Mapusaga is a small village located nine miles west of

Pago Pago Pago Pago ( ; Samoan: )Harris, Ann G. and Esther Tuttle (2004). ''Geology of National Parks''. Kendall Hunt. Page 604. . is the territorial capital of American Samoa. It is in Maoputasi County on Tutuila, which is American Samoa's main island. ...

Tutuila Tutuila is the main island of American Samoa (and its largest), and is part of the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific. It is located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Au ...

island in the

American territory In the United States, a territory is any extent of region under the sovereign jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters (around islands or continental tracts). The United States asserts sovereign rights for ...

American Samoa American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International ...

. Its coordinates are 14.33° south and 170.74389 ° west, with an elevation of 180 feet. The village is home to

American Samoa Community College American Samoa Community College (ASCC) is a public land-grant community college in the village of Mapusaga, American Samoa. Only legal residents of American Samoa who have graduated from high school or obtained a General Equivalency Diploma ...

. An area in the village is called Mapusagafou, which translates to New Mapusaga. Another area in town is known as Mapusagatuai, meaning Old Mapusaga. The village of Mapusaga was almost entirely displaced during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

in favor of military installations. It was the location of the U.S. Navy operated Mobile Base Hospital. Mapusaga has been called "Mormon Valley", as the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The c ...

previously was based here. The Mormons constructed Mapusaga High School in 1928, which was located at the current location of American Samoa Community College (ASCC). Olotele Mountain is divided between the villages of Mapusagafou (bottom half) and

Aoloau A'oloau is a village in the west of Tutuila Island, American Samoa. It is located inland, southwest of Pago Pago. It is also known as A’oloaufou, which means "new A’olou". An abandoned area in town by A'oloau Bay is known as A'oloautuai, whic ...

(top half). Tucked in the densely rainforested Mapusagafou Mountain is Le Fale’o Cultural Center where there is an authentic village set up with traditional arts, cooking, and customs.

History

A Latter-day Saint village with a school and 360-acre plantation was founded here on May 10, 1903. On November 26, 1906, a Relief Society organization for women was established here. In 1938, the Boy Scout organization was begun at Mapusaga. In 1946, Mormon missionaries returned and re-established a school on the Mapusaga plantation property. In 1953, the missionaries purchased the plantation land. On September 19, 1960, Mapusaga High School opened. A bigger high school was established in

in 1965 and in 1974, the church decided to close the Mapusaga High School and lease the facilities to the community college.

(ASCC) was established in Fagatogo in July 1970. The freshman class at ASCC had just 131 enrolled students. It moved permanently to its current location in September 1974 when they took over the former facilities of Mapusaga High School. In 1979, the U.S. Economic Development Administration provided a grant to the college which covered the construction of five new modern structures for science, vocational training, the fine arts, and nursing. The college also added a cafe and gym. A new library was constructed at the college in 2003. Le Faleo'o Samoan Cultural Center was dedicated on February 1, 2020, in Mapusaga Fou. It is the first and the only living museum in American Samoa.

World War II

In April 1942, the village of Mapusaga was eventually displaced in favor of the construction of Mobile Base Hospital Three (MOB 3). Eventually, there were as many as 105 buildings covering thirty acres of land at Mapusaga, which required over 300 tons of cargo in order to be built. During the process of construction and relocation of villagers, a chief known as Savea, his wife Lupe and other displaced villagers were unfailingly gracious. When the first Marine casualties began arriving from the fighting at

Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...

and

Tulagi Tulagi, less commonly known as Tulaghi, is a small island——in Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Ngella Sule. The town of the same name on the island (pop. 1,750) was the capital of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate from 18 ...

, the girls of Mapusaga village showed up at MOB 3 bringing the men flowers. The tanks stationed at Mapusaga were festooned with garlands of flowers, and families gathered around the Marines in support and gave them gifts as they boarded the trucks and left Mapusaga to go to war.Kennedy, Joseph (2009). ''The Tropical Frontier: America’s South Sea Colony''. University of Hawaii Press. Page 212. .

References

* https://web.archive.org/web/20070927001036/http://www.placenames.com/us/p1388990/ {{American Samoa Villages in American Samoa