Philadelphia’s Weitzman Museum tells the forgotten story of Caribbean Jews who supplied the American Revolution

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The governor of Sint Eustatius, a tiny Caribbean island about 100 miles east of Puerto Rico, came to Philadelphia on Wednesday to inaugurate a semiquincentennial exhibition that shows how the island played a critical role in the American Revolution.

Gov. Alida Frances said a person can stand at one point on St. Eustatius and see the ocean in every direction.

“We, as a small island, always felt that our story was hidden,” she said. “But we did everything ourselves to keep the story alive. When we tell people of the world that we played this important role in American history, especially in the independence of America, it seems farfetched to most people.”

“The First Salute” at the Weitzman Museum of American Jewish History pulled about 100 objects and manuscripts, many directly from St. Eustatius and its neighboring islands, which tell the story of smuggling, trade, weapons and international networking that was crucial to supply the War of Independence.

St. Eustatius, or Statia as it is known on the island, was and still is a territory of The Netherlands. The first ships of the newly minted U.S. Navy arrived in the island port in 1776 to pick up supplies, including critically needed gunpowder, just a few months after the Declaration of Independence was signed.

The island greeted the incoming navy ships with a 13-cannon salute, representing the 13 colonies. It was the first foreign entity to officially recognize the sovereignty of the United States.

The first artifact seen in “The First Salute” is a thoroughly rusted 18th-century cannon from St. Eustatius. Its provenance is murky, but the cannon may have been one of those fired in the titular salute.

“I don’t know if a cannon from St. Eustatius has ever been exhibited in the United States,” curator Josh Perelman said.

The ‘First Salute’ is a Jewish story

In 1777, St. Eustatius, like many Caribbean islands, had large Jewish populations. Many Jews fleeing European countries, particularly antisemitic oppression in Spain, Portugal and Eastern European countries, migrated to more favorable countries, such as Holland.

Many continued onto Caribbean territories to take advantage of trading opportunities. Positioned along favorable Atlantic trade winds between Europe and Africa and the Americas, the Caribbean islands were essential and lucrative shipping ports.

St. Eustatius became a strategic military position for shipping military support from European allies to the American revolutionary effort, including weapons and gunpowder.

“There have been books written about St. Eustatius and its role in the Revolution,” said Laura Arnold Leibman, professor of American Jewish Studies at Princeton University, who consulted on the Weitzman exhibition.

“Those books, weirdly, have not told much about Jews,” she said, “which we think was a huge missed opportunity.”

In the late 18th century, St. Eustatius had a population of about a tenth of Philadelphia’s, but its Jewish population was larger than that of any North American city. In all of the colonies, there were only two established synagogues — in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island.

“Many people don’t know, but before 1825 the largest Jewish communities in the Americas were all in the Caribbean,” Leibman said. “St. Eustatius, a relatively small island geographically, had about twice the Jewish population of either Philadelphia or New York at the time.”

American Jews were not unanimous in their support of the American Revolution. One of Leibman’s favorite objects in the exhibition is a piece of needlework by a 15-year-old Jewish girl in New York, Rebecca Hendricks, depicting the 10 Commandments. Leibman said Hendrix’s father signed a loyalty oath to King George III, seen right next to the sampler.

“This is a good example of us trying to make sure we are not just saying ‘Rah! Rah! Rah! Patriots!’ all the time,” she said. “Jews, like every other group of people, were on both sides of the conflict.”

The downfall of the Jews on St. Eustatius

Regardless of which side of the War of Independence they aligned on, Jews on St. Eustatius ultimately suffered. Many were financially wiped out by the war.

The British Admiral George Rodney captured the island in 1781 to suffocate American supply lines. There, he discovered the merchants of St. Eustatius were fabulously wealthy. Targeting the Jews in particular, Rodney systematically plundered anything and everything of value on the island for his personal benefit.

“They were robbed blind,” Francis said. “Their ships were intercepted, robbed of all of the cargo that they brought in for trade. Their shops were robbed. They were exiled. Gradually, they started to move away from the island because they felt no longer safe. The whole economy of the islands went downhill.”

Frances said there is no longer a Jewish community on St. Eustatius. Nevertheless, the residents have preserved the island’s Jewish legacy. The walls of the original synagogue, now in ruins, still stand. Artifacts such as Dutch Delft plateware and sundry Judaica objects have been preserved.

“The First Salute” includes a Hanukkah oil lamp, believed to be the only 18th-century object of Jewish ritual from St. Eustatius to survive.

“We know that it was there at the time of The First Salute, at the time of the Revolution,” Perelman said. “It’s incredible to have it here in Philadelphia and to give visitors the opportunity to see this remarkable object that is humble but tells such a massive story.”

“The First Salute” will be on view at the Weitzman Museum of American Jewish History through April 2027.