History of Guam
Genetic analysis of pre-Latte period skeletons in Guam also show that they do not have Melanesian ancestry which rules out origins from the Bismarck Archipelago, New Guinea, or eastern Indonesia.
[7] Most of what is known about Pre-Contact ("Ancient") Chamorus comes from legends and myths, archaeological evidence, Jesuit missionary accounts, and observations from visiting scientists like Otto von Kotzebue and Louis de Freycinet.
Early European explorers noted the sakman, the Chamoru fast sailing vessel used for trading with other islands of Micronesia.
Like the Easter Island Moai statues, there is plenty of speculation over how this was done by a society without machines or metal, but the generally accepted view is that the head and base were etched out of the ground by sharp adzes and picks (possibly with the use of fire), and carried to the assembly area by an elaborate system of ropes and logs.
The theory remains tenuous, however, due to lack of evidence, but if proven correct, will further support the idea that Pre-Contact Chamorus lived in a vibrant and dynamic environment.
[9] When Magellan's fleet arrived at Guam, they were greeted by hundreds of small outrigger canoes that appeared to be flying over the water due to their considerable speed.
These outrigger canoes were called proas and resulted in Magellan naming Guam Islas de las Velas Latinas ("Islands of the Lateen sails").
"[11] Pigafetta wrote that the inhabitants "entered the ships and stole whatever they could lay their hands on," including "the small boat that was fastened to the poop of the flagship.
Magellan was eventually able to obtain rations and offered iron, a highly prized material, in exchange for fresh fruits, vegetables, and water.
[14] Jesuit missionaries led by Diego Luis de San Vitores arrived on Guam to introduce Christianity and develop trade.
The Spanish taught the Chamorus to cultivate maize (corn), raise cattle, and tan hides, as well as to adopt western-style clothing.
Chief Quipuha died in 1669 but his policy of allowing the Spanish to establish a base on Guam had important consequences for the future of the island.
Captain Juan de Santiago started a campaign to conquer the island, which was continued by the successive commanders of the Spanish forces.
Francisco de Irrisarri y Vinar, controlled internal affairs more strictly than his predecessors in order to curb tensions.
[16]: 101 As a consequence, the Jesuit fathers on Guam departed on November 2, 1769, on the schooner Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, abandoning their churches, rectories and ranches.
[16]: 113 Spain built several defensive fortifications to protect their Pacific fleet, such as Fort Nuestra Señora de la Soledad in Umatac.
[18] Other reminders of colonial times include the old Governor's Palace in Plaza de España and the Spanish Bridge, both in Hagåtña.
[19] Following the Napoleonic Wars, many Spanish colonies in the Western Hemisphere had become independent, shifting the economic dependence of Guam from Mexico to the Philippines.
[16]: 144 Don Francisco Ramon de Villalobos, who became governor in 1831, improved economic conditions including the promotion of rice cultivation and the establishment of a leper hospital.
Although Alfred Thayer Mahan, Robert Coontz, and others envisioned the island as "a kind of Gibraltar" in the Pacific, Congress repeatedly failed to fulfill the military's requests to fortify Guam; when the German warship SMS Cormoran was interned in 1914 before America's entry into World War I, its crew of 543 outnumbered their American custodians.
Indigenous Chamorro people from the Northern Marianas were brought to Guam to serve as interpreters and in other capacities for the occupying Japanese force.
The second Battle of Guam began on July 21, 1944, with American troops landing on western side of the island after several weeks of pre-invasion bombardment by the U.S. Navy.
Sergeant Shoichi Yokoi, who surrendered in January 1972, appears to have been the last confirmed Japanese holdout, having held out for 28 years in the forested back country on Guam.
Many Chamoru families lived in temporary re-settlement camps near the beaches before moving to permanent homes constructed in the island's outer villages.
In the meantime, Guam's local government had formed several political status commissions to address possible options for self-determination.
The Twenty-Fourth Guam Legislature established the "Commission on Decolonization" in 1996 to enhance CSD's ongoing studies of various political status options and public education campaigns.
Today, Guam remains an unincorporated territory despite referendums and a United Nations mandate to establish a permanent status for the island.
Economic recovery was further hampered by devastation from Supertyphoons Paka in 1997 and Pongsona in 2002, as well as the effects of the September 11 terrorist attacks on tourism.
However, that was set back due to budget constrains and local resistance to the additional military presence; Marine Corps Base Camp Blaz was activated in 2020 but the relocation is scheduled to start no later than by the first half of the 2020s.
[36][37] In 2018, a Government Accountability Office report stated that Agent Orange was used as a commercial herbicide in Guam during the Vietnam and Korean Wars.
