Villa Botanica at Plantation Crown and Hawk Botanical Garden located 1500 feet above the harbor of St. Thomas lies in the beautiful mountain top valley of Crown Mountain and Hawk. This historic sugarcane plantation was at the height of its sugar production in the 1780’s, totaling 200 acres at the time. The estate has one of 2 sugar mills on St. Thomas known as a cockpit mill, a sunken sugar mill.      The plantations sugarcane cultivation declined in the mid 1800’s due to the abolishment of slavery in the Virgin Islands and the introduction of the sugar beet to more temperate climates. In the 1890’s the estate evolved into a botanical garden belonging to the Agricultural Society of Denmark. It has had several property owners since.   Today this five and a half acre estate around the mill is still marked by the majestic royals as viewed from the busy port of Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas as it was centuries ago. The present day owners, horticulturists with a passion for nature, have been engaged in an ongoing process of converting the estate once again into a botanical garden.    Their interest in preserving history has grown since purchasing the plantation and they hope that all who visit are inspired by the surroundings they have created. Plantation Crown and Hawk will be open to the public in the very near future as St. Thomas’ first historical botanical garden.