The Danish National Archives and the Solar Foundation are sponsoring a Centennial Lecture Series on St. Croix and St. Thomas, by seven researchers from the U.S.A., Denmark and the U.S. Virgin Islands, who will participate in a transatlantic lecture series about their shared history. The series is open to the public.
Denmark and the USVI share a common history that is the subject of a series of lectures held this week, Jan. 23-27, on St. Croix and St. Thomas with the title “Histories from a Shared Past.” In June, the lectures will be repeated in Denmark.
The series is organized by the Danish West Indian Society in collaboration with the Friends of Denmark societies of St. Thomas-St. John and St. Croix. It is part of the celebration of the Centennial of the transfer in 1917 of St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix from Denmark to the U.S.A.
“The main purpose of the Danish National Archives is to serve as a common memory. This includes the shared history of Denmark and the U.S. Virgins Islands,” said Asbjørn Hellum, director general of the Danish National Archives.
“Therefore, we have digitized the majority of the historic records from the colonial period, which we will make available to everyone online in March. It is for the same reason that we are sponsoring these lectures: to give people a chance to learn more about their history – both in Denmark and the USVI,” he said.
The lectures are all free of charge and open to the public. They will include topics such as “Runaway Danish Slaves in a Pan-Caribbean and Atlantic Perspective,” “Slave Complaints on St. Croix” and “Socio-Cultural Development in the USVI.”
The lectures will take place at 9 a.m., Monday, Jan. 23 and Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the University of the Virgin Islands Great Hall on St. Croix. In addition, the series will also be held at 6 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 26 and Friday, Jan. 27, at the Bertha C. Boschulte Middle School Auditorium on St. Thomas.
For more information, contact Julie Avery, communications consultant at the Danish National Archives at +45 41 71 72 41
