in 1821, the
uninhabited island was annexed by the US in 1858, but abandoned in
1879 after tons of guano had been removed. The UK annexed the island
in 1889, but never carried out plans for further exploitation. The
US occupied and reclaimed the island in 1935 until it was abandoned
in 1942 during World War II. The island was established as a
National Wildlife Refuge in 1974.
Johnston Atoll: Both the US and the Kingdom of Hawaii annexed
Johnston Atoll in 1858, but it was the US that mined the guano
deposits until the late 1880s. Johnston and Sand Islands were
designated wildlife refuges in 1926. The US Navy took over the atoll
in 1934, and subsequently the US Air Force assumed control in 1948.
The site was used for high-altitude nuclear tests in the 1950s and
1960s, and until late in 2000 the atoll was maintained as a storage
and disposal site for chemical weapons. Munitions destruction is now
complete. Cleanup and closure of the facility was completed by May
2005. The Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Air Force are
currently discussing future management options; in the interim,
Johnston Atoll and the three-mile Naval Defensive Sea around it
remain under the jurisdiction and administrative control of the US
Air Force.
Kingman Reef: The US annexed the reef in 1922. Its sheltered lagoon
served as a way station for flying boats on Hawaii-to-American Samoa
flights during the late 1930s. There are no terrestrial plants on
the reef, which is frequently awash, but it does support abundant
and diverse marine fauna and flora. In 2001, the waters surrounding
the reef out to 12 nm were designated a US National Wildlife Refuge.
Midway Islands: The US took formal possession of the islands in
1867. The laying of the trans-Pacific cable, which passed through
the islands, brought the first residents in 1903. Between 1935 and
1947, Midway was used as a refueling stop for trans-Pacific flights.
The US naval victory over a Japanese fleet off Midway in 1942 was
one of the turning points of World War II. The islands continued to
serve as a naval station until closed in 1993. Today the islands are
a National Wildlife Refuge and are the site of the world's largest
Laysan albatross colony.
Palmyra Atoll: The Kingdom of Hawaii claimed the atoll in 1862, and
the US included it among the Hawaiian Islands when it annexed the
archipelago in 1898. The Hawaii Statehood A