The Canton and Enderbury Islands consist of the

coral atoll Corals are marine invertebrates within the class (biology), class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important C ...

s of

Canton Island Canton Island (also known as Kanton or Abariringa), previously known as Mary Island, Mary Balcout's Island or Swallow Island, is the largest, northernmost, and , the sole inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati. It i ...

(also Kanton) and Enderbury in the northeastern part of the

Phoenix Islands The Phoenix Islands, or Rawaki, are a group of eight atolls and two submerged coral reefs that lie east of the Gilbert Islands and west of the Line Islands in the central Pacific Ocean, north of Samoa. They are part of the Kiribati, Republic ...

, about 1,850 miles (3,000 km) south of

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

in the central

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

History

The islands were vital naval and air bases on the route between the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and were claimed by both the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. From 1939 to 1979, they formed an Anglo–American

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

, with administration jointly exercised by the U.S. and the UK. This arrangement only covered Canton and Enderbury islands; the remaining Phoenix Islands were still claimed by the U.S. under the

Guano Islands Act The Guano Islands Act (, enacted August 18, 1856, codified at §§ 1411-1419) is a United States federal law passed by the U.S. Congress that enables citizens of the United States to take possession, in the name of the United States, of unclai ...

, but aside from Hull Island were either abandoned or remained under exclusive British control until 1979. Both the UK and the U.S. claimed sovereignty over the islands since the mid–19th century. The official British claim was formally reasserted on 6 August 1936, and in March 1937 the islands were attached to its Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony; establishing a radio station on Canton on 31 August 1937. In June 1937 a spat occurred at Canton between USS ''Avocet'' and HMS ''Wellington'' and their crews. In response, on 26 July President Roosevelt approved a U.S. Navy plan to occupy Canton, and on 3 March 1938 formally reasserted the United States claim, placing Canton and Enderbury under the control of the

Department of the Interior The United States Department of the Interior (DOI) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government headquartered at the Main Interior Building, located at 1849 C Street NW in Washington, D.C. It is responsible for the mana ...

. Seven U.S. citizens from the

American Equatorial Islands Colonization Project The American Equatorial Islands Colonization Project was a plan initiated in 1935 by the U.S. Department of Commerce to place citizens of the United States on uninhabited Howland, Baker and Jarvis islands in the central Pacific Ocean so that we ...

landed on Canton on 7 March. To resolve these conflicting claims, the two governments signed an agreement on 6 April 1939 providing for joint administration over the islands without prejudice to the claims of either side. The United States and the United Kingdom relinquished control over the islands to the government of newly independent

Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Kiribati
''The Wor ...

; U.S. personnel left the island on 12 July 1979, the date of Kiribati's independence. The

Treaty of Tarawa On September 20, 1979, representatives of the newly independent Republic of Kiribati and of the United States met in Tarawa to sign a treaty of friendship between the two nations, known as the Treaty of Tarawa. More formally, the treaty is entit ...

, signed on 20 September 1979 and ratified by the United States Senate on 21 June 1983 and entered into force on 23 September 1983, formally relinquished U.S. claims over the former Canton and Enderbury Islands Condominium. In this treaty, the U.S. acknowledged I-Kiribati sovereignty over fourteen islands, but reserved the right to military bases.US Department of State Background Note
/ref> Today the islands form part of the Phoenix Islands administrative group within the Republic of

Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Kiribati
''The Wor ...

. As of 2005, the population of Canton Island was 41, down from 61 in 2000. In May 2010 the population was reportedly 24, with 14 adults and 10 children. The island's sole village is called Tebaronga. Enderbury is uninhabited. In 2006, the government of Kiribati declared the islands, together with other Phoenix Islands, to be a marine protected area, to preserve the unique flora and fauna of the archipelago and its surrounding waters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Canton And Enderbury Islands Phoenix Islands (Kiribati) Pacific islands claimed under the Guano Islands Act Condominia (international law) British Western Pacific Territories Atolls of Kiribati Former disputed islands 1939 establishments in Oceania 1979 disestablishments in Oceania

History

See also

References