Giving a back ground to the railway in St. Kitts, the writer, Katherine LaGrave, noted that in the early 2000s, rising production costs and low market prices led to the decline of the island’s sugar industry. But unlike other islands, which ripped up their train tracks in correlation with the industry’s demise, St. Kitts turned its narrow-gauge railway into an attraction that could transport a new kind of cargo – travellers.

　　作家凯瑟琳·拉格莱夫在介绍圣基茨铁路历史背景的时候写道：21世纪初，由于生产成本上涨和市场价格的下跌，圣基茨岛制糖业开始衰退。但圣岛并没有像其他岛一样因为制糖业的低迷而拆除铁路，而是将本地的窄轨铁路改造成了旅游景点，用以搭载游客。

　　Christopher Columbus discovered the islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis in 1493, during an exploration to the New World. Some say he chose to simply name it after his likeness (the isle is more formally known as Saint Christopher Island). Others maintain that he thought it resembled the shape of St Christopher, the patron saint of travellers, carrying the Christ child on his shoulder. Whatever the case, the discovery spawned battle upon battle between the British and French over the colonization of the islands, which were home to fresh water, large salt deposits and – above all – fertile soil.

　　1493年，克里斯托弗·哥伦布在探索新世界的旅程中发现圣基茨岛，有人说哥伦用了自己的名字为该岛命名(圣基茨岛的官方名称是圣克里斯托弗岛)，也有人说他选这个名字是因为该岛的形状很像游客的守护神圣克里斯托弗将基督托在肩头的样子(译者注：东方教会传说中有圣克里斯托弗背耶稣过河的故事。)无论事实如何，在此之后，英法两国为了争夺在此的殖民权而进行了多次战争，因为这里有淡水资源、盐储量大——最重要的是——肥沃的土地。

　　In 1713, the British won sole control of Saint Kitts, and its fertile soil quickly made the island the Caribbean’s leader in sugar production. By 1776, Saint Kitts had become the Caribbean’s richest British colony per capita, with 68 sugar plantations across the island. Eventually, a railroad was deemed the most efficient way to transport the sugar from the island’s dramatic interior to its capital, Basseterre, and between 1912 and 1926, narrow-gauge railroad tracks were built to meet the demand.

　　1713年，英国完全掌握了对圣基茨的控制权，由于土壤肥沃，圣岛很快在加勒比地区的制糖业占据了领带地位。到1776年，圣基茨成了英国在加勒比地区人均财富最高的殖民地，共有68个产糖种植园分布在全岛各处。最后，当局认为有必要建设一条铁路，将糖从岛屿中部运到首府巴斯特尔。从1912年开始，到1926年，窄轨铁路建设完成，满足了糖业运输的需要。

　　1983年9月19日圣基茨宣布独立，定国名为圣基茨和尼维斯联邦，为英联邦成员国。