List of people from the United States Virgin Islands

Flag of the U.S. Virgin Islands

This is a list of prominent people who were born in, lived in, or are otherwise closely associated with the United States Virgin Islands (which are composed of the islands of St. Croix, St. John, and St. Thomas). This list does not include people from the British Virgin Islands. The list covers notable individuals who have garnered international recognition in artistic, cultural, economic, historical, notorious, and political arenas.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

Actors

Kelsey Grammer

• Lisa Canning (born 1966), television actress
• Kelsey Grammer (born 1955), actor
• Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (born 1953), actor
• Janelle James (born 1979), actor
• Jasmin St. Claire (born 1970), adult film actress

Artists

• Fraser Kershaw, philanthropist, film artist
• Fritz Melbye (1826–1869), marine painter; born in Denmark, lived and painted in the Danish West Indies
• Camille Pissarro (1830–1903), artist, French Impressionist painter

Athletes

Olympic athlete basketball player and swimmer Tim Duncan (2010).

• Raja Bell (born 1976), former professional basketball player
• Tombi Bell (born 1979), former professional basketball player (sister to Raja Bell)
• Aliyah Boston (born 2001), professional basketball player
• Livingstone Bramble (1960–2025), former professional boxing champion; born on St. Kitts & Nevis, raised on St. Croix
• Jerry Browne (born 1966), professional baseball player
• Joe Christopher (1935–2023), first baseball player born in the territory to play in Major League Baseball
• Horace Clarke (1940–2020), professional baseball player
• Callix Crabbe (born 1983), Major League Baseball Player (San Diego Padres)
• Midre Cummings (born 1971), professional baseball player
• Tim Duncan (born 1976), former professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs
• Brasheedah Elohim (born 1980), American-Israeli women's professional basketball player
• Emile Griffith (1938–2013), professional boxing champion
• Elrod Hendricks (1940–2005), professional baseball player and coach
• Peter Holmberg (born 1960), Olympic sailor; as of 2016, the only member of the USVI Olympic Team to win an Olympic medal
• John Jackson (born 1989), professional boxer (son of Julian Jackson; brother to Julius Jackson)
• Julian Jackson (born 1960), former professional boxing champion
• Julius Jackson (born 1987), professional boxer (son of Julian Jackson)
• Milt Newton (born 1965), former professional basketball player; administrator for multiple NBA teams
• Calvin Pickering (born 1976), professional baseball player
• "Sugar" Ray Seales (born 1952 in Saint Croix), the only American boxer to win gold in the 1972 Summer Olympics
• LaVerne Jones-Ferrette (born 1981), professional sprinter and Olympian

Entrepreneurs

• Sosthenes Behn (1882–1957), founder of the Puerto Rico Telephone Company and ITT Corporation
• William Leidesdorff, (1810–1848), entrepreneur
• Bartholomew Sharp, (c. 1650–1702), buccaneer

Historians

• Arturo Alfonso Schomburg (1874–1938), historian, writer, activist, namesake of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture; born in Puerto Rico to a mother from St. Croix, attended school on St. Thomas

Models

• Hannah Jeter (born 1990), Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue model; born and raised on St. Thomas

Musicians

• Alton Adams (1889–1987), musician, first black bandmaster in the United States Navy
• Bennie Benjamin (1907–1989), composer
• Delyno Brown (born 1981), reggae artist
• Vanessa Daou (born 1967), international singer-songwriter, dancer, writer, poet
• Jon Lucien (1942–2007), vocalist and musician; born on the island of Tortola and raised on Saint Thomas
• Rock City, musical duo also known as R. City and Planet VI; formed 2003 in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
• Theron Thomas (born 1982), member of musical duo Rock City
• Rich Nice, first rapper signed to Motown Records
• Rashawn Ross, (born 1979), trumpeter, arranger, session musician and a member of the Dave Matthews Band. Born in St Thomas.

Nurses

• Ianthe Blyden (1899–1984), pioneer of nursing at Knud Hansen Memorial Hospital on St. Thomas
• Myrah Keating Smith (1908–1994), the only health provider on St. John for two decades

Pharmacist

• Albert Heinrich Riise (1810–1882), often referred to as A. H. Riise, was a Danish pharmacist and Rum manufacturer from St. Thomas in the Danish West Indies.

Political leaders

Alexander Hamilton

Judah P. Benjamin

• Alexander Hamilton (1755–1804), first United States Secretary of the Treasury, an American "founding father", economist, and political philosopher; born in Nevis, raised on St. Croix
• Archie Alexander (1888–1958), mathematician, engineer, former Governor of the Virgin Islands
• Judah P. Benjamin (1811–1884), first Jewish U.S. Senator; Secretary of State, Confederate States of America
• Edward Wilmot Blyden (1832–1912), Liberian educator, writer, diplomat, and politician
• Frank Rudolph Crosswaith (1892–1965), socialist and labor leader
• Gabriel Milan (c. 1631–1689), colonial governor
• Ron De Lugo (1930–2020), St. Croix politician and former candidate for governor
• Hubert Henry Harrison (1883–1927), orator, political activist
• William H. Hastie (1904–1976), jurist, lawyer, Governor of the Virgin Islands
• Ulises Heureaux (1845–1899), former President of the Dominican Republic (mother born in Saint Thomas) ^[1]
• Casper Holstein (1888–1944), humanitarian
• Roy Innis (1934–2017), African-American activist, civil rights leader
• D. Hamilton Jackson (1884–1946), journalist, labor leader, attorney, judge
• J. Raymond Jones (1899–1991), political leader, humanitarian
• William Leidesdorff (1810–1848), entrepreneur
• Juan Francisco Luis (1940–2011), 24th Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands
• Antonio López de Santa Anna (1794–1876), President of Mexico
• Terence Todman (1926–2014), former U.S. ambassador
• Denmark Vesey (1767–1822), slave revolt leader
• Peter Carl Frederik von Scholten (1784–1854), Governor-General of the Danish West Indies from 1827 to 1848

Writers

• Barbara Christian (1943–2000), educator and writer
• Doris Jadan (1925–2004), author and environmental activist; lived on St. John from 1955 until her death
• Audre Lorde (1934–1992), writer, feminist, civil rights activist; born in New York, died on St. Croix
• Karrine Steffans (born 1978), author
• Tiphanie Yanique (born 1978), author; born and raised on St. Thomas

See also

• List of Eastern Caribbean people
• Virgin Islands American

References

1. Hijos de Inmigrantes en República Dominicana Archived 2011-07-07 at the Wayback Machine from ariskelvyn.com

External links

• University of the Virgin Islands: Profiles of outstanding Virgin Islanders (1972)
• Media Library Services, Department of Education, St. Croix District: Profiles of Outstanding Virgin Islanders