Karen C. Thurland, Ph.D., of Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, is an educator, historian and author. She is the author of The Thurland Family and the Furniture Making Tradition, Peter G. Thurland Sr.: Master Cabinetmaker and Bandleader, The 872nd and 873rd Port Companies: My Father's Story, The Neighborhoods of Christiansted, St. Croix: 1910-1970, and The Sugar Industry on St. Croix. She is the daughter of Will and Modesta Thurland of St. Croix. Karen is a 1998 recipient of the Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts in the United States Virgin Islands.