IV 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 169 
Acknowledging and honoring brave young men from Hawaii who enabled 
the United States to establish and maintain jurisdiction in remote equa-
torial islands as prolonged conflict in the Pacific lead to World War 
II. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 24, 2015 
Mr. TAKAI (for himself and Ms. GABBARD) submitted the following resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources 
RESOLUTION 
Acknowledging and honoring brave young men from Hawaii 
who enabled the United States to establish and maintain 
jurisdiction in remote equatorial islands as prolonged 
conflict in the Pacific lead to World War II. 
Whereas in the mid-19th century, the Guano Islands Act (48 
U.S.C. 1411 et seq.) enabled companies from the United 
States to mine guano from a number of islands in the 
Equatorial Pacific; 
Whereas after several decades, when the guano was depleted, 
the companies abandoned mining activities, and the con-
trol of the islands by the United States diminished and 
left the islands vulnerable to exploitation by other na-
tions; 
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Whereas the Far East during the late 19th century and early 
20th century was characterized by colonial conflicts and 
Japanese expansionism; 
Whereas the 1930s marked the apex of the sphere of influ-
ence of Imperial Japan in the Far East; 
Whereas military and commercial interest in Central Pacific 
air routes between Australia and California led to a de-
sire by the United States to claim the islands of 
Howland, Baker, and Jarvis, although the ownership of 
the islands was unclear; 
Whereas in 1935, a secret Department of Commerce col-
onization plan was instituted, aimed at placing citizens of 
the United States as colonists on the remote islands of 
Howland, Baker, and Jarvis; 
Whereas to avoid conflicts with international law, which pre-
vented colonization by active military personnel, the 
United States sought the participation of furloughed mili-
tary personnel and Native Hawaiian civilians in the col-
onization project; 
Whereas William T. Miller, Superintendent of Airways at the 
Department of Commerce, was appointed to lead the col-
onization project, traveled to Hawaii in February 1935, 
met with Albert F. Judd, Trustee of Kamehameha 
Schools and the Bishop Museum, and agreed that recent 
graduates and students of the Kamehameha School for 
Boys would make ideal colonists for the project; 
Whereas the ideal Hawaiian candidates were candidates who 
could ‘‘fish in the native manner, swim excellently, handle 
a boat, be disciplined, friendly, and unattached’’; 
Whereas on March 30, 1935, the United States Coast Guard 
Cutter Itasca departed from Honolulu Harbor in great 
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secrecy with 6 young Hawaiian men aboard, all recent 
graduates of Kamehameha Schools, and 12 furloughed 
Army personnel, whose purpose was to occupy the barren 
islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis in teams of 5 for 
3 months; 
Whereas in June 1935, after a successful first tour, the fur-
loughed Army personnel were ordered off the islands and 
replaced with additional Kamehameha Schools alumni, 
thus leaving the islands under the exclusive occupation of 
the 4 Native Hawaiians on each island; 
Whereas the duties of the colonists while on the island were 
to record weather conditions, cultivate plants, maintain a 
daily log, record the types of fish that were caught, ob-
serve bird life, and collect specimens for the Bishop Mu-
seum; 
Whereas the successful year-long occupation by the colonists 
directly enabled President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue 
Executive Order 7368 on May 13, 1936, which pro-
claimed that the islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis 
were under the jurisdiction of the United States; 
Whereas multiple Federal agencies vied for the right to ad-
minister the colonization project, including the Depart-
ment of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, and 
the Navy Department, but jurisdiction was ultimately 
granted to the Department of the Interior; 
Whereas under the Department of the Interior, the coloniza-
tion project emphasized weather data and radio commu-
nication, which brought about the recruitment of a num-
ber of Asian radiomen and aerologists; 
Whereas under the Department of the Interior, the coloniza-
tion project also expanded beyond the Kamehameha 
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Schools to include Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians from 
other schools in Hawaii; 
Whereas in March of 1938 the United States also claimed 
and colonized the islands of Canton and Enderbury, 
maintaining that the colonization was in furtherance of 
commercial aviation and not for military purposes; 
Whereas the risk of living on the remote islands meant that 
emergency medical care was not less than 5 days away, 
and the distance proved fatal for Carl Kahalewai, who 
died on October 8, 1938, en route to Honolulu after his 
appendix ruptured on Jarvis island; 
Whereas other life-threatening injuries occurred, including in 
1939, when Manuel Pires had appendicitis, and in 1941, 
when an explosion severely burned Henry Knell and 
Dominic Zagara; 
Whereas in 1940, when the issue of discontinuing the col-
onization project was raised, the Navy acknowledged that 
the islands were ‘‘probably worthless to commercial avia-
tion’’ but advocated for ‘‘continued occupation’’ because 
the islands could serve as ‘‘bases from a military stand-
point’’; 
Whereas although military interests justified continued occu-
pation of the islands, the colonists were never informed 
of the true nature of the project, nor were the colonists 
provided with weapons or any other means of self-de-
fense; 
Whereas in June of 1941, when much of Europe was engaged 
in World War II and Imperial Japan was establishing 
itself in the Pacific, the Commandant of the 14th Naval 
District recognized the ‘‘tension in the Western Pacific’’ 
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and recommended the evacuation of the colonists, but his 
request was denied; 
Whereas on December 8, 1941, Howland Island was attacked 
by a fleet of Japanese twin-engine bombers, and the at-
tack killed Hawaiian colonists Joseph Keliihananui and 
Richard Whaley; 
Whereas in the ensuing weeks, Japanese submarine and mili-
tary aircraft continued to target the islands of Howland, 
Baker, and Jarvis, jeopardizing the lives of the remaining 
colonists; 
Whereas the United States Government was unaware of the 
attacks on the islands, and was distracted by the entry 
of the United States into World War II; 
Whereas the colonists demonstrated great valor while await-
ing retrieval; 
Whereas the 4 colonists from Baker and the 2 remaining 
colonists from Howland were rescued on January 31, 
1942, and the 8 colonists from Jarvis and Enderbury 
were rescued on February 9, 1942, 2 months after the 
initial attacks on Howland Island; 
Whereas on March 20, 1942, Harold L. Ickes, Secretary of 
the 
Interior, 
sent 
letters 
of 
condolence 
to 
the 
Keliihananui and Whaley families stating that ‘‘[i]n your 
bereavement it must be considerable satisfaction to know 
that your brother died in the service of his country’’; 
Whereas during the 7 years of colonization, more than 130 
young men participated in the project, the majority of 
whom were Hawaiian, and all of whom made numerous 
sacrifices, endured hardships, and risked their lives to se-
cure and maintain the islands of Howland, Baker, Jarvis, 
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Canton, and Enderbury on behalf of the United States, 
and 3 young Hawaiian men made the ultimate sacrifice; 
Whereas none of the islands, except for Canton, were ever 
used for commercial aviation, but the islands were used 
for military purposes; 
Whereas in July 1943, a military base was established on 
Baker Island, and its forces, which numbered over 2,000 
members, participated in the Tarawa-Makin operation; 
Whereas in 1956, participants of the colonization project es-
tablished an organization called ‘‘Hui Panala’au’’, which 
was established to preserve the fellowship of the group, 
to provide scholarship assistance, and ‘‘to honor and es-
teem those who died as colonists of the Equatorial Is-
lands’’; 
Whereas in 1979, Canton and Enderbury became part of the 
Republic of Kiribati, but the islands of Jarvis, Howland, 
and Baker remain possessions of the United States, hav-
ing been designated as National Wildlife Refuges in 
1974; 
Whereas the islands of Jarvis, Howland, and Baker are now 
part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National 
Monument; 
Whereas May 13, 2015, marks the 79th anniversary of the 
issuance of the Executive order of President Franklin D. 
Roosevelt proclaiming United States jurisdiction over the 
islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis, islands that re-
main possessions of the United States; and 
Whereas the Federal Government has never fully recognized 
the contributions and sacrifices of the colonists, less than 
a handful of whom are still alive today: Now, therefore, 
be it 
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Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) acknowledges the accomplishments and 
commends the service of the Hui Panala’au colo-
nists; 
(2) acknowledges the local, national, and inter-
national significance of the 7-year colonization 
project, which resulted in the United States extend-
ing sovereignty into the Equatorial Pacific; 
(3) recognizes the dedication to the United 
States and self-reliance demonstrated by the young 
men, the majority of whom were Native Hawaiian, 
who left their homes and families in Hawaii to par-
ticipate in the Equatorial Pacific colonization 
project; 
(4) extends condolences on behalf of the United 
States to the families of Carl Kahalewai, Joseph 
Keliihananui, and Richard Whaley for the loss of 
their loved ones in the service of the United States; 
(5) honors the young men whose actions, sac-
rifices, and valor helped secure and maintain the ju-
risdiction of the United States over equatorial is-
lands in the Pacific Ocean during the years leading 
up to and the months immediately following the 
bombing of Pearl Harbor and the entry of the 
United States into World War II; and 
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(6) extends to all of the colonists, and to the 
families of these exceptional young men, the deep 
appreciation of the people of the United States. 
Æ 
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