Columbus came upon the entire string of Virgin Islands on his second voyage to the New World, in 1493.  

During the 17th century, both the Dutch and the British developed an interest in the Virgin Islands. The British established control and remained in power there for almost three centuries. They cultivated a profitable sugar industry with sprawling plantations and imported African slaves.until the 1960s, when Laurance Rockefeller and Charlie Cary essentially started the tourism industry there. Recognizing the tourism potential of the serene islands, Rockefeller developed the Little Dix resort on Virgin Gorda and Cary established a marina complex on Tortola.Also during the 1960s, the British Virgin Islands were given greater autonomy within the British Commonwealth.