A Brief History of Vieques Island

Vieques Puerto Rico was inhabited by Native American peoples between 3000 and 2000 BC. The Igneri people originating from Venezuela, arrived around 200BC and in 1000AD merged with Hispanolia and Cuban groups to form the Taíno culture. In the early 1600’s the Spanish arrived and decimated the population by killing, imprisoning and enslaving the entire Taíno population. After a 300 year period of lawlessness, pirates and outlaws, Europeans fought for control of Vieques.

The Spanish Settle Vieques

In the beginning of the 19th Century, the Spanish secured and settled Vieques Island and in 1811 Puerto Rico began the annexation of Vieques. Vieques was formally annexed to Puerto Rico in 1854. Sugar Cane plantations dominated the island in the 19th century and many black immigrants arrived in Vieques to work on the plantations. Some were brought in as slaves and others as independent economic migrants. After the Spanish-American war in 1898, Puerto Rico and Vieques were ceded to the United States.

Vieques During World War II

Marines in World War II ibiblio The United States purchased about two thirds of Vieqeus as a base to provide a safe haven for the British fleet should Britain fall to Nazi Germany. The land was purchased from owners of large farms and sugar plantations that were suffering after the great depression and the fall of the sugar market. After the war, the US Navy continued used the area for military exercises, firing ranges and weapons testing.

Vieques, The Green Island

In May 2003 the Navy withdrew from Vieques, and the land became a protected National Park Preserve, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildfe Service.
Today Vieques island is the Caribbean’s largest national wildlife refuge, home to wild horses, sea turtles, migratory and resident bird populations and other wildlife.