The Journal of Caribbean History, Volume 59, Issue 1 presents a thought-provoking array of articles and reviews that delve into the complex histories and legacies of the Caribbean region. This issue brings together fresh scholarship on colonial settlement, labor migration, Black resistance, military dissent, and the ongoing impact of imperial governance, offering readers a multifaceted understanding of the Caribbean past.

John M. Chenoweth opens the volume with “The Settlement of the British Virgin Islands, 1672–1740,” a detailed exploration of early British colonization in the Virgin Islands, revealing the material and social processes that shaped the emerging society. Heather Cateau follows with “The Quest for an ‘Independent Living’: Scottish Workers in the British West Indies, 1750–1820,” which investigates the experiences and aspirations of Scottish laborers seeking economic autonomy within the plantation economy.

Henderson Carter contributes “Black Resistance in Barbados after the Bussa Revolt, 1816–1838,” a critical study of the continued struggle for justice and dignity among Afro-Barbadians in the post-revolt period. In “Daaga’s War: West African Soldiers, the Yoruba Diaspora, and a British Army ‘Mutiny’ in Trinidad,” Kyle Prochnow reinterprets the 1837 mutiny in Trinidad as a significant event rooted in diasporic identity and military resistance. Michael Bromby’s article, “Colonial Prisoner Transfers from the Cayman Islands to Jamaica: Legacies of Colonialism from 1896 and throughout the Twentieth Century,” examines the legal and penal dimensions of colonial administration, exposing the enduring consequences of imperial policies on Caribbean justice systems.

The issue also features two insightful book reviews. Richard J. M. Blackett reviews Dominican Crossroads. H.C.C. Astwood and the Moral Politics of Race-Making in the Age of Emancipation by Christina Cecelia Davidson, offering a compelling critique of race, leadership, and moral authority in post-emancipation Dominican society. Alan Forrest reviews The First and Last King of Haiti. The Rise and Fall of Henry Christophe by Marlene L. Daut, providing historical context and scholarly reflection on Christophe’s reign and legacy in Haitian history.

Together, these contributions affirm the journal’s commitment to advancing critical research on Caribbean history and fostering dialogue on the region’s past and its reverberations into the present.