CHANT's Alexander Hamilton Tour Begins at the Old Danish Customs House, St. Croix | Photo credit: Prayitno / Thank you for (12 million+) view
🇻🇮St. Croix

Forget Broadway! Get To Know The REAL Alexander Hamilton in St. Croix

I came to know the real Alexander Hamilton in the shadow of this building, the historic Old Danish Customs House (est. 1734) located within the Christiansted National Historic Site on my home island of St. Croix. The occasion: an elementary school field trip into our storied island’s colorful past.

Now, when I say the real Alexander Hamilton I don’t mean all the major things he did to help establish the United States of America. We covered that stuff in history class.

No, the Hamilton I got to know here was the guy who spent his formative years, just like me, living and working in St. Croix.

From 1765 to 1772 –– ages eight to 15 –– Hamilton called St. Croix home, working from the not-so-tender for the times age of nine as a clerk. It was during this time that the young Hamilton would gain his initial knowledge of trade and economics; knowledge that would soon form the cornerstone of the U.S. national finance system.

For me, it was fascinating to stand here imagining Alexander Hamilton as a boy working among the power brokers at the Customs House and the Danish West India & Guinea Company Warehouse (1749).

Now, thanks to a great new package from our friends at Hotel Caravelle, you can live an enhanced version of my childhood experience getting to know the real Alexander Hamilton.

The hotel has partnered with the Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism (CHANT) organization to include tours tracing a typical day in Alexander Hamilton’s life on St. Croix in special new packages. And just like my long ago school visit, CHANT’s Alexander Hamilton walking tour starts in the shadow of Old Danish Customs House.

The 2½-hour tour continues through Christiansted with stops at the site of the dry goods store Hamilton’s mother owned and the neighborhood where Hamilton and his mother lived alongside working-class people of European ancestry and free people of color. Additional stops take you to the other places in Christiansted that Hamilton called home, as well as the former headquarters of the Beekman and Kruger import/export trading company where Hamilton served as a clerk.

The four-day/three-night package for two includes a bottle of rum and two tickets to CHANT’s Alexander Hamilton’s Christiansted Historic Tour. Rates start at $485 (April 15 – Dec 14, superior room) and $640 (Dec 15 – April 14, 2018), excluding taxes.

For reservations and more information, please call the Caravelle Hotel & Casino at 800-524-0410. For details on how to book Hotel Caravalle Hamilton packages online, click here.

 

*The information in this story was accurate at the time of publishing. All rates and specials are subject to change at the travel provider’s discretion.

**Photo credit: Flickr user Prayitno / Thank you for (12 million+) view

Last updated by Steve Bennett on .

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