The Seaplane is Usually On Time
http://www.seaborneairlines.com/
The USVI, Being a United States Territory
Has its own U.S. District Court
http://www.vid.uscourts.gov/
The Telephone, Cellular, Cable, Broadband,
Long Distance, & Internet are Modern,
Fiber-based & Integrated
http://www.iccvi.com/companies.htm
The (Pulitzer Prize winning) Newspaper is On-Line at
http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/
History:
During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two
territorial units, one English and the other Danish.
Sugarcane, produced by slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th
and early 19th centuries.
In 1917, the US purchased the Danish
portion, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848.
Location:
Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic
Ocean, east of Puerto Rico
Geographic
Coordinates:
18 20 N, 64 50 W
Area:
total: 352 sq km
water: 3 sq km
land: 349 sq km
Twice the size of Washington, DC
Climate:
Subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity,
little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November
Terrain:
St. Thomas: Mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land
St.Croix: Hilly and Mountainous with flat areas in the center and at edges
Elevation
Lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain (St. Thomas) 474 m
Land use:
arable land: 15%
permanent crops: 6%
other: 79% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
Geography -
Important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane
for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural
deepwater harbors in the Caribbean
Population:
124,778 (July 2004 est.)
0-14 years: 26% (male 16,685; female 15,794)
15-64 years: 64.4% (male 36,241; female 44,157)
65 years and over: 9.5% (male 5,078; female 6,823) (2003 est.)
Median age:
total: 31.2 years
male: 28.6 years
female: 33.7 years (2002)
Population
growth rate:
1.02% (2004 est.)
Life expectancy
at birth:
total population: 78.59 years
male: 74.73 years
female: 82.68 years (2004 est.)
Ethnic groups:
black 78%, white 10%, other 12%
(Note: West Indian 81% (49% born in the Virgin Islands and 32% born
elsewhere in the West Indies), US mainland 13%,
Puerto Rican 4%, other 2%
Religions:
Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7%
Languages:
English (official), Spanish, Creole
Government
Organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations
between the Virgin Islands and the US under the jurisdiction of the
Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior
Capital:
Charlotte Amalie
Executive
branch:
Governor; Lieutenant Governor
Legislative
branch:
Unicameral Senate
15 seats; members are elected by popular vote
to serve two-year terms
Elections: Even years.
The Virgin Islands elects one non-voting representative to the US
House of Representatives
Judicial branch:
US District Court of the Virgin Islands
and Territorial Court of the Virgin Islands
GDP:
Purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2% (2004 est.)
Labor force:
49,000 (2004 est.)
Currency:
US dollar
Telephone System:
Uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay
international: submarine cable and satellite communications; satellite
earth stations
Highways:
total: 856 km
The only US possession
where driving on the left side of the road
is practiced (2000)
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