The native Arawak and Carib Indian tribes initially inhabited many Caribbean islands and St. Martin history is no exception. Christopher Columbus began European exploration of St. Martin in the 15th century, though he didn’t set foot there. Columbus named the island for the feast day of St. Martin (a holiday that occurred near his discovery time) and claimed St. Martin for the Spanish kingdom. The Spanish crown paid little attention to St. Martin. The Dutch soon occupied St. Martin and it became a Caribbean trading center between Dutch-controlled Brazil and modern day New York. St. Martin was soon to become home to a group of French settlers who set up a colony on St. Martin alongside the Dutch. This relationship was the first step in St. Martin’s centuries-long history of shared sovereignty between the two nations. The Dutch were expelled in the 17th century as the island became more profitable in the triangular trade and local mining.

St. Martin’s history took a turn when the Netherlands and France concluded a treaty in 1648 in which the result was the splitting of St. Martin between the two nations. France side of the island was marked off around 21 square miles. The Netherlands portion of St. Martin was the remaining 16 square miles. St. Martin’s modern day borders are the result of years of negotiations that finally established the boundaries in 1817.

Many of modern day residents of St. Martin descend from the plantation economy that was the backbone of St. Martin through the modern era. African laborers were brought to St. Martin throughout European dominated centuries. St Martin finally ended it oppressive system of slavery in 1848, while St. Maarten enacted similar legislation in 1863. St. Martin focused its economic attention on tourism industry during the twentieth century, sparking new economic life into the island. St. Martin lifted import and export taxes, making island a duty-free destination. St. Martin’s international airport allowed tourism to truly flourish during the past few decades; this in turn helped in the creation of new restaurants, hotels, and gift stores.