The movement of people between Jamaica and the United States (US) predates the declaration of independence by the 13th British American colonies on July 4, 1776. There was a close relationship between Jamaica and other British West Indian territories and the American colonies from 1607 when the British first established a settlement at Jamestown, Virginia, with people moving back and forth, whether by their own free will or not.

Following the American Revolution, in the 1780s, some British Americans loyal to the British Monarch, known as Loyalists, were resettled in Jamaica. It is reported that they numbered about 10,000 including white planters and soldiers, enslaved blacks, and free blacks. Among the blacks were George Liele and Moses Baker who began the Baptist moment in Jamaica.

Through the years, Americans visited Jamaica for leisure and business. Some made Jamaica a second home. These include Adele Astaire (Fred Astaire’s sister) – dancer and actress; Patrice Wymore Flynn – actress; George Farkas- businessman; John Rollins – politician/businessman; Ralph Lauren – fashion designer; Johnny Cash – country and western singer; Terry McMillan –author; and others. The abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, visited briefly in the 1871, and civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, visited in June 1965, noting that in Jamaica he felt like a human being.