Chapter I Intro & Objectives - SPREP

PHOENIX ISLANDS PROTECTED AREA MANAGEMENT PLAN
Chapter III. Background, 2. Human Activities
Draft 1 March 2007
Burns Philip interests held the lease over the Phoenix Islands until 1938 when it was taken
over by the Gilbert and Ellice government (Anon. 1940a; see also Anon 1938i). GEIC obtain
a grant from the British Colonial Development and Welfare Fund that was used to buy the
leases (Bryan 1951; 1937 according to Freeman 1951). There was a provision in the lease
that allowed the British Government to terminate the license for any cause (Hilder 1959).
The lease for the six Phoenix Islands was bought out for £7,500 (Hilder 1959). One
provision of the buy out was that the islands would be used for resettlement (Anon. 1938i).
Burns Philp withdrew from the Phoenix group so as to remove any embarrassments for
Britain (Anon. 1941a). The lease termination was an “imperial service” of Burns Philp Co.,
Ltd. to the British Government (Anon. 1940e). The fee paid to terminate the lease was based
on the amount Burns Philp invested since 1926 to improve the islands (plant coconuts).
Phoenix Islands were administered through the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific at
Suva (Anon. 1939a; Freeman 1951).
Traditionally, the Gilbertese people were in balance with the limited resources on their atolls
(Maude 1937). However, with the introduction of western religious practices and colonial
rule, traditional checks on population size had been curtailed. Details of traditional methods
of population control were provided. With over-population and limited land, many families
had become landless. The overpopulation problem in the Gilbert Islands was a consequence
of European contact and colonial rule (Schultz and Tenten 1979; Maude 1968). A solution
was sought for this population crisis (Maude 1937).
Wiens (1962) noted that the resettlement scheme was due to drought conditions in the
Southern Gilbert Islands and the subsequent pressure on food resources (see also Laxton
1951).
In 1937, H. Maude led a survey of the entire Phoenix Islands (Maude 1937; see also Knudson
1965; Maude 1952 and 1968). A detailed account of this survey was provided in Maude
(1937, 1952, and 1968) including detailed descriptions of each island.
The survey team included government employees and representatives from the southern
Gilbert Islands, as well as from the Ellice Islands (Maude 1937; see also Knudson 1965).
Each of the Phoenix Islands was surveyed. Key considerations were topography, lagoon
characteristics, fertility, flora, water supply, fishing, anchorages, landing facilities, and any
unusual aspects. Schultz and Tenten (1979) noted that the test wells, except on Manra
(Sydney), had water poorer than that usually found in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands.
In 1937, Maude then proposed a resettlement scheme to alleviate population pressures in the
Gilbert Islands (Maude 1937, 1952, and 1968; Knudson 1965). Very detailed plans of the
settlement scheme and budget are documented in Maude (1937, 1952, and 1968). It was
proposed that land be provided on a freehold basis to settlers. In addition to settlement of
select Phoenix Islands, consideration was given to islands in the Line group in Maude (1937).
In July 1937, Amelia Earhart’s airplane was lost in the Central Pacific (King et al 2001).
This was just a few weeks after the solar eclipse expedition left Abariringa (Canton) (Oates
2003). There was speculation that she may have crashed somewhere in the Phoenix Islands.
Pam American’s radio station in Hawaii and Wake Island picked up a nondescript
transmission that appeared to be coming from the Phoenix Islands (Loomis and Ethell 1985).
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