National Register of Historic Places

Petroglyph Site

Reef Bay, St. John County, U.S. Virgin Islands
Listed
July 6, 1982
Type
Site
Period
Pre Contact
Ref No.
82001716

About this property

The Reef Bay Trail petroglyphs are a group of Taíno petroglyph carvings found in the Virgin Islands National Park on the island of St. John, United States Virgin Islands. They are located in a part of the park called the Reef Bay Trail. Some of the carvings are located above a reflection pool of water and were thought to be the symbols for "water". There is no exact way to confirm they are authentic Taíno carvings but the most popular theory is that they are from pre-columbian inhabitants. A new petroglyph was found in 2011 after several people from an organization called "Friends of the Park" went on a search. This is because an old park photograph showed there was a petroglyph unaccounted for. The newest found symbol is thought to be thousands of years old and artistically similar to the pottery of the Saladoid culture. The petroglyph site was listed under the name Petroglyph Site in the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 1982.

Location

Reef Bay, St. John County, U.S. Virgin Islands

Categories

PREHISTORIC
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
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Conflict & War
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
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The Community
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Rivers & Rail
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Notable People
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Finds & Access
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Questions about this property

When was Petroglyph Site listed on the National Register?

Petroglyph Site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 6, 1982.

What type of historic resource is Petroglyph Site?

Petroglyph Site is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Petroglyph Site?

The period of significance for Petroglyph Site is recorded as the pre_contact era.

Can I research the history near Petroglyph Site?

Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Petroglyph Site will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.

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