Until about 250 BC Archaic natives lived on the Antilles, including Vieques with no ceramics or agriculture. Saladoid people moved up from Venezuela 250 BC – 400AD. They made use of pigmented ceramics, jade, and other semi-precious stones, and they had dogs as companions.
After 400 AD, Vieques housed the Pre-Tanio and Ostionoids people. They used coarser clay with no pigments. In 1200 AD Tanios came about. They were more organized, having larger groups and chiefs.
Vieques was first encountered by Europeans. Columbus found Puerto Rico in 1493. Spanish power in the Caribbean largely ignored after killing most of the inhabitants off. For several centuries Vieques was virtually lawless. The English and the Danes attempted to colonize.
In 1823, Le Guillou went to Vieques, and in 1832, he got 10 years to ‘civilize it,’ using plantations with French working under the Spanish crown. “The Golden Cup” of Puerto Rico which lasted from 1854-1880 saw opera houses, cinemas, etc. The civilization continued until 1920s.
Puerto Rico became US possession in 1917 as a result of the Spanish-American War, instead of Cuba, because it was more strategic. During WWII, the US military bought 72% of Vieques from landowners and bankruptcy courts. They then built a British fleet base and submarines after Pearl Harbor. This did not go over well with locals.