This synthesis focuses on the history of research on coral reefs within two U.S. National Park Service units in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands: Buck Island Reef National Monument (from 1961 to 2022) and Salt River Bay National Historical Park and Ecological Preserve (from 1980 to 2022). Buck Island Reef National Monument (BUIS) is off the north shore of the island of St. Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Established in 1961 and expanded in 2001, it is under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service (NPS). Long-term monitoring programs maintained by the NPS and jointly by the University of the Virgin Islands (UVI) and the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources (VIDPN).