This bridge, thought to date to around 1800, is located on a nearly 12-acre parcel of land being donated to Virgin Islands National Park/Courtesy of SeeStJohn.com

Virgin Islands National Park is growing by nearly 12 acres thanks to a donation by a philanthropist with a long resume of working to forward conservation of landscapes and wildlife.

Jon Stryker provided nearly $1.3 million to Friends of Virgin Islands National Park so the organization could purchase an 11.8-acre property on the northern shore of the park and donate it to the National Park Service. The property includes the Old Stone Bridge and the historic ruins of the Estate Fredricksdal, with views of Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, Mary’s Point, and St. Thomas.

“A significant, historic, and beautiful piece of land has been added to the Virgin Islands National Park thanks to Mr. Stryker’s generosity and vision,” said Joe Kessler, president of Friends of Virgin Islands National Park. “More than 500,000 visitors each year and generations to come will benefit from the preservation of this site.”

“The beauty and remarkable biodiversity of Virgin Islands National Park are American treasures,” said Mr. Stryker. “I’m honored to make this gift, protect this land, and guarantee its stewardship in perpetuity.”

The Old Stone Bridge is part of an old trail that was once Old Danish Road. It sits across from the Fredricksdal Ruins, which are the remains of an old estate house for the owners of Annaberg Plantation. Little else is known about the history of the Old Stone Bridge, other than it dates at least to the early 19th century.

"Since the property has not been within the park, there hasn’t been any research done of the ruins there. But, the park archaeologist’s best guess is (that the bridge dates to) somewhere around 1800, give or take 50 years," Mr. Kessler said. "We plan to do research on the site this summer as part of our collaboration with the University of Copenhagen and will obviously learn a lot then."

In addition to this gift, Mr. Stryker is conducting a comprehensive restoration of his property at Little Maho Bay to return it to its natural state and increase the health and biodiversity of the terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Local St. John ecologist Dr. Gary Ray is the conservation director for the project.

“Virgin Islands National Park, created by donations of land and other methods of philanthropy, is dependent on the generosity of people like Jon Stryker who have fallen in love with St. John and work with Friends of Virgin Islands National Park to preserve the park,” said Virgin Islands Superintendent Jayne Schaffer. “Donations such as this 11.8 acres will protect the land and its resources forever, helping to keep St. John beautiful.”

Mr. Stryker is an American architect, philanthropist, and activist for social and environmental causes. He is the founder and president of Arcus Foundation, a private international philanthropic organization primarily supporting great ape conservation and LGBT causes.

He has a long history of supporting conservation efforts:

• Mr. Stryker is the co-founder of Save the Chimps, the world’s largest chimpanzee sanctuary, located in Fort Pierce, Florida. In 1997, he funded the purchase of a 190-acre abandoned grapefruit grove and oversaw its transformation into a modern sanctuary, which today provides lifetime care for more than 250 chimpanzees rescued from biomedical research laboratories.
• He is a founding board member of the Ol Pejeta Wildlife Conservancy, a 90,000-acre, not-for-profit wildlife sanctuary in central Kenya that was established in 2003 with a major donation from his foundation.
• In June 2013, Mr. Stryker purchased a 129-acre property along New York’s Hudson River and placed it under a conservation easement to protect against any future development of the riverfront land. The property is managed by the Open Space Institute and is open to the public.
• In 2015, Mr. Stryker donated 22 acres of land running along the west fork of Portage Creek in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to the Kalamazoo Nature Center.