Archives Experience Newsletter - July 9, 2024

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American Terri(s)tory

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Hawaii

The territory that was most recently granted statehood was Hawaii in 1959.
Previously, the land of Hawaii was annexed to the U.S. on July 7, 1898 in a joint resolution that ended a long struggle between native Hawaiians and non-Native Americans. An enduring dispute between the Hawaiian monarchy and American sugar plantation owners was settled when President McKinley became President in 1897. He quickly submitted his treaty for annexing Hawaii to Congress. This treaty fell through when more than 21,000 Hawaiians (out of a population of 40,000) signed a petition to Congress.

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But after the start of the Spanish-American war, pro-annexation supporters in Congress saw Hawaii as a necessary stepstone to the conflict in the Philippines, putting forth annexation as a joint resolution. This time, the decision needed only a majority in both houses instead of the two-thirds support a treaty required.

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On August 21, 1959 Hawaii became the 50th state. The resolution was signed into law by President Dwight D. Eisenhower.

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An Array of Territories

At present, there are 14 U.S. territories that fall into many different categories. Within this umbrella, there are five official territories: American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. These break down further into “organized versus unorganized” and “incorporated versus unincorporated.”

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Puerto Rico became a territory in 1898 along with Guam. The Northern Mariana Islands became a territory in 1986. All three of these territories are organized, unincorporated territories. This means that they are self-governing and that the U.S. Constitution does not automatically apply to their peoples. Despite people from all four territories having American citizenship and U.S. passports, they have no say in American legal decisions or elections. This is also true for people residing in the U.S. Virgin Islands. That land was not acquired through war: Denmark sold it to the U.S. in 1917.

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American Samoa is unorganized and unincorporated, meaning the 55,000 people living there are not considered U.S. citizens. Instead they are called “American nationals” and are the only group so classified in modern America. Since American Samoa clearly does have a functioning government in Pago Pago, many argue it should be moved into the “organized” category.

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Nine smaller territories are claimed as unorganized, unincorporated, and also uninhabited: Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Atoll, Navassa Island, and Wake Island. These territories have no form of government because there are no people there to govern. Nicknamed the “Guano Islands,” we can assume while there are no people, there still must be some, ahem, refuse.
Ready for something even more confusing? The Palmyra Atoll, which is a nature preserve with no people, is unorganized, but incorporated. This means that the U.S.Constitution does apply, but since it is uninhabited, to whom?

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The Local Connection

We cannot forget our own District of Columbia, home of the National Archives, which is in another territory limbo of sorts. Residents are full U.S. citizens who can vote in federal elections, but have no representation in the Senate. In many ways, D.C. residents are closer to having the same rights as Puerto Ricans, especially after H.J. Res. 554 proposing the District of Columbia Voting Rights Amendment failed. If it had passed, this amendment would have given full representative rights to the people of the District. It passed in the House and the Senate, but when it was sent to the states for ratification, it only received 16 votes.

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