es exce~t for l (see p ot plan) • The masonry Ii• of ck.rraments. i and t:H.m. stuccoed.~ The main body of !.the . a • rick roof lai on oeama and ) • The south ection <!lf the had hipped or saddJ• roofs. All buildings are ia ruins. The wa Us stand to : I their full he;ght •nd jhave a sound fabrico They still carry traces of : their finishes. There ia i a great deal of vege~tion on the aite and • . throughQUt the factor; and the walle are in qanger of' destructiont All !loora are covered by debri• and ~ drains and firing tunnels are cho/v.ed~ io· ori-~1 ; roof remaiu i wnerei exceptiona occur to these general condi tioQ they are mentioned under the eection to which they pertain. P~ L. bxholm's map of 1780 showa three buildings on the site or the present group of buildings , b~t. no grind:µig pl.a tr ol'll o The faotory building i The facto~ is a• l~ling one Sto?'7 building 'With a eca~ex •p.lan • . It ap~n. to have been . ' i built in several stages aiid."l.t hae four _. i obset"f'able divisiQQa j(see plot "plan). Th81 are: (lY' the, _ ch:illlney, a b~iling be~eh ,,ad the cistern on the north eide :o!' ,the factoryf (2) t.he n;ort.h 'wing and ~he central portion; -(3) t.he gallery to the east and (~) the boiler hous• anq-'stack 1 The relat ve age of section one c ld not be It has the same stucco type ~s section t o and may be contempora In of cistern i The T P. L. the and at the (18Lli) the plfoducing n is badly de rioratJd. The espon9s to of a of the.T cont.ins the I The cap the T ~leo has ' s ions • Two s f o~ storing ' work ~d finials and is pro"' The west nd of the cap of the T s a new crimped ' ' metal roo present Se6tion section t 1ectiom ,c:A used as a b t house by the r of t est.a:te. l ' is a root wide ga ery to ithe east or is no masonry on4 betJween and the stuc~o or the rormer 8 .•. : t--:.10TE· /7.l ... / . rJ?;·· rl· ''I / . ., 61*1i1dt1"Jt] :,:;~{/,~~ . . ...... , -~·. . {f;'.·Y .b,~; •. .,/.;,. -. .,..~ .. ~ ~ Ra/ 8ByE$'/ale ,. ~e.w F ;;clory,., 6f'Otl/l Plt::tr ,.P/a12 s~ ~:i J..d 1 , ' ! ":.-_ .-!. <'{ ·'·;;; ~{/ ~,_,o un~A:'"':;I ~ continues through the jointure of the two seotions which establishes section ihree as an adc!i ti on, howrever, it is probabl7 an earlier one to judge from the sameness of constNction details. Section f OUT, the boiler house, was planned around the 111achinery it still houses.. An oven extends under the north end of this section and is connected to the stack., There is sufficient machinery left for a layman to follow the general lines of syrup production. The machinery is marke<i ' - ' f . w. Ao McOnie Gla,cow 18610 · The f cohneetion 'wit~ the grinding platform ie still in existence. The functions of the latter are obscured by its l"uinu.ous oondition and its cover of dense vegeta- tion. The construction details of ,J~ction four are different from the main Rody of the factory. Tile window openinga have wood lintels and. the roof was hipped. The grinding platform Ttie grindi.ng platf'ol'll i• a roughly circular plat- form approximately 80 feet in diameter raised 6 1 above the surrounding ground level and bounded . 9 ~Y a re and. the connecti Bouse l The cane •1 '.crusl)ed here c! ~ped into the bo11l11g. lfea~. The The small.jwobden built a; t dwelling by the previo y&ars ago ~ lt is s ill ro9fed, is in poo~ c orid.i ti o • plan Jis ! ~ : . ~ House 2 Only two roof. Mrs. E. ·there ie . and the There is owner ~bout .40 ; all woodwork . I -. till st.anding f Rousei 2. It I 'and ueed to have a .eaddle . ' ' :., iels, th daughter o"f 7 her !Qr storageo i ., " ld house"· by I Ho Jfar~h, an(l aed .abo\.:e I i en, the faetor1 . I ead::.1rom- the ~ ' . I . . I ' ' i sta~ng Dute , oven s?uth 10 • 5- Bolling Bench to the'right. Note debris and vegetation .. ,.. 6- F~ring pit . . _, 7- Firing pit 9 - Boiling House, interior So~tlfllwttjtl,. .. . ~ :: f ·". ·.~ .... I . ,·;·? .~.: -:-"· ~ ;:.; .. ··· · .·• ... -,_) ., ~" ; ::" .' .. ;· .. 10- South .•ail ot 'Boiltng :lioti;se, l~~torm \ to\ the rh:ht. ·, ,/}. f·'· I;, ' . ~·· / . • The. ·1ty1 llage" ah.d. . the old !aetory .. A grouJi ~ rui.q.s is located straight north of H the Estate House on the trail to the Main Line. It consists of two small dwelling houses on the road and the remains of a sugar mill in the bush approximately ho yards northeast of the road. The vil la.ge The two dwelling houses are in ruinous condition, and partly collap15ed. Their principal intereet is their construction. House 1 (see plan) is a waddle construction. House 2 is a wood frame on a stene base (see sketch), si.inilar to the conetructton used in the structure of the fort at Coral Bay. The "old"factory The_ "old" factory consists of a series of ruins of a sugar milL The site is den8ely wooded, • hOlfever, you can still_ locate the grinding plat- fOl"ll, the factory building proper and the cistern • • The ·latter is standing in its full height. '!'he ·standing walls vary ill from ) 9 to 15'. It would be difficult to determine the appearance or the structure when standingo It is, however, feasible to reconstruct the type of sugar mill and the general lines or production. 11 HARBOR PT. Description FORTBERG HILL Fortberg Hill is a · conical hill on a small peninsula between Coral Harbor and Hurricane Bole in Coral Bayo The Fort, in early accounts called "Frederiksvaerntt, is located on the SUllllllit. Foundations of an unidentified structure are immediately west of ·the fort (see · sketch) and a shore battery on a prcmotory to the southeasto General History The fort and the battery were part of a larger defense system of Coral Bayo The first fort on the present site was finished i n 17230 When it l'dis begun 9 is not knowno It is however i shown on the Gevard van Keulen map of 1n90 Its purpose was ~discourage the English settlers of Tortola in their claim of Ste John and to protect the Danish settl ement (1717) The old f "rt was a group .?f mode.st buildings surrounded by a dry stone and earth wallo This played an imp0rtant pai:t in the slave uprising of 1733. 12 I It was attndoned aft er the insurre tion and is not menti0ned \in the 17~5 agreement of transfer between the Danis~ Crown anc~ the Dansk Ves indien Company-. . j . I In 1760 a jfort ism ntioned in con ection With the grant ~ ng of own rship privileg s to Coral Bay settlemento It is present ·st ructure ! especiall~ since th fort was ' 1 \ governmenti at an Fortberg H~ll is i as far bac~ as I A magazine! was i date. in the ' sume that the this pet iod, aban oned by the Danish record iin Sto Thanae \ . • . A magazine is also mentioned ~n 1760 as being built a a battery is shown on th.e sitt' of the p esent one of 1780. Oxholm 's map The detensi system o Coral Bay had two add~tional armed posi~ions o the Gevard van Keulen map of 1719 I . Le Duck's ~sland is ortified and a peninsuta which may be Turner ~r Moor po· nt is labelled "the n1 fort•, This accor~s with th statement by illiam ~arsh of i Caroli!i.a Es~ate I point. ! . here is an ol cannon 'at Moor 13 Frederiksvaern The existing rort is a rectangular enclosure with Basti~ns at the corners. A house was located in the center of the enclosure ~ An arched gateway leads through the west wall of the fort o There are several openings .. ~n . . ,$' the walls, gun slits, windowrs a etco (s~/ sketch) o The !our bastions .appea;r\to have had gun decks 2-3 feet below top: ifJ:the wall with rooms below them o Their remains r~an t (' traced. A staircase on the south wa.U lead!5 to a continous walk alonr, the top or the wallo The structure in the center o.~ -:~~'~ f?~~i:1i'r.:!,: buildt on a platform L' above ground.~ It h4d stone walls up to the hei~)lt of the window sills. The upper part was either a. wattle constructi~n between posts or a wood frame construction; probably the formero The walls of the fort stand frCJll 9e to lJ' above the interior level a :1,; ·.ir ·K rr tYr< 1 ;· 16' to the outside ., T:•f'J Eu· .. 14 ' ' except 1 in lareas sho non plan. Thr masonrlv is • rotigh r~eld stone and brick !ra~entso brick is used i~ cornerin and arches. 11 walls were i . . stuccoed tjut finish s have deterio ated completelyo i The inter~or walls o the f~rt hav crumbled and I I the entir~ area is c vered by a•de se vegetationo i . ' . The fort h~s a comma, ding position and would have I ' . : I. I . . . a magnific~nt views in all directi ns, except for I I ·, I I the vegetafiOno I I I The Magaz~fe_ _ . 1 • TM l!&gazi e (see •kt tch) is buildt !ran Field stoneo The walls . re approxfiately 69 heig t and <ifc>p off about 10 1 · n the outdideo The maga ine commands the entrance t Coral BaJ and to Hurric ne Hole\ Six old cannon are stil~ in place part y hurried under de.briso . . . 13- Forttje~g Hill tram Sande~~ Ba;r • . ! M_acgazine •nMl far pieomqtory. ' I l~- Magazine dilernibl~ a~ i the edge ne top o~ promotory. Note po~ition in relation o entrajnce of Bay. ' , SCOPE OF THIS REPORT The '1.nfol'l!ation for this report was gath~red ~n a •>f. trip to the VU-gin Islands irom November 22 to ; . ,, ,, ... . . : lfovember 27. Four· and a h.$lf days were st')ent on . ~ .. ' . ;. , ·• ' . St. John at Reef Bay and Fortt?erg Hill and one day ! • • in . Charlotte. Amalie. '~· Lack or time eliminated ~· · thorough study, and it~ . . " '' . ' . . .. -·: ~ is .·t~Lt ~· consld~ raltle· amoullt"«of material both in . ' . . ,. •, . . . . ' ' . '> .•: ·• • __ ,,,: . f .· records "an~ ·m the field bas been left untouched • . • . ~ , '-' . . . .. . . ·' FollOlfing records were consulted: '." - :II •. , . . . . . . . . ~ . -.; . ' •. ""' ,i; ~ ' Co1lrt records, St .. -Thanas, Virgin Ialands ,- . .. ·t· . .' . . ' . ·:-~ . -2. P •. t. "Qpio:im - M,.-p -or st. John i1eo (pob.lffao). ~ , , • )11."" • . · J., P. · L. Oxholm. - Sucker .Koeller :.. ~ ' _.: .; ~ . ~.' ' 4. "c·:· F~_: :Pa~~~&an· -~-.s~&de ~!' de Ve~,tindis~·- . :';. ' ·. ·' · ·Oers Hiatorie . · ... 1'!- . - I , " ·;' -r• "1>:· ~ 5~' .ivard'fan · ~\l~n .;.;:Jiap of . St~ :Th~ 81;\d "or .. · ,". /, . . Harbor. in ·st .. JQ]m -published . in Am8t.erdmn 1719 . . . . . . · /-- 6. A. Broendsted ··~ Vore &fllle ·Tropelcoloni•r'. ,. .. ,. . i · « . • ' 7. K.iy Le.raen ~ · Da~sk Vestinclien . , . . ·~ ·' ' ·a. · Waldemar Westergaard ..: t~ lla,nish West Indies ·• ,, 3 Nov.•.54 i6