Pago Pago, American Samoa
Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Use American English Template:Main other{{#invoke:Infobox|infobox}}Template:Template other{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview = Page using [[Template:Template:If empty]] with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|ignoreblank=y|mapframe_args=y | alt | anthem | anthem_link | area_blank1_acre | area_blank1_dunam | area_blank1_ha | area_blank1_km2 | area_blank1_sq_mi | area_blank1_title | area_blank2_acre | area_blank2_dunam | area_blank2_ha | area_blank2_km2 | area_blank2_sq_mi | area_blank2_title | area_code | area_code_type | area_codes | area_footnotes | area_land_acre | area_land_dunam | area_land_ha | area_land_km2 | area_land_sq_mi | area_metro_acre | area_metro_dunam | area_metro_footnotes | area_metro_ha | area_metro_km2 | area_metro_sq_mi | area_note | area_rank | area_rural_acre | area_rural_dunam | area_rural_footnotes | area_rural_ha | area_rural_km2 | area_rural_sq_mi | area_total_acre | area_total_dunam | area_total_ha | area_total_km2 | area_total_sq_mi | area_urban_acre | area_urban_dunam | area_urban_footnotes | area_urban_ha | area_urban_km2 | area_urban_sq_mi | area_water_acre | area_water_dunam | area_water_ha | area_water_km2 | area_water_percent | area_water_sq_mi | blank_emblem_alt | blank_emblem_link | blank_emblem_size | blank_emblem_type | blank_emblem_sizedefault | blank_emblem_upright | blank_info | blank_info_sec1 | blank_info_sec2 | blank_name | blank_name_sec1 | blank_name_sec2 | blank1_info | blank1_info_sec1 | blank1_info_sec2 | blank1_name | blank1_name_sec1 | blank1_name_sec2 | blank2_info | blank2_info_sec1 | blank2_info_sec2 | blank2_name | blank2_name_sec1 | blank2_name_sec2 | blank3_info | blank3_info_sec1 | blank3_info_sec2 | blank3_name | blank3_name_sec1 | blank3_name_sec2 | blank4_info | blank4_info_sec1 | blank4_info_sec2 | blank4_name | blank4_name_sec1 | blank4_name_sec2 | blank5_info | blank5_info_sec1 | blank5_info_sec2 | blank5_name | blank5_name_sec1 | blank5_name_sec2 | blank6_info | blank6_info_sec1 | blank6_info_sec2 | blank6_name | blank6_name_sec1 | blank6_name_sec2 | blank7_info | blank7_info_sec1 | blank7_info_sec2 | blank7_name | blank7_name_sec1 | blank7_name_sec2 | caption | code1_info | code1_name | code2_info | code2_name | coor_pinpoint | coor_type | coordinates | coordinates_footnotes | demographics_type1 | demographics_type2 | demographics1_footnotes | demographics1_info1 | demographics1_info10 | demographics1_info2 | demographics1_info3 | demographics1_info4 | demographics1_info5 | demographics1_info6 | demographics1_info7 | demographics1_info8 | demographics1_info9 | demographics1_title1 | demographics1_title10 | demographics1_title2 | demographics1_title3 | demographics1_title4 | demographics1_title5 | demographics1_title6 | demographics1_title7 | demographics1_title8 | demographics1_title9 | demographics2_footnotes | demographics2_info1 | demographics2_info10 | demographics2_info2 | demographics2_info3 | demographics2_info4 | demographics2_info5 | demographics2_info6 | demographics2_info7 | demographics2_info8 | demographics2_info9 | demographics2_title1 | demographics2_title10 | demographics2_title2 | demographics2_title3 | demographics2_title4 | demographics2_title5 | demographics2_title6 | demographics2_title7 | demographics2_title8 | demographics2_title9 | dimensions_footnotes | dunam_link | elevation_footnotes | elevation_ft | elevation_link | elevation_m | elevation_max_footnotes | elevation_max_ft | elevation_max_m | elevation_max_point | elevation_max_rank | elevation_min_footnotes | elevation_min_ft | elevation_min_m | elevation_min_point | elevation_min_rank | elevation_point | embed | established_date | established_date1 | established_date2 | established_date3 | established_date4 | established_date5 | established_date6 | established_date7 | established_title | established_title1 | established_title2 | established_title3 | established_title4 | established_title5 | established_title6 | established_title7 | etymology | extinct_date | extinct_title | flag_alt | flag_border | flag_link | flag_size | footnotes | founder | geocode | governing_body | government_footnotes | government_type | government_blank1_title | government_blank1 | government_blank2_title | government_blank2 | government_blank2_title | government_blank3 | government_blank3_title | government_blank3 | government_blank4_title | government_blank4 | government_blank5_title | government_blank5 | government_blank6_title | government_blank6 | grid_name | grid_position | image_alt | image_blank_emblem | image_caption | image_flag | image_map | image_map1 | image_seal | image_shield | image_size | image_skyline | imagesize | image_sizedefault | image_upright | iso_code | leader_name | leader_name1 | leader_name2 | leader_name3 | leader_name4 | leader_name5 | leader_party | leader_title | leader_title1 | leader_title2 | leader_title3 | leader_title4 | leader_title5 | length_km | length_mi | map_alt | map_alt1 | map_caption | map_caption1 | mapsize | mapsize1 | module | motto | motto_link | mottoes | name | named_for | native_name | native_name_lang | nickname | nickname_link | nicknames | official_name | other_name | p1 | p10 | p11 | p12 | p13 | p14 | p15 | p16 | p17 | p18 | p19 | p2 | p20 | p21 | p22 | p23 | p24 | p25 | p26 | p27 | p28 | p29 | p3 | p30 | p31 | p32 | p33 | p34 | p35 | p36 | p37 | p38 | p39 | p4 | p40 | p41 | p42 | p43 | p44 | p45 | p46 | p47 | p48 | p49 | p5 | p50 | p6 | p7 | p8 | p9 | parts | parts_style | parts_type | pop_est_as_of | pop_est_footnotes | population | population_as_of | population_blank1 | population_blank1_footnotes | population_blank1_title | population_blank2 | population_blank2_footnotes | population_blank2_title | population_demonym | population_demonyms | population_density_blank1_km2 | population_density_blank1_sq_mi | population_density_blank2_km2 | population_density_blank2_sq_mi | population_density_km2 | population_density_metro_km2 | population_density_metro_sq_mi | population_density_rank | population_density_rural_km2 | population_density_rural_sq_mi | population_density_sq_mi | population_density_urban_km2 | population_density_urban_sq_mi | population_est | population_footnotes | population_metro | population_metro_footnotes | population_note | population_rank | population_rural | population_rural_footnotes | population_total | population_urban | population_urban_footnotes | postal_code | postal_code_type | postal2_code | postal2_code_type | pushpin_image | pushpin_label | pushpin_label_position | pushpin_map | pushpin_map_alt | pushpin_map_caption | pushpin_map_caption_notsmall | pushpin_map_narrow | pushpin_mapsize | pushpin_outside | pushpin_overlay | pushpin_relief | registration_plate | registration_plate_type | seal_alt | seal_link | seal_size | seal_type | seat | seat_type | seat1 | seat1_type | seat2 | seat2_type | settlement_type | shield_alt | shield_link | shield_size | short_description | subdivision_name | subdivision_name1 | subdivision_name2 | subdivision_name3 | subdivision_name4 | subdivision_name5 | subdivision_name6 | subdivision_type | subdivision_type1 | subdivision_type2 | subdivision_type3 | subdivision_type4 | subdivision_type5 | subdivision_type6 | template_name | timezone | timezone_DST | timezone_link | timezone1 | timezone1_DST | timezone1_location | timezone2 | timezone2_DST | timezone2_location | timezone3 | timezone3_DST | timezone3_location | timezone4 | timezone4_DST | timezone4_location | timezone5 | timezone5_DST | timezone5_location | total_type | translit_lang1 | translit_lang1_info | translit_lang1_info1 | translit_lang1_info2 | translit_lang1_info3 | translit_lang1_info4 | translit_lang1_info5 | translit_lang1_info6 | translit_lang1_type | translit_lang1_type1 | translit_lang1_type2 | translit_lang1_type3 | translit_lang1_type4 | translit_lang1_type5 | translit_lang1_type6 | translit_lang2 | translit_lang2_info | translit_lang2_info1 | translit_lang2_info2 | translit_lang2_info3 | translit_lang2_info4 | translit_lang2_info5 | translit_lang2_info6 | translit_lang2_type | translit_lang2_type1 | translit_lang2_type2 | translit_lang2_type3 | translit_lang2_type4 | translit_lang2_type5 | translit_lang2_type6 | type | unit_pref | utc_offset | utc_offset_DST | utc_offset1 | utc_offset1_DST | utc_offset2 | utc_offset2_DST | utc_offset3 | utc_offset3_DST | utc_offset4 | utc_offset4_DST | utc_offset5 | utc_offset5_DST | website | width_km | width_mi }}{{#invoke:Check for clobbered parameters|check | template = [[Template:Template:If empty]] | cat = Template:Main other | population; population_total | image_size; imagesize | image_alt; alt | image_caption; caption | settlement_type; type | utc_offset1; utc_offset | timezone1; timezone }}{{#if:
|
}}Template:Main other{{#ifexpr:{{#invoke:ParameterCount|main|mapframe|image_map|image_map1|pushpin_map}} >2 |Template:Main other}}
Pago Pago (Template:IPAc-en or Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell; Samoan: {{#invoke:IPA|main}})<ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 604">Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). Geology of National Parks. Kendall Hunt. p. 604. Template:ISBN.</ref> is the capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, the main island of American Samoa.
Pago Pago is home to one of the deepest natural harbors in the South Pacific Ocean, sheltered from wind and rough seas, and strategically located.<ref name="States Central Intelligence Agency 2016 Page 19">United States Central Intelligence Agency (2016). The World Factbook 2016–17. Government Printing Office. p. 19. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="Grabowski-1992">Grabowski, John F. (1992). U.S. Territories and Possessions (State Report Series). Chelsea House Pub. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp<ref name="Kristen-1999">Kristen, Katherine (1999). Pacific Islands (Portrait of America). San Val. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp The harbor is also one of the best protected in the South Pacific,<ref name="Leonard-2009">Leonard, Barry (2009). Minimum Wage in American Samoa 2007: Economic Report. Diane Publishing. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp which gives American Samoa a natural advantage because it makes landing fish for processing easier.<ref name="Leonard-2009"/>Template:Rp Tourism, entertainment, food, and tuna canning are its main industries. As of 1993, Pago Pago was the world's fourth-largest tuna processor.<ref name="Stanley-1993">Stanley, David (1993). South Pacific Handbook. David Stanley. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp In 2009, the total value of fish landed in Pago Pago—about $200,000,000 annually—is higher than in any other port in any U.S. state or territory.<ref name=NPS2009a>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is home to the largest tuna cannery in the world.<ref>Hamel, Jean-Francois (2018). World Seas: An Environmental Evaluation. Volume II: The Indian Ocean to the Pacific. Academic Press. p. 636. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Chi, Sang and Emily Moberg Robinson (2012). Voices of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Experience. ABC-CLIO. p. 54. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>U.S. Government Printing Office (2010). Impact of Increased Minimum Wage of [i.e. On] American Samoa and CNMI. Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. p. 13. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Pago Pago is the main port of American Samoa.<ref>Carter, John (1984). Pacific Islands Yearbook 1981. Pacific Publications Pty, Limited. p. 49. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Encyclopædia Britannica (2003). The New Encyclopædia Britannica: Volume 25. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. p. 288. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>C. Balme (2006). Pacific Performances: Theatrically and Cross-Cultural Encounter in the South Seas. Springer. p. 156. Template:ISBN.</ref> It is also home to the territorial government.<ref name="Swaney-1994">Swaney, Deanna (1994). Samoa: Western & American Samoa: a Lonely Planet Travel Survival Kit. Lonely Planet Publications. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp The Greater Pago Pago Metropolitan Area encompasses some six villages strung together along Pago Pago Harbor.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Mack, Doug (2017). The Not-Quite States of America: Dispatches From the Territories and Other Far-Flung Outposts of the USA. W.W. Norton & Company. p. 62. Template:ISBN.</ref> One of the villages is itself named Pago Pago, and in 2020, that village had a population of 3,000.<ref name="censusvillages">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The constituent villages are: Utulei, Fagatogo, Malaloa, Pago Pago, Satala and Atu'u. Fagatogo is the downtown area, referred to as "town", and is home to the territory's bicameral legislature (the Fono), police department, the Port of Pago Pago, and many shops and hotels. The executive government's seat, Government House, is in Utulei.
In 2000, the Greater Pago Pago area was home to 8,000 residents;<ref name="Lal, Brij V 2000 Page 101">Lal, Brij V. and Kate Fortune (2000). The Pacific Islands: An Encyclopedia, Volume 1. University of Hawaii Press. p. 101. Template:ISBN.</ref> by 2010 the population had increased to 15,000.<ref>Sparks, Karen Jacobs (2010). Britannica Book of the Year 2010. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. p. 509. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Rainmaker Mountain (Mount Pioa), located near Pago Pago, contributes to a weather pattern that results in the city having the highest annual rainfall of any harbor in the world.<ref>Atkinson, Brett and Charles Rawlings-Way (2016). Lonely Planet Rarotonga, Samoa & Tonga (Travel Guide). Lonely Planet. p. 147. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="lonelyplanet.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="huffingtonpost">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It stands protectively over the eastern side of Pago Pago, making the harbor one of the most sheltered deepwater anchorages in the Pacific Ocean.<ref name="Sunia-2009">Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp
Historically, the strategic location of Pago Pago Bay played a direct role in the political separation of Western and Eastern Samoa. The initial reason that the U.S. was interested in Tutuila was its desire to use Pago Pago Harbor as a coaling station.<ref name="Shaffer-2000">Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp The town has the distinction of being the southernmost U.S. capital, and the only one located in the Southern Hemisphere.
Etymology and pronunciation
The origin of the name Pago Pago is uncertain. One hypothesis suggests that it is derived from the Samoan language, where it is interpreted to mean "place of prayer."<ref name="Pago Pago 2024 Page 2">The city trip guide for Pago Pago (2024). YouGuide Ltd. p. 2. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The letter "g" in Samoan sounds like "ng"; thus Pago Pago is pronounced "pahngo pahngo."<ref name="Cruise Travel Vol 1980 Page 60">Cruise Travel Vol. 2, No. 1 (July 1980). Lakeside Publishing Co. p. 60. Template:ISSN.</ref><ref name="latimes">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Craig, Robert D. (2004). Handbook of Polynesian Mythology. ABC-CLIO. p. 17. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Fraser, Peter (2010). More Curious Than Cautious. Dog Ear Publishing. p. 122. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Leib, Amos Patten (1972). The Many Islands of Polynesia. Schuster Merchandise. p. 60. Template:ISBN.</ref>
An early name for Pago Pago was Long Bay (Samoan: O le Fagaloa), which was a name used by the first permanent inhabitants to settle in the Pago Pago area.<ref name="Shaffer-2000"/>Template:Rp<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: a history of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 123.</ref><ref name="Gray-1980">Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1980). Amerika Samoa. Arno Press. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp It was also called O le Maputasi ("The Single Chief's House") in compliment to the Mauga, who lived at Gagamoe in Pago Pago and was the senior to all the other chiefs in the area.<ref name="Gray-1980"/>Template:Rp
For a brief period in the 1830s, Pago Pago was also known as Cuthbert's Harbor, named after British Captain Cuthbert, who was the first European to enter Pago Pago Harbor.<ref>Richards, Rhys (1992). Samoa's Forgotten Whaling Heritage: American Whaling in Samoan Waters 1824–1878. Lithographic Services, Limited. p. 63. Template:ISBN.</ref>
History
Pago Pago was first settled 4,000 years ago.<ref>Stahl, Dean A. and Karen Landen (2001). Abbreviations Dictionary. CRC Press. p. 1451. Template:ISBN.</ref> The area was initially settled by Polynesian navigators, who established a vibrant community rooted in agriculture, fishing, and the distinct cultural practices of Samoan society.<ref name="Pago Pago 2024 Page 2"/> There is archeological evidence of people living in the Pago Pago Valley at least 1500–1300 years ago.<ref>Sand, Christophe and David J. Addison (2008). Recent Advances in the Archaeology of the Fiji/West-Polynesia Region. Department of Anthropology, Gender and Sociology. University of Otago. Dunedin: New Zealand. p. 93. Template:ISBN.</ref> The ancient people of Tutuila produced clay pottery known as Samoan Plainware. The majority of these open bowls had plain designs and featured rounded bases. Such pottery has been retrieved from sites in Pago Pago, including at Vaipito. The production of such pottery ceased approximately 1500 years ago.<ref>Craig, Peter (2009). Natural history guide to American Samoa. National Park of American Samoa. p. 19. Retrieved on January 20, 2024, from [1].</ref><ref>Sand, Christophe and David J. Addison (2008). Recent Advances in the Archaeology of the Fiji/West-Polynesia Region. Department of Anthropology, Gender and Sociology. University of Otago. Dunedin: New Zealand. p. 110. Template:ISBN.</ref> A site in the Vaipito Valley has also revealed more substantial elements, such as constructions made from rocks, like house foundations and terraces (lau mafola).<ref>Rieth, Tim (2008). How Dark Are They? The Samoan Dark Ages, ~1500–1000 BP. Retrieved on January 20, 2024, from https://www.academia.edu/1758604/How_Dark_Are_They_The_Samoan_Dark_Ages_1500-1000_BP Template:Webarchive.</ref><ref>Sand, Christophe and David J. Addison (2008). Recent Advances in the Archaeology of the Fiji/West-Polynesia Region. Department of Anthropology, Gender and Sociology. University of Otago. Dunedin: New Zealand. p. 91. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Ceramic findings have been retrieved at Vaipito, an inland area within Pago Pago village. A deposit here is thought to be an old hill-slope below a living area where people threw away their waste. Numerous large ceramic pieces have been retrieved here. The layer with the ceramics dates back to the time between 350 BCE and 10 CE. Another site, Fo’isia, is located approximately 100 meters from Vaipito, at the same elevation inland in Pago Pago. During sewer line construction, the American Samoa Power Authority noticed many broken pieces of clay pottery. Five dates associated with the ceramics indicate a time range between 370 BCE and 130 CE.<ref>Sand, Christophe and David J. Addison (2008). Recent Advances in the Archaeology of the Fiji/West-Polynesia Region. Department of Anthropology, Gender and Sociology. University of Otago. Dunedin: New Zealand. p. 103. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Tongan rule
The island of Tutuila was part of the Tuʻi Tonga Empire from the invasion around 950 CE to when Tongans were expelled in 1250. According to Samoan folklore, a warrior from Pago Pago, Fua’au, is associated with driving the Tongans out of Tutuila. According to the legend, Fua’au's fiancé, Tauoloasi’i, was kidnapped and taken to Tonga while sleeping on an exquisite mat known as Moeilefuefue. Filled with anger at the loss of his fiancé and the renowned mat, Fua’au rallied the Tutuilans, encouraging them to revolt against the Tongan rule imposed by Lautivunia.<ref>Pearl, F. B. (2004). The Chronology of Mountain Settlements on Tutuila, American Samoa. The Journal of the Polynesian Society, 113(4), 331–348. p. 334. Retrieved on January 21, 2024, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/20707242.</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
During the period of Tongan rule, political opponents and defeated Samoan warriors were exiled to Pago Pago. The surrounding settlements effectively functioned as a Samoan penal colony. In response to the oppression, the Samoans, under the leadership of paramount chief Malietoa, eventually revolted against their Tongan rulers.<ref>Todd, Ian (1974). Island Realm: A Pacific Panorama. Angus & Robertson. p. 69. Template:ISBN.</ref> According to one source, it was Chief Fua’autoa of Pago Pago who successfully expelled the Tongans from Pago Pago.<ref>Krämer, Augustin (1994). The Samoa Islands: Constitution, pedigrees and traditions. University of Hawaiʻi Press. p. 436. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Old Pago Pago
Until 1722, Pago Pago, like several other villages in American Samoa such as Fagasā and Vatia, existed as a ridge-top settlement. This upland community, now part of the National Park of American Samoa, was strategically situated to provide safety during a period marked by inter-island conflicts involving Samoa, Fiji, Tahiti, and Tonga. The elevated location offered protection from coastal raids, as attackers arriving by boat posed a significant threat to shoreline settlements. By 1772, the majority of families had relocated from the highlands to the coast, establishing new homes near the shoreline. However, oral histories indicate that a few households continued to reside or farm in the upland areas into the late 19th century. Archeological findings at the site of Old Pago Pago include ancient rock walls, building foundations, and graves. Some of these graves are believed to belong to chiefs or ceremonial figures, such as a taupou (a ceremonial maiden), with legends suggesting one may have been interred in a bonito boat. The remnants of Old Pago Pago are accessible via the Mount ‘Alava Trailhead at Fagasā Pass, just west of Vaipito Valley.<ref>Linnekin, Jocelyn, Hunt, Terry, Lang, Lang and McCormick, Timothy (November 2006). "Ethnographic Assessment and Overview: National Park of American Samoa". Technical Report 152. Pacific Cooperative Parks Study Unit. University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.</ref>
When Westerners first visited Tutuila, the Mauga was the leading matai (chief) of Pago Pago.<ref>Lutali, A.P. and William J. Stewart. The Chieftal System in Twentieth Century America: Legal Aspects of the Matai System in the Territory of American Samoa. 4 Ga. J. Int’l & Compar. L. 387 (1974). p. 390. Retrieved on January 20, 2024, from https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/gjicl/vol4/iss2/8/ Template:Webarchive.</ref>
19th century
In 1791, Captain Edward Edwards, leading the British warship HMS Pandora in the pursuit of the Bounty mutineers, arrived at Pago Pago Harbor. During their search, the crew stumbled upon a French military uniform belonging to one of Pérouse’s men, who had been killed at Aʻasu in 1787.<ref>U.S. National Park Service (1988). National Park Feasibility Study: American Samoa. p. 29. Retrieved on December 23, 2024.</ref><ref>Salmond, Anne (2011). Bligh: William Bligh in the South Seas. Penguin Books Limited. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1824, Otto von Kotzebue is believed to have discovered the entrance to Pago Pago Harbor, according to one source.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. p. 68. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1830, a man named Norval "Salemi" from Massachusetts, lived in Pago Pago as part of High Chief Mauga’s household. Driven by a desire to share his faith, he translated portions of the Church of England Prayer Book into Samoan language and counted the Mauga of Pago Pago among his converts.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 33. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1836, the English whaler Elizabeth, captained by Cuthbert, became the first European vessel to enter Pago Pago Harbor. Captain Cuthbert is credited with ‘discovering’ Pago Pago and naming it Cuthbert Harbor.<ref>Knox, Thomas W. (1889). The Boy Travellers Australasia. p. 140.</ref>
In the 1830s, two missionaries were assigned to Tutuila Island: Reverend Archibald W. Murray and his wife to Pago Pago and Reverend Barnden to Leone. They landed at Fagasa Bay and hiked over the hill to the High Chief Mauga in Pago Pago. Mauga welcomed the missionaries and gave them support. RMS Template:Ship later moved to Pago Pago, becoming the second ship to enter Pago Pago Harbor.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 38. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp Under the auspices of Maunga, Murray established a wooden residence in Pago Pago, where he endeavored to exemplify Christian living.<ref>Neems, Hugh (2014). Beyond The Reef. p. 19. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 38. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1834, Matthew Hunkin arrived in Pago Pago and served as a companion to Archibald Murray, both residing under the patronage of High Chief Mauga. Together, they conducted visits to villages situated along the eastern end of Tutuila. Subsequently, both men relocated to Leone, where Murray undertook preparations to establish the Mission Institute for Pacific Islanders at Fagatele, situated on the outskirts of Leone.<ref>Neems, Hugh (2016). A Vision Shared. George Lambert. p. 45. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Beginning in 1836, whaling vessels started calling at Pago Pago Harbor, quickly transforming it into a favored stopover. Crews found it to be a secure place to rest, take on supplies, and carry out repairs. As of 1866, whalers no longer visited the Samoan Islands as whaling activities had shifted farther north.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. Pages 2, 144 and 183. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1837, Tutuila’s chiefs and Captain Charles Bethune of H.M.S. Conway reached an agreement on Pago Pago’s first documented commercial port regulations, finalized on December 27 of that year.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. Pages 147 and 149. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Pages 40–41. Template:ISBN.</ref>
On May 9, 1838, the London Missionary Society established a church in Pago Pago.<ref>Sorensen, Stan and Theroux, Joseph. The Samoan Historical Calendar, 1606–1997. Government of American Samoa. p. 113.</ref><ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 41. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Aitaoto, Fuimaono Fini (2021). Progress and Developments of the Churches in the Samoan Islands: Early 21St Century. LifeRich Publishing. p. 96. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1839, the Samoan Islands experienced its first recorded epidemic, which resulted in the death of High Chief Mauga of Pago Pago. After his passing, Manuma assumed the title.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. p. 112. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. Pages 41–42. Template:ISBN.</ref> After the death of his stepbrother Pomale, Manuma provoked controversy within the Christian community by eloping with Pomale's widow. As a result, the aiga deposed him from his position. Nevertheless, Manuma was later reinstated, and he presided as the Mauga of Pago Pago until his death in 1849.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 43. Template:ISBN.</ref>
As early as 1839, American interest was generated for the Pago Pago area when Commander Charles Wilkes, head of the United States Exploring Expedition, surveyed Pago Pago Harbor and the island. Wilkes' favorable report attracted so much interest that the U.S. Navy began planning a move to the Pago Pago area. During his time in Pago Pago, Wilkes negotiated a set of "Commercial Regulations" with the matais of Pago Pago under the leadership of Paramount Ali'i Mauga. Wilkes' treaty was never ratified, but captains and Samoan leaders operated by it.<ref> Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes – A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900–2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. p. 183. Template:ISBN.</ref> Rumors of possible annexation by Britain or Germany were taken seriously by the U.S., and the U.S. Secretary of State Hamilton Fish sent Colonel Albert Steinberger to negotiate with Samoan chiefs on behalf of American interests.<ref>Freeman, Donald B. (2010). The Pacific. Routledge. p. 167. Template:ISBN.</ref> American interest in Pago Pago was also a result of Tutuila's central position in one of the world's richest whaling grounds.
On August 8, 1844, Archibald Wright Murray wrote a letter recounting how the Tutuilans, at one point, prepared to vacate their settlements and negotiate with the French while taking refuge in the highlands. Recognizing Pago Pago Harbor as the island’s most significant lure for European powers, they planned to cede it to France in return for a pledge safeguarding Tutuila’s independence.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. p. 125. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1868 the Polynesian Land Company - the first major American enterprise in the Samoan Islands - was founded to speculate in real estate. Company agent James Stewart championed Pago Pago as the South Pacific’s best harbor and an ideal commercial depot, urged local chiefs to petition for U.S. annexation, and sought greater American involvement; Washington showed little interest, the firm’s holdings were auctioned, and the company collapsed.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 77. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
In 1871, the local steamer business of W. H. Webb required coal and he sent Captain E. Wakeman to Samoa in order to evaluate the suitability of Pago Pago as a coaling station. Wakeman approved the harbor and alerted the U.S. Navy about Germany's intent to take over the area. The U.S. Navy responded a few months later by dispatching Commander Richard Meade from Honolulu, Hawaii to assess Pago Pago's suitability as a naval station. Meade arrived in Pago Pago on Template:USS and made a treaty with the Mauga for the exclusive use of the harbor and a set of commercial regulations to govern the trading and shipping in Pago Pago. He also purchased land for a new naval station.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp High Chief Mauga of Pago Pago stated his wish for the village to be recognized as Tutuila Island’s capital.<ref>Gilson, Richard Phillip (1970). Samoa 1830 to 1900: The Politics of a Multi-cultural Community. Oxford University Press. p. 279. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1872, the chief of Pago Pago signed a treaty with the U.S., giving the American government considerable influence on the island.<ref>Levi, Werner (1947). American-Australian Relations. University of Minnesota Press. p. 73. Template:ISBN.</ref> Later, also in 1872, German consul Theodore Weber arrived in Pago Pago soon after Richard W. Meade’s departure. He cautioned Mauga that the treaty with the Americans was not official and insisted that German interests in the harbor be safeguarded.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 59. Template:ISBN.</ref>
On August 7, 1873, Colonel Albert Barnes Steinberger—an associate of President Ulysses S. Grant and representative of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company—arrived in Pago Pago. He found that High Chief Mauga already regarded himself as under U.S. protection by virtue of his treaty with Richard W. Meade, though its terms had been largely neglected. No pilotage or watering facilities existed, and the buoys once placed by the USS Narragansett had long since drifted away. With the other members of the Treaty Board living 80 miles away in Apia, Mauga had been left unable to maintain the harbor on his own. Before moving on to Upolu, Steinberger insisted that at least Whale Rock, a hidden hazard to navigation, be properly marked with a buoy.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 60. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Tutuila Island was acquired by the United States through a treaty in 1877.<ref>Dixon, Joe C. (1980). The American Military and the Far East. Diane Publishing. p. 139. Template:ISBN.</ref> One year after the naval base was built at Pearl Harbor in 1887, the U.S. government established a naval station in Pago Pago.<ref>Stanley, George Edwards (2005). The Era of Reconstruction and Expansion (1865–1900). Gareth Stevens. p. 36. Template:ISBN.</ref> It was primarily used as a fueling station for both naval- and commercial ships.<ref>Pafford, John (2013). The Forgotten Conservative: Rediscovering Grover Cleveland. Regnery Publishing. p. 61. Template:ISBN.</ref>
During the Tutuila War of 1877, all buildings in Pago Pago were destroyed. The war emerged during a tumultuous period, where Samoans were sharply divided over the future direction of their government. In response to the growing threat posed by the Puletua—a rising opposition faction—the Samoan leadership based in Apia sent Mamea to Washington, D.C. to negotiate an agreement with the U.S. While Mamea was abroad, the Puletua launched a rebellion, escalating the situation into full-scale war in Tutuila. To regain control, government forces stationed in Leone advanced toward Pago Pago, where the rebel leader Mauga was headquartered. The troops burned every building in Pago Pago and pursued Mauga along with several hundred followers to Aunu’u Island. The Puletua faction on Tutuila, led by the former U.S. Consul to Samoa, S. S. Foster, who had moved to Pago Pago after his dismissal, and Mauga, found Aunu’u incapable of supporting their forces. Consequently, they returned to Tutuila where they soon surrendered.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 65. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Pearl, Frederic and Sandy Loiseau-Vonruff (2007). "Father Julien Vidal and the Social Transformation of a Small Polynesian Village (1787–1930): Historical Archaeology at Massacre Bay, American Samoa". International Journal of Historical Archaeology. 11(1): pages 37–39. Template:ISSN.</ref>
In 1878, the U.S. Navy first established a coaling station, right outside Fagatogo. The United States Navy later bought land east of Fagatogo and on Goat Island, an adjacent peninsula. Sufficient land was obtained in 1898 and the construction of United States Naval Station Tutuila was completed in 1902. The station commander doubled as American Samoa's Governor from 1899 to 1905, when the station commandant was designated Naval Governor of American Samoa. The Fono (legislature) served as an advisory council to the governor.<ref name="Rottman-2002">Rottman, Gordon L. (2002). World War II Pacific Island Guide: A Geo-military Study. Greenwood Publishing Group. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp
Despite the Samoan Islands being a part of the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany maintained a strong naval presence in the area. Twice between 1880 and 1900, the U.S. Navy came close to taking part in a shooting war while its only true interest was the establishment of a coaling station in Pago Pago. The U.S. quietly purchased land around the harbor for the construction of the naval station. It rented land on Fagatogo Beach for $10/month in order to store the coal. Admiral Lewis Kimberly was ordered to Pago Pago while in Apia waiting for transportation home after the hurricane of 1889. In Pago Pago, he selected a site for the new coaling station and naval base. In June 1890, the U.S. Congress passed an appropriation of $100,000 for the purpose of permanently establishing a station for the naval and commercial marine. With the appropriation, the State Department sent Consul Harold M. Sewall from Apia to Pago Pago to buy six tracts of land for the project. Some parts were previously owned by the Polynesian Land Company, while other tracts were still owned by Samoan families. For the defense of the harbor in event of a naval war, the U.S. Navy wanted to purchase headlands and mountainsides above the Lepua Catholic Church which directly faced the harbor's entrance.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1883, a conflict began at Pago Pago Bay between Mauga Lei and Mauga Manuma. The dispute revolved around the entitlement to the title "Mauga". Mauga Lei's actions led to widespread dissatisfaction among the residents of Fagatogo and Aua, culminating in the Taua o Sa’ousoali'i conflict. The residents of Fagasā joined Pago Pago village in an effort to overthrow Mauga Lei and support Manuma. The uprising forced Mauga Lei's forces to Aunuʻu. Mauga Lei, who had a close friendship with King Malietoa Laupepa, secured intervention through two warships to resolve the hostilities. Intervention came in the form of a peace mission led by HMS Miranda, under Captain William A. Dyke Acland, and supported by the German gunboat SMS Hyäne. Both Mauga Lei and Mauga Manuma were summoned to a peace conference aboard the HMS Miranda. Both initially resisted boarding the ship but eventually relented after diplomatic pressure. The agreement that followed emphasized reconciliation and required both parties to disarm publicly.<ref>Churchward, William Brown (1887). My Consulate in Samoa: A Record of Four Years' Sojourn in the Navigators Islands, with Personal Experiences of King Malietoa Laupepa, His Country and His Men. Richard Bentley and Son. Pages 335–346.</ref><ref>Ryan, James and Joan Schwartz (2021). Picturing Place: Photography and the Geographical Imagination. Taylor & Francis. Template:ISBN.</ref> The conflict led to the deaths of 12 people.<ref>Edwards, Elizabeth (2021). Raw Histories: Photographs, Anthropology and Museums. Taylor & Francis. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1887, the Kaimiloa, a 171-ton steamer and the only warship in the fleet of King Kalākaua of Hawai‘i, was sent on a diplomatic mission to the Samoan Islands as part of the Hawaiian monarch's initiative to create a united Polynesian kingdom. The journey included visits to several key locations, including Pago Pago, which was an important trading hub at the time. Historical accounts document the trade of the Kaimiloa's cannons to the Samoans, with at least one of these cannons now preserved and on display at the Jean P. Haydon Museum.<ref>Chappell, David A. (2016). Double Ghosts: Oceanian Voyagers on Euroamerican Ships. Taylor & Francis. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Cook, Kealani (2016). Return to Kahiki: Native Hawaiians in Oceania. Cambridge University Press. p. 95. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1888, during the Samoan Civil War, German official Eugen Brandeis sought to enforce strict control over the Pago Pago Bay area. When Aua and Fagatogo fell into arrears under new tax laws, he imposed a US$300 fine on each and warned that nonpayment would bring war and the exile of village chiefs. The fines were promptly paid, with the proceeds remitted to the German treasury in Apia.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 92. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
The 1889 Apia cyclone ended a decade-long dispute between the U.S. and Germany over the coaling facilities at Pago Pago.<ref>Howarth, Stephen (1999). To Shining Sea: A History of the United States Navy, 1775-1998. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 240. Template:ISBN.</ref> During the storm, British, German, and American warships anchored off the island of Tutuila as part of the Samoan crisis were all sunk.<ref>Romano, Amy (2004). A Historical Atlas of the United States and Its Territories. Rosen Publishing Group. p. 33. Template:ISBN.</ref> In 1889, author Robert Louis Stevenson also paid a visit to Pago Pago.<ref>Template:Cite encyclopedia</ref>
In 1892, Mauga Lei, High Chief of Pago Pago and a supporter of Malietoa Laupepa, spent extended periods in Upolu, leaving the bay area without his leadership. While Pago Pago remained loyal, Fagatogo - aligned with Mataʻafa - joined Aua in an effort to depose him. A confrontation followed: a canoe flotilla from Aua and Fagatogo advanced on Pago Pago but retreated under heavy gunfire. Warriors from Pago Pago and Fagasā then attacked Aua and Fagatogo, burning both villages; women and children took refuge at the Catholic mission at Lepua, and the flotilla withdrew to Aunuʻu.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 102. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On May 27, 1893, a branch of the LDS Church was established in Pago Pago. The church had first arrived on the island in 1863 and became formally organized on Tutuila in 1888.<ref>Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Family and Church History Department (2005). Deseret News 2006 Church Almanac: Joseph’s Journeys. Deseret Book Company. p. 285. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1893, acting U.S. consul William Blacklock visited Pago Pago to assess the purchase of land at Blunts and Breakers Points for gun emplacements protecting the coaling station. Ongoing hostilities between Mauga of Pago Pago and Leʻiato of Fagaʻitua prevented a binding agreement; Blacklock secured only an option to purchase at a later date.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 108. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
In 1898, a California-based construction and engineering firm was contracted to build the coal depot. The naval engineer in charge was W. I. Chambers. On April 30, 1899, Commander Benjamin Franklin Tilley sailed from Norfolk, Virginia on Template:USS with a cargo of coal and steel for the project. The U.S. Navy was the only American agency present in the area, and it was made responsible for administering the new territory.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1899, Pago Pago became the administrative capital of American Samoa.<ref name="britannica.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Carpenter, Allan (1993). Facts about the Cities. Wilson. p. 11. Template:ISBN.</ref> Pago Pago and Tutuila Island were formally part of the Kingdom of Samoa until 1899, when they became U.S. territory.<ref>Lavatai, Sanele Faasua (2018). The Ifoga Ritual in Samoa in Anthropological and in Biblical Perspectives. Missionshilfe Verlag. p. 116. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Tu’u’u, Misilugi Tulifau Tofaeono (2002). History of Samoa Islands: Supremacy & Legacy of the Malietoa. Tuga'ula Publication. p. 427. Template:ISBN.</ref> In December of that year, the Tripartite Convention formally partitioned Tutuila as a U.S. territory, thereby granting the United States control over Pago Pago.<ref>Wolfheze, Alexander (2020). A Traditionalist History of the Great War, Book II: The Former Earth. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. p. 238. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 1900, the Oceanic Steamship Company's steamers - the Sierra, the Ventura, and the Sonoma - shifted their port of call from Apia to Pago Pago.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 134. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On April 17, 1900, the first American flag was raised at Sogelau Hill above the site of the new wharf and coaling facilities in Fagatogo. For the ceremony, a group of invitees from Apia arrived with German Governor Heinrich Solf onboard Template:SMS. USS Abarenda, home of B. F. Tilley and his new government, was in the harbor. American consul Luther W. Osborn arrived from Apia, and many spectators arrived from American Samoa villages and other countries. Tilley was the master of ceremonies and began the program by reading the Proclamation of the President of the United States, which asserted American sovereignty over the islands. Next was the reading of the Order of the Secretary of the Navy, followed by chiefs who read the Deed of Cession, which they had written and signed. Before raising the flag, reverend E. V. Cooper of the London Missionary Society (LMS) and reverend Father Meinaidier of the Roman Catholic Mission offered prayers. Students from the LMS school in Fagalele sang the national anthem. The two ships, Comoran and Abarenda, fired the national salutes.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp<ref name="Shaffer-2000"/>Template:Rp The Deed of Cession of Tutuila and Aunu'u Islands was signed on Gagamoe, and formalized the relationship between the U.S. and American Samoa. Gagamoe is an area in Pago Pago which is the Mauga family's communal and sacred land.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Stoler, Ann Laura and Willy Brandt (2006). Haunted by Empire: Geographies of Intimacy in North American History. Duke University Press. p. 88. Template:ISBN.</ref>
-
An 1896 illustration of Pago Pago. -
RMS Dunottar Castle was the second ship to enter Pago Pago Harbor.<ref>Shaffer, J. Robert (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage Pub. p. 65. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 38. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Sunia, Fofo I.F. (2009). A History of American Samoa. Amerika Samoa Humanities Council. Pages 79-80. Template:ISBN.</ref> -
From 1878 to 1951, it was a coaling and repair station for the U.S. Navy, known as US Naval Station Tutuila. -
Boatmen in Pago Pago, 1907 -
Pago Pago as seen in the early 1900s -
Pago Pago Bay in 1903. -
-
HHMS Kaimiloa in 1887. Cannons recovered from the Kaimiloa are on display at the Jean P. Haydon Museum. -
1914 map of Pago Pago -
Mauga Lei and Mauga Manuma were summoned to a peace conference aboard the H.M.S. Miranda in 1883. -
High Chief Mauga Manuma of Pago Pago, 1885. -
The deck of U.S.S. Abarenda served as capitol from 1899-1902, and Commander Benjamin Franklin Tilley's cabin as the Governor’s residence.<ref>Carson, Samuel (1901). The Overland Monthly: Volume 38. University of Iowa. p. 181.</ref><ref>Stuart, Peter C. (2007). Planting the American Flag: Twelve Men Who Expanded the United States Overseas. McFarland Publishing. p. 94. Template:ISBN.</ref> -
The 1889 cyclone sank British, German, and American warships anchored off Tutuila.
_(14780577521).jpg)
_showing_steamers_Ventura_%26_Mapourika._May_1903.,_PH-NEG-15060_001.jpg)
.jpg)
_AWM_302218.jpeg)
.jpg)
20th century
At the beginning of the 20th century, Pago Pago became American Samoa's port of entry.<ref name="Gray-1980"/>Template:Rp
On April 11, 1904, the first public school in American Samoa, called Fagatogo, was established in the naval station area. The school had two teachers and forty students at the time of its opening.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The first school arose from petitions by Europeans in Pago Pago for a school for their children. Governor Uriel Sebree established it at Fagatogo, allocating US$1,000 from the copra fund, and reserved to himself the selection of pupils from the non-Samoan and part-Samoan population.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 139. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On September 1, 1912, the first Samoan hospital was completed at Malaloa, on a hillside adjacent to the present-day site of the Sadie Thompson Inn.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 135. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
From December 16, 1916, to January 30, 1917, English author W. Somerset Maugham and his secretary and lover, Gerald Haxton, visited Pago Pago on their way from Hawai'i to Tahiti. Also on board the ship was a passenger named Miss Sadie Thompson, who had been evicted from Hawaii for prostitution. She was later the main character in the popular short story, Rain (1921), a story of a prostitute arriving in Pago Pago.<ref name="nps">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Delayed because of a quarantine inspection, they checked into what is now known as Sadie Thompson Inn. Maugham also met an American sailor here, who later appeared as the title character in another short story, Red (1921).<ref name="britannica.com"/><ref>Rogal, Samuel J. (1997). A William Somerset Maugham Encyclopedia. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 244. Template:ISBN.</ref> The Sadie Thompson Inn was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2003.
In 1920, Mauga Moi Moi, the highest ranking chief of Pago Pago, initiated the Mau movement.<ref>Lal, Brij V. and Kate Fortune (2000). The Pacific Islands: An Encyclopedia. University of Hawai'i Press. p. 101. Template:ISBN.</ref> The Mau movement first took shape in Pago Pago, where gatherings were held at the doorstep of Mauga. High chiefs, chiefs, talking chiefs, and community members came together to take part.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 194. Template:ISBN.</ref> A series of fonos in Pago Pago brought together high and talking chiefs for prolonged oratory and political maneuvering. The meetings halted copra cutting for months, causing a sharp downturn in Tutuila’s economy.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 148. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On August 31, 1925, Margaret Mead arrived in Pago Pago aboard the SS Sonoma to begin fieldwork for her Columbia University dissertation, later published as Coming of Age in Samoa.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 151. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On September 26, 1930, the Bingham Commission reached Pago Pago aboard the USS Omaha. Their arrival was marked by a dockside parade of the Fita Fita Band, which performed The Star-Spangled Banner.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 155. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
-
English author W. Somerset Maugham stayed at Sadie Thompson Inn during his 6-week visit to Pago Pago in 1916. -
Guns were emplaced at Blunts and Breakers Points in 1940–42, covering Pago Pago Harbor. -
Remains of a World War II encampment above Utulei. -
Samoan Clipper exploded just after leaving Pago Pago Harbor in 1938.
-
The historic tramway on the World War II Heritage Trail
-
.</ref><ref>Wright, Dawn J. (2002). Undersea with GIS. ESRI Press. p. 48. Template:ISBN.</ref>
_at_anchor,_circa_in_1944_(NH_83319).jpg){kind=link}
First and Second World Wars
In May 1917, when the U.S. joined World War I, two German ships anchoring in Pago Pago were seized. The 10,000-ton Elsass was towed to Honolulu and turned over to the U.S. Navy, while its smaller gunboat, Solf, was refitted in Pago Pago and given the name Template:USS. Wireless messaging between Pago Pago and Hawaii was routed through Fiji. As the British censored all messages through Fiji, the Navy quickly upgraded the facilities to go directly between Pago Pago and Honolulu.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1937, film director John Ford visited Pago Pago for the filming of The Hurricane (1937), a movie based on the novel by the same name. With the cooperation of the U.S. Navy, filming took place from May 3 until mid-September. Local residents were recruited as extras, but because the population was under U.S. Navy administration, their wages were converted into goods such as chewing gum and canned salmon rather than paid in cash.<ref>Slide, Anthony (2012). Hollywood Unknowns: A History of Extras, Bit Players, and Stand-Ins. University Press of Mississippi. p. 192. Template:ISBN.</ref> The film’s release later that year brought international attention to Pago Pago, including a promotional photo spread in Life magazine.<ref>Konzett, Delia Caparoso (2017). Hollywood’s Hawaii: Race, Nation, and War. Rutgers University Press. p. 82. Template:ISBN.</ref> The film became a box office blockbuster, grossing $4.4 million domestically, and it went on to win the Academy Award for Best Sound Recording in 1938.<ref>Matheson, Sue (2019). The John Ford Encyclopedia. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 150. Template:ISBN.</ref>
On January 10, 1938, the flying boat Samoan Clipper exploded just after leaving Pago Pago Harbor. Pilot Edwin Musick and his crew of six died in the accident.<ref>Stanley, David (1989). South Pacific Handbook. Moon Publications. p. 358. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Cashman, Sean (1989). America in the Twenties and Thirties: The Olympian Age of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. NYU Press. p. 524. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Pago Pago was a vital naval base for the U.S. during World War II.<ref>Labor, Earle (2013). Jack London: An American Life. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. p. 272. Template:ISBN.</ref> Limited improvements at the naval station took place in the summer of 1940, which included a Marine Corps airfield at Tafuna. The new airfield was partly operational by April 1942, and fully operational by June. On March 15, 1941, the Marine Corps' 7th Defense Battalion arrived in Pago Pago and was the first Fleet Marine Force unit to serve in the South Pacific Ocean. It was also the first such unit to be deployed in defense of an American island. Guns were emplaced at Blunts and Breakers Points, covering Pago Pago Harbor. It trained the only Marine reserve unit to serve on active duty during World War II, namely the 1st Samoan Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. The battalion mobilized after the attack on Pearl Harbor and remained active until January 1944.<ref name="Rottman-2002"/>Template:Rp
In January 1942 Pago Pago Harbor was shelled by a Japanese submarine, but this was the only battle action on the islands during World War II.<ref>Rill, James C. (2003). A Narrative History of the 1st Battalion, 11th Marines During the Early History and Deployment of the 1st Marine Division, 1940–43. Merriam Press. p. 32. Template:ISBN.</ref> This took place on the morning of January 11, 1942, when a Japanese submarine surfaced in Fagasa Bay and fired fifteen rounds from its 5.5-inch deck guns toward Pago Pago. The shells passed over the hills and landed in several locations around Pago Pago Bay. Commander Edwin B. Robinson, who was cycling on Centipede Row, was struck in the knees by shrapnel. He was the only person in American Samoa to sustain war injuries during World War II.<ref>Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes: A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. p. 116. Template:ISBN.</ref>
On January 20, 1942, the 2nd Marine Brigade arrived in Pago Pago with about 5,000 men and various supplies of weaponry, including cannons and tanks.<ref>Kennedy, Joseph (2009). The Tropical Frontier: America's South Sea Colony. University of Hawaii Press. p. 207. Template:ISBN.</ref> On May 30, 1942, Rear Admiral Richard E. Byrd arrived in American Samoa to assess the defenses of Pago Pago. He reported that Tutuila’s garrison—7,995 U.S. Navy and Marine Corps personnel, along with 100 Fitafita Guards—was sufficient to repel minor raids but inadequate to withstand a major assault.<ref>Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes: A Record of the History Makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. p. 19. Template:ISBN.</ref>
On August 24, 1943, Pago Pago and the U.S. Naval Station was visited by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.<ref name="usembassy">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="samoanews">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The First Lady reviewed the Fita Fita Guard and Band and the First Sāmoan Battalion at the U.S. Naval Station.<ref>Shaffer, Robert J. (2000). American Samoa: 100 Years Under the United States Flag. Island Heritage. Page 178. ISBN 9780896103399.</ref>
On October 7, 1949, the Template:USS, a World War II oil and gas tanker, exploded and sank in Pago Pago Harbor. It remains the only shipwreck from that era found in the harbor and lies just over 100 feet beneath the current fuel dock. Measuring 90 meters in length, the wreck continues to be considered a source of pollution, impacting the water quality as of 2002.<ref>Wright, Dawn J. (2002). Undersea with GIS. ESRI Press. p. 48. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1953, 56 Tokelauans evicted from Swains Island arrived in Pago Pago, where they had to be supported by American Samoa until their repatriation. In response, Governor Richard Barrett Lowe issued an executive order to prevent similar incidents in the future, including restrictions that limited employment on Swains Island to American Samoans.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 263. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In the 1953 American Samoan legislative election, Mabel Coleman Reid of Pago Pago became the first woman elected to the American Samoa House of Representatives.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes - A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900-2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. p. 114. ISBN 9829036022.</ref>
1960s
Pago Pago was an important location for NASA's Apollo program from 1961 to 1972. Apollo 10, Apollo 11, Apollo 12, Apollo 13, Apollo 14 and Apollo 17 landed by Tutuila Island, and the crew flew from Pago Pago to Honolulu on their way back to the mainland.<ref name="tripod">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="nasa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> At Jean P. Haydon Museum are displays of an American Samoa-flag brought to the Moon in 1969 by Apollo 11, as well as moonstones, all given as a gift to American Samoa by President Richard Nixon following the return of the Apollo Moon missions.<ref name="fodors">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The museum was officially opened in October 1971 with an opening featuring Margaret Mead as a guest speaker. The National Endowment for the Arts provided a start-up grant. The most valuable asset was an exquisite mat reputed to be the Fala o Futa, the first important fine mat of Samoa, donated by Senate President HC Salanoa S.P. Aumoeualogo. The other major contribution was a cannon which came off Kaimiloa, a 171-ton steamer and the only warship in the fleet of King Kalakaua of Hawai'i. The Hawaiian king sent the ship to the Samoan Islands in an effort at creating a Polynesian kingdom.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1965, the Tramway at [[Mount Template:OkinaAlava]] was constructed as access to the TV transmission equipment on the mountain. It ran from atop Solo Hill at the end of the Togotogo Ridge above Utulei. It ascended Template:Convert across Pago Pago Harbor and landed at the Template:Convert Mount Template:OkinaAlava. It was one of the world's longest single-span cablecar routes.<ref name="Swaney-1994"/>Template:Rp<ref name="Stanley-2004">Stanley, David (2004). Moon Handbooks South Pacific. David Stanley. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp<ref>Dalton, Bill and David Stanley (1979). South Pacific Handbook. David Stanley. p. 73. Template:ISBN.</ref>
President Lyndon B. Johnson and First Lady Lady Bird Johnson visited Pago Pago on October 18, 1966. Johnson remains the only U.S. president to have visited American Samoa. Lyndon B. Johnson Tropical Medical Center was named in honor of the president.<ref name="ucsb">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Landing ahead of the Air Force One was the press plane that carried seventy news reporters. The two-hour visit was televised throughout the country and the world. Governor H. Rex Lee and traditional leaders crammed ceremonies, entertainment, a brief tour, and a school dedication: the Manulele Tausala, Lady Bird Johnson School. The President gave a speech where he laid out the American policy for its lone South Pacific territory. The President and First Lady returned to American Samoa in December 1966, on their way to Prime Minister's Harold Holt's funeral in Australia. Governor Owen Aspinall offered a quiet welcome as the White House asked for there to be no ceremonies during the visit. Around 3,000 spectators went to the Pago Pago International Airport to see the President.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In May 1967, Governor H. Rex Lee signed a law making Pago Pago a duty-free port. Excise taxes, however, were imposed on automobiles, firearms, luxury goods, and auto parts. The excise tax was heaviest on secondhand motor vehicles and machinery. It was nicknamed the "Junk Bill" as it intended to keep out old used merchandise.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
1970s and later
In November 1970, Pope Paul VI visited Pago Pago on his way to Australia.<ref>Cassidy, Edward Idris (2009). My Years in Vatican Service. Paulist Press. p. 52. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
Shortly after Christmas in 1970, a village fire destroyed the legislative chambers and adjacent facilities. It was decided that the new Legislature would be placed permanently in the center of the township of Fagatogo, the traditional Malae o le Talu, at a cost of $500,000. A triple celebration in October 1973 marked the dedication of the new Fono compound, its 25th anniversary, and the holding in Pago Pago of the Pacific Conference of Legislators. First Lady Lillian "Lily" Lee unveiled the official seal of American Samoa carved on ifelele by master wood-carver Sven Ortquist, which was mounted in front of the new Fono. The Arts Council Choir sang the territorial anthem, "Amerika Samoa", as composer HC Tuiteleleapaga Napoleone conducted. The territorial bird, lupe, and flower, mosooi, were officially announced during the same ceremony.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
Shipping in and out of Pago Pago experienced an economic boom from 1970 to 1974. Flights into Pago Pago International Airport continued to increase in the early 1970s, with the Office of Tourism reporting 40,000 visitors and calling for the construction of additional hotels. Service to American Samoa by air was offered by Pan American (four weekly flights), Air New Zealand (four weekly flights), and UTA (four weekly flights). From 1974 to 1975, records show that 78,000 passengers moved by air between the two Samoas and that Polynesian Airlines collected $1.8 million from the route.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp Pago Pago Harbor became a popular stop for yachts in the early 1970s.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1972, Army Sp. 4 Fiatele Taulago TeTemplate:Okinao was killed in Vietnam and his body was flown home to Pago Pago where his many awards were presented to his parents. The first Army Reserve Center was named after him.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp Two additional American Samoans were killed in the Vietnam War, Cpl. Lane Fatutoa Levi and LCpl. Fagatoele Lokeni in 1970 and 1968, respectively.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1972, seven historical buildings in American Samoa were entered in the National Register of Historic Places of the United States, including Navy Building 38, Jean P. Haydon Museum, and the Government House.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1985, the decision was made to privatize Ronald Reagan Shipyard. Southwest Marine, a company from San Diego, California, was selected to operate the shipyard under lease from the American Samoa Government.<ref name="ronaldreaganshipyard.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1986, the First Invitational Canoe Race was held in Pago Pago.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
On September 25, 1991, downtown Fagatogo received a new landmark: the Samoa News Building. The Executive Office Building in Utulei was dedicated on October 11, 1991.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
In 1999, the first international conference on the Samoan language was held in Pago Pago.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Scarecrow Press. p. xxx. Template:ISBN.</ref>
21st century
_02.jpg){kind=link}
Since 2000, American Samoa Department of Education through its school athletic program is the host of the East & West High School All-Star Football Game. It has been held at the field in Gagamoe in Pago Pago.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 2008, the tenth Festival of Pacific Arts was held in Pago Pago, drawing 2,500 participants from 27 countries.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Scarecrow Press. Pages 88–89. Template:ISBN.</ref> Also in 2008, Asuega Fa’amamata, one of the few female chiefs in the territory, was elected by Pago Pago as its new senator, becoming the sole female legislator in the American Samoa Fono.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Scarecrow Press. p. 25. Template:ISBN.</ref>
In 2010, Tri Marine Group, the world's largest supplier of fish, purchased the plant assets of Samoa Packing and committed $34 million for a state-of-the-art tuna packing facility.<ref name="ronaldreaganshipyard.com"/>
Mike Pence was the third sitting U.S. vice president to visit American Samoa<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> when he made a stopover in Pago Pago in April 2017.<ref name="politico">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> He addressed 200 soldiers here during his refueling stop.<ref name="cbsnews">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson visited town on June 3, 2017.<ref name="americansamoa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In August 2017, the Fono building in Fagatogo was demolished.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 2018, four months of repair took place at the ASG-owned Ronald Reagan Shipyard in Satala.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
A North Korean cargo ship seized by the United States arrived in Pago Pago for inspections in 2019.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2009 tsunami
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
On September 29, 2009, an earthquake struck in the South Pacific, near Samoa and American Samoa, sending a tsunami into Pago Pago and surrounding areas. The tsunami caused moderate to severe damage to villages, buildings and vehicles and caused 34 deaths and hundreds of injuries.<ref name="google.com">Article Template:Webarchive on Google News</ref><ref>"Disaster aid flows to tsunami-hit Samoas ". MSNBC.</ref> It was an 8.3 magnitude earthquake which caused Template:Convert waves to hit the city. It caused major flooding and damaged numerous buildings. A local power plant was disabled, 241 homes were destroyed, and 308 homes had major damage. Shortly after the earthquake, President Barack Obama issued a federal disaster declaration, which authorized funds for individual assistance (IA), such as temporary housing.<ref>Jadacki, Matt (2011). American Samoa 2009 Earthquake and Tsunami: After-Action Report. DIANE Publishing. p. 2. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The largest wave hit Pago Pago at 6:13 pm local time, with an amplitude of Template:Convert.<ref>Dunbar, Paula K. (2015). Pacific Tsunami Warning System: A Half Century of Protecting the Pacific, 1965–2015. Government Printing Office. p. 56. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Geography
Pago Pago is in the Eastern District of American Samoa, in Ma'oputasi County.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is approximately Template:Convert southwest of Hawaii, Template:Convert northeast of New Zealand, and Template:Convert southwest of California.<ref>Ruffner, James A. and Frank E. Bair (1987). Weather of U.S. Cities: City Reports. Gale Research Company. p. 840. Template:ISBN.</ref> It is located at Template:Coord. Pago Pago is located 18 degrees south of the equator.<ref name="americansamoaport.as.gov">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The city of Pago Pago encompasses several surrounding villages,<ref name="visittheusa.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> including Fagatogo, the legislative and judicial capital, and Utulei, the executive capital and home of the Governor.<ref name="britannica.com"/> The town is located between steep mountainsides and the harbor. It is surrounded by mountains such as Mount Matafao (2,142 ft), Rainmaker Mountain (1,716 ft), [[Mount Template:OkinaAlava]] (1,611 ft), Mount Siona (892 ft), Mount Tepatasi (666 ft), and Mount Matai (850 ft), all mountains protecting Pago Pago Harbor.<ref name="as">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The main downtown area is Fagatogo on the south shore of Pago Pago Harbor, the location of the Fono (territorial legislature), the port, the bus station and the market. The banks are in Utulei and Fagotogo, as are the Sadie Thompson Inn and other hotels. The tuna canneries, which provide employment for a third of the population of Tutuila, are in Atu'u on the north shore of the harbor. The village of Pago Pago is at the western head of the harbor.<ref>"Pago Pago (American Samoa)". Britannica Online Encyclopedia.</ref>
Pago Pago Harbor nearly bisects Tutuila Island. It is facing south and situated almost midpoint on the island. Its bay is Template:Convert wide and Template:Convert long. A Template:Convert high mountain, Mount Pioa (Rainmaker Mountain), is located at the east side of the bay. Half of American Samoa's inhabitants live along Pago Pago's foothills and coastal areas. The downtown area is known as Fagatogo and is home to government offices, port facilities, Samoan High School and the Rainmaker Hotel. Two tuna factories are located in the northern part of town. The town is centered around the mouth of the Vaopito Stream.<ref name="Lal, Brij V 2000 Page 101"/> Pago Pago Harbor collects water from numerous streams, including the Template:Convert Vaipito Stream, which is the area's largest watershed. Not far from where Route One crosses Vaipito Stream is Laolao Stream, which discharges into the head of Pago Pago Harbor. It merges with Vaipito Stream in Pago Pago Park, a few yards from the harbor. Between the Vaipito Valley and Autapini is a tract of land situated along the headwaters of Pago Pago Bay, and that is called Fusi; hstorically, this area has been the subject of legal disputes and jurisprudence concerning land ownership.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In the village of Pago Pago, from Malaloa to Satala, there are a total of eleven rivers or streams. These include Vaipito, Gagamoe, Laolao, Pago, Leau, Vaima, Utumoa, and Aga. Tidal mud flats associated with the mouth of the Vaopito Stream were filled in order to create Pago Pago Park at the head of Pago Pago Harbor.<ref name=ASWPP>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Rp Five species of Gobie fish, Mountain bass, Freshwater eel, Mullet and four shrimp species have been recorded along the lower reach of the Vaipito Stream.<ref name=ASWPP/>Template:Rp One of the Goby species, Stiphodon hydoreibatus, is endemic to the Samoan Islands and found nowhere else on Earth.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
North of town is the National Park of American Samoa.<ref name="visitcapitalcity">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> A climb to the summit of [[Mount Template:OkinaAlava]] in the National Park of American Samoa provides a bird's-eye view of the harbor and town.<ref name="FREDERICK">Farrell, Jack, "American Samoa American Samoa: A Tropical Delight Hosting the Only U.S. National Park South of the Equator" Template:Webarchive, Frederick News-Post, March 16, 2014</ref>
-
NPS map of Pago Pago
-
Pago Pago Harbor is the world's largest natural deep harbor.<ref>Furuto, Sharlene B.C.L. (2013). Social Welfare in East Asia and the Pacific. Columbia University Press. p. 210. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Carter, Stan M. (2013). Climbing Matafao. Author Solutions, Inc. p. 81. Template:ISBN.</ref>
-
Bird's-eye view of the coast of Pago Pago
Agriculture
Agriculture and fishing still provide sustenance for local families.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
City features
The Greater Pago Pago Area stretches into neighboring villages:<ref name="Cruise Travel Vol 1980 Page 60"/>
- Fagatogo is home to the Pago Pago Post Office, museum, movie theater, bars, and taxi services. It is locally known as Downtown Pago Pago.<ref name="Grabowski-1992"/>Template:Rp
- Utulei and Maleimi are home to some Pago Pago-based hotels.
- Satala and Atu'u are home to Pago Pago's tuna industry.
- Tafuna is the location of the Pago Pago International Airport, Template:Convert south of Pago Pago.
Some houses are Western-style; others are more traditional Samoan housing units. All houses have running water and plumbing.<ref>McDonald, George (1994). Frommer's Guide to the South Pacific, 1994–1995. Prentice Hall Travel. p. 262. Template:ISBN.</ref> It has been described as a "thoroughly Americanized" city.<ref name="Rauzon, Mark J. 2016 Page 7">Rauzon, Mark J. (2016). Isles of Amnesia: The History, Geography, and Restoration of America's Forgotten Pacific Islands. University of Hawai'i Press, Latitude 20. p. 7. Template:ISBN.</ref> Fagatogo is Pago Pago's chief governmental and commercial center.<ref>Holmes, Lowell D. (1974). Samoan Village. Holt McDougal. p. 98. Template:ISBN</ref>
Pago Pago Park is a public park by the harbor in Pago Pago. It lies by the Laolao Stream at the very end of Pago Pago Harbor. It is a Template:Convert recreational complex and culture center. There are a ball field, sports court and boat ramp in the park. The park houses businesses such as the American Samoa Development Bank.<ref>Goodwin, George McDonald (1994). Frommer's Guide to the South Pacific, 1994–1995. Prentice Hall Travel. p. 258. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Lonely Planet Publications (1990). Samoa, Western & American Samoa. Lonely Planet Publications. p. 141. Template:ISBN.</ref> There are basketball and tennis courts, a football field, a gymnasium, a bowling alley and several Korean food kiosks in the park. The Korean House was built as a social center for the Korean fishermen in town.<ref name="Swaney-1994"/>Template:Rp
National Park
{{#invoke:Labelled list hatnote|labelledList|Main article|Main articles|Main page|Main pages}}
Pago Pago is the primary entry point for visits to National Park of American Samoa, and the city is situated immediately south of the park.<ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 604"/><ref>Hughes, Holly (2010). Frommer's 500 Extraordinary Islands (500 Places). Frommer's. p. 86. Template:ISBN</ref> Its park visitor center is located at the head of Pago Pago Harbor: Pago Plaza Visitor Center (Pago Plaza, Suite 114, Pago Pago, AS 96799).<ref>National Geographic Society (2012). National Geographic Guide to National Parks of the United States. National Geographic Books. p. 233. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Smith, Darren L. and Penny J. Hoffman (2001). Parks Directory of the United States. Omnigraphics. p. 70. Template:ISBN.</ref> This center also contains a collection of Samoan artifacts, corals, and seashells.<ref name="Stanley-2004"/>Template:Rp The center expanded with 700 sq. ft. in July 2019, adding new demonstrations and exhibits. An item at the new exhibit is the skull of a sperm whale which washed up on Ofu Island in 2015. Several video screens and panels inform visitors about Samoan dolphins and whales. The exhibit also contains a Template:Convert by Template:Convert siapo which was made by college students as well as an Template:Okinaenu basket woven with traditional materials.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The nearest hotels to the national park are also located in Pago Pago.<ref>Moker, Molly (2008). America's National Parks: Complete Coverage of All 391 National Parks, Including Scenic Trails, Battlefields, and Other Historic Sites. Fodor's Travel Pub. p. 429. Template:ISBN.</ref> Other parts of the park, on the islands of [[TaTemplate:Okinaū]] and Ofu, can be visited via commercial inter-island air carrier from Pago Pago International Airport.
The national park is home to tropical rainforest, tall mountains, beaches, and some of the tallest sea cliffs in the world (Template:Convert).<ref>Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). Geology of National Parks. Kendall Hunt. p. 603. Template:ISBN.</ref> It was authorized by the U.S. Congress in 1988 to preserve the paleotropical rain forest, Indo-Pacific coral reefs, and Samoan culture. It officially opened in 1993 when a 50-year lease was signed between the U.S. federal government, the government of American Samoa, and local village chiefs (Matai). It is the only U.S. National Park where the U.S. federal government leases the land from local governments instead of being the land owner. It is a Template:Convert park which provides habitat for a variety of tropical wildlife, including coral reef fish, seabirds, flying fruit bats, and numerous other species of animals. Approximately Template:Convert are on Tutuila, and the remainder is on the other islands and the ocean. The park's offshore coral reefs provide habitat for 1,000 species of coral reef and pelagic fishes.<ref>Goldin, Meryl Rose (2002). Field Guide to the Samoan Archipelago: Fish, Wildlife, and Protected Areas. Bess Press. Pages 273–274. Template:ISBN.</ref> The park is home to over 150 species of coral. Notable terrestrial species are the Pacific tree boa and the Flying Megabat, which has a Template:Convert wingspread.<ref>Butcher, Russell D. and Lynn P. Whitaker (1999). National Parks and Conservation Association Guide to National Parks: Pacific Region. Globe Pequot Press. p. 82. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Natural hazards
Pago Pago is vulnerable to natural and man-made disasters. Vulnerabilities include heavy storms, flooding, tsunamis, mudslides, and earthquakes. American Samoa has experienced several cyclones and tropical storms, which also increase risks of rock slides and floodings.<ref>Corlew, Kati (2015). Sauniuniga mo Puapuaga ma Suiga o le Tau i Amerika Sāmoa (in Samoan language). East-West Center. pp. 3–5. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The capital city is situated at the head of Pago Pago Harbor in a sheltered area that has been described as relatively safe during hurricanes.<ref name="Rauzon, Mark J. 2016 Page 7"/>'
In the past century, Pago Pago has experienced over 50 minor tsunamis. The earliest and most impactful tsunami before the 2009 Samoa earthquake and tsunami occurred in 1917. This event was triggered by a magnitude 8.3 earthquake at the outer border of the northern end of the Tonga Trench, approximately 200 km off the Tutuila coast. The initial wave, reaching a height of about 3 m., resulted in the destruction of numerous houses and two churches. No human casualties were reported. Another notable event was the tsunami associated with the 1960 Valdivia earthquake. While waves in the head of Pago Pago Bay reached a maximum height of 5 m., they caused minimal damage to several houses, with no reported casualties. The most destructive tsunami in Pago Pago's recorded history took place in 2009. Studies indicate that during this incident, wave amplification occurred in the Pago Pago Bay due to its long and narrow morphology. Waves that measured approximately 1 m. at the mouth of Pago Pago Bay surged to a maximum height of 7 m. at the head of Pago Pago Bay. The resulting inundation caused extensive damage in Pago Pago Harbor, extending up to 500 m. inland, and reaching a maximum run-up of 8 m., leading to 34 casualties across Tutuila Island.<ref>Brieuc Riou, Eric Chaumillon, Jean-Luc Schneider, Thierry Corrège, Catherine Chagué. "The sediment-fill of Pago Pago Bay (Tutuila Island, American Samoa): New insights on the sediment record of past tsunamis." Sedimentology, Blackwell Publishing, In press, 10.1111/sed.12574. hal-02422133. Retrieved on January 19, 2024, from https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/sed.12574 Template:Webarchive</ref>
Geology
Tutuila Island is a basaltic volcanic dome created by five volcanoes aligned along two or possibly three rift zones—fractures in the basement rock. The island's formation dates back to the Pliocene and early Pleistocene epochs, approximately 5 million to 500,000 years ago. Volcanic activity ceased around 10,000 years ago, leaving the island volcanically dormant today. The central feature of Tutuila's geology is the Pago Volcano, which was active between 1.54 and 1.28 million years ago. The volcano's caldera, approximately 6 miles long and 3 miles wide, collapsed 1.27 million years ago, creating Pago Pago Harbor. The natural harbor formed in the partially submerged remnants of the caldera, which cuts deeply into the south-central coast of the island. The village of Pago Pago is situated at the narrowest part of Tutuila, near the center of the collapsed caldera. The northern half of the Pago Volcano shield remains, while the southeastern portion has been eroded to form the harbor.<ref name="United States 1992 Page 3-13">United States. Federal Highway Administration (1992). "Pago Pago Park, New Access Road: Environmental Impact Statement". Northwestern University. p. 3-13-1.</ref><ref name="npshistory.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 614">Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). Geology of National Parks. University of Michigan. p. 614. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Erosion has also played a significant role in shaping the landscape. Following the collapse of the Pago Volcano, the Vaipito Valley and Pago Pago Bay were sculpted by streams and geological processes. The Vaipito Stream, which follows a fault line associated with the volcano, carved steep valley walls, exposing rock formations of basalt, andesite, and trachyte. Over time, colluvial and fluvial sediments filled the lower reaches of the valley, creating a narrow, flat floodplain. Coralline sands and basaltic sediments deposited at the stream's mouth contributed to the formation of a narrow coral-rubble reef flat along Pago Pago Bay's shoreline. Pago Pago Harbor marks the southeastern boundary of the caldera. The northwest rim of the caldera, known as the Maugaloa Ridge, forms the southern boundary of the National Park of American Samoa.<ref name="United States 1992 Page 3-13"/><ref name="npshistory.com"/><ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 614"/>
Climate
Pago Pago has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen climate classification Af) with hot temperatures and abundant year-round rainfall. All official climate records for American Samoa are kept at Pago Pago. The hottest temperature ever recorded was Template:Convert on February 22, 1958. Conversely, the lowest temperature on record was Template:Convert on October 10, 1964.<ref name= NCDC >{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The average annual temperature recorded at the weather station at Pago Pago International Airport is Template:Convert, with a temperature range of about two degrees Fahrenheit separating the average monthly temperatures of the coolest and hottest months.
Pago Pago has been named one of the rainiest places on Earth.<ref>Gray, John Alexander Clinton (1960). Amerika Samoa: A History of American Samoa and Its United States Naval Administration. United States Naval Institute. p. 247. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Ash, Russell (1998). The Top 10 of Everything, 1999. DK Publishing. p. 17. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref>Rawlings-Way, Charles and Brett Atkinson (2016). Lonely Planet South Pacific. Lonely Planet Publications. p. 299. Template:ISBN.</ref> Due to its warm winters, the plant hardiness zone is 13b. It receives Template:Convert of rain per year. The rainy season lasts from October through May, but the town experiences warm and humid temperatures year-round. Besides it being wetter and more humid from November–April, this is also the hurricane season. The frequency of hurricanes hitting Pago Pago has increased dramatically in recent years. The windy season lasts from May to October. As warmer easterlies are forced up and over Rainmaker Mountain, clouds form and drop moisture on the city. Consequentially, Pago Pago experiences twice the rainfall of nearby Apia in Western Samoa.<ref name="Stanley-1993"/>Template:Rp The average yearly rainfall in Pago Pago Harbor is Template:Convert, whereas in neighboring Western Samoa, it is around Template:Convert per year.<ref>Stanley, David (1982). South Pacific Handbook. David Stanley. p. 154. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Rainmaker Mountain, which is also known as Mount Pioa, is a designated National Natural Landmark.<ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 604"/> It is notable for its ability to extract rain in tremendous quantities. Rising Template:Convert out of the ocean, the Pioa monolith blocks the path of the low clouds heavy with fresh water as they are pushed along by the southeast tradewinds. The southeast ridge of Rainmaker Mountain reaches up into the clouds creating downfalls of enormous proportions.<ref name="Shaffer-2000"/>Template:Rp
Template:Weather box Template:Graph:Weather monthly history
Demographics
The village of Pago Pago proper had a 2010 population of 3,656. However, Pago Pago also encompasses neighboring villages. The Greater Pago Pago Area was home to 11,500 residents in 2011.<ref name="ngdc.noaa.gov">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Around 90 percent of American Samoa's population lives around Pago Pago.<ref>McColl, R.W. (2014). Encyclopedia of World Geography, Volume 1. Infobase Publishing. p. 29. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="cia">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> American Samoa's population grew by 22 percent in the 1990s; nearly all of this growth took place in Pago Pago.<ref>Hans Folke and Merete Borch: "Amerikansk Samoa" in Den Store Danske, Gyldendal. Retrieved October 31, 2019, from http://denstoredanske.dk/index.php?sideId=36933</ref>
As of the 2000 U.S. census, 74.5% of Pago Pago's population are of "Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Island" race. 16.6% were Asian, while 4.9% were white.<ref>Census of population and housing (2000): American Samoa Summary Social, Economic, and Housing Characteristics (2000). DIANE Publishing. p. 147. Template:ISBN.</ref> In Pago Pago proper, residential communities are mostly found in the Vaipito Valley.<ref name=ASWPP/>Template:Rp
The proportion of Pago Pago residents born outside of American Samoa was 26 percent in the early 1980s, and 39 percent in the late 1980s. The percentage of residents born abroad reached 44 percent in 1990. Many of the residents are American Samoans who were born abroad, and the village also has had an increasing number of new residents from Far East countries such as South Korea.<ref name=ASWPP/>Template:Rp
The village of Pago Pago, the Greater Pago Pago Area and Maʻopūtasi County observed a notable reduction in population during the period from 2010 to 2020. Specifically, the county registered a 16.8 percent decline in population, while Pago Pago proper recorded an 18 percent decrease. This decline surpassed the overall population decrease for American Samoa, which stood at 10.5 percent during the same timeframe. Among the villages in the county, only Anua experienced a positive growth in population, contrasting with declines in villages such as Fagatogo (−16.8%), Satala (−26.6%), and Utulei (−30%).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Government
Pago Pago is the seat of the judiciary (Fagatogo), legislature and Governor's Office (Utulei).<ref name="Cruise Travel Vol 1980 Page 60"/>
Education
The Feleti Barstow Public Library is located in Pago Pago.<ref>"Contact Us Template:Webarchive". Feleti Barstow Public Library. Retrieved May 19, 2010.</ref> In 1991, severe tropical Cyclone Val hit Pago Pago, destroying the library that existed there. The current Barstow library, constructed in 1998, opened on April 17, 2000.<ref>"History Template:Webarchive." Feleti Barstow Public Library. Retrieved May 19, 2010.</ref>
The American Samoa Community College (ASCC) was founded in July 1970 by the American Samoa Department of Education. The college's first courses were taught in 1971 at the Lands and Survey Building in Fagatogo. At the time, the college had a total enrollment of 131 students. In 1972, the college moved to the former Fialloa High School in Utulei, before ultimately moving to its current location in Mapusaga in 1974.<ref name="Crocombe, R.G 1988 Page 218">Crocombe, R.G. and Malama Meleisea (1988). Pacific Universities: Achievements, Problems, Prospects. The University of the South Pacific. p. 218. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Culture
Religion
Pago Pago is home to a variety of Christian denominations, including the New Apostolic Church, the Congregational Christian Church of Jesus Christ (CCCJS), the Pago Pago Assembly of God, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), the Susana Uesele Methodist Church, and the First Chinese Baptist Church of American Samoa. The All People’s Pentecostal Church was dedicated in August 2017, and a new Jehovah’s Witnesses Kingdom Hall opened in 2016. The town also has a Baháʼí Center. In neighboring Satala, there is a Seventh-day Adventist Church, while Fagatogo is the site of the Roman Catholic Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph the Worker.<ref>Aitaoto, Fuimaono Fini (2021). Progress and Developments of the Churches in the Samoan Islands: Early 21St Century. LifeRich Publishing. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Several congregations in Pago Pago, including Assemblies of God, the Congregational Christian Church of American Samoa (CCCAS), and Methodist churches, participate in joint worship services through the World Council of Churches. However, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and certain other denominations do not take part in these shared services.<ref>Aitaoto, Fuimaono Fini (2021). Progress and Developments of the Churches in the Samoan Islands: Early 21St Century. LifeRich Publishing. Pages 122 and 266. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Economy
Pago Pago is the center of commerce in American Samoa.<ref name="Crocombe, R.G 1988 Page 218"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Blackford, Mansel G. (2007). Pathways to the Present: U.S. Development and Its Consequences in the Pacific. University of Hawaii Press. p. 196. Template:ISBN.</ref> It is home to all the industry and most of the commerce in American Samoa.<ref name="Swaney-1994"/>Template:Rp It is the number one port in the United States in terms of value of fish landed – about $200,000,000 per year.<ref name=NPS2009a/> In 2007, tuna exports accounted for 93% of all exports, amounting to $446 million.<ref>Craig, Robert D. (2011). Historical Dictionary of Polynesia. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 26. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Tuna canning is the main economic activity in town. Exports are almost exclusively tuna canneries such as Chicken of the Sea and StarKist, which are both located in Pago Pago. These also occupy 14 percent of American Samoa's total workforce as of 2014.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The most industrialized area in the territory can be found between Pago Pago Harbor and the Tafuna-Leone Plain, which also are the two most densely populated places in the islands.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
American Samoa was the world's fourth-largest tuna processor in 1993. The primary industry is tuna processing by the Samoa Packing Co. (Chicken of the Sea) and StarKist Samoa, a subsidiary of H.J. Heinz. The first cannery was opened in 1954. Canned fish, canned pet food, and fish meal from skin and bones account for 93 percent of American Samoa's industrial output.<ref name="Stanley-1993"/>Template:Rp
Dining establishments, amusement facilities, professional services, and bars can be found throughout Pago Pago. Pago Pago proper was home to 225 registered commercial enterprises as of year 2000. Within the Pago Pago watershed, farmland (faatoaga) are located in two areas in the southern half of the Vaipito Valley as well as in Happy Valley and on the west side of Pago Pago village. Farmland is also found by Fagatogo, Atu'u, Punaoa Valley, Lepua, Aua, and Leloaloa.<ref name=ASWPP/>Template:Rp
Centers for shopping are Pago Plaza, which consists of smaller stores selling handcrafts and souvenirs, and Fagatogo Square Shopping Center, which is home to larger shops.<ref name="visittheusa.com"/> This shopping mall is next-door to Fagatogo Market in Fagatogo, which is considered the main center of Pago Pago. It is home to several restaurants, shops, bars, and often live entertainment and music. Souvenirs are often sold at the market when cruise ships are visiting town. Locals also sell handmade crafts at the dock and on main street. [[Mount Template:OkinaAlava]], the canneries in Atu'u, Rainmaker Mountain (Mount Pioa), and Pago Pago Harbor are all visible from the market. The main bus station is located immediately behind the market.<ref name="lonelyplanet">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Stanley, David (1999). Moon Handbooks Tonga-Samoa. David Stanley. p. 168. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Pago Pago is a duty-free port and prices on imported goods are lower than in other parts of the South Pacific Ocean.<ref name="Swaney-1994"/>Template:Rp Governor H. Rex Lee signed a law making Pago Pago a duty-free port in May 1967.<ref name="Sunia-2009"/>Template:Rp
It is a wealthier city than nearby Apia, capital of Samoa.<ref>Brillat, Michael (1999). South Pacific Islands. Hunter Publishing, Inc. p. 136. Template:ISBN.</ref><ref name="nytimes">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Goodwin, George McDonald (1994). Frommer's Guide to the South Pacific, 1994–1995. Prentice Hall Travel. p. 205. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Tourism
Tourism in American Samoa is centered around Pago Pago. It receives 34,000 visitors per year, which is one-fourth of neighboring country of Samoa. 69.3 percent of visitors are from the United States as of 2014.<ref>Harssel, Jan van and Richard H. Jackson (2014). National Geographic Learning's Visual Geography of Travel and Tourism. Cengage Learning. p. 526. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Until 1980, one could experience the view of Mt. Avala by taking an aerial tramway over the harbor, but on April 17 of that year a U.S. Navy plane, flying overhead as part of the Flag Day celebrations, struck the cable; the plane crashed into a wing of the Rainmaker Hotel.<ref>Moos, Grant. 1980 [1997]. "April 17, 1980: Fiery crash halts Flag Day". Samoa News, April 18, 1980 (reprinted in the Samoa News, January 22, 1997: 4). Cited in Sorensen, Stan, and Joseph Theroux. The Samoan Historical Calendar, 1606–2007 Template:Webarchive. p. 93.</ref> The tramway was repaired, but closed not long after. The tram remains unusable, although according to Lonely Planet, plans have been put forth to reopen it, but in January 2011 the cable was damaged by Tropical Cyclone Wilma, fell into the harbor and has not been repaired. Governor Lolo Matalasi Moliga announced in 2014 that he would look into restoring the cable car.<ref name="radionz">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The Sadie Thompson Inn, on the outskirts of Pago Pago, is a hotel and restaurant that is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
The Greater Pago Pago Area is home to more than 10 hotels:<ref name="Stanley-2004"/>Template:Rp
Transportation
Pago Pago Harbor is the port of entry for vessels arriving in American Samoa.<ref>Stanley, David (1999). South Pacific Handbook. Moon Handbooks. p. 438. Template:ISBN.</ref> Many cruise boats and ships land at Pago Pago Harbor for reprovision reasons, such as to restock on goods and to utilize American-trained medical personnel.<ref>Pocock, Michael (2013). The Pacific Crossing Guide: RCC Pilotage Foundation with Ocean Cruising Club. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 71. Template:ISBN.</ref> Pago Pago Harbor is one of the world's largest natural harbors.<ref name="ngdc.noaa.gov"/> It has been named one of the best deepwater harbors in the South Pacific Ocean,<ref name="States Central Intelligence Agency 2016 Page 19"/><ref>McColl, R.W. (2014). Encyclopedia of World Geography, Volume 1. Infobase Publishing. p. 28. Template:ISBN.</ref> or one of the best in the world as a whole.<ref>Creason, Pam (1993). Geography. p. 588. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Pago Pago is a port of call for South Pacific cruise ships, including Norwegian Cruise Line<ref name="ncl">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Princess Cruises.<ref name="princess">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, cruise ships do not take on passengers in Pago Pago, but typically arrive in the morning and depart in the afternoon. Thirteen cruise ships were scheduled to visit Pago Pago in 2017, bringing 31,000 visitors.<ref name="radionz2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Pago Pago Harbor can accommodate two cruise ships at the same time, and has done so on several occasions.<ref name="cruiseindustrynews2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Pago Pago International Airport (PPG) is located at Tafuna, Template:Convert southwest of Pago Pago. There are international flights to Samoa 4–7 times daily by Polynesian Airlines:<ref name="americansamoaport.as.gov"/> Pago Pago is a 35-minute flight from Apia in Samoa. Most flights are to and from Fagali'i.<ref name="Stanley-2004"/>Template:Rp<ref name="as2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> There is only one flight destination from the territory to the United States: Honolulu International Airport, a five-hour flight from Pago Pago by Hawaiian Airlines. Of the 88,650 international arrivals in 2001, only 10 percent were tourists. The rest came to visit relatives, for employment reasons, or in transit. Most international visitors are from the independent country of Samoa.<ref name="Stanley-2004"/>Template:Rp
Scheduled intra-territorial flights are available to the islands of TaTemplate:Okinaū and Ofu, which take 30 minutes by air from Pago Pago.
A ferry called Template:MV runs between Pago Pago and Apia, Samoa, once a week.<ref>Atkinson, Brett (2016). Lonely Planet Rarotonga, Samoa & Tonga. Lonely Planet Publications. p. 163. Template:ISBN.</ref>
Bus and taxi services are based in Fagatogo.<ref name="frommers">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Historical sites
Sixteen remaining structures from the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila Historic District are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. These include the Government House, Courthouse of American Samoa, Jean P. Haydon Museum, Navy Building 38, and other buildings.
World War II fortifications
Near Pila F. Palu Co. Inc. Store, a road runs up the hill into Happy Valley, and on the side of this road, six World War II ammunition bunkers can be seen on the left before reaching a dirt road. The dirt road, also located on the left side, leads to a big concrete bunker which was used as naval communications headquarters during World War II.<ref name="Stanley-1996">Stanley, David (1996). South Pacific Handbook. David Stanley. Template:ISBN.</ref>Template:Rp Over fifty pillbox fortifications can be found along the coastline on Tutuila Island. The largest of these is the Marine Corps communication bunker in Pago Pago.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is located in the Autapini area, which is between Malaloa and Happy Valley.<ref name="Stanley-1996"/>Template:Rp
During World War II, guns were emplaced at Blunt's and Breaker's Points, covering Pago Pago Harbor.<ref name="Rottman-2002"/>Template:Rp
Flora
At one time there were a number of mangrove forests around the Pago Pago area, but these are now all gone, with the exception of a few scattered individual trees surviving at Aiia on the east side of Pago Pago Bay. No trace of mangroves are longer found within Fagatogo village limits, thus contradicting its name ("bay of mangroves").<ref>Whistler, W. Arthur (April 1980): "The Vegetation of Eastern Samoa". Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden. p. 104. Retrieved on November 30, 2024, from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/349619846_The_Vegetation_of_Eastern_Samoa Template:Webarchive</ref>
Fauna
Black turtles and Hawksbill turtles have been recorded in Pago Pago Harbor. The area also attracts seabirds like the Crested tern and the Blue-gray noddy, which are known to roost and nest nearby. The Cardinal honey-eater frequents the ridges above Pago Pago, feeding on nectar from native plants. Additionally, the Wandering tattler has been spotted along a mountain stream just west of the town. The Black rat has also been recorded in Pago Pago.<ref>Amerson, A. Binion, W. Arthur Whistler, and Terry D. Schwaner (1982). "Wildlife and Wildlife Habitat of American Samoa II: Accounts of Flora and Fauna. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.</ref>
The Red-vented bulbul, an introduced bird species, has become widespread on Tutuila Island. It was first observed in Apia during the 1940s and later reported in Pago Pago in 1958. Another introduced species, the Rock dove, has a more recent and less well-documented history in the Samoan Islands. Records from the 1950s indicate that a flock of 20 Rock Doves was kept by a family in Pago Pago during this period.<ref>Muse, Corey and Shirley (1982). The Birds and Birdlore of Samoa: O Manu Ma Tala'aga o Manu o Samoa. Pioneer Press. Pages 87 and 117. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The Grey-backed tern is occasionally observed feeding within Pago Pago Harbor, while the Black noddy is frequently sighted flying over the same area. The Common myna, an adaptable urban bird, is commonly encountered in the developed regions surrounding Pago Pago.<ref>Engbring, John and Fred L. Ramsey (1986). "A 1986 Survey of the Forest Birds of American Samoa”. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.</ref>
Recreation
The main trailhead for both Mount ʻAlava and Mount Matafao is located at the crest of Fagasā Pass, just above the Vaipito Valley. From this point the Mount ʻAlava Trail – the only hiking trail within the Pago Pago unit of the National Park of American Samoa<ref>Hunt, Errol (2000). South Pacific. Lonely Planet Publications. p. 392. Template:ISBN.</ref> – ascends to the 491-meter (1,611-foot) summit, while a separate trail on the opposite side of the road climbs toward Mount Matafao, the highest peak on Tutuila Island.<ref>Stanley, David (1989). South Pacific Handbook. Moon Publications. Pages 358 and 362. Template:ISBN.</ref>
The most popular hiking trail on the island is the World War II Heritage Trail, a 3-kilometer (1.9-mile) ridge walk that ends at Blunt’s Point. Along the way it skirts prehistoric archaeological features and a series of coastal gun emplacements installed in 1942–43 to repel a possible Japanese landing.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Two short trails provide additional access to wartime fortifications: the Blunt’s Point Trail, a 0.6-kilometer (0.4-mile) climb up Matautu Ridge to the twin 6-inch naval guns of Blunts Point Battery, and the Breakers Point Trail, a 0.5-kilometer (0.3-mile) path across Pago Pago Harbor that reaches Breakers Point Naval Guns.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Landmarks
Landmarks include:<ref name="Grabowski-1992"/>Template:Rp<ref name="Swaney-1994"/>Template:Rp
- National Park of American Samoa, immediately north of town
- NPS Visitor Center, exhibit and shop
- U.S. Naval Station Tutuila Historic District, sixteen buildings are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
- Government House is a colonial mansion atop Mauga o Ali'i (the chief's hill), which was erected in 1903
- The Fono is the territorial legislature
- The Courthouse is a two-story colonial-style house listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places
- Jean P. Haydon Museum was constructed in 1917 and houses historical artifacts such as canoes. It is named for its founder, the wife of Governor John Morse Haydon
- Blunts Point Battery, erected as a part of the fortification following the attack on Pearl Harbor<ref name="americansamoa2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Breakers Point Naval Guns, World War II-era defensive fortification
- Rainmaker Mountain (Pioa Mountain), designated National Natural Landmark<ref name="Harris, Ann G 2004 Page 604"/>
- Utulei Beach, beach in Utulei
- Navy Building 38, historic radio station in Fagatogo
- Tauese PF Sunia Ocean Center, visitor center for National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa
- Air Disaster Memorial, in Utulei. Monument for the eight deceased during a 1980 airplane crash
-
Government House, on the Togotogo Ridge, appears on the National Register of Historic Places.
-
Fale outside Jean P. Haydon Museum
In popular culture
- Rain (1921) by W. Somerset Maugham is set in Pago Pago.<ref name="Stanley-2004"/>Template:Rp<ref>Cruise Travel Vol. 2, No. 1 (July 1980). Lakeside Publishing Co. p. 61. Template:ISSN.</ref> Movie adaptions include Sadie Thompson (1928), Rain (1932), and Miss Sadie Thompson (1953).
- The Blonde Captive (1931) was filmed in Pago Pago.<ref name="American Film Institute 1993">American Film Institute (1993). The American Film Institute Catalog of Motion Pictures Produced in the United States, Volume 1. University of California Press. p. 1111. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- The Hurricane (1937) and Its sequel, Hurricane (1979), were set in Pago Pago. The 1937 film was filmed in Pago Pago.<ref name="American Film Institute 1993"/>
- The storyline in the film South of Pago Pago (1940) is set here. This movie was partly shot in Pago Pago, although most filming took place in Hawai'i and Long Beach, CA.<ref>Reyes, Luis and Ed Rampell (1995). Made in paradise: Hollywood's films of Hawai'i and the South Seas. Mutual Pub. p. 1940. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- A jungle village resembling Pago Pago was created for motion picture in Two Harbors, Catalina Island, CA.<ref>Fleming, E.J. (2008). Paul Bern: The Life and Famous Death of the MGM Director and Husband of Harlow. McFarland. p. 73. Template:ISBN.</ref> Several Sadie Thompson films were shot here.
- Lost and Found on a South Sea Island (1923) is set in Pago Pago.
- Next Goal Wins (2014), British documentary filmed in Pago Pago.
- Samoa, California was named in honor of American Samoa. It was assumed that the harbor in Pago Pago looked similar to that of the town, and it consequentially got the name Samoa, CA in the 1890s.<ref>Capace, Nancy (1999). Encyclopedia of California. North American Book Dist LLC. p. 399. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- In the Sweet Pie and Pie (1941), The Three Stooges short. Pago Pago is mentioned as being one of the locations for the fictional Heedam Neckties stores.
- In Better Call Saul (2015), Saul Goodman graduated from the fictional American Samoa Law School.
Notable people
Template:More citations needed section
- Isaako Aaitui, football player
- Bob Apisa, football player
- Peter Tali Coleman, 43rd, 51st, and 53rd Governor of American Samoa
- Jonathan Fanene, Former NFL player for the Cincinnati Bengals
- Monica Galetti, UK-based chef and restauranteur
- Al Harrington, actor most known for his role in Hawaii Five-O<ref>Hunter, James Michael (2013). Mormons and Popular Culture: The Global Influence of an American Phenomenon. Literature, art, media, tourism, and sports. Volume 2. ABC-CLIO. p. 237. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- Joey Iosefa, football player
- John Kneubuhl, screenwriter
- Trevor Misipeka, football player
- Mighty Mo, kickboxer
- Mauga Moi Moi, paramount Aliʻi, signatory of the Deed of Cession, and initiator of the Mau movement.
- Faauuga Muagututia, US Navy Seal and Winter Olympic competitor
- Shaun Nua, Former NFL player for the Pittsburgh Steelers
- Shalom Luani, NFL player for the Los Angeles Chargers
- Domata Peko, football player
- Kennedy Polamalu, football coach and former player
- Mary Jewett Pritchard, Siapo artist.<ref>Sutter, Frederic Koehler (1989). The Samoans: A Global Family. University of Hawai'i Press. p. 210. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- Amata Coleman Radewagen, delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives for American Samoa<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
- Gabe Reid, former football tight end for the NFL's Chicago Bears
- Mabel Reid, first woman elected to the American Samoa House of Representatives.<ref>Sunia, Fofō Iosefa Fiti (2001). Puputoa: Host of Heroes – A record of the history makers in the First Century of American Samoa, 1900–2000. Suva, Fiji: Oceania Printers. p. 114. Template:ISBN.</ref>
- Nicky Salapu, soccer player
- Cocoa Samoa, wrestler
- Junior Siavii, Former NFL player for the Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, and the Seattle Seahawks
- Frank Solomon, rugby player
- Isaac Sopoaga, Former NFL player for the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, and the Arizona Cardinals
- Palauni Ma Sun, American football offensive lineman
- Fofó Iosefa Fiti Sunia, first non-voting Delegate from American Samoa to the U.S. House of Representatives
- Mosi Tatupu, Former NFL player for the New England Patriots, and the Los Angeles Rams
- [[Daniel TeTemplate:Okinao-Nesheim]], Former NFL player for the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Gary Scott Thompson, director and television producer<ref name="gstproductions">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
See also
References
External links
Template:Sister project Template:Sister project
- Pago Pago, American Samoa—National Weather Service Office
- Pago Pago—Weather Underground
- Census 2010—Population
Template:American Samoa Template:List of Oceanian capitals by region Template:United States state capitals Template:Authority control