U.S. Unincorporated Possessions

1634                       Reef first shown on Dutch maps.
1654                       Named Bajo Nuevo Bank.
1660                       Re-discovered by the English.
22 Nov 1869                Claimed by U.S. by James W. Jennett (also called Petrel Islands).
 8 Sep 1972                Bajo Nuevo is specifically not mentioned by U.S. in list of guano
                             islands renounced to Colombia.
20 Dec 1999                Maritime Delimitation Treaty between Honduras and Colombia ratified
                             by Honduras. Honduras recognizes Colombia sovereignty over
                             Serranilla Bank and nearby Bajo Nuevo.

Territorial Disputes: Colombia, Nicaragua, Jamaica, and the U.S. assert various claims to Bajo Nuevo; Colombia considers Bajo Nuevo Bank a part of the Providence Archipelago in the intendancy of San Andres y Providencia; Nicaragua disputed Honduras's legal right to hand over these areas before the ICJ.

Map of Baker Island

Population: Uninhabited; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service Capital: None (Meyerton 1935-1942)

1818                       Discovered by U.S. Capt. Elisha Folger of the whaling ship Equator,
                             named New Nantucket Island.
Aug 1825                   Re-sighted by U.S. Capt. Obed Starbuck of the Loper.
1832                       Renamed by Baker Island by U.S. Capt. Michael Baker. 
14 Aug 1839                Claimed for the U.S.
16 Aug 1857                Annexed by U.S.
1886 - 1934                Annexed by Britain.
 2 Apr 1935 - 31 Jan 1942  Colonized by U.S. (under Department of Commerce to 13 May 1936).
13 May 1936                Formally claimed by U.S. (unincorporated territory).
13 May 1936 - 27 Jun 1974  Administered by U.S. Department of the Interior. 
 1 Sep 1943 - May 1944     Occupied by U.S. military forces (Baker Naval Air Station).
27 Jun 1974                Administered by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Baker  
                             and Howland Islands National Wildlife Refuge).
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. 

Heads of the Baker, Howland and Jarvis Islands Colonization Scheme (in U.S.)
Mar 1935 - May 1936        William T. Miller
                            (Superintendent of Airways Bureau of Air Commerce,
                             U.S. Department of Commerce)
May 1936 - Feb 1942        Richard Blackburn Black            (b. 1902 - d. 1992)
                            (field representative Division of Territories
                             and Island Possessions) 

Island Leaders
 2 Apr 1935 - 18 Apr 1935  Carl Summers                                            Mil
19 Jun 1935 - 19 Jan 1936  Abraham Piianaia (1st time)        (b. 1915 - d. 2003)
19 Jan 1936 - 18 Jun 1936  Herbert Hooper
18 Jun 1936 - 26 Oct 1936  Abraham Piianaia (2nd time)        (s.a.)
26 Oct 1936 - 24 Jun 1937  Albert K. Akana                    (b. 1917 - d. 2004)
24 Jun 1937 - 17 Nov 1937  Charles A. Ahia
17 Nov 1937 - 23 Jul 1938  Theodore Akana
23 Jul 1938 -  1 Dec 1938  Edward Mike McCorriston            (b. 1917 - d. 2005)
 2 Dec 1938 - 20 Mar 1939  Bernard Akana
20 Mar 1939 - 10 Mar 1940  Louis Suares                       (b. 1915 - d. 1997)
10 Mar 1940 - 24 Jul 1940  Melvin Paoa                        (b. 1914 - d. 1987)
24 Jul 1940 - 25 Mar 1941  Karl Jensen
25 Mar 1941 - 28 Jul 1941  Ernest W. Rankin
28 Jul 1941 - 31 Jan 1942  Walter Burke
U.S. Island Commanders
 1 Sep 1943 - 1943         Edward Aiken Flanders              (b. 1917 - d. 1995)
                            (804th Aviation Engineer Battalion)
c.1943                     W.J. Jennings
1943 - May 1944            ....

Map of Howland Island

Population: Uninhabited; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service Capital: None (Itascatown 1935-1942)

1822                       Discovered by U.S. Capt. George B. Worth on whaling ship Oeno
                             named Worth Island.
 9 Sep 1842                Re-sighted by U.S. Captain George Netcher aboard Isabella and renamed
                             Howland Island for the ship's lookout, Mr. Howland, who first
                             spotted the island.
 5 Feb 1857                Annexed by U.S.
1886 - 1935                Claimed by Britain.
30 Mar 1935 - 31 Jan 1942  Colonized by U.S. (under Department of Commerce to 13 May 1936).
13 May 1936                Formally claimed by U.S. (unincorporated territory).
13 May 1936 - 27 Jun 1974  Administered by U.S. Department of the Interior. 
 2 Jul 1937                Amelia Earhart left Lae, New Guinea, headed for Howland Island,
                             but is never seen again.
Sep 1943 - May 1944        Occupied by U.S. military forces (Howland Naval Air Station).
27 Jun 1974                Administered by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Baker
                             and Howland Islands National Wildlife Refuge).
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. 

Island Leaders
30 Mar 1935 - 18 Apr 1935  Henry Theise                                             Mil
19 Jun 1935 - 19 Jan 1936  James C. Kamakaiwi (1st time) 
19 Jan 1936 -  6 Aug 1936  Joseph Anakalea
 6 Aug 1936 - 26 Oct 1936  Killarney Opiopio                   (b. 1913 - d. 1977)
26 Oct 1936 - 25 Jun 1937  James C. Kamakaiwi (2nd time) 
25 Jun 1937 - 16 Nov 1937  William Kaina
16 Nov 1937 - 23 Mar 1938  Charles Ahia
23 Mar 1938 - 30 Nov 1938  James Kinney
30 Nov 1938 - 21 Mar 1939  William Tavares
21 Mar 1939 - 10 Jun 1939  Eugene Burke
10 Jun 1939 - 12 Oct 1939  Thomas McCorriston
12 Oct 1939 -  9 Mar 1940  Francis Stillman
 9 Mar 1940 - 23 Jul 1940  Edward "Mike" McCorriston           (b. 1917 - d. 2005)
23 Jul 1940 - 27 May 1941  Louis Suares                        (b. 1915 - d. 1997)
27 May 1941 - 31 Jan 1942  Thomas Wright Bederman              (b. 1921 - d. 1999)
U.S. Island Commanders
Sep 1943 - May 1944        ....

Map of Jarvis Island

Population: Uninhabited; visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife Service Capital: None (Millersville 1935-1942)

21 Aug 1821                Discovered by U.K. Capt. Brown in the Eliza Francis, who named
                             it Jarvis Island for the owner of the vessel.
28 Oct 1856                Claimed for U.S.
27 Feb 1858                Annexed by U.S.
 3 Jun 1889                Annexed by Britain.
25 Mar 1935 -  9 Feb 1942  Colonized by U.S. (under Department of Commerce to 13 May 1936).
13 May 1936                Formally claimed by U.S. (Javis Island)(unincorporated territory).
13 May 1936 - 27 Jun 1974  Administered by U.S. Department of the Interior.
 1 Jul 1957 - 31 Dec 1958  Occupied by U.S. scientists during International 
                             Geophysical Year (IGY).
27 Jun 1974                Administered by Department of Interior under Fish & Wildlife Service
                             (Jarvis Island National Wildlife Refuge).
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. 

Island Leaders
25 Mar 1935 - 22 Apr 1935  Austin Collins                                          Mil
15 Jun 1935 - 15 Jan 1936  Henry Ahia (1st time)
15 Jan 1936 - 19 Jun 1936  Edward Young
19 Jun 1936 - 30 Jul 1936  Henry Ahia (2nd time)
30 Jul 1936 - 18 Jan 1937  Solomon Kalama                      (b. 1913 - d. 1993)
18 Jan 1937 - 31 Oct 1937  Joseph Kim
31 Oct 1937 -  8 Aug 1938  Albert Akana
 8 Aug 1938 - 11 Dec 1938  Alexander Wong
11 Dec 1938 - 30 Mar 1939  Francis Lee
30 Mar 1939 - 15 Jun 1939  George Akana
15 Jun 1939 -  1 Aug 1940  James Kinney
 1 Aug 1940 - Nov 1941     Henry K. Lee
Nov 1941 -  9 Feb 1942     Karl E. Jensen
Station Chief for IGY
1957 - 11 Oct 1958         Otto H. Hornung, Jr.                (b. 1902 - d. 1958)

 2 Sep 1796                U.S. brig Sally, commanded by Joseph Pierpoint, grounded on a shoal
                             near Johnston Island, but gave no name to the land.
10 Dec 1807                Re-discovered by U.K. Capt. Charles J. Johnston on HMS Cornwallis,
                             named Johnston Island.
19 Mar 1858                Claimed by U.S. (unincorporated territory).
19 Jun 1858                Claimed by Kingdom of Hawaii (Kalama Island).
27 Jul 1858                Annexed by U.S.; re-annexed by Hawaii (not recognized by U.S.).
12 Aug 1898                Hawaii under U.S. rule; Johnston remains separate.
29 Jul 1923                Administered by U.S. Department of Agriculture as a bird refuge.
29 Dec 1934 -  1 Jul 1948  Administered by U.S. Navy Department, subject to Department of
                             Interior.
15 Aug 1941 - 13 Jun 1947  Naval Air Station Johnston Island (from Feb 1947, Naval Air Facility
                             Johnston Island) 
12 Dec 1941                Japanese submarine surfaces 8,000 yards off Sand Island and
                             began firing green star clusters which exploded high overhead.
15 Dec 1941                Two Japanese ships opened fire, damaging a number of buildings and
                             an oil storage facility.
18, 21, 22 Dec 1941        Japanese submarines return at night firing sporadically at the
                             Marine defenders.
 1 Jul 1948                Administered by U.S. Air Force Department (Johnston Island Air Force
                             Base).
 1 Jul 1973                Administered by the U.S. Defense Nuclear Agency (later called
                             Defense Threat Reduction Agency).
30 Jun 1990 - 12 Apr 2001  U.S. Army Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System (JACADS).
 1 Oct 1999 -  1 Jan 2004  Administered by U.S. Air Force.
 1 Jan 2004                Island turned over to Department of Interior's Fish and Wildlife
                             Service (Johnston Atoll Wildlife Refuge); in the interim Johnston
                             Atoll and the three-mile Naval Defensive Sea around it remain under
                             the jurisdiction and administrative control of U.S. Air Force.
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. 

U.S. Island Commanders (16th Defense Battalion 15 Nov 1942 - 16 Apr 1944)
 9 Nov 1939 - 1941         .... 
 7 Dec 1941 - 1942         Francis Butler Loomis, Jr.         (b. 1903 - d. 1989)
                             (executive officer, Marine 1st Defense Battalion)
1942 - Nov 1942            James Marvin Masters               (b. 1911 - d. 1988)
15 Nov 1942 -  5 Jul 1943  Richard Potts Ross, Jr.            (b. 1906 - d. 1990)
 6 Jul 1943 - 14 Mar 1944  Bruce Tillman Hemphill             (b. 1912 - d. ....)
15 Mar 1944 - Aug 1944     August F. Penzold, Jr.             (b. 1913 - d. 1980)
c.1948 - c.1949            Thomas L. Wiper                    (b. 1916 - d. 2005)
1950s                      Jack L. Bentley
1944 - 2000                ....
2000 - 2001                James L. Pasquino                  (b. c.1955)
c.2002                     Timothy Bridges
  5 Aug 2003 - 200.        Mark Hostetter 
200. - 2004                Eric Sassi

Map of Kingman Reef

Population: Uninhabited

14 Jun 1798                Discovered by U.S. Capt. Edmund Fanning (Dangerous Reef).
29 Nov 1853                Re-sighted by U.S. Capt. W.E. Kingman.
18 Aug 1856                Claimed by U.S. (Danger Reef)
10 May 1922                Annexed by U.S. (Kingman Reef)(unincorporated territory). 
29 Dec 1934                Administered by U.S. Navy Department.
18 Jan 2001                Administered by Department of Interior under Fish & Wildlife Service
                             (Kingman Reef National Wildlife Refuge).
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. 

 8 Jul 1859                Discovered by U.S. Capt. N.C. Middlebrooks, though he was most
                             commonly known as Capt. Brooks, of the sealing ship Gambia.
                             Islands named the "Middlebrook Islands" or the "Brook Islands.
28 Aug 1867                Annexed for U.S. by Capt. William Reynolds on U.S.S. Lackawanna,
                             the name changed to "Midway" some time after this
                             (unincorporated territory).
20 Jan 1903                U.S. Navy Department assumes control and names the Commercial Pacific
                             Cable Company as island custodians on 20 Jun 1903. The Secretary of
                             the Navy designated the Commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet
                             to act as its administrative authority.
1904 - 1908                U.S. Marine detachment garrisons Midway to protect the cable
                             station.
27 Mar 1940 - 31 Oct 1996  Administered by the U.S. Navy Department.
 1 Aug 1941                U.S. Naval Air Station Midway
 4-7 Jun 1942              Battle of Midway, attempted Japanese invasion.
29 Jul 1942                U.S. Naval Operating Base Midway Islands
 6 Jun 1950 - Sep 1950     Naval base deactivated, only Commercial Pacific Cable remains.
31 Dec 1952                Commercial Pacific Cable turns over assets to Navy.
Apr 1953 - Jul 1953        Naval base again deactivated.
 4 Sep 1962                Executive Order 11048 makes the Secretary of the Navy responsible for
                             the civil administration of Midway.
13 Jan 1969                U.S. Naval Facility Midway Island
Mar 1971                   Eastern Island vacated and designated a wildlife habitat.
Oct 1978 - 30 Sep 1983     U.S. Naval Air Facility Midway Island
22 Apr 1988                Midway Atoll is designated as an Overlay National Wildlife Refuge.
30 Sep 1993                Naval Air Facility Midway is operationally closed, last U.S. Navy
                             personnel depart 30 Jun 1997.
31 Oct 1996                Administered by the Department of Interior under U.S. Fish & Wildlife
                             Service (Midway Island National Wildlife Refuge).
13 Sep 2000                Battle of Midway National Memorial designated.
15 Jun 2006                Midway included within the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National
                             Monument in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (28 Feb 2007, renamed
                             Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument).
11 Mar 2011                A 1.5 Meter (4.9 FT) high wave, caused by the 2011 Sendai earthquake
                            in Japan, completely submerged the atoll's reef inlets and Spit
                            Island.

Superintendents of the Commercial Pacific Cable Company Station, Midway
29 Apr 1903 - 1906?        Benjamin W. Colley 
1906 - 1921                Daniel Morrison
1921 - 27 Mar 1940         ....
 6 Jun 1950 - Sep 1950     ....
U.S. Island Commanders (commander Midway Naval Air Station from 1 Aug 1941)
27 Mar 1940 - 1940         D.B. Ventries (officer in charge)
Jun 1940 - Jul 1940        Samuel G. Taxi                     (b. 1909 - d. 1984)
Jul 1940 - 29 Sep 1940     Kenneth Wachter Benner             (b. 1904 - d. 1975)
29 Sep 1940 - 14 Feb 1941  Harold Cyrus Roberts               (b. 1898 - d. 1945) 
14 Feb 1941 - 1941         Robert H. Pepper                   (b. 1895 – d. 1968)
1941 - 18 Aug 1941         Bertram "Bert" Allison Bone        (b. 1893 - d. 1961)
18 Aug 1941 - Jul/Sep 1942 Cyril Thomas Simard                (b. 1895 – d. 1976)
Jul/Sep 1942 - 30 Jun 1997 ....
Commanders, Marine 6th Defense Battalion
15 Mar 1941 - 14 Oct 1941  Raphael Griffin (arrives Sep 1941)
15 Oct 1941 -  5 Aug 1942  Harold Douglas Shannon             (b. 1896 - d. 1943)
 6 Aug 1942 -  9 Sep 1942  Lewis A. Hohn (1st time)           (b. 1907 - d. 1967)
10 Sep 1942 - 26 Oct 1942  Rupert R. Deese
27 Oct 1942 -  3 Nov 1942  Robert E. Hommel
 4 Nov 1942 -  3 Nov 1943  Lewis A. Hohn (2nd time)           (s.a.)
 4 Nov 1943 - 25 Dec 1943  John Houghton Griebel              (b. 1901 - d. 1969)
26 Dec 1943 - 27 Mar 1944  Charles T. Tingle
28 Mar 1944 - 30 Dec 1944  Frank P. Hager, Jr.
31 Dec 1944 - 29 Apr 1945  Robert L. McKee
30 Apr 1945 -  1 Jul 1945  Herbert R. Nusbaum
 2 Jul 1945 -  4 Oct 1945  Wilfred Weaver
 5 Oct 1945 - 24 Jan 1946  Bruce F. Hillman
25 Jan 1946 -  1 Feb 1946  George R. Helmer

Map of Navassa Island

Population: Uninhabited; note: transient Haitian fishermen  and others camp on the island

1504                       Discovered by Spanish explorers, named Isla de Navaza.
18 Nov 1857                Claimed for U.S. by Capt. Peter Duncan (Navassa Island)
                             (unincorporated territory).
 5 Aug 1869 - 12 Jan 1889  Under Navassa Guano Company of Wilmington, North Carolina.
12 Jan 1889 - 1898         Under Navassa Phosphate Company of Baltimore, Maryland.
 2 May 1891 - 20 Jun 1891  U.S.S. Kearsarge lands a party of Marines on the island.
1898                       All phosphate operations abandoned, island becomes uninhabited.
1903 - 1917                Dependency of U.S. Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.
17 Jan 1916                U.S. government formally reasserts sovereignty.
21 Oct 1917 -  1 Jul 1939  Administered by U.S. Lighthouse Service (Lighthouse is automated
                             1929, dismantled 29 Aug 1996).
 1 Jul 1939 - 16 Jan 1997  Administered by U.S. Coast Guard.
16 Jan 1997 -  3 Dec 1999  Administered by U.S. Department of Interior. 
 3 Dec 1999                Administered by U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Navassa
                             Island National Wildlife Refuge).

Territorial Dispute: Haiti claims U.S.-administered Navassa Island, the dispute dates to 1857, when the U.S. claimed the Navassa Island under the 1856 Guano Act; Haiti claims it has had ownership over Navassa Island continuously since its 1801 constitution laid claim to "adjacent lands."

13 Jun 1798                Probably sighted by U.S Capt. Edmund Fanning aboard the Betsy.
 7 Nov 1802                Discovered by U.S. Capt. Sawle aboard U.S.S. Palmyra, named
                             Palmyra Island.
15 Sep 1840                Visited by U.S. Capt. Scott aboard the Samarang.
19 Oct 1859                Gerrit P. Judd landed from the brig Josephine and laid claim to
                             Palmyra for the American Guano Co., for which he was agent.
                             Apparently this claim never was recognized at Washington and no
                             guano was dug.
15 Apr 1862                Claimed for Kingdom of Hawaii by Capt. Zenas Bent.
18 Jun 1862                Annexed by Kingdom of Hawaii. 
1889                       Commander Nichols of the British ship HMS Cormorant claimed Palmyra
                             for the United Kingdom, unaware of the prior claim by Hawaii.
12 Aug 1898                Palmyra annexed to the U.S. along with the overall annexation of
                             the Hawaiian Islands.
14 Jun 1900                Part of the U.S. Territory of Hawaii.
30 Apr 1912                Judge Henry E. Cooper of Hono­lulu acquired title to the island.
                             He sold all but two islets to Leslie and Ellen Ful­lard-Leo on 19
                             Aug 1922 for $15,000. who establish the Palmyra Copra Company.
                             When Cooper dies 14 May 1929 his two islets (Home Islands) were
                             passed to his heirs.
21 Feb 1912                U.S. formally reaffirms American claim (as part of Hawaii).
21 Oct 1912                U.S. sovereignty reaffirmed by Admiral W.H. Southerland aboard the 
                             U.S.S. West Virginia.
29 Dec 1934                Administered by U.S. Navy Department.
Nov 1939                   Palmyra declared a U.S. Naval defense area, and all foreign, public
                             and private vessels and planes were prohibited.
17 Aug 1941 - 15 Feb 1947  Naval Air Station Palmyra Island (transferred to the Coast Guard on
                             16 Jan 1946).
24 Dec 1941                Japanese submarine surfaced 3,000 yards offshore firing its deck guns
                             at a dredge located in the lagoon.
12 May 1947                U.S. Supreme Court restores Palmyra to the Ful­lard-Leo family.
21 Aug 1959                Hawaii becomes a state; but Palmyra is excluded and remains as an
                             incorporated territory, administered by U.S. Department of
                             of Interior.
10 Oct 1961                Executive Order restated that the Secretary of the Interior was
                             vested with the civil administration of Palmyra.
20 Nov 2000                Palmyra Atoll purchased by the Nature Conservancy for about $30
                             million. The Conservancy manages the atoll as a nature preserve.
18 Jan 2001                Palmyra's tidal lands, submerged lands, and surrounding waters out to
                             12 nautical miles from the water's edge declared as a National
                             Wildlife Refuge under the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
                            (Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge).
Mar 2003                   The Nature Conservancy conveyed 416 acres of the emergent land of
                             Palmyra to the U.S. to be included in the refuge. It subsequently
                             added 28 more acres to the conveyance.
 6 Jan 2009                Part of Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.
25 Sep 2014                Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument expanded.

U.S. Island Commanders
Nov 1939 - 1941            ....
1941 - af.Jul 1942         Gordon Rowe                        (b. 1890 - d. 19..)
Dec 1941 - May 1942        Bertram "Bert" Allison Bone        (b. 1893 - d. 1961)
                             (commander Marine 1st Defense Battalion)
Jul 1942 -  1? Feb 1943    J.R. Dudley
bf.1May 1943 - Nov 1943    R.N. Hunter
Nov 1943 - 1944?           Bert Haddow Creighton              (b. 1897 - d. 1975)
Sep 1944 - Sep? 1945       Walter M. Hanson
Sep? 1945 - 15 Feb 1947    ....

1510                       Serranilla Bank first shown on Spanish maps.
 8 Sep 1879                Claimed by the U.S (located two hundred ten miles north 
                             northeast of Nicaragua).
 8 Sep 1972                Serranilla Bank specifically not mentioned by U.S. in list of guano
                             islands renounced to Colombia.
20 Dec 1999                Maritime Delimitation Treaty between Honduras and Colombia ratified
                             by Honduras. Honduras recognizes Colombia sovereignty over
                             Serranilla Bank and nearby Bajo Nuevo.

Territorial Disputes: Colombia, Nicaragua, Jamaica, and the U.S. assert various claims to Serranilla Bank; Colombia considers Serranilla Bank a part of the Providence Archipelago in the intendancy of San Andres y Providencia; Nicaragua disputed Honduras's legal right to hand over these areas before the ICJ; Nicaragua filed a case with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Colombia in 2013 over the delimitation of the Continental shelf beyond the 200 nautical miles from the Nicaraguan coast, as well as over the alleged violation by Colombia of Nicaraguan maritime space in the Caribbean Sea, which contains rich oil and fish resources; as of Sep 2021, Colombia refuses to abide by the ICJ ruling.