IV 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 626 
Recognizing the 160th anniversary of the peaceful resolution of the Pig 
War crisis. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 11, 2019 
Mr. LARSEN of Washington (for himself, Mr. HECK, Mr. SMITH of Wash-
ington, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. KILMER, Ms. JAYAPAL, and Mr. NEWHOUSE) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs 
RESOLUTION 
Recognizing the 160th anniversary of the peaceful resolution 
of the Pig War crisis. 
Whereas for more than 40 years, Great Britain and the 
United States contended over the Oregon Country, which 
today comprises Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, as well 
as portions of Montana and Wyoming and the province 
of British Columbia; 
Whereas, on June 15, 1846, the two nations agreed upon the 
49th parallel as the international boundary, but could not 
agree on a water boundary between Vancouver Island 
and the mainland, where the San Juan Islands lie; 
Whereas tensions over possession of the islands escalated to 
crisis proportions on San Juan Island when on June 15, 
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•HRES 626 IH 
1859, a United States farmer shot and killed a pig be-
longing to the Hudson’s Bay Company, prompting dis-
patch of naval and military forces from both nations to 
the island’s southern shore; 
Whereas the crisis was resolved peacefully through a com-
bination of restraint and diplomacy when United States 
Army Commander Lieutenant General Winfield Scott ar-
rived from Washington, DC, to negotiate a standdown 
with British Columbia Governor James Douglas; 
Whereas the ensuing 12-year, peaceful joint military occupa-
tion of San Juan Island challenged United States soldiers 
and British Royal Marines to cope with the difficulty of 
1860s military life in an isolated environment, yet formed 
a lasting friendship between the two garrisons; 
Whereas, in 1872, the boundary question was settled in favor 
of the United States through arbitration by Kaiser Wil-
helm I of Germany, which brought a lasting peace on the 
49th parallel between Great Britain, Canada, and the 
United States; 
Whereas San Juan Island National Historical Park was cre-
ated in 1966 to commemorate the peaceful settlement of 
the Pig War crisis and celebrate the idea that individuals 
and nations can resolve their differences peacefully with-
out resorting to violence; and 
Whereas diplomats and members of the military from the 
United States and the United Kingdom continue to serve 
their countries side by side in remote regions of the 
world: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives honors 
the 160th anniversary of the peaceful resolution of the Pig 
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War crisis and applauds the close ties and lasting friend-
ship between the United Kingdom and the United States. 
Æ 
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