The St. Croix Labor Revolt of 1878
A Revived Form of Feudalism in the Virgin Islands Sparks "Fireburn"
After emancipation, another repressive system of exploitation was introduced which in essence matched the prior servitude of the slave economy. The former slaves were now paid for their work, but their salaries depended on an almost feudal subsistence of labor that bound them to the owners wherewithal in stipulated contracts. These contracts dictated the amount of time employed, the conditions of housing, and, effectively, the freedom of movement or advancement. The ordinance of 1849 under Governor-General Peter Hansen adjusted to a meager system of interdependence for the benefit of the planters, who supplied the very low wages and also adapted measures to bring in Indian indentured servants and immigrant laborers to make up for the worker shortfall. A small number of slaves responded by immigrating to St. Thomas to work in the more lucrative shipping docks, but as the number of passports issued was hindered by governmental interference, more and more “free” black workers simply adapted grudgingly to the existing system until the culminating events of 1878.
Fireburn in Frederiksted
On October 1, 1878, a day before contracts were to be renewed, a crowd of black workers gathered in Frederiksted to desist the renewal of contracts, which were considered contractual forms of indentured servitude. Rumors began to be circulated that passports were unavailable and that a group of workers were being detained on route to Vieques. Violence soon ensued after another rumor broke out that a local drunk, Henry Trottman, who had been taken to the hospital by the police for a cut on his foot, was maltreated and died in police custody. This sent forth a barrage of stones from the crowd, and Danish soldiers responded by shooting back. As the soldiers barricaded themselves in the fort, the crowd began looting the surrounding area, setting fire to many buildings. The event is referred to as the “Fireburn” due to the rioters’ employment of loose sticks and bundled torches to ignite the town buildings and later, the plantations.
Military assistance from Lieutenant Ostermann came late to Frederiksted, and Governor Garde did not hear of the rebellion until October 2. As the streets were cleared by force from the town of Frederiksted, the rioters continued their ravage by attacking the numerous plantations, splitting into several groups and enticing a number of fellow onlookers to join in the destruction. French and British aide came to St. Croix, but Garde declined their assistance.
Queen Mary and Other Cohorts
On October 5, Garde demanded that all workers return to the plantations. If they were not to return, they were presumed rebels. This effort, though, produced minimal results and further acts of rebellion continued. It is important to note, as Virgin Islands historian Isaac Dookhan says, that there was never any clear organization of the rebellion from the beginning. Nonetheless, leaders and heroes sprung from the disorder, such as “Queen Mary” or Mary Thomas, Axelline Salomon, and John Lewis. Over 60 black workers died as a result of the riot; only three whites were killed. The leadership of the parties was later attributed to recent immigrants of other West Indian islands, including Jamaica and Barbados.
Labor Reforms
Soon after labor reforms were put in order, such as the reform of October 24, 1879, which supposedly put in place a wage increase and liberalization of income for wage earners. The ordinance, however, did not improve much from the previous one issued in 1849. As Peter Jensen writes in From Serfdom to Fireburn and Strike: The History of Black Labor in the Danish West Indies 1848-1917, "The liberalization of labor conditions in the 1879, then, did not necessarily result in any improvements in the laborers' conditions, on balance, since it was obtained on the planters' and not the laborers' terms." (Jensen 139)
Sources:
Dookhan,Isaac. A History of the Virgin Islands of the United States. 3rd ed. Kingston, Jamaica: Canoe Press, 1994.
Jensen, Peter. From Serfdom to Fireburn and Strike : the History of Black Labor in the Danish West Indies, 1848-1916. Christiansted, St. Croix [V.I.]: Antilles Press, 1998.
Lauring, Paulle. A History of the Kingdom of Denmark. Translated by David Hohnen. Høst & Søn: Copenhagen. 1960.
Westergaard,Waldemar. The Danish West Indies under Company Rule (1671-1754): with a supplementary chapter, 1755-1917. Facsim. of: 1917 ed. New York: Macmilllan, 1917. Ann Arbor, Michigan: University Microfilms, 1973.
Farmer uses plow near Frederiksted, 1941
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French fort in Frederiksted, 1941
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