British Virgin Islands
Salt Island, southeast of Tortola, has two large salt ponds at its center. For centuries before the development of refrigeration, passing ships and Virgin Islanders would visit the island to obtain salt for the preservation of beef and fish. During the dry season, in April or early May, water in the ponds would evaporate leaving a hard crust of salt on the bottom. The Salt Pond Ordinance of 1904 vested ownership of the ponds to the Crown and required harvesters to give the government one bag of salt for every three collected (later reduced to a ceremonial pound of salt for the Queen). Up to 1,000 pounds of salt was harvested over a two day period each year. Under the supervision of an island administrator or the governor, the harvest would begin when a member of the police force would fire a gun. The tradition died out in the mid-twentieth century as cheap imported salt became increasingly readily available and the tourism industry gave rise to better-paying employment.
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