French Heritage Week returns to St. Thomas this Thursday, July 9 with five days of music, dancing, community gatherings and cultural celebrations, honoring the enduring legacy of the French community in the U.S. Virgin Islands while marking a new chapter in the territory’s relationship with neighboring St. Barthélemy.
This year’s festivities come just months after officials from the U.S. Virgin Islands and St. Barthélemy formally signed a twinning agreement, establishing a framework for expanded cultural, educational, sporting, and institutional exchanges between the two neighboring islands. While residents have shared family, cultural and economic ties between the islands for generations, the agreement formalizes that longstanding relationship and creates new opportunities to preserve and celebrate their shared heritage.
French Heritage Weeks officially begins on Thursday at Lindbergh Bay Hotel with live music and dancing by Saline Combo from St. Barthélemy and Oliek beginning at 6:00 p.m.
The celebration continues Friday, July 10, at Sibs on the Mountain where St.Barthélemy Musicians and Friends will perform alongside Obsession Band beginning at 6:00 p.m.
On Saturday, July 11, Sibs on the Mountain once again hosts an evening of live music and dancing, this time featuring The When Band and Jam Band beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Then on Sunday, July 12, the festivities shift to Hull Bay, where the Northside Sportsfishing Club’s Bastille Day Kingfish Tournament begins with fishing at 5:30 a.m. Festivities continue throughout the afternoon with live music. The awards ceremony is at 7:00 p.m, after which the celebration and music will continue into to evening.
French Heritage Week concludes on Tuesday, July 14, with a Bastille Day Celebration in Frenchtown beginning at 6:00 p.m, featuring live music, local cuisine, and a cash bar.
Observed annually around Bastille Day, French Heritage Week recognizes the generations of French immigrants and their descendants whose contributions have helped shape the cultural, economic and historical identity of the Virgin Islands. While Bastille Day commemorates the storming of the Bastille in 1789, a defining moment of the French Revolution, the local observance has evolved into a celebration of the French community’s lasting influence throughout the territory.
This influence extends far beyond language or surnames. French Virgin Islanders have played significant roles in agriculture, fishing, commerce, public service, education, and healthcare, while family names and landmarks continue to reflect centuries of French presence.
For organizers, the week is about more than remembering history, it’s about ensuring that future generations remain connected to it.
For more information about French Heritage Week, contact Odile de Lyrot at odiledelyrot@gmail.com.
