page_title: Poloa, American Samoa
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Poloa, American Samoa / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Sandy beach between the villages of Poloa and 'Āmanave on Tutuila Island, American Samoa
context_page_description: Poloa is a village in American Samoa. It is located at the west side of Tutuila in the Alataua District. The village has 193 residents in 2010. The main denominations in the area are Methodist and Christian. Poloa has one elementary school. It is located in Lealataua County.
  According to history, Poloa was one of the poorest village in Samoa. Since American culture was introduced, many Poloa villagers worked at shipyards of Germans and Americans.
  Poloa is at the western terminus of American Samoa Highway 001. It is situated on a narrow coastal plain on Tutuila Island’s western tip, nine miles west of Pago Pago. The village is made up of wood-frame homes and traditional fales. A school is located at the shoreline, approximately 700 ft. south of the village center. This elementary school has an enrollment of around 160 and also serves Poloa’s neighboring villages. Due to the village’s flatlands being ideal for development, the school was erected near the shore.
context_section_description: Poloa is situated at the western end of Tutuila Island, around 19 miles from Pago Pago. It takes about 30 minutes by car to travel from Fagatogo to Poloa. A half-moon bay outlines Poloa’s coastline and sandy beaches. The steep forested mountains rise high on its northern boundaries. It is located on a mountain range and slopes of land that leads down to the coast. Villagers constructed their homes on mounds of land on the mountaintops and on the slopes and some flatlands. The public access road winds through Poloa from the open tunnel on the mountaintop and down to the low-lying lands of the village. The village is basically separated by mountain ridges and cliffs. The coastal-lying parts of town are known as Poloa-Lalo, while the sub-village situated on the mountaintop is known as Poloa-Luga.
caption: A beach between Poloa and 'Āmanave
exif: {"Image Make": "Apple", "Image Model": "iPhone X", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "12.3.1", "Image DateTime": "2019:08:02 11:44:31", "Image ExifOffset": "194", "GPS GPSLatitudeRef": "N", "GPS GPSLatitude": "[34, 11, 167/10]", "GPS GPSLongitudeRef": "W", "GPS GPSLongitude": "[118, 54, 441/25]", "GPS GPSAltitudeRef": "0", "GPS GPSAltitude": "360709/1828", "GPS GPSSpeedRef": "K", "GPS GPSSpeed": "5235/4847", "GPS GPSImgDirectionRef": "T", "GPS GPSImgDirection": "189067/1507", "GPS GPSDestBearingRef": "T", "GPS GPSDestBearing": "189067/1507", "GPS Tag 0x001F": "105952/6621", "Image GPSInfo": "1772", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/11", "EXIF FNumber": "9/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0221", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2019:08:02 11:44:31", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2019:08:02 11:44:31", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "93775/27199", "EXIF ApertureValue": "54823/32325", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "27275/52284", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "4", "EXIF SubjectArea": "[2015, 1511, 2217, 1330]", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "769", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "769", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3793", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2251", "EXIF SensingMethod": "One-chip color area", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF LensSpecification": "[4, 6, 9/5, 12/5]", "EXIF LensMake": "Apple", "EXIF LensModel": "iPhone X back dual camera 4mm f/1.8"}