JULY:

July 1:

On July 1, 1881, French Marist Bishop Jean-Armand Lamaze, Vicar Apostolic of Central Oceania and Administrator of Samoa, concluded his visit to Samoa. His difficulties with the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions "later resulted in their substitution by the Sisters of the Third Order Regular of Mary." (Heslin 1995: iv)

On July 1, 1891, Matelita Young, age 19, was invested with the Tui Manu'a title. (Theroux 1985)

On July 1, 1914, the value of American Samoa's Samoan Hospital Fund was reported as $5,056.02, and that of the Drug Store Fund as $324.81. (Bryan 1927: 74-75)

On July 1, 1921, Toeupu of Vaitogi shot Sake of Leone during an argument over a gambling matter. He was convicted of first degree murder and hanged on July 27. (Gray 1960: 206)

On July 1, 1921, American Samoa's Governor, Captain Waldo Evans, informed the Navy Department that the Mau was no longer a problem in the Territory. This was due to the "constructive and sympathetic measures" that Evans's administration implemented to redress the Mau's grievances, in contrast to the New Zealand administration's repressive measures in Western Samoa. (Bryan 1927: 58)

On July 1, 1929, Governor Stephen V. Graham's "Fiscal Regulations of the Government of American Samoa" became law. (Noble 1931: 86-92)

On July 1, 1933, Edwin William Gurr---newspaper editor, lawyer, judge, Mau leader, first Secretary of Native Affairs in American Samoa and author of American Samoa's Deeds of Cession--(for both Tutuila-Aunu'u and Manu'a)--died in Pago Pago. (Theroux 1985c: 46)

On July 1, 1942, Captain John Gould Moyer, Commandant of the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila, recommended to Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox that the tour of duty for all personnel on Tutuila be reduced from 18 to 12 months, because "the climate is bad for most Caucasians," and "because of the danger of filariasis."(Burke 1945b: 79 n.61; 80)

On July 1, 1942, the U.S. Navy's 2nd Construction ("Seabee") Battalion completed the "4,000-foot long runway, constructed of volcanic cinders on a lava rock base" at Faleolo, 'Upolu, Western Samoa. Its length was subsequently extended to 6,000 feet. (Denfeld 1989: 46)

On July 1, 1944, the area of jurisdiction for the Commandant of the Samoan Defense Group was extended to include Bora Bora in the Society Islands and  Penrhyn and Aitutaki in the Cook Islands. These bases, too, would be supplied from Tutuila. (Burke 1945b: 131)

On July 1, 1944, on Tutuila, the Ships' Service Department assumed control of the U.S. Naval Station Laundry. (Burke 1945b: 143)

On July 1, 1951, the U.S. Department of the Interior assumed official administration of American Samoa. (Gray 1960: 258)

On July 1, 1951, "as the memories of the Fita Fita Guard faded into the past, its remaining members were welcomed by the United States Navy to continue their Fita careers as members of the regular Navy. Those of the Guard and Band who have not completed 20 years' service for transfer to the Fleet Reserve prior to July 1, 1951, have volunteered 100 per cent for enlistment, and their applications were accepted for enlistment some time prior to the withdrawal of the Navy from American Samoa." (Darden n.d.: 3)

On July 1, 1955, the Catholic church at Leulumoega, 'Upolu, Western Samoa, which was built by Falaniko Stowers, was blessed by Cardinal Norman Gilroy of Sydney, Australia. (Heslin 1995: 63)

July 2:

On July 2, 1912, the Oceanic Steamship Company of San Francisco began "to make regular voyages between San Francisco and Sydney...calling at Pago Pago en route, every twenty-eight days." (Crose 1912: 4)

On July 2, 1917, MacGillivray Milne, who would become American Samoa's 25th naval governor (January 20, 1936-June 3, 1938) married Miss Natalie Elise Blauvelt of Piermont-on-Hudson, New York, at Piermont-on-Hudson. (USNHC: Milne RO)

On July 2, 1920, John Alexander Kneubuhl, American Samoan playwright, screenwriter and educator, was born on Tutuila to parents Benjamin Franklin Kneubuhl of Burlington, Iowa and Atelina Pritchard Kneubuhl of Leone, Tutuila. (Kneubuhl 1984: 1)

On July 2, 1962, the Independent State of Western Samoa issued its first series of definitive postage stamps. The stamps portray a girl holding a fine mat (1 penny); Samoa College (2 pence); the O.F. Nelson Memorial Library (3 pence); the Maota Fono (House of Parliament: 4 pence); a map of Western Samoa with ship and airplane (6 pence); Faleolo Airport (8 pence); a tulafale with fue and to'oto'o (talking chief with fly whisk and staff: 1 shilling); Vailima (residence of Robert Louis Stevenson and the Head of State: 1 shilling, 3 pence); Western Samoa's flag (2 shillings, 6 pence) and Western Samoa's official state seal (5 shillings). (WSFDC: 07/02/1962)

July 3:

On July 3, 1877, Theodor Weber, representing Germany's House of Godeffroy in Samoa, "with a warship to back him up, secured the agreement of both parties to respect the neutrality of Apia and its neighborhood and all German property wherever situated." (Morrell 1960: 220)

On July 3, 1912, American Samoa's Public Schools Committee, chaired by Mr. C.S. McDowell, submitted a plan of unification for the public schools. It provided for "primer grade, Grades I, II and III, and Grade IV (to be regarded as an 'extra' or 'continuation' grade)." (Bryan 1927: 84)

July 4:

On July 4, 1922, the new Governor of American Samoa, Captain Edwin Taylor Pollock, "caused concern in Apia [i.e. among the Mau and the New Zealand Administration] when he read out the Declaration of Independence at the 4 July celebrations, and then had it published, in Samoan, in O Le Fa'atonu, the territory's official newsletter." (Field 1984: 58)

On July 4, 1928, Chinese coolie Wong See, who was convicted of the joint murder of his fellow coolie Li Chau on May 10, 1928, was reported to have committed suicide in Western Samoa's Vaimea Jail, having allegedly strangled himself with strips torn from his blanket, while chained to the wall. (Field 1984: 127-128)

On July 4, 1942, the U.S. Navy's Mobile Hospital No. 3 ("MOB 3") opened at Mapusaga, with one surgical ward and two patients. (Parsons 1945: 99-100)

On July 4, 1963, American solo sailor William Willis, age 70, left Callao, Peru for Australia via Samoa, aboard his new raft Age Unlimited. (Willis 1966: 62-63)

July 5:

On July 5, 1929, Lawrence McCully Judd, who would serve as American Samoa's fourth appointed civil governor (March 4-August 5, 1953) took the oath of office as Governor of the Territory of Hawaii, after being appointed to the position by President Herbert Hoover. (Anonymous n.d.: 114)

On July 5, 1943, the Chief Surgeon for the Samoan Defense Group reported that 2,235 patients were sent back to the United States from October 1, 1942 to June 30, 1943. 1,265 of these had filariasis. (Burke 1945b: 54)

July 6:

On July 6, 1900, the Secretary of the Navy authorized the Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila (Commander Benjamin Franklin Tilley) to enlist 58 Samoans as "Landsmen" in the Navy. They soon came to be known as the "Fita Fita Guard and Band." (Darden n.d.: 1)

On July 6, 1903, on Tutuila, the U.S. Government purchased the remaining portion of "Parcel No. 31: Milomilo," totalling 0.32 acres from "W. Groves" for $918.50. (Please see the entry for December 23, 1902). (Anonymous 1960: 4)

On July 6, 1944, the Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila (Captain Allen Hobbs) advised the Commander, Service Squadron, South Pacific Force that all antisubmarine nets, moorings and anti-ship booms had been removed from Pago Pago Harbor and were awaiting shipment to Pearl Harbor. (Burke 1945b: 30 n.15)

On July 6, 1973, Malotutoatasi I'iga Sauni Kuresa, composer of the National Anthem of the Independent State of Western Samoa ("The Flag of Freedom"), passed away in Western Samoa. (Warburton 1996: 35-36)

July 7:

On July 7, 1904, in his Annual Report to Secretary of the Navy Paul Morton, Commander Edmund B. Underwood, Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila, wrote that "During the past Fiscal Year, the Government has acquired by purchase from the owners 1.2 acres of land, making a total of 39.42 acres comprised in the Station proper. This total is exclusive of an appreciable area derived from filling in." He added that "During the year there have been built on this station a commodious office building [the Courthouse], an ice manufactory, and carpenter and blacksmith shops." (Underwood 1904: 3)

On July 7, 1911, the islands of Tutuila, Aunu'u and Manu'a, formerly designated as "U.S. Naval Station Tutuila," were officially designated as "American Samoa," although the actual Naval Station, in Fagatogo and Utulei, continued to be called "U.S. Naval Station Tutuila." (Gray 1960: 163)

On July 7, 1949, Captain Thomas Francis Darden, Jr. took office as American Samoa's 37th (and last) naval governor (until February 23, 1951). (USNHC: Darden RO)

July 8:

On July 8, 1914, in his "Annual Report to the Secretary of the Navy," (Josephus Daniels) the Governor of American Samoa, Commander Clark Daniel Stearns, under the heading "IMPROVEMENT OF GROUNDS," informed the Secretary that "1800 feet of concrete walks, four feet in width, have been constructed where necessary to connect buildings. Cinders from the power plant and station ship have been used as available on the roads through the station, furnishing a light thoroughfare by being well tamped and covered with crude oil. Many trees and shrubs have been planted, such as mango, papaya, kapok, candle nut, avocado, breadfruit and other native shade trees. The total number of trees and shrubs planted is 1541." (Stearns 1914: 6)

July 9:

On July 9, 1928, in Western Samoa, Chinese coolie Lei Mau, convicted of the murder of coolie Li Chau, appeared as the prosecution's star witness in the trial of coolies Chu Fook and Chan Sang, who faced murder charges for stabbing two 14-year-old girls to death. Lei Mau, heavily chained, stood in the witness box from 9:15 a.m. to 6:15 p.m. He was executed the next day, and two days later, Chu Fook and Chan Sang were acquitted and released. (Field 1984: 127-128)

July 10:

On July 10, 1896, William Churchill III arrived in Apia, on board SS Alameda, to take up his duties as U.S. Consul. (Theroux 1995: 104)

On July 10, 1900, Commander Benjamin Franklin Tilley, Commandant of the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila, Tui Manu'a Elisara and U.S. Navy Doctor Edward M. Blackwell raised the U.S. flag on Rose Atoll, and claimed it for the United States. (Bryan 1927: 48)

On July 10, 1928, in one of his monthly reports, Western Samoa's Civil Police Commander, Arthur Braisby, noted that on this date "Chinese Coolie No. 4515, Lei Mau, was executed at the prison for the murder of Chinese Coolie No. 5479 [Li Chau]. This being the first execution since British occupation of Samoa." (Field 1984: 127-128)

On July 10, 1941, the organization of the First Samoan Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, began. All recruits were enlisted as privates, and were paid 70 cents a day, with a uniform allowance of $5.00. After four months, their pay was raised to $1.00 a day. "Special instructions from Headquarters, Marine Corps, listed these defects as not cause for disqualification for enlistment in the First Samoan Battalion: flat feet, intestinal parasites, yaws (not tertiary), defective vision (one eye must be 20/20 and the other not below 15/20), opacities (when not interfering with vision), overweight (except in marked obesity cases), filariasis (not including elephantiasis) and incipient pyorrhea." (Anonymous 1945: 3-4)

July 11:

On July 11, 1900, on Tutuila, the U.S. Government purchased "Parcel No. 12: Church Site," totalling 0.23 acres from "A. Young" for $120.00. (Please see the entry for December 22, 1902). (Anonymous 1960: 3)

On July 11, 1911, the Solicitor of the Navy authorized Commander William Michael Crose, who was Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila and Governor of Tutuila, to use the designation "American Samoa." Thus, Crose was the first person to be designated as "Governor of American Samoa," rather than "Governor of Tutuila," although he, and all succeeding naval governors continued also to be designated as "Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila." (Gray 1960: 163; USNHC: Naval Governors' ROs)

On July 11, 1941, the Utah Construction Company began construction of the Tafuna Air Base on Tutuila, as part of the Pacific Naval Air Bases (PNAB) Contract NOy-4173. (Burke 1945b: 125 n.74)

On July 11, 1942, Japan's Imperial General Headquarters cancelled the proposed capture of New Caledonia, Fiji and Samoa. (Willmott 1983: 100)

July 12:

On July 12, 1878, Claude C. Bloch was born in Woodbury, Kentucky. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1899, and, as an Ensign, designed Government House (Navy Building No. 1) at the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila. He was awarded the Navy Cross in World War I, and, as a four-star Admiral, became Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Fleet in 1937. On April 10, 1940, he assumed command of Fourteenth Naval District at Pearl Harbor. Following the Japanese attack on December 7, 1941, Admiral Bloch, along with Admiral Husband E. Kimmel and Lieutenant Walter C. Short, was blamed for the disaster. (Denfeld 1989: 9)

On July 12, 1881, the "Lackawanna Agreement," mediated by Captain J.H. Gillis of the U.S. Navy, commanding USS Lackawanna, was signed in Western Samoa, dividing kingly honors between "King" Malietoa Laupepa and "Vice King" Tui A'ana Tupua Tamasese Titimaea. (Gray 1960: 68-69)

On July 12, 1893, John Gould Moyer, American Samoa's 29th naval governor (June 5, 1942-February 8, 1944), was born in Chicago, Illinois. (USNHC: Moyer RO)

On July 12, 1912, American Samoa's Governor, Commander William Michael Crose, wrote to the President of the Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii, asking if it would be possible to send Samoan students there. (Bryan 1927: 84)

July 13:

On July 13, 1893, Mata'afa Iosefo was captured on Savai'i, having fled there from Manono during yet another of Samoa's European-inspired 19th century civil wars. On July 26, 1893, he was deported to Jaluit in the Marshall Islands, along with his daughter and 11 others. (Gray 1960: 97)

July 14:

On July 14, 1875, Albert B. Steinberger, special envoy of U. S. President Ulysses S. Grant, became Premier of Samoa. (Gilson 1970: 318)

On July 14, 1890, Elder Joseph Henry Dean, Pioneer Latter-Day Saints missionary in Samoa, completed his mission, which began on June 18, 1888. (Anonymous 1997e: 16)

On July 14, 1904, Tui Manu'a Elisara signed the Deed of Cession, ceding the Manu'a Islands to the United States. (Bryan 1927: 49)

On July 14, 1913, Commander Clark Daniel Stearns relieved Lieutenant Nathan Woodworth Post, and became American Samoa's ninth naval governor (until October 2, 1914). (USNHC: Stearns RO)

On July 14, 1932, New Zealand's Prime Minister and Minister of External Affairs, George Forbes, realizing that Western Samoan Mau leader O.F. Nelson's term of exile would be finished at the end of 1932, tried unsuccessfully to extend his term of deportation. (Field 1984: 203)

On July 14, 1936, Mau leader Taisi Olaf Frederick Nelson left Auckland for Apia, at the end of his final term of exile. He was accompanied by his daughters Sina, Calmar and Olive. (Field 1984: 213)

July 15:

On July 15, 1944, the U.S. Navy's VS-51 (Scouting Squadron 51) detachment "was discontinued at Upolu. All planes and personnel were returned to Tutuila for duty at VS-51 headquarters." (Burke 1945c: 84)

On July 15, 1952, Gary Cooper arrived at  Faleolo Airport in Western Samoa to begin filming Return to Paradise at Lefaga Beach. (Eustis 1979: 127-128)

July 16:

On July 16, 1878, German landing parties from SMS Ariadne occupied the harbors of Saluafata and Falealili on 'Upolu. (Kennedy 1974: 15n.)

On July 16, 1883, Sisters Mary St. Vincent, St. Claire and St. Thérèse left Apia "to establish a house of NDO (Notre Dame d'Océanie [Our Lady of Oceania]) at Leone, Tutuila." (Heslin 1995: 94)

On July 16, 1896, Captain Joshua Slocum---the first man to sail around the world alone---arrived in Apia harbor aboard the Spray. Three Samoan girls, seeing that he had no crew, said, "You had other mans an' you eat 'em." (Theroux 1985)

On July 16, 1904, Manua's Deed of Cession, having been signed by Tui Manu'a Elisara on July 14, 1904, was registered at American Samoa's Courthouse by Secretary of Native Affairs Edwin William Gurr. (Bryan 1927: 49)

On July 16, 1940, Captain Edward William Hanson, Commandant of the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila, informed the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Harold Raynsford Stark, that the defenses recommended by Marine Corps Captain Alfred R. Pefley must be augmented by additional facilities totalling $1,325,000. (Burke 1945b: 25 n.6)

On July 16, 1952, John C. Elliott took office as American Samoa's second appointed civil governor (until November 23, 1952). (ASG: Governors' List)

July 17:

On July 17, 1899, Jesse Rink Wallace, American Samoa's 27th naval governor (acting: July 30-August 8, 1940) was born in Beardstown, Illinois. (USNHC: Wallace RO)

On July 17, 1911, in his Annual Report for Fiscal Year 1910, American Samoa's Governor, Commander William Michael Crose, asked Secretary of the Navy George von L. Meyer to appropriate funds for a library like the "handsome Carnegie Library" in Suva, Fiji. Crose said that "the library here should be more general than the Navy standard libraries. It should contain full sets of the works of standard authors. It should have books on all branches of science and on agriculture and farming in all of their phases.....[T]here should be books of reference of all kinds. Particularly, it is desired to have a large collection of literature concerning Samoa and the South Seas." He added that "It would not be objectionable if these books were not new, provided they were in good condition." (Crose 1911: 3)

On July 17, 1911, in his "Annual Report to the Secretary of the Navy," (George von L. Meyer) American Samoa's Governor, Commander William Michael Crose, reported on the Fita Fita Guard as follows: "A noticeable improvement has been effected in the teaching of the English language to the members of the Native Guard. The instruction has been, and is, in charge of the Chaplain. He now holds two instruction periods daily, of one hour each, and more interest is shown by the fitafitas than formerly. An attempt will be made to have a limited conversational knowledge of English a requirement for re-enlistment, but it seems next to impossible for some of the fitafitas to learn English...Instruction in wig-wag signalling has begun, and some of the Guard are able to send and receive messages, signalling slowly. Signal parties are today on two mountain peaks--Matafao and Tuaolo--signalling to each other. Practice marches have been instituted, and the fitafitas are gaining much more extended knowledge of the trails on the island. Small-arm target practice will be taken up during this year. The Band plays very well, considering the material from which it is made. Samoans do not play any musical instruments except the harmonica, and have no knowledge of written music, so the difficulties confronting a bandmaster may be appreciated. Some of the bandsmen have been in this band since it was established in 1902. The Band has twice given concerts in Apia, and was complimented upon its performance. It is taken to Manu'a when the station ship goes to that Island. There is a great demand for duty in the fitafitas, and we have no trouble in getting the best of the young men of the Island to enlist." (Crose 1911: 4-5)

On July 17, 1931, Captain Gatewood Sanders Lincoln relieved Lieutenant Commander Arthur Tenney Emerson and became American Samoa's 18th naval governor (for the second time; until May 12, 1932). Captain Lincoln and Lieutenant Nathan Woodworth Post (March 14-July 14, 1913 and October 2-December 6, 1914) were the only naval governors who served two non-consecutive terms, Lincoln serving from August 2, 1929-March 24, 1931 and July 17, 1931-May 12, 1932. (USNHC: Lincoln RO)

July 18:

On July 18, 1887, four mutineers from Hawaiian King Kalakaua's ship Kaimiloa were deported from Apia to Australia. (Theroux-Sorensen 02/23/94)

On July 18, 1887, Charles Poor, Hawaiian King Kalakaua's chargé d' affairs in Apia,  received instructions to close the Hawaiian mission to Samoa, and return home. (Kuykendall III, 1967: 336)

On July 18, 1893, on Manono, "by the joint action of two German cruisers, a British man-of-war, and some 30 chiefs, Mata'afa [Iosefo] and his followers were made prisoners of war without any bloodshed." They were subsequently deported to the Union (i.e., Tokelau) Islands, and thence to Jaluit in the Marshalls. (Kennedy 1974: 102)

On July 18, 1899, the Tripartite Commission which arrived in Apia on May 13 made its joint report, which said that the existing tripartite government was impractical for Samoa, and recommended that the islands be partitioned. (Kennedy 1974: 185)

On July 18, 1900, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila Commandant Benjamin Franklin Tilley issued his "Regulation No. 11-1900: Licenses, Etc., for Firearms." (Noble 1931: 40-43)

On July 18, 1942, Commander Thomas Calloway Latimore, American Samoa's 22nd naval governor (acting: April 10--April 17, 1934) was last seen near Aiea Landing, Honolulu, Hawaii. He was "declared officially dead as of July 19, 1942," and his cause of death was listed as "Disappeared while on hike." (USNHC: Latimore RO)

On July 18, 1962, the first jet aircraft to land at Pago Pago International Airport was a Boeing 707 carrying Interior Secretary Stewart L. Udall. (Haydon Papers 1969: Box 1)

July 19:

On July 19, 1892, the United States Government purchased "Property formerly leased for deposit of coal" ("Parcel No. 6: Se'eti'i:" total area 0.50 acres) from Paul H. Krause for $1,000, to be used as part of the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila. (Anonymous 1894: 13; Anonymous 1960: 3)

On July 19, 1912, Commander William Michael Crose, Governor of American Samoa, issued his "Regulation No. 3-1912: Taxation of Visitors." (Noble 1931: 82-83)

On July 19, 1942, the 18,000-ton SS Lurline, "pride of the Matson line," carrying the 22nd Marine Regiment, weighed anchor at San Diego, California, and set sail for Tutuila. Private First Class William E. Pepper of Pickens, Mississippi wrote that Lurline's "cabins and mess hall are luxurious. It reminds me of a hotel. The men are pretty crowded, but not as bad as they are on some troop transports." Private Edwin C. Bearss described the ship's departure: "About 4 o'clock the gangways were taken up. A tug came alongside, lines were cast off, and Lurline's screws began to turn. Slowly but surely she moved out into the harbor. The troops crowded the decks to watch. Those on the starboard side saw first the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation slip by, then the Marine Corps Base, and finally the Naval Training Station; those on the port beam watched as they passed North Island. Soon the ship, preceded by a destroyer, was abreast Point Loma, the majestic guardian of San Diego Harbor. Dusk soon closed in, and the California coast became a dim blur on the eastern horizon, while ahead and to the southwest were seen the Islas Coronados, destined to be the last Western Hemisphere landfall some of the Marines would ever see." (Bearss 1978-1981: 45-46)

On July 19, 1966, the second USS Tutuila (ARG-4) relieved USS Krishna (ARL-28) at An Thoi, Phu Quoc Island, in the Gulf of Siam to support Operation "Market Time" in South Vietnam by servicing fast patrol boats (PCFs). Tutuila also supported operations "Game Warden" and "Stable Door" through the end of 1966. (Mooney VII, 1981: 368)

July 20:

On July 20, 1905, the Catholic Cathedral at Mulivai, Apia was blessed, following additional construction. (Heslin 1995: v)

On July 20, 1912, American Samoa's Governor, Commander William Michael Crose, issued his "Regulation No. 4-1912: Importation of Animals," which forbade the importation of any animals, "excepting certified domestic animals," namely, "Horses, mules, donkeys, cattle, sheep, swine, goats, dogs, cats and poultry." (Noble 1931: 18)

On July 20, 1933, George Egerton Leigh Westbrook, an English trader, journalist and Mau member in Western Samoa, reported that the New Zealand Administration's "Samoan Military Police," when marching through the villages of Vaimoso and Lepea (both of which were Mau strongholds), sang insulting songs in Samoan, and referred to the Samoans in degrading terms. (Field 1984: 125)

On July 20, 1941, 30 members of American Samoa's Fita Fita Guard were assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps' 7th Defense Battalion for training purposes. (Burke 1945b: 133)

On July 20, 1942, Sianava Robert Seva'aetasi, the first Samoan to enlist in the First Samoan Battalion, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, became the first person promoted to Sergeant in that organization. (Anonymous 1945: 16)

July 21:

On July 21, 1902, President Theodore Roosevelt thanked the chiefs of "Tutuila, Aunu'u and other neighboring islands" for signing the Deed of Cession. (Bryan 1927: 49)

On July 21, 1913, Emma Eliza ("Queen Emma") Coe, founder of a vast Pacific commercial empire, died in Monte Carlo. (Robson 1979: 214-215)

July 22:

On July 22, 1816, the Society of Mary, whose members are called Marists, was founded in the basilica of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Fourvière, France. The Marist Order subsequently became the pioneer Catholic missionary order in Samoa. (Heslin 1995: 17)

On July 22, 1936, Western Samoan Mau leader Taisi Olaf Frederick Nelson, returning home from his final exile in New Zealand, sailed into Apia Harbor aboard SS Maui Pomare, and received a tumultuous welcome. The harbor was crowded with fautasi, and an estimated 15,000 people were on hand to greet him. Nelson was seen to be "visibly impressed and embarrassed" by the welcome. (Field 1984: 214)

On July 22, 1942, MOB 3's first surgeries (all appendectomies) were performed by Commander Fred Robbins and Lieutenant Commanders Barney Goodman and Steven Hudack. (Parsons 1945: 95)

July 23:

On July 23, 1900, U.S. Naval Station Commandant Benjamin F. Tilley issued his "Regulation No. 12-1900: Instructions Concerning Appointed Chiefs." (Noble 1931: 10)

On July 23, 1927, in the New Zealand Parliament, the second reading of the Samoa Amendment Bill was concluded. In reference to the bill, Prime Minister Gordon Coates said that "the Samoans are a backward people" with a weakness for politics, and were "susceptible to agitation and rumor." (Field 1984: 99)

On July 23, 1951, Robert Flaherty, pioneering documentary filmmaker and creator of Moana of the South Seas) died at his home in Dunnerstan, Vermont. (Theroux 1985)

July 24:

On July 24, 1942, the Seabees' 11th Construction Battalion and materials to be used for the construction of a destroyer repair base in Pago Pago Harbor were assembled in Oakland, California. (Anonymous n.d. [ca. 1947]: 8)

July 25:

On July 25, 1900, the U.S. Post Office Department notified the Navy Department that the establishment of a post office at the U.S. Naval Station Tutuila had been authorized. (Bryan 1927: 48)

On July 25, 1929, American Samoa's Governor, Captain Stephen Victor Graham, established the Bank of American Samoa. (Noble 1931: 21-22)

On July 25, 1935, Alfred Clarke Turnbull, who described himself as "a man of the old school," took office as New Zealand's Acting Administrator for Western Samoa. He remained "Acting" until 1943, when his appointment became permanent. (Davidson 1967: 150-151; Field 1984: 214)

July 26:

On July 26, 1890, Robert Louis Stevenson and his party arrived in New Caledonia. (Bell 1993: 246)

On July 26, 1893, Mata'afa Iosefo, his daughter and 11 others were exiled by the Germans to Jaluit in the Marshall Islands. (Theroux 1985)

On July 26, 1932, Western Samoa's Administrator, Brigadier General Herbert Hart, was worrying about Mau leader Taisi Olaf Nelson's return from exile at the end of the year. In a letter to New Zealand's Prime Minister, George Forbes, he wrote that "every village is like a smouldering fire, requiring very little to stir it into a substantial blaze." He suggested that "the single men of the Administration and any other suitable volunteers be invited to join the 'Apia Rifle Defence Club,' [whose President was Civil Police Commander Arthur Braisby] or enroll as special constables." (Field 1984: 203)

On July 26, 1942, the Navy Department issued this press release concerning the disappearance of Commander Thomas Calloway Latimore, 22nd naval governor (acting: April 10--April 17, 1934) of American Samoa:

NAVY DEPARTMENT IMMEDIATE RELEASE   JULY 26, 1941 [sic]  
SEARCH ABANDONED FOR COMMANDER LATIMORE

The Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet, Admiral Husband E. Kimmel, has notified the Navy Department that the search for Commander Thomas C. Latimore, U.S. Navy, had been abandoned after every part of the area covered by searchers had been gone over at least three times and that the Reservoir in the vicinity had been searched by divers.

The police and detective force at Honolulu are continuing investigation of the case and a board of investigation has been ordered by Naval Authorities.

Commander Latimore on Friday afternoon, July 18, went for a hike alone in the hills back of Aiea Landing, Honolulu. When he failed to return that night a search was organized.

(A biography of Commander Latimore is attached).

(USNHC: Latimore RO)

July 27:

On July 27, 1907, Commander Charles Brainard Taylor Moore, Governor of American Samoa, issued his "Regulation No. 7-1907: Trespass on Native Lands." (Noble 1931: 59)

On July 27, 1914, German Admiral Graf Maximilian von Spee was scheduled to arrive in Apia on his inspection tour of Germany's Pacific possessions. His powerful fleet included the armored cruisers SMS Scharnhorst and SMS Gneisenau, sister ships displacing 11,600 tons and armed with eight 8.2-inch, six 5.9-inch and 20 3.4-inch guns, the cruisers SMS Prinz Eitel Friedrich and SMS Nürnberg and the tenders SMS Markomannia and SMS Titania. An old gunboat, SMS Cormoran, which had provided the honor guard for Germany's annexation of the western Samoan islands in 1900, accompanied the fleet. (Field 1984: 1-2; Halpern 1994: 72, 125; LeFleming 1961: 117)

On July 27, 1927, two Mau members, Autagavaia Siapiu and 'Lavea,' were arrested in Tamaseu Faifau's fale in Tau'ese, Western Samoa for disobeying banishment orders. They resisted arrest, were handcuffed, and taken to jail. (Field 1984: 98)

On July 27, 1927, New Zealand's External Affairs Minister William Nosworthy tabled the report of his visit to Samoa. "I can stand in this house," he proclaimed, "and say confidently that there is nothing wrong with the Samoan Administration." (Field 1984: 97)

On July 27, 1936, in a public speech following his return from his final exile in New Zealand, Mau leader Taisi Olaf Frederick Nelson promised his assistance and support to New Zealand and its Administration in Western Samoa. He told his supporters to return to their villages and prepare for the election of Faipule---a right that the Mau had requested, unsuccessfully, for many years. (Field 1984: 214)

July 28:

On July 28, 1893, the British warship HMS Katoomba, accompanied by German warships SMS Bussard and SMS Sperber, arrived in Pago Pago Harbor on a "peacekeeping" mission, their assistance having been requested by Malietoa Laupepa against Le'iato, whom he considered "to be in rebellion against his and the government's authority."  (Gray 1960: 97)

On July 28, 1897, Luther Wood Osborn, "Civil War veteran and Nebraska lawyer," was appointed U.S. Consul in Apia, replacing William Churchill III. (Theroux 1995: 107)

On July 28, 1906, American Samoa's Governor, Commander Charles Brainard Taylor Moore, issued his "Regulation No. 6-1906: Forgery." (Noble 1931: 28-29)

On July 28, 1908, in his Annual Report to Secretary of the Navy Truman H. Newberry, Captain John F. Parker, Governor of American Samoa, informed his superior that 128 major and 37 minor operations were performed at the hospital's new operating room. (Letter, Parker-Newberry: 07/28/1908)

On July 28, 1914, American Samoa's Governor, Commander Clark Daniel Stearns issued "The Education Regulation of 1914," which established a Department of Education and outlined its duties. The act "defined three classes of public schools, the duties of the taxpayers of a village to provide suitable buildings for the pupils and for the teachers; it provided for tracts of land for playgrounds and other tracts for school plantations. Every public school was to be open for instruction for at least four hours a day, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and holidays excepted. The age for commencing school was five years." (Bryan 1927: 85)

On July 28, 1927, the Samoa Amendment Bill was introduced into the Legislative Council (the New Zealand Parliament's upper house). Sir Francis Bell said that Western Samoa had "progressed wonderfully" under Administrator Sir George Richardson. Sir Edwin Mitchelson said that there would be no peace in Samoa until Mau leader Olaf Frederick Nelson was gone. (Field 1984: 99)

July 29:

On July 29, 1853, Charles Brainard Taylor Moore, American Samoa's fifth naval governor (January 30, 1905-May 21, 1908) was born in Paris, Illinois. (Anonymous 1911: 1349)

On July 29, 1901, Harry Jay Moors wrote a letter to Secretary of the Navy John Davis Long, accusing Commander Benjamin Franklin Tilley, Commandant, U.S. Naval Station Tutuila of "scandalous conduct, both in Samoa and in Auckland," and stating that Edwin William Gurr, as a British subject, should not be employed as an American judge. (Letter, Moors-Long: 07/29/1901)

On July 29, 1931, there began the "Solemn feasts of the inauguration to the Moamoa [Catholic] church" in Western Samoa. (Heslin 1995: vi)

On July 29, 1942, the Matson luxury liner SS Lurline, carrying units of the 22nd Marine Regiment bound for Samoa, was attacked by a Japanese submarine 24 miles northeast of Tutuila. Marine Private Edwin C. Bearss (now retired Chief Historian of the National Park service and a noted authority on the American Civil War) recorded the incident for posterity, writing that "Fortunately, the submarine commander had set his 'Long Lances' [torpedoes] to run too deep, and one passed under the Lurline's bow, and the other hard astern." (Bearss 1978-1981: 50)

On July 29, 1942, the U.S. Navy's 7th Construction ("Seabee") Battalion arrived on Tutuila, replacing civilian workers from the Utah Construction Company who were hired under the Pacific Naval Air Bases (PNAB) project. 100 of Utah's workers volunteered to stay in Samoa until the 11th Construction Battalion arrived on August 31, 1942 (q.v.). (Denfeld 1989a: 32)

On July 29, 1942, SS Lurline dropped anchor in Pago Pago Harbor at 8:06 a.m. Private First Class Will Pepper of the 22nd Marines wrote this entry in his journal: "This island is very beautiful. The vegetation-covered mountains extend almost to the waters. It is different from the kind of vegetation back home [in central Mississippi]. There are a lot of palm trees, and dense vines covering the mountains." After unloading "hundreds of bags of mail," Lurline weighed anchor at 11:30 a.m., en route to Apia, arriving there at 4:30 p.m. (Bearss 1978-1981: 51)

On July 29, 1943, the Officer in Charge, Malaria Control, South Pacific sent a "Secret Letter" to the Force Medical Officer, South Pacific, which stated that "filariasis was as high as 50 to 70 per cent in some of the units on Tutuila. The lowest rates were 6 per cent. The Naval Station had none at all. The Navy had been on the island since 1900 and none of the personnel at the Naval station had ever contracted the disease. Up until the time of World War II it was thought that Caucasians were practically immune to filariasis. This theory was revised shortly after the arrival of troops on the island." (Burke 1945b: 119 n.68)

On July 29, 1946, New Zealand's Ministry of External Affairs reported that German records captured at the end of World War II disclosed the names of 12 people in Western Samoa who were card-carrying members of the Nazi Party. (Field 1984: 219)

July 30:

On July 30, 1899, Allen Hobbs, American Samoa's 30th Naval Governor, (February 8, 1944-January 27, 1945) was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, the son of Alexander F. and Louise Allen Hobbs. He was the "grandson of Charles H. Allen of Lowell, Massachusetts, who was Assistant Secretary of the Navy under President William McKinley during the Spanish-American War, and later the first civil governor of Puerto Rico. His father was President of the Oneida Bleachery Corporation, Utica, New York. His mother was a fellow, National Sculpture Society." (USNHC: Hobbs RO)