The U.S. Census Bureau has always highlighted American diversity 

through its decennial snapshots of the population. As the United States 

grew and the population became more diverse, the Census Bureau’s 

workforce adapted to representthe country’s people and needs. As 

immigration from non-European countries increased in the 19th century, 

the Census Bureau tried to hire census takers that lived in the 

neighborhoods and spoke the language. Others became a part of the 

operations in Washington, DC. From the first surges of Chinese 

immigration into California in the 19th century, to the last territorial 

acquisitions of the U.S. in the 20th century, immigrants of Asian and 

Pacific Islander heritage have long contributed to the Census Bureau’s 

mission, both at headquarters and in the field.

Jeremiah Raphael Seigafo Scanlan, known as Jerry, was born on January 19, 1895, in the village of 

Faleula on the Samoan island of Upolu. Jerry’s grandfather and namesake, Jeremiah Scanlan, had 

immigrated to Samoa from the United Statesin the early 1800s, married a local woman named 

Fa’ate’i Tagaloa, and settled on the islands. His son—Jerry’s father, Charles—worked as a merchant, 

ran a taxicab company, and occasionally served as an interpreter for the government. Jerry’s 

mother, La’ala’ai Alapapa Te’o of Upolu, passed away soon 

after his birth, and his step-mother, Pipii`imale`ele`ele 

Mulipola, was the daughter of a prominent chief from the 

island of Savaii, making her a taupou, or princess. Charles 

and Pipii’s status meantthat Jerry and his eleven siblings 

received a better education than most Samoans at the 

time, and also had an opportunity to learn from their 

father’s businesses. Jerry’s family background also enabled 

him to fit in among both Americans and Samoans, a 

valuable ability when the United States gained control of 

the area that would become American Samoa in 1899.

Western exploration in the 19th century had influenced the local relations and dynamics of 

Samoans, leading to both international strife and civil war in the late 1800s. In order to resolve this, 

Germany and the United States convened the Tripartite Convention in 1899, which divided the 

islands into two parts. The United States annexed the eastern 

islands, including Tutuila, Aunu’u, and Rose Atoll in 1900, with 

the Manu’a Islands joining in 1904 and Swains Island in 1925, 

and named the area “American Samoa” to distinguish itfrom 

the western islands, simply known as “Samoa”. The islands

fell under the governance of a U.S. naval governor, with 

Samoan chiefs and matais, or heads of households, deciding 

local matters.

Community Leader and Census Interpreter

The Rock Island Argus (Rock Island, IL) June 20, 1923

Jerry, c. 1940, in one of his only 

existing photographs 

Courtesy of Trisha Pereira, his greatgranddaughter

Scanlan family 1920 Census
Although there was 

friction between the 

new government and 

the Samoans, the naval 

governors also greatly 

aided the islands. During the 1918 influenza pandemic, Governor John Martin Poyerimmediately

instituted a strict quarantine, making American Samoa one of only three places in the world that did 

not suffer from the disease. On neighboring Samoan islands under the direction of New Zealand, 

there was no quarantine and over 7,500 Samoans died from the disease—more than 20% of the 

population. Another way the new U.S. government helped the islands was by conducting a 

complete census, which provided information about their populations and economies and enabled 

both local and U.S. officials to help plan community services, such as schools, clinics and hospitals, 

and distribute resources to places and people who needed them.

While there had been partial censuses, none had depth and accuracy beyond rough counts of the 

population total. In 1920, following annexation and the chaos of World War I, American Samoa had 

its first census taken under the auspices of the U.S. Census Bureau. The 1920 census included 

village counts, as well as classifications of sex, race, age, and maritial condition, data on school 

attendance, illiteracy, and occupations. A census of agriculture, a normal part of the decennial 

census at this time, also counted livestock and copra (coconut meal) production.

The naval governor, Warren Jay Terhune,

appointed two enumerators, with one 

interpreter each. Jerry worked as the interpreter 

for William Barrow, a U.S. government court 

clerk. Starting mid-January and working into 

early February, William and Jerry worked on 

both Tutuila and the Manu’a Islands. The final 

count came in at 8,194 people, and showed that 

there had been a steady population increase 

since the U.S. had first annexed the territory. 

This population increase not only proved the 

effectiveness of the naval governor’s 1918 

quarantine, but also helped dispel unfounded 

predictions about the decline of Polynesian populations when exposed to outsiders.

Following his census work, Jerry traveled to the United States, leaving Pago Pago on April 23, and 

arriving in San Francisco on May 6, 1920. Several other family members took advantage of their 

ability to travel to the U.S., including a brother, Leo, who toured and spread Samoan culture with 

the vaudeville troupe of “Prince Lei Lani and His Royal Samoans.” Jerry soon returned to Tutuila, 

where he continued working as a storekeeper and in his father’s 

taxi business, as well as a bookkeeper for the Government Supply 

Depot, a position he held for 12 years. 

In 1918, Jerry married Musaesae “Mu” Taito, with whom he 

raised a large family, and he had another child later in life after 

Mu passed away in 1938. Three of his surviving adult children 

lived in Samoa, and four others settled in the U.S. In addition to 

his service to his community and his family, Jerry was also a 

boxing enthusiast who often acted as referee or judge. Jerry 

passed away in Pago Pago on December 20, 1964. Less than three 

years later, on July 1, 1967, a new Constitution of American 

Samoa went into effect, and established more positions in the 

government of American Samoa for Samoans, following the trail 

which Jerry had blazed. The Census Bureau is grateful forJerry’s

contributions to his community, his islands, and his country.

A 1920 Census form with Jerry’s signature as interpreter

Jerry, left, with family, c. 1960 

Courtesy of Trisha Pereira, his great-granddaughter

The American Naval Station at Tutuila, c. 1920

Coffee, Frank, Forty Years on the Pacific (1920)

HB-19-0007