St. Eustatius, affectionately referred to as Statia, measures 5 miles long and 2 miles wide, covers an area of 11.8 square miles and has a population of approximately 2100 inhabitants. It's located in the Northeastern Caribbean 150 miles East of Puerto Rico, 90 miles East of St. Croix, 38 miles South of St. Maarten and 17 miles Southeast of Saba. Statia's coordinates are 17.00 latitude and 63.04 in longitude. Featuring an extinct volcano, black sand beaches and a lush tropical flora, Statia will astonish you with views similar to the Hawaiian islands in the Pacific. Together with sister islands Saba and St. Maarten, Statia forms the Windward Islands of the Dutch Caribbean.
HISTORY
Statia was discovered in 1493 by Christopher Columbus. Throughout a tumultuous colonial
era that followed, the island changed hands at least 22 times. In 1636, at the end of the
80 year war between Holland and Spain, the Dutch took final possession. During the 17th
and 18th century, Statia was a major trading center with its population reaching a
staggering 20,000 inhabitants and thousands of merchant ships calling at her port. For a
while, Statia was the only link between Europe and the fledgling American colonies.
Warehouses along Oranje Bay in Lower Town, Oranjestad overflowed with food supplies, arms
and ammunition earmarked for shipment to George Washington's army fighting the War of
Independence. Even Benjamin Franklin had his mail routed through Statia to ensure its safe
delivery.
Statia, remembered as the emporium of the Caribbean, was nicknamed "The Golden
Rock," reflecting its prosperous trading days and wealthy residents. On November
16, 1776, the American Brig-of-War, the "Andrew Doria," sailed into Statia's
harbor firing its 13-gun salute indicating the American's long sought independence. The 11
gun salute reply, roaring from the mighty canons at Fort Oranje under the command of
Governor Johannes de Graaff, established Statia as the first foreign nation to officially
recognize the newly formed United States of America. Outraged by this act, the British
took swift action to punish St. Eustatius. Under command of Admiral Rodney, the island was
attacked and plundered by British forces. Statia has since then never regained its former
glory as the "Golden Rock" and remains today a peaceful and quiet
POPULATION
The first inhabitants of Statia were the Arawaks and Carib indians who arrived in great
sea-going canoes from South America before the end of the 15th century. Statia's present
population of approximately 2100 is made up of mainly people of Black African descent with
a pleasant nature and zeal for work. In the 1600's, slaves of African descent were brought
to the island to cultivate the land of more than 70 different plantations. At the end of
the 18th century, slavery had been abolished in the Netherlands Antilles. Today, people
representing more than 20 nationalities live in harmony on this peaceful Dutch Caribbean
island.
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