GEOGRAPHICAL SETTING


 As this report is concerned with the archaeological resources
of the island of St. John in the United States Virgin Islands, it is
well that we should initially place this group geographically and
geologically in the general West Indian area. The West Indies or
Antilles constitute as a whole the northern and eastern limits of
the Caribbean Sea from the Yucatan Channel to Venezuela in
South America. Generally the island chain is divided into two
major divisions, the Greater and Lesser Antilles. The Greater
Antilles are represented by such major island groups as Cuba,
Jamaica, Hispaniola (Haiti and Dominican Republic), and Puerto
Rico. As is pointed out below, geologists include the Virgin Islands
in the Greater Antilles. On the other hand, all of the island arc
from the Virgin Islands southward through Grenada and Trini-
dad is recognized as the Lesser Antilles. Some would define Trini-
dad as a detached land mass of Venezuela and therefore not a
true portion of the Lesser Antilles. Those familiar with sailing
in the Lesser Antilles will recognize a further division of the arc
into the Windward and Leeward groups. The Windwards are
identified as those islands from Grenada to and including Martin-
ique, while the grouping northward through the Virgin Islands
delineates the Leeward Islands.