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U.S. Virgin Islands - People

In 2000, the population of the USVI reached 108,612 people; in 2008 it was estimated to be just under 112,000. More than 40,000 Virgin Islanders live in the U.S. mainland and Virgin Islanders have deep family ties throughout the 50 states.

St. Croix County contains 49% of the population, St. Thomas County 47%, and St. John County 4%. From 1970 to 2008, the entire USVI population increased by over 48,000 people, or 77%. St. Thomas County showed the greatest absolute increase, growing by over 23,200 people, and St. John County showed the fastest rate of growth at 171%. By 2015, the population was projected in 2008 to increase by over 3,000 people, with St. John growing by 11% percent and St. Croix and St. Thomas Counties growing by 2% each.

In 2008, the population density was estimated to be 162 persons per square kilometer. The most densely populated county was St. Thomas with approximately 650 persons per square kilometer. The most populated city in the USVI, Charlotte Amalie, is located on the southwestern side of St. Thomas. The second most densely populated county was St. Croix with a density of 98 persons per square kilometer.

The U.S. Virgin Islands were the second most populous Island Area of the United States, with more than 100,000 residents, nearly equally distributed between St. Thomas and St. Croix Islands. St. John Island had roughly 4,000 inhabitants, as most of the island is a national park. Between 2000 and 2010, the U.S. Virgin Islands lost 2.0 percent of their population, whereas in the previous decade they gained nearly 7,000 residents. This 6.7 percent rise in population between 1990 and 2000 was the smallest increase among all Island Areas for that decade. Looking ahead to 2020, the U.S. Virgin Islands are projected to decline in population by about 6 percent.

In the U.S. Virgin Islands, the population of St. Croix is nearly evenly distributed across the island, but St. Thomas Island’s population is concentrated in the central and eastern parts of that island. Small settlements can be seen around Cruz Bay and Coral Bay on St. John Island. In the U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Croix Island saw a decline in population in all of its subdivisions, except for the easternmost one. St. Thomas saw most of its population gains in the northern part of the island, whereas St. John Island gained population in the area coextensive with the national park. It appears that the less populated county subdivisions of the U.S. Virgin Islands experienced a population increase, while the most populous parts saw a decrease.

In 2000, 26% of the adult population (25 years of age and over) had a high school diploma. Approximately 18% had some college or an associate’s degree and 17% held a bachelor’s degree or higher. This distribution is broken down by gender in Figure 29. In all education attainment categories, females outnumbered males excluding those that have not received a high school diploma.

The U.S. Virgin Islands population was majority Black or African American alone. In fact, 76.0 percent of the population was Black, while 15.6 percent was White. With respect to the Hispanic-origin question, 17.4 percent of U.S. Virgin Islanders reported to be Hispanic. People who identify their origin as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish may be of any race. All of St. Thomas, most of western and central St. Croix, and one western tract in St. John show Black prevalence, whereas the easternmost tract of St. Croix and the largest tract of St. John show White prevalence.

The primary language spoken in the home was English (68%), followed by Spanish or Spanish Creole (20%), French or French Creole (10%), and other languages (2%) (35). Of the total population, 48% were born in the USVI, 34% were born in a foreign country, 14% were born in the United States, and 4% were born in Puerto Rico or another U.S. island area.

The U.S. Virgin Islands’ fairly rectangular pyramid indicates contraction in the younger age groups between 2000 and 2010, as the base of the pyramid gets narrower. The U.S. Virgin Islands has high percentages of its population in the older age groups, 65 years and older. Thirty-two percent of the total population in 2000 ranged in age from 0-17, followed by the age groups 45-59 (21%), 35-44 (14%), 25-34 (13%), 18-24 (8%), 60-69 (8%), 70-79 (4%), and 80+ (2%). This was generally consistent across the two most populated islands, St. Croix and St. Thomas. On St. John, individuals aged 45-59 outnumbered those aged 0-17 (35).