I can't follow this account. Rachel was from St. Kitts but moved to St Croix. Hamilton met her in St. Kitts and Alexander was born in Nevis (next to St. Kitts). But this would have been after her earlier marriage and imprisonment in St. Croix. Did she go back to St. Kitts and/or Nevis? And then back to St. Croix with her two sons? And was the first son from her first marriage or from Hamilton? There is also a big jump between her imprisonment and then James Hamilton abandoning her. I'd like to be able to follow the chronology.
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Forget the play. Read Chernow's book. It's a masterpiece that paints what seems to be a balanced portrait of a man who was brilliant, inspired and tragically flawed. It is pointless to consider what the US would be like today without Hamilton's accomplishments. Of course, if you were to visit his grave now, you would see the soil churning before you.
6
Forget the play? Are you kidding? It's revolutionary, ground-breaking, and transformative. Chernow's book is also fantastic but Lin-Manuel Miranda brought it to life. (And, yes, I know the musical isn't always historically accurate. Miranda wrote a musical not a documentary.)
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The play is great if you like musicals...and hip-hop. But it is a lame way to learn about Hamilton.
3
The article says his mother's name was Levien, but her tombstone says Levine
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I noticed that too. Since Jews were a part of the Caribbean world in the 18th century, it is possible that his mother married a Jew.
4
One of the most moving and concrete histories of the effects of income disparity we now seemed focused on repeating. What a remarkable insight into the cruelty of poverty, and the almost unique kind of intelligence it took - and still takes - to escape it. And it's a remarkable trajectory to clarify past and future Columbia alumni! Thanks for the insights, and the concrete nature of 18th to 20th century repression, which must, at last, be ended. So when do we capture free tuition for future generations?
10
Nothing is free, its cost is just transferred to "the other" and when that cost becomes too high "the other" develops resentment. Balance must be preserved!
1
@ Tired: in other words I've got mine (no matter 'how'); now you get yours 'cause I'm NOT sharing! Democracy be damned ....
2
OK island but the coral was all bleached white from a hurricane. So, not great for snorkeling.
1
Hope you try the snorkeling off St. Thomas or St. John next time.
4
Hamilton's boyhood was tragic enough to make a ... St. Croix.
8
Wondering why the author chose the spelling "Rachel Faucette Lavien" for Hamilton's mother when her headstone clearly reads: "Rachael Fawcett Levine." Typos or just plain sloppiness?
10
Have you considered the possibility of the gravestone inscription being anglicized - and the author chose the original French spelling?
5
How about this? The stone has certainly been replaced. Might it have a misspelling of her name?
4
The author used the original spelling of the name. The tombstone used the more popular form: Fawcett instead of Faucette; Levine instead of Lavien.
14
I am planning to visit international destination with friends after exams. I was unaware about the history of this island. I would love to plan my visit there.
3
Go! and don't stop with St. Croix. Visit the British, French, US Virgin Islands, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico & Cuba before the history of the Sugar Trade in the West Indies is altered or disappears! Summer is off season but very comfortable because of the Trade Winds!
The Caribbean slave trade ended in the Virgin Islands in 1848, under Danish rule, long before the US civil war. Emancipation Day is still celebrated every year on July 3rd on all three islands. St. Croix is a beautiful island, very laid back, dozens of white sand beaches, high mountains, as well as flat farm and grazing land for red Senepol cattle and lop eared sheep. Mr Hamilton would have seen beauty in every direction.
14
Should Time magazine have made Ron Chernow "man of the year? He uncovered a lot of secrets of our country's history. I thoroughly ejoyed Mr.Chernow's book and I am very grateful to learn about the missing links that he brought to the forefront. Through the years we heard so much about Paul Revere, Patrick Henry, Benedict Arnold, but all we seemed to read about Alexander Hamilton was that he lost a duel to Aaron Burr and that he should be replaced on the $10.00 bill.
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