One of my main collecting interests for images is the 'small wars of peace' and other uses of US troops and influence as an instrument of US foreign policy in the 20th century.
The Danish West Indies were transferred to US control in 1917 during WWI. The re-named US Virgin Islands were administered by the US Navy from 1917 to 1937. This postcard shows US Marines parading in St. Thomas, the capital, in 1919. (Decoration Day is now known as Memorial Day, the last Monday in May. It originated as a day for US Civil War veterans to dress in their uniforms and wear their military decorations. Both Union and Confederate soldiers could proudly display their personal military history.)
