Estate Becks Grove
Becks Grove is estate 9 in St. Croix’s Prince’s Quarter. Based on appearances on historic maps, the windmill was likely built in the 19th century and represented on only a single historic map. The estate was likely named for Jens Michelsen Beck. The inscription on the main entrance keystone says 1819. The windmill tower is in good condition.
None of the historic maps indicate any settlement on the Prince’s Quarter side of Estate Becks Grove through the annotated Beck maps. While the 1766 Zöllner manuscript copy of Beck places an animal mill on the border between the two, the processing operations ultimately ended up much closer to the center of estate 9 Prince’s Quarter.
The 1799 Oxholm map included an animal mill near the center of estate 9, naming it clear mount. The 1856 Parsons map depicts a windmill at elevation 635 feet at Becks Grove.
The 1920 USCGS topographic sheet shows ruins identifiable as a windmill at elevation 630 feet at the southern tip of a ridge at Becks Grove and the later USGS map show ruins identifiable as a windmill in the analogous area of Becks Grove.
The annotated Beck maps and early manuscript copies attribute ownership to Cancelie Raad & Jens Michelsen Beck. The 1790 & 1791 manuscript maps after Beck by Mühlenfels & Janssen attribute ownership to Daly & Irwin.
McGuire geographic dictionary of the Virgin Islands (p.33) notes the mill is in 9b, Prince’s Quarter, consistent with the Oxholm maps and 20th century topographic maps.
Historic Maps of Becks Grove
