Wake Island

Wake Island (also known as Wake Atoll) is a coral atoll in the western Pacific Ocean in the northeastern area of the Micronesia subregion, east of Guam, west of Honolulu, southeast of Tokyo, and north of Majuro. The island is an unorganized, unincorporated territory belonging to, but not a part of, the United States that is also claimed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands. Wake Island is one of the most isolated islands in the world and the nearest inhabited island is Utirik Atoll in the Marshall Islands, to the southeast.
The United States took possession of Wake Island in 1899. One of 14 U.S. insular areas, Wake Island is administered by the United States Air Force under an agreement with the U.S. Department of the Interior. The center of activity on the atoll is at Wake Island Airfield, which is primarily used as a mid-Pacific refueling stop for military aircraft and as an emergency landing area. The runway is the longest strategic runway in the Pacific islands. South of the runway is the Wake Island Launch Center, a missile launch site. The island has no permanent inhabitants, and approximately 100 people live there at any given time.
On December 8, 1941 (within a few hours of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Wake Island being on the opposite side of the International Date Line), American forces on Wake Island were attacked by Japanese bombers. This action marked the commencement of the Battle of Wake Island. On December 11, 1941, Wake Island was the site of the Japanese Empire's first unsuccessful amphibious attack on U.S. territory in World War II when U.S. Marines, with some U.S. Navy personnel and civilians on the island, repelled an attempted Japanese invasion. The island fell to overwhelming Japanese forces 12 days later and remained occupied by Japanese forces until it was surrendered to the U.S. in September 1945 at the end of the war.
The submerged and emergent lands at Wake Island comprise a unit of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. Wake Island is one of nine insular areas that comprise the United States Minor Outlying Islands, a statistical designation defined by the International Organization for Standardization's ISO 3166-1 code.
Etymology.
Wake Island derives its name from sea captain Samuel Wake, who rediscovered the atoll in 1796 while in command of the "Prince William Henry". The name is sometimes attributed to Captain William Wake, who also is reported to have discovered the atoll from the "Prince William Henry" in 1792.
Geography.
Wake is located two-thirds of the way from Honolulu to Guam. Honolulu is 2,300 statute miles (3,700 km) to the east, and Guam 1,510 statute miles (2,430 km) to the west. Midway is 1,170 statute miles (1,880 kilometers) to the northeast. The closest land is the uninhabited Bokak Atoll in the Marshall Islands, to the southeast. The atoll is to the west of the International Date Line and in the Wake Island Time Zone (UTC+12), the easternmost time zone in the United States, and almost one day ahead of the 50 states.
Although Wake is officially called an island in the singular form, it is actually an atoll composed of three islets and a reef surrounding a central lagoon:
Climate.
Wake Island lies in the tropical zone, but is subject to periodic temperate storms during the winter. Sea surface temperatures are warm all year long, reaching above in summer and autumn. Typhoons occasionally pass over the island.
Typhoons.
On October 19, 1940, an unnamed typhoon hit Wake Island with winds. This was the first recorded typhoon to hit the island since observations began in 1935.
Super Typhoon Olive impacted Wake on September 16, 1952 with wind speeds reaching . Olive caused major flooding, destroyed approximately 85% of its structures and caused $1.6 million in damage.
On September 16, 1967, at 10:40 pm local time, the eye of Super Typhoon Sarah passed over the island. Sustained winds in the eyewall were , from the north before the eye and from the south afterward. All non-reinforced structures were demolished. There were no serious injuries, and the majority of the civilian population was evacuated after the storm.
On August 28, 2006, the United States Air Force evacuated all 188 residents and suspended all operations as category 5 Super Typhoon Ioke headed toward Wake. By August 31 the southwestern eyewall of the storm passed over the island, with winds well over , driving a storm surge and waves directly into the lagoon inflicting major damage. A U.S. Air Force assessment and repair team returned to the island in September 2006 and restored limited function to the airfield and facilities leading ultimately to a full return to normal operations.
Important Bird Area.
The atoll, with its surrounding marine waters, has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International for its sooty tern colony, with some 200,000 individual birds estimated in 1999.
History.
Prehistory.
The presence of the Polynesian rat on the island suggests that Wake was visited by Polynesian or Micronesian voyagers at an early date.
Early European contact.
Wake Island was first encountered by Europeans on October 2, 1568, by Spanish explorer and navigator Álvaro de Mendaña de Neyra. In 1567, Mendaña and his crew had set off on two ships, "Los Reyes" and "Todos los Santos", from Callao, Peru, on an expedition to search for a gold-rich land in the South Pacific as mentioned in Inca tradition. After visiting Tuvalu and the Solomon Islands, the expedition headed north and came upon Wake Island, "a low barren island, judged to be eight leagues in circumference". Since the date – October 2, 1568 – was the eve of the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi, the captain named the island "San Francisco". The ships were in need of water and the crew was suffering from scurvy, but after circling the island it was determined that Wake was waterless and had "not a cocoanut nor a pandanus" and, in fact, "there was nothing on it but sea-birds, and sandy places covered with bushes."
In 1796, Captain Samuel Wake of the merchantman "Prince William Henry" also came upon Wake Island, naming the atoll for himself. Soon thereafter the 80-ton fur trading merchant brig "Halcyon" arrived at Wake and Master Charles William Barkley, unaware of Captain Wake's earlier and other prior European contact, named the atoll Halcyon Island in honor of his ship.
In 1823, Captain Edward Gardner, while in command of the Royal Navy's whaling ship HMS "Bellona", visited an island at , which he judged to be long. The island was "covered with wood, having a very green and rural appearance". This report is considered to be another sighting of Wake Island.
United States Exploring Expedition.
On December 20, 1841, the United States Exploring Expedition, commanded by US Navy Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, arrived at Wake on and sent several boats to survey the island. Wilkes described the atoll as "a low coral one, of triangular form and eight feet above the surface. It has a large lagoon in the centre, which was well filled with fish of a variety of species among these were some fine mullet." He also noted that Wake had no fresh water but was covered with shrubs, "the most abundant of which was the tournefortia." The expedition's naturalist, Titian Peale, noted that "the only remarkable part in the formation of this island is the enormous blocks of coral which have been thrown up by the violence of the sea." Peale collected an egg from a short-tailed albatross and added other specimens, including a Polynesian rat, to the natural history collections of the expedition. Wilkes also reported that "from appearances, the island must be at times submerged, or the sea makes a complete breach over it."
The wreck and salvage of "Libelle".
Wake Island first received international attention with the wreck of the barque . On the night of March 4, 1866, the 650-ton iron-hulled "Libelle", of Bremen, struck the eastern reef of Wake Island during a gale. Commanded by Captain Anton Tobias, the ship was en route from San Francisco to Hong Kong with a cargo of mercury (quicksilver). After three days of searching and digging on the island for water, the crew was able to recover a water tank from the wrecked ship. Valuable cargo was also recovered and buried on the island, including some of the 1,000 flasks of mercury, as well as coins and precious stones valued at $93,943. After three weeks with a dwindling water supply and no sign of rescue, the passengers and crew decided to leave Wake and attempt to sail to Guam (the center of the then Spanish colony of the Mariana Islands) on the two remaining boats from "Libelle". The 22 passengers and some of the crew sailed in the longboat under the command of First Mate Rudolf Kausch and the remainder of the crew sailed with Captain Tobias in the gig. On April 8, 1866, after 13 days of frequent squalls, short rations and tropical sun, the longboat reached Guam. Unfortunately, the gig, commanded by the captain, was lost at sea.
The Spanish governor of the Mariana Islands, Francisco Moscoso y Lara, welcomed and provided aid to the "Libelle" shipwreck survivors on Guam. He also ordered the schooner "Ana", owned and commanded by his son-in-law George H. Johnston, to be dispatched with first mate Kausch to search for the missing gig and then sail on to Wake Island to confirm the shipwreck story and recover the buried treasure. "Ana" departed Guam on April 10 and, after two days at Wake Island, found and salvaged the buried coins and precious stones as well as a small quantity of the quicksilver.
The wreck of "Dashing Wave".
On July 29, 1870, the British tea clipper "Dashing Wave", under the command of Captain Henry Vandervord, sailed out of Foochoo, China, en route to Sydney. On August 31 "the weather was very thick, and it was blowing a heavy gale from the eastward, attended with violent squalls, and a tremendous sea." At 10:30 p.m. breakers were seen and the ship struck the reef at Wake Island. Overnight the vessel began to break up and at 10:00 a.m. the crew succeeded in launching the longboat over the leeward side. In the chaos of the evacuation, the captain secured a chart and nautical instruments, but no compass. The crew loaded a case of wine, some bread and two buckets, but no drinking water. Since Wake Island appeared to have neither food nor water, the captain and his 12-man crew quickly departed, crafting a makeshift sail by attaching a blanket to an oar. With no water, each man was allotted a glass of wine per day until a heavy rain shower came on the sixth day. After 31 days of hardship, drifting westward in the longboat, they reached Kosrae (Strong's Island) in the Caroline Islands. Captain Vandervord attributed the loss of "Dashing Wave" to the erroneous manner in which Wake Island "is laid down in the charts. It is very low, and not easily seen even on a clear night."
American possession.
With the annexation of Hawaii in 1898 and the acquisition of Guam and the Philippines resulting from the conclusion of the Spanish–American War that same year, the United States began to consider unclaimed and uninhabited Wake Island, located approximately halfway between Honolulu and Manila, as a good location for a telegraph cable station and coaling station for refueling warships of the rapidly expanding United States Navy and passing merchant and passenger steamships. On July 4, 1898, United States Army Brigadier General Francis V. Greene of the 2nd Brigade, Philippine Expeditionary Force, of the Eighth Army Corps, stopped at Wake Island and raised the United States flag while en route to the Philippines on the steamship liner SS "China".
On January 17, 1899, under orders from President William McKinley, Commander Edward D. Taussig of landed on Wake and formally took possession of the island for the United States. After a 21-gun salute, the flag was raised and a brass plate was affixed to the flagstaff with the following inscription:
Although the proposed route for the submarine cable would have been shorter by , the Midway and not Wake Island was chosen as the location for the telegraph cable station between Honolulu and Guam. Rear Admiral Royal Bird Bradford, chief of the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Equipment, stated before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce on January 17, 1902, that "Wake Island seems at times to be swept by the sea. It is only a few feet above the level of the ocean, and if a cable station were established there very expensive works would be required; besides it has no harbor, while the Midway Islands are perfectly habitable and have a fair harbor for vessels of draught."
On June 23, 1902, , commanded by Captain Alfred Croskey and bound for Manila, spotted a ship's boat on the beach as it passed closely by Wake Island. Soon thereafter the boat was launched by Japanese on the island and sailed out to meet the transport. The Japanese told Captain Croskey that they had been put on the island by a schooner from Yokohama in Japan and that they were gathering guano and drying fish. The captain suspected that they were also engaged in pearl hunting. The Japanese revealed that one of their parties needed medical attention and the captain determined from their descriptions of the symptoms that the illness was most likely beriberi. They informed Captain Croskey that they did not need any provisions or water and that they were expecting the Japanese schooner to return in a month or so. The Japanese declined an offer to be taken on the transport to Manila and were given some medical supplies for the sick man, some tobacco and a few incidentals.
After USAT "Buford" reached Manila, Captain Croskey reported on the presence of Japanese at Wake Island. He also learned that USAT Sheridan had a similar encounter at Wake with the Japanese. The incident was brought to the attention of Assistant Secretary of the Navy Charles Darling, who at once informed the State Department and suggested that an explanation from the Japanese Government was needed. In August 1902, Japanese Minister Takahira Kogorō provided a diplomatic note stating that the Japanese Government had "no claim whatever to make on the sovereignty of the island, but that if any subjects are found on the island the Imperial Government expects that they should be properly protected as long as they are engaged in peaceful occupations."
Wake Island was now clearly a territory of the United States, but during this period the island was only occasionally visited by passing American ships. One notable visit occurred in December 1906 when U.S. Army General John J. Pershing, later famous as the commander of the American Expeditionary Forces in western Europe during World War I, stopped at Wake on and hoisted a 45-star U.S. flag that was improvised out of sail canvas.
Feather collecting.
With limited fresh water resources, no harbor and no plans for development, Wake Island remained a remote uninhabited Pacific island in the early 20th century. It did, however, have a large seabird population that attracted Japanese feather collecting. The global demand for feathers and plumage was driven by the millinery industry and popular European fashion designs for hats, while other demand came from pillow and bedspread manufacturers. Japanese poachers set up camps to harvest feathers on many remote islands in the Central Pacific. The feather trade was primarily focused on Laysan albatross, black-footed albatross, masked booby, lesser frigatebird, greater frigatebird, sooty tern and other species of tern. On February 6, 1904, Rear Admiral Robley D. Evans arrived at Wake Island on and observed Japanese collecting feathers and catching sharks for their fins. Abandoned feather poaching camps were seen by the crew of the submarine tender in 1922 and in 1923. Although feather collecting and plumage exploitation had been outlawed in the territorial United States, there is no record of any enforcement actions at Wake Island.
Japanese castaways.
In January 1908, the Japanese ship "Toyoshima Maru", en route from Tateyama, Japan, to the South Pacific, encountered a heavy storm that disabled the ship and swept the captain and five of the crew overboard. The 36 remaining crew members managed to make landfall on Wake Island, where they endured five months of great hardship, disease and starvation. In May 1908, the Brazilian Navy training ship "Benjamin Constant", while on a voyage around the world, passed by the island and spotted a tattered red distress flag. Unable to land a boat, the crew executed a challenging three-day rescue operation using rope and cable to bring on board the 20 survivors and transport them to Yokohama.
USS "Beaver" strategic survey.
In his 1921 book "Sea-Power in the Pacific: A Study of the American-Japanese Naval Problem", Hector C. Bywater recommended establishing a well-defended fueling station at Wake Island to provide coal and oil for United States Navy ships engaged in future operations against Japan. On June 19, 1922, the submarine tender landed an investigating party to determine the practicality and feasibility of establishing a naval fueling station on Wake Island. Lt. Cmdr. Sherwood Picking reported that from "a strategic point of view, Wake Island could not be better located, dividing as it does with Midway, the passage from Honolulu to Guam into almost exact thirds." He observed that the boat channel was choked with coral heads and that the lagoon was very shallow and not over in depth, and therefore Wake would not be able to serve as a base for surface vessels. Picking suggested clearing the channel to the lagoon for "loaded motor sailing launches" so that parties on shore could receive supplies from passing ships and he strongly recommended that Wake be used as a base for aircraft. Picking stated that "If the long heralded trans-Pacific flight ever takes place, Wake Island should certainly be occupied and used as an intermediate resting and fueling port."
Tanager Expedition.
In 1923, a joint expedition by the then Bureau of the Biological Survey (in the U.S. Department of Agriculture), the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum and the United States Navy was organized to conduct a thorough biological reconnaissance of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, then administered by the Biological Survey Bureau as the Hawaiian Islands Bird Reservation. On February 1, 1923, Secretary of Agriculture Henry C. Wallace contacted Secretary of Navy Edwin Denby to request Navy participation and recommended expanding the expedition to Johnston, Midway and Wake, all islands not administered by the Department of Agriculture. On July 27, 1923, , a World War I minesweeper, brought the Tanager Expedition to Wake Island under the leadership of ornithologist Alexander Wetmore, and a tent camp was established on the eastern end of Wilkes. From July 27 to August 5, the expedition charted the atoll, made extensive zoological and botanical observations and gathered specimens for the Bishop Museum, while the naval vessel under the command of Lt. Cmdr. Samuel Wilder King conducted a sounding survey offshore. Other achievements at Wake included examinations of three abandoned Japanese feather poaching camps, scientific observations of the now extinct Wake Island rail and confirmation that Wake Island is an atoll, with a group comprising three islands with a central lagoon. Wetmore named the southwest island for Charles Wilkes, who had led the original pioneering United States Exploring Expedition to Wake in 1841. The northwest island was named for Titian Peale, the chief naturalist of that 1841 expedition.
Pan American Airways and the U.S. Navy.
Juan Trippe, president of the world's then-largest airline, Pan American Airways (PAA), wanted to expand globally by offering passenger air service between the United States and China. To cross the Pacific Ocean his planes would need to island-hop, stopping at various points for refueling and maintenance. He first tried to plot the route on his globe but it showed only open sea between Midway and Guam. Next, he went to the New York Public Library to study 19th-century clipper ship logs and charts and he "discovered" a little-known coral atoll named Wake Island. To proceed with his plans at Wake and Midway, Trippe would need to be granted access to each island and approval to construct and operate facilities; however, the islands were not under the jurisdiction of any specific U.S. government entity.
Meanwhile, U.S. Navy military planners and the State Department were increasingly alarmed by the Empire of Japan's expansionist attitude and growing belligerence in the Western Pacific. Following World War I, the Council of the League of Nations had granted the South Seas Mandate ("Nanyo") to Japan (which had joined the Allied Powers in the First World War) which included the already Japanese-held Micronesia islands north of the equator that were part of the former colony of German New Guinea of the German Empire; these include the modern nation/states of Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Northern Mariana Islands and Marshall Islands. In the 1920s and 1930s, Japan restricted access to its mandated territory and began to develop harbors and airfields throughout Micronesia in defiance of the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922, which prohibited both the United States and Japan from expanding military fortifications in the Pacific islands. Now with Trippe's planned Pan American Airways aviation route passing through Wake and Midway, the U.S. Navy and the State Department saw an opportunity to project American air power across the Pacific under the guise of a commercial aviation enterprise. On October 3, 1934, Trippe wrote to the Secretary of the Navy, requesting a five-year lease on Wake Island with an option for four renewals. Given the potential military value of PAA's base development, on November 13, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral William H. Standley ordered a survey of Wake by and on December 29 President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 6935, which placed Wake Island and also Johnston, Sand Island at Midway and Kingman Reef under the control of the Department of the Navy. In an attempt to disguise the Navy's military intentions, Rear Admiral Harry E. Yarnell then designated Wake Island as a bird sanctuary.
USS "Nitro" arrived at Wake Island on March 8, 1935, and conducted a two-day ground, marine and aerial survey, providing the Navy with strategic observations and complete photographic coverage of the atoll. Four days later, on March 12, Secretary of the Navy Claude A. Swanson formally granted Pan American Airways permission to construct facilities at Wake Island.
Pan American "Flying Clippers" base.
To construct bases in the Pacific, Pan American Airways (PAA) chartered the 6,700-ton freighter SS "North Haven", which arrived at Wake Island on May 9, 1935, with construction workers and the necessary materials and equipment to start to build Pan American facilities and to clear the lagoon for a flying boat landing area. The atoll's encircling coral reef prevented the ship from entering and anchoring in the shallow lagoon itself. The only suitable location for ferrying supplies and workers ashore was at nearby Wilkes Island; however, the chief engineer of the expedition, Charles R. Russell, determined that Wilkes was too low and at times flooded and that Peale Island was the best site for the Pan American facilities. To offload the ship, cargo was lightered (barged) from ship to shore, carried across Wilkes and then transferred to another barge and towed across the lagoon to Peale Island. By inspiration, someone had earlier loaded railroad track rails onto "North Haven", so the men built a narrow-gauge railway to make it easier to haul the supplies across Wilkes to the lagoon. On June 12, "North Haven" departed for Guam, leaving behind various PAA technicians and a construction crew.
Out in the middle of the lagoon, Bill Mullahey, a swimmer from Columbia University, was tasked with blasting hundreds of coral heads from a long, wide, deep landing area for the flying boats.
On August 17, the first aircraft landing at Wake Island occurred when a PAA flying boat, on a survey flight of the route between Midway and Wake, landed in the lagoon.
The second expedition of "North Haven" arrived at Wake Island on February 5, 1936, to complete the construction of the PAA facilities. A five-ton diesel locomotive for the Wilkes Island Railroad was offloaded and the railway track was extended to run from dock to dock. Across the lagoon on Peale workers assembled the Pan American Hotel, a prefabricated structure with 48 rooms and wide porches and verandas. The hotel consisted of two wings built out from a central lobby with each room having a bathroom with a hot-water shower. The PAA facilities staff included a group of Chamorro men from Guam who were employed as kitchen helpers, hotel service attendants and laborers. The village on Peale was nicknamed "PAAville" and was the first "permanent" human settlement on Wake.
By October 1936, Pan American Airways was ready to transport passengers across the Pacific on its small fleet of three Martin M-130 "Flying Clippers". On October 11, the "China Clipper" landed at Wake on a press flight with ten journalists on board. A week later, on October 18, PAA President Juan Trippe and a group of VIP passengers arrived at Wake on the "Philippine Clipper" (NC14715). On October 25, the "Hawaii Clipper" (NC14714) landed at Wake with the first paying airline passengers ever to cross the Pacific. In 1937, Wake Island became a regular stop for PAA's international trans-Pacific passenger and airmail service, with two scheduled flights per week, one westbound from Midway and one eastbound from Guam.
Wake Island is credited with being one of the early successes of hydroponics, which enabled Pan American Airways to grow vegetables for its passengers, as it was very expensive to airlift in fresh vegetables and the island lacked natural soil. Pan Am remained in operation up to the day of the first Japanese air raid in December 1941, forcing the U.S. into World War II.
Military buildup.
On February 14, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8682 to create naval defense areas in the central Pacific territories. The proclamation established "Wake Island Naval Defensive Sea Area", which encompassed the territorial waters between the extreme high-water marks and the three-mile marine boundaries surrounding Wake. "Wake Island Naval Airspace Reservation" was also established to restrict access to the airspace over the naval defense sea area. Only U.S. government ships and aircraft were permitted to enter the naval defense areas at Wake Island unless authorized by the Secretary of the Navy.
Just earlier, in January 1941, the United States Navy began construction of a military base on the atoll. On August 19, the first permanent military garrison, elements of the U.S. Marine Corps' First Marine Defense Battalion, totaling 449 officers and men, were stationed on the island, commanded by Navy Cmdr. Winfield Scott Cunningham. Also on the island were 68 U.S. Naval personnel and about 1,221 civilian workers from the American firm Morrison-Knudsen Corp.
World War II.
Battle of Wake Island.
On December 8, 1941 (December 7 in Hawaii, the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor), at least 27 Japanese Mitsubishi G3M "Nell" medium bombers flown from bases on Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands attacked Wake Island, destroying eight of the 12 Grumman F4F Wildcat fighter aircraft belonging to United States Marine Corps Fighter Squadron 211 (VMF-211) on the ground. The Marine garrison's defensive emplacements were left intact by the raid, which primarily targeted the aircraft.
The garrison – supplemented by civilian construction workers employed by Morrison-Knudsen Corp. – repelled several Japanese landing attempts. An American journalist reported that after the initial Japanese amphibious assault was beaten back with heavy losses on December 11, the American commander was asked by his superiors if he needed anything. Popular legend has it that Major James Devereux sent back the message, "Send us more Japs!" – a reply that became famous. After the war, when Major Devereux learned that he had been credited with sending that message, he pointed out that he had not been the commander on Wake Island and denied sending the message. "As far as I know, it wasn't sent at all. None of us was that much of a damn fool. We already had more Japs than we could handle."
In reality, Commander Winfield S. Cunningham, USN was in charge of Wake Island, not Devereux. Cunningham ordered that coded messages be sent during operations, and a junior officer had added "send us" and "more Japs" to the beginning and end of a message to confuse Japanese code breakers. This was put together at Pearl Harbor and passed on as part of the message.
The U.S. Navy attempted to provide support from Hawaii but had suffered great losses at Pearl Harbor. The relief fleet they managed to organize was delayed by bad weather. The isolated U.S. garrison was overwhelmed by a reinforced and greatly superior Japanese invasion force on December 23. American casualties numbered 52 military personnel (Navy and Marine) and approximately 70 civilians killed. Japanese losses exceeded 700 dead, with some estimates ranging as high as 1,000. Wake's defenders sank two Japanese fast transports ("P32" and "P33") and one submarine and shot down 24 Japanese aircraft. The relief fleet, en route, on hearing of the island's loss, turned back.
In the aftermath of the battle, most of the captured civilians and military personnel were sent to POW camps in Asia, though some of the civilian laborers were enslaved by the Japanese and tasked with improving the island's defenses.
Japanese occupation and surrender.
The island's Japanese garrison was composed of the IJN 65th Guard Unit (2,000 men), Japan Navy Captain Shigematsu Sakaibara and the IJA units which became 13th Independent Mixed Regiment (1,939 men) under command of Col. Shigeji Chikamori. Fearing an imminent invasion, the Japanese reinforced Wake Island with more formidable defenses. The American captives were ordered to build a series of bunkers and fortifications on Wake. The Japanese brought in an naval gun which is often incorrectly reported as having been captured in Singapore. The U.S. Navy established a submarine blockade instead of an amphibious invasion of Wake Island. The Japanese-occupied island (called Ōtorishima (大鳥島) or "Big Bird Island" by them for its birdlike shape) was bombed several times by American aircraft; one of these raids was the first mission for future United States President George H. W. Bush.
After a successful American air raid on October 5, 1943, Sakaibara ordered the execution of all of the 98 captured Americans who remained on the island. They were taken to the northern end of the island, blindfolded and machine-gunned. One prisoner escaped, carving the message "98 US PW 5-10-43" on a large coral rock near where the victims had been hastily buried in a mass grave. This unknown American was soon recaptured and beheaded.
Since the 1943 air raids, the garrison had been almost cut off from supplies and was reduced to the point of starvation. While the islands' sooty tern colony had received some protection as a source of eggs, the Wake Island rail was hunted to extinction by the starving soldiers. Ultimately about three-quarters of the Japanese garrison perished, and the rest survived only by eating tern eggs, the Pacific rats introduced by prehistoric voyagers, and what scant amount of vegetables they could grow in makeshift gardens among the coral rubble.
On September 4, 1945, the Japanese garrison surrendered to a detachment of United States Marines under the command of Brigadier General Lawson H. M. Sanderson. The garrison, having previously received news that Imperial Japan's defeat was imminent, exhumed the mass grave. The bones were moved to the U.S. cemetery that had been established on Peacock Point after the invasion. Wooden crosses were erected in preparation for the expected arrival of U.S. forces. During the initial interrogations, the Japanese claimed that the remaining 98 Americans on the island were mostly killed by an American bombing raid, though some escaped and fought to the death after being cornered on the beach at the north end of Wake Island. Several Japanese officers in American custody committed suicide over the incident, leaving written statements that incriminated Sakaibara. Sakaibara and his subordinate, lieutenant commander Tachibana, were later sentenced to death after conviction for this and other war crimes. Sakaibara was executed by hanging in Guam on June 18, 1947, while Tachibana's sentence was commuted to life in prison. The remains of the murdered civilians were exhumed and reburied at Honolulu's National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at section G, commonly known as Punchbowl Crater.
Post-World War II military and commercial airfield.
With the end of hostilities with Japan and the increase in international air travel driven in part by wartime advances in aeronautics, Wake Island became a critical mid-Pacific base for the servicing and refueling of military and commercial aircraft. The United States Navy resumed control of the island, and in October 1945 400 Seabees from the 85th Naval Construction Battalion arrived at Wake to clear the island of the effects of the war and to build basic facilities for a Naval Air Base. The base was completed in March 1946 and on September 24, regular commercial passenger service was resumed by Pan American Airways (Pan Am). The era of the flying boats was nearly over, so Pan Am switched to longer-range, faster and more profitable airplanes that could land on Wake's new coral runway. Other airlines that established transpacific routes through Wake included British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), Japan Airlines, Philippine Airlines and Transocean Airlines. Due to the substantial increase in the number of commercial flights, on July 1, 1947, the Navy transferred administration, operations and maintenance of the facilities at Wake to the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA). In 1949, the CAA upgraded the runway by paving over the coral surface and extending its length to 7,000 feet.
Korean War.
In June 1950, the Korean War began with the United States leading United Nations forces against a North Korean invasion of South Korea. In July, the Korean Airlift was started and the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) used the airfield and facilities at Wake as a key mid-Pacific refueling stop for its mission of transporting men and supplies to the Korean front. By September, 120 military aircraft were landing at Wake per day. On October 15, U.S. President Harry S. Truman and General MacArthur met at the Wake Island Conference to discuss progress and war strategy for the Korean Peninsula. They chose to meet at Wake Island because of its close proximity to Korea so that MacArthur would not have to be away from the troops in the field for long.
Missile Impact Location System.
From 1958 through 1960 the United States installed the Missile Impact Location System (MILS) in the Navy managed Pacific Missile Range, later the Air Force managed Western Range, to localize the splash downs of test missile nose cones. MILS was developed and installed by the same entities that had completed the first phase of the Atlantic and U.S. West Coast SOSUS systems. A MILS installation, consisting of both a target array for precision location and a broad ocean area system for good positions outside the target area, was installed at Wake as part of the system supporting Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) tests. Other Pacific MILS shore terminals were at the Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay supporting Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) tests with impact areas northeast of Hawaii and the other ICBM test support systems at Midway Island and Eniwetok.
Tanker shipwreck and oil spill.
On September 6, 1967, Standard Oil of California's 18,000-ton tanker SS "R.C. Stoner" was driven onto the reef at Wake Island by a strong southwesterly wind after the ship failed to moor to the two buoys near the harbor entrance. An estimated six million gallons of refined fuel oil – including 5.7 million gallons of aviation fuel, 168,000 gallons of diesel oil and 138,600 gallons of bunker C fuel – spilled into the small boat harbor and along the southwestern coast of Wake Island to Peacock Point. Large numbers of fish were killed by the oil spill, and personnel from the FAA and crewmen from the ship cleared the area closest to the spill of dead fish.
The U.S. Navy salvage team Harbor Clearance Unit Two and Pacific Fleet Salvage Officer Cmdr. John B. Orem flew to Wake to assess the situation, and by September 13 the Navy tugs and , salvage ships and , tanker , and , arrived from Honolulu, Guam and Subic Bay in the Philippines, to assist in the cleanup and removal of the vessel. At the boat harbor the salvage team pumped and skimmed oil, which they burned each evening in nearby pits. Recovery by the Navy salvage team of the "R.C. Stoner" and its remaining cargo, however, was hampered by strong winds and heavy seas.
On September 16, Super Typhoon Sarah made landfall on Wake Island at peak intensity with winds up to 145-knots, causing widespread damage. The intensity of the storm had the beneficial effect of greatly accelerating the cleanup effort by clearing the harbor and scouring the coast. Oil did remain, however, embedded in the reef's flat crevices and impregnated in the coral. The storm also had broken the wrecked vessel into three sections and, although delayed by rough seas and harassment by blacktip reef sharks, the salvage team used explosives to flatten and sink the remaining portions of the ship that were still above water.
U.S. Air Force assumes control.
In the early 1970s, higher-efficiency jet aircraft with longer-range capabilities lessened the use of Wake Island Airfield as a refueling stop, and the number of commercial flights landing at Wake declined sharply. Pan Am had replaced many of its Boeing 707s with more efficient 747s, thus eliminating the need to continue weekly stops at Wake. Other airlines began to eliminate their scheduled flights into Wake. In June 1972 the last scheduled Pan Am passenger flight landed at Wake, and in July Pan Am's last cargo flight departed the island, marking the end of the heyday of Wake Island's commercial aviation history. During this same time period the U.S. military had transitioned to longer-range C-5A and C-141 aircraft, leaving the C-130 as the only aircraft that would continue to regularly use the island's airfield. The steady decrease in air traffic control activities at Wake Island was apparent and was expected to continue.
On June 24, 1972, responsibility for the civil administration of Wake Island was transferred from the FAA to the United States Air Force under an agreement between the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of the Air Force. In July, the FAA turned over administration of the island to the Military Airlift Command (MAC), although legal ownership stayed with the Department of the Interior, and the FAA continued to maintain the air navigation facilities and provide air traffic control services. On December 27, the Chief of Staff of the Air Force (CSAF) General John D. Ryan directed MAC to phase out en-route support activity at Wake Island effective June 30, 1973. On July 1, 1973, all FAA activities ended and the U.S. Air Force under Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), Detachment 4, 15th Air Base Wing assumed control of Wake Island.
In 1973, Wake Island was selected as a launch site for the testing of defensive systems against intercontinental ballistic missiles under the U.S. Army's "Project Have Mill". Air Force personnel on Wake and the Air Force Systems Command (AFSC) Space and Missile Systems Organization (SAMSO) provided support to the Army's Advanced Ballistic Missile Defense Agency (ABMDA). A missile launch complex was activated on Wake and, from February 13 to June 22, 1974, seven Athena H missiles were launched from the island to the Roi-Namur Test Range at Kwajalein Atoll.
Vietnam War refugees and "Operation New Life".
In the spring of 1975, the population of Wake Island consisted of 251 military, government and civilian contract personnel, whose primary mission was to maintain the airfield as a Mid-Pacific emergency runway. With the imminent fall of Saigon to North Vietnamese forces, President Gerald Ford ordered American forces to support "Operation New Life", the evacuation of refugees from Vietnam. The original plans included the Philippines' Subic Bay and Guam as refugee processing centers, but due to the high number of Vietnamese seeking evacuation, Wake Island was selected as an additional location.
In March 1975, Island Commander Major Bruce R. Hoon was contacted by Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) and ordered to prepare Wake for its new mission as a refugee processing center where Vietnamese evacuees could be medically screened, interviewed and transported to the United States or other resettlement countries. A 60-man civil engineering team was brought in to reopen boarded-up buildings and housing, two complete MASH units arrived to set up field hospitals and three Army field kitchens were deployed. A 60-man United States Air Force Security Police team, processing agents from the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service and various other administrative and support personnel were also on Wake. Potable water, food, medical supplies, clothing and other supplies were shipped in.
On April 26, 1975, the first C-141 military transport aircraft carrying refugees arrived. The airlift to Wake continued at a rate of one C-141 every hour and 45 minutes, each aircraft with 283 refugees on board. At the peak of the mission, 8,700 Vietnamese refugees were on Wake. When the airlift ended on August 2, a total of about 15,000 refugees had been processed through Wake Island as part of "Operation New Life".
Bikini Islanders resettlement.
On March 20, 1978, Undersecretary James A. Joseph of the U.S. Department of the Interior reported that radiation levels from "Operation Crossroads" and other atomic tests conducted in the 1940s and 1950s on Bikini Atoll were still too high and those island natives that returned to Bikini would once again have to be relocated. In September 1979 a delegation from the Bikini/Kili Council came to Wake Island to assess the island's potential as a possible resettlement site. The delegation also traveled to Hawaii (Molokai and Hilo), Palmyra Atoll and various atolls in the Marshall Islands including Mili, Knox, Jaluit, Ailinglaplap, Erikub and Likiep but the group agreed that they were only interested in resettlement on Wake Island due to the presence of the U.S. military and the island's proximity to Bikini Atoll. Unfortunately for the Bikini Islanders, the U.S. Department of Defense responded that "any such resettlement is out of the question."
Commemorative and memorial visits.
In April 1981, a party of 19 Japanese, including 16 former Japanese soldiers who were at Wake during World War II, visited the island to pay respects for their war dead at the Japanese Shinto Shrine.
In the early 1980s, the National Park Service conducted an evaluation of Wake Island to determine if the World War II (WWII) cultural resources remaining on Wake, Wilkes and Peale were of national historical significance. As a result of this survey, Wake Island was designated as a National Historic Landmark (NHL) on September 16, 1985, helping to preserve sites and artifacts on the atoll associated with WWII in the Pacific and the transpacific aviation era prior to the war. As a National Historic Landmark, Wake Island was also included in the National Register of Historic Places.
On November 3 and 4, 1985, a group of 167 former American prisoners of war (POWs) visited Wake with their wives and children. This was the first such visit by a group of former Wake Island POWs and their families.
On November 24, 1985, a Pan American Airlines (Pan Am) Boeing 747, renamed "China Clipper II", came through Wake Island on a flight across the Pacific to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the inauguration of Pan American China Clipper Service to the Orient. Author James A. Michener and Lars Lindbergh, grandson of aviator Charles Lindbergh, were among the dignitaries on board the aircraft.
Army missile tests.
Subsequently, the island has been used for strategic defense and operations during and after the Cold War, with Wake Island serving as a launch platform for military rockets involved in testing missile defense systems and atmospheric re-entry trials as part of the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site. Wake's location allows for a safe launch and trajectory over the unpopulated ocean with open space for intercepts.
In 1987, Wake Island was selected as a missile launch site for a Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) program named "Project Starlab/Starbird". In 1989, the U.S. Army Strategic Defense Command (USASDC) constructed two launch pads on Peacock Point, as well as nearby support facilities, for the eight-ton, , multi-stage Starbird test missiles. The program involved using electro-optical and laser systems, mounted on the Starlab platform in the payload bay of an orbiting Space Shuttle, to acquire, track and target Starbird missiles launched from Cape Canaveral and Wake. After being impacted by mission scheduling delays caused by the explosion of the Space Shuttle "Challenger", the program was canceled in late September 1990 to protect funding for another U.S. Army space-based missile defense program known as "Brilliant Pebbles". Although no Starbird missiles were ever launched from Wake Island, the Starbird launch facilities at Wake were modified to support rocket launches for the "Brilliant Pebbles" program with the first launch occurring on January 29, 1992. On October 16, a Castor-Orbus rocket was destroyed by ground controllers seven minutes after its launch from Wake. The program was canceled in 1993.
Missile testing activities continued with the Lightweight Exo-Atmospheric Projectile (LEAP) Test Program, another U.S. Army strategic defense project that included the launching of two Aerojet Super Chief HPB rockets from Wake Island. The first launch, on January 28, 1993, reached apogee at and was a success. The second launch, on February 11, reached apogee at and was deemed a failure.
Due to the U.S. Army's continued use of the atoll for various missile testing programs, on October 1, 1994, the U.S. Army Space and Strategic Defense Command (USASSDC) assumed administrative command of Wake Island under a caretaker permit from the U.S. Air Force. The USASSDC had been operating on Wake since 1988 when construction of Starbird launch and support facilities was started. Now under U.S Army control, the island, which is located north of Kwajalein Atoll, became a rocket launch site for the Kwajalein Missile Range known as the Wake Island Launch Center.
In July 1995, various units of the U.S. military established a camp on Wake Island to provide housing, food, medical care and social activities for Chinese illegal immigrants as part of "Operation Prompt Return" (also known as "Joint Task Force Prompt Return"). The Chinese immigrants were discovered on July 3 on board the "M/V Jung Sheng Number 8" when the 160-foot-long vessel was interdicted by the U.S. Coast Guard south of Hawaii. The "Jung Sheng" had left Canton, China en route to the United States on June 2 with 147 Chinese Illegal Immigrants, including 18 "enforcers", and 11 crew on board. On July 29, the Chinese were transported to Wake Island where they were cared for by U.S. military personnel and on August 7, they were safely repatriated to China by commercial air charter. From October 10 to November 21, 1996, military units assigned to "Operation Marathon Pacific" used facilities at Wake Island as a staging area for the repatriation of another group of more than 113 Chinese illegal immigrants who had been interdicted in the Atlantic Ocean near Bermuda aboard the human smuggling vessel, the "Xing Da".
U.S. Air Force regains control.
On October 1, 2002, administrative control and support of Wake Island was transferred from the U.S. Army to the U.S. Air Force's 15th Wing, an aviation unit of Pacific Air Forces based at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii. The 15th Wing had previously been in control of Wake from July 1, 1973 to September 30, 1994. Although the Air Force was once again in control, the Missile Defense Agency would continue to operate the Wake Island Launch Center and the U.S. Army's Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Defense Test Site would continue to maintain and operate the launch facilities and also provide instrumentation, communications, flight and ground safety, security, and other support.
On January 6, 2009, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 8836, establishing Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument to preserve the marine environments around Wake, Baker, Howland, and Jarvis Islands, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, and Palmyra Atoll. The proclamation assigned management of the nearby waters and submerged and emergent lands of the islands to the Department of the Interior and management of fishery-related activities in waters beyond 12 nautical miles from the islands' mean low water line to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). On January 16, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne issued Order Number 3284 which stated that the area at Wake Island assigned to the Department of Interior by Executive Order 8836 will be managed as a National Wildlife Refuge. Management of the emergent lands at Wake Island by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, however, will not begin until the existing management agreement between the Secretary of the Air Force and the Secretary of the Interior is terminated.
The 611th Air Support Group (ASG), a U.S. Air Force unit based at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska took over control of Wake Island from the 15th Wing On October 1, 2010. The 611th ASG was already providing support and management to various geographically remote Air Force sites within Alaska and the addition of Wake Island provided the unit with more opportunities for outdoor projects during the winter months when projects in Alaska are very limited. The 611th ASG, a unit of the 11th Air Force, was renamed the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Regional Support Center.
On September 27, 2014, President Barack Obama issued Executive Order 9173 to expand the area of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument out to the full 200 nautical miles U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) boundary for each island. By this proclamation, the area of the monument at Wake Island was increased from 15,085 sq mi (39,069 km2) to 167,336 sq mi (433,398 km2).
On November 1, 2015, a complex $230 million U.S. military missile defense system test event, called "Campaign Fierce Sentry" Flight Test Operational-02 Event 2 (FTO-02 E2), was conducted at Wake Island and the surrounding ocean areas. The test involved a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system built by Lockheed Martin, two AN/TPY-2 radar systems built by Raytheon, Lockheed's Command, Control, Battle Management, and Communications system, and guided missile destroyer with its AN/SPY-1 radar. The objective was to test the ability of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense and THAAD Weapon Systems to defeat a raid of three near-simultaneous air and missile targets, consisting of one medium-range ballistic missile, one short-range ballistic missile and one cruise missile target. During the test, a THAAD system on Wake Island detected and destroyed a short-range target simulating a short-range ballistic missile that was launched by a C-17 transport plane. At the same time, the THAAD system and the destroyer both launched missiles to intercept a medium-range ballistic missile, launched by a second C-17.
Demographics.
Wake Island has no permanent inhabitants and access is restricted. However, as of 2017, there are approximately 100 Air Force personnel and American and Thai contractor residents at any given time.
Government.
On June 24, 1972, the United States Air Force assumed responsibility for the civil administration of Wake Island pursuant to an agreement between the Department of the Interior and the Department of the Air Force.
The civil administration authority at Wake Island has been delegated by the Secretary of the Air Force to the General Counsel of the Air Force under U.S. federal law known as the "Wake Island Code". The general counsel provides civil, legal and judicial authority and can appoint one or more judges to serve on the Wake Island Court and the Wake Island Court of Appeals.
Certain authorities have been re-delegated by the general counsel to the Commander, Wake Island, a position currently held by Commander, Detachment 1, Pacific Air Forces Regional Support Center. The commander may issue permits or registrations, appoint peace officers, impose quarantines, issue traffic regulations, commission notaries public, direct evacuations and inspections and carry out other duties, powers, and functions as the agent of the general counsel on Wake.
Since Wake Island is an active Air Force airfield, the commander is also the senior officer in charge of all activities on the island.
Transportation.
Aviation.
Air transportation facilities at Wake are operated by the United States Air Force at Wake Island Airfield in support of trans-Pacific military operations, western Pacific military contingency operations and missile launch activities. The runway on Wake is also available to provide services for military and commercial in-flight emergencies. Although there is only one flight scheduled every other week to transport passengers and cargo to Wake, approximately 600 aircraft per year use Wake Island Airfield.
Ports.
Although Wake Island is supplied by sea-going barges and ships, the island's only harbor between Wilkes and Wake is too narrow and shallow for sea-going vessels to enter. The Base Operations Support (BOS) contractor maintains three small landing barges for transferring material from ships moored offshore to the dockyard in the harbor. Off-load hydrants are also used to pump gasoline and JP-5 fuels to the storage tanks on Wilkes. The landing barges and recreational offshore sportfishing boats are docked in the marina.
Roads.
Transportation on Wake Island is provided by contractor or government-owned vehicles. The primary road is a two-lane paved road extending the length of Wake Island to the causeway between Wake Island and Wilkes Island. The causeway was rehabilitated in 2003 and is capable of supporting heavy equipment. A bridge connecting Wake and Peale Islands burned down in December 2002. A combination of paved and coral gravel roads serves the marina area. Paved access to Wilkes Island ends at the petroleum tank farm, where a road constructed of crushed coral provides access to the western point of Wilkes Island. A portion of the road, near the unfinished WWII submarine channel, is flooded nearly every year by high seas. The launch sites are accessed from the main paved road on Wake Island by paved and coral roads. Generally, the road network is suitable for low-speed, light-duty use only. Wake Island's paved roadway network has been adequately maintained to move materials, services, and personnel from the airfield on the southern end to the personnel support area on the northern end. Modes of transportation include walking, bicycles, light utility carts, automobiles, vans and larger trucks and equipment.
Territorial claim by the Marshall Islands.
The Republic of the Marshall Islands has claimed Wake Island, which it calls Enen-kio. In 1973, Marshallese lawmakers meeting in Saipan at the Congress of Micronesia, the legislative body for the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, asserted that "Enen-kio is and always has been the property of the people of the Marshall Islands". Their claim was based on oral legends and songs, passed down through generations, describing ancient Marshallese voyages to Wake to gather food and a sacred bird's wing bone used in traditional tattooing ceremonies. In 1990, legislation in the U.S. Congress proposed including Wake Island within the boundaries of the U.S. territory of Guam. In response, Marshallese President Amata Kabua reasserted his nation's claim to Wake, declaring that Enen-kio was a site of great importance to the traditional chiefly rituals of the Marshall Islands.
The self-declared Kingdom of EnenKio has also claimed Wake Island as a separate sovereign nation and has issued passports. The Kingdom of EnenKio is not recognized in any international forum as a sovereign state, nor does any internationally recognized state recognize it. The Kingdom of EnenKio is characterized as a scam by anti-fraud website Quatloos!. In 2000, Robert Moore, who claimed to be the head of state, was prevented by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission from fraudulently issuing bonds for the non-existent nation. On April 23, 1998, the Marshall Islands government notified all countries with which it has diplomatic ties that the claims of the Kingdom of EnenKio are fraudulent.


Sunnyvale Town Center

Sunnyvale Town Center was a two-level shopping mall located in Sunnyvale, California, USA. It opened in 1979 on the site of much of the city's downtown, and was anchored by Macy's, Montgomery Ward, and later, J.C. Penney. Target moved in when Montgomery Ward closed. By the early 2000s, the mall had failed financially and only the Target and Macy's (closed in 2019) stores remained open. Work on a mixed-use development to replace the mall was stalled by a legal dispute from 2009 to 2015, with most buildings incomplete, but resumed after the city reached an agreement with new developers in mid-2016. By the end of 2020, a multi-screen movie theater and a supermarket had been built and opened in addition to most of the residential buildings; , replacement plans were going forward for a group of lots including the site of Macy's, which closed in 2019. Much of the area has now been rebranded as CityLine Sunnyvale.
History.
The mall opened in 1979 on a 36-acre site bounded by Mathilda Avenue, Washington Avenue, Sunnyvale Avenue, and Iowa Avenue and comprising most of Sunnyvale's downtown, except for one block of its main street, Murphy Avenue. The City Council took the decision to build the mall in June 1976; demolition began in 1977 and included Sunnyvale Plaza, a twenty-year-old retail development. After a campaign by local resident Fern Ohrt, six redwood and cedar trees that had surrounded the first Sunnyvale city hall and had been donations from residents were preserved in an open space at the center of the mall.
The passage of Proposition 13 in 1978 reduced property taxes that the City of Sunnyvale had expected to use to pay off the bonds issued for construction of the Town Center, and also reduced interest rates paid by the developer. The fact that a third anchor tenant, J. C. Penney, was not obtained until 1992 further increased the city's difficulty in recouping the cost of the mall.
Over the years, the development went through a series of owners who either defaulted on loans or were sued for breach of contract. During that time, the mall fell into decline with changing tastes of shoppers and the emergence of newer and larger competitors. By 2002, the mall, then known as WAVE (Walking and Village Entertainment), was largely untenanted except for the three anchor stores, Macy's, Penney's, and Target, and the city decided to replace it with a modern version of a traditional downtown, including stores, restaurants, a movie theater, and high-rise apartment buildings. Redwood Square was to be a central plaza incorporating the redwood trees. Finally, in 2007, new entities named "Downtown Sunnyvale Mixed Use LLC" (DSMU) and "Downtown Sunnyvale Residential LLC" (DSR) took over the mall. DSMU and DSR were partnerships between Silicon Valley developer Peter Pau's Sand Hill Property Co. (which owned about 5%), and RREEF, a real-estate management business owned by Deutsche Bank (which owned the remaining 95%). DSMU/DSR's goal was to redevelop the mall into a high-end retail, residential and office development similar to San Jose's successful Santana Row.
Demolition and redevelopment.
DSMU/DSR took out a loan of $108.8 million from Wachovia Bank; Wachovia was later acquired by Wells Fargo. By June 2009, with the mall demolished and Target having been replaced by a new store but the other new buildings incomplete, DSMU/DSR defaulted on the loan. Pau said that the decision to default was made by RREEF without his consent. After the default, Wells Fargo started foreclosure proceedings. A foreclosure auction in August 2011 attracted no bidders, so Wells Fargo took possession of the property itself. The bank then attempted to sell the land to another developer, but this attempt was thwarted by a lawsuit from Pau, and further development continued to be stymied by litigation between Pau and Wells Fargo. In May 2012, the City of Sunnyvale issued a press release accusing Pau of having filed "delaying lawsuits that have served little purpose other than to hold the project hostage", and claiming that "a nationally-recognized development team was set to come in and finish the project in 2011 ... until the barrage of lawsuits blocked their entry". In February 2013, further appeals were filed by both Pau and Wells Fargo; Pau's attorney estimated that the appeals would delay resolution of the case by at least two years.
By January 2015, apart from Target and Macy's the only active tenants on the site were Apple and Nokia, which had occupied new office space along Mathilda Avenue. The remaining retail and entertainment spaces were still under construction and the residential units were all unfinished.
The California Court of Appeals rejected Pau's two appeals in January and May 2015. Pau filed an appeal to the California Supreme Court, which declined to review the decision on August 12, 2015, effectively ending the litigation. On November 18, 2015, Wells Fargo announced that it intended to sell the mall to an ownership group made up of J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Sares Regis Group and Hunter Properties. That announcement triggered a 20-day review period during which the Sunnyvale City Council evaluated the proposed ownership group. On December 10, 2015, the Council voted to acknowledge that the new ownership group met the necessary criteria, effectively allowing the sale to proceed.
In July 2016, the city announced an updated agreement with the developers under which the project would be modified: high-rise residential, restaurant, and retail components and a movie theater would be built, but some two-story retail buildings around Redwood Square, for which only the steel framing had been erected, would not be finished as originally planned. In September 2016, the new development team closed escrow and took possession of the project. The development was rebranded as CityLine Sunnyvale, and after the steel frames of the buildings around Redwood Square were removed, a temporary park was created.
The 12-screen AMC movie theater, announced in October 2017, opened in October 2020 together with a Whole Foods supermarket in the same building on the Sunnyvale Avenue edge of the site.
In January 2019, Macy's announced that its Sunnyvale store, originally part of the mall, would close in March 2019 as part of a nationwide retrenchment. The store building had previously been sold; the developers submitted a proposal in August 2020 for a redesigned group of mixed-use buildings around Redwood Square, which is to become a one-acre park, and in January 2021 the first stage of this plan was approved, including replacement of the Macy's building with an office tower.
Nearby developments.
The Town and Country Village retail buildings across Washington Avenue from the site were demolished by the end of April 2010 and in 2013–14 were replaced with mid-rise apartment buildings with ground-floor retail, developed by BRE and Carmel Properties.


National Tea

The National Tea Company (NATCO, informally known as National) was a Midwestern United States grocery chain that operated during the 20th century.
Founding.
Founded in 1899 by Danish immigrant George S. Rasmussen along with his brother Thorvald in Chicago, Illinois, the retailer spread to about 160 stores by 1920, and annual sales approached $13 million. By the end of the '20s, National Tea had over 600 locations in the Chicago area alone and another 1,000 stores nationwide. Sales grew to about $90 million a year. Many of these stores were closed or sold during the Great Depression, but National Tea remained among the 10 largest grocery chains in the United States for most of the 20th century.
Sale to George Weston and Expansion.
In 1955, when annual sales topped $600 million and the company had nearly 20,000 employees nationwide, National Tea was purchased by George Weston Ltd., a large Canadian grocery retailer, later renamed Loblaw Companies. Most National stores were in the Mississippi Valley, including in Louisiana. During the 1950s, it acquired about 500 new stores by buying up smaller chains.
Eventually, National, renamed National Supermarkets, was pared down to operations in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota and Louisiana. It was a major chain in the St. Louis, Indianapolis and New Orleans areas until Loblaw sold it off to The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, in 1976.
Sale to Schnucks and Decline.
Schnucks Markets acquired National Tea in 1995.
Immediately after that, per the FTC, Schnucks sold the National New Orleans division to Schwegmann Giant Super Markets of Metairie, Louisiana, which later sold them to A&P, which finally sold them to Rouse Markets in 2007. National itself had cemented the number two spot in St. Louis by acquiring several former Kroger locations and the Kroger distribution center in the market when the latter exited St. Louis in 1986. Kroger and National had been battling for the number two and three spots in the St. Louis market since the 1970s, swapping rankings several times over throughout the 1970s and 1980s. National Tea no longer has a separate existence as a retail chain.


Section 22 of the Agricultural Adjustment Act

Section 22, as referred to in shorthand, is a provision of permanent United States agricultural law (Agricultural Adjustment Act Amendment of 1935, P.L. 74-320) that allows the President to impose import fees or import quotas to prevent imports from non-WTO member countries from undermining the price support and supply control objectives of domestic farm programs.
Legislation implementing The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture exempts NAFTA partners and WTO member countries from Section 22 quotas and fees. Under both trade agreements, the United States converted then-in-effect Section 22 restrictions into tariff-rate quotas. This effectively eliminates Section 22 as a tool to shield domestic price support operations.


Fort Craig - Fort Thorn Wagon Road

Fort Craig - Fort Thorn Wagon Road, was a road ran down along the west bank of the Rio Grande, from a turnoff from the west bank route of the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro to the ford of Valverde, to Fort Craig and on to Fort Thorn. There at or near Fort Thorn were roads south into Texas and west toward Arizona and California.
The wagon road was following the wagon road route established during Mexican American War by Cooke's Mormon Battalion in 1846. They had been following an old route occasionally followed by earlier Spanish and later Mexican travelers. It was soon after the end of the Mexican American War that the same wagon road Cooke had established was followed by many others intent on joining the California Gold Rush by way of the Santa Fe Trail, the route of the Camino Real from Santa Fe to the turn off near the Val Verde ford, Cooke's route down the Rio Grande, to the turnoff to Cooke's Wagon Road, across New Mexico Territory to join the to the Yuma Crossing into California. By 1857 Cooke's route down the Rio Grande was a well beaten route used by supply trains for the forts and many other travelers.


Hintons

Amos Hinton & Sons plc was a small supermarket company from the North East of England trading as Hintons, it was acquired in a takeover by Argyll Foods in 1984.
History.
Early years.
The company was founded by Amos Hinton in Middlesbrough in 1871, when he bought out John Birks' shop in South Street. By 1919, the business had expanded such that it had seven stores on Teesside. It went on to buy "Winterschladen", a chain of off licences.
Acquisition by Argyll Foods.
The company was acquired by Argyll Foods for £25 million in 1984. At the time, the company traded from fifty five stores and thirty off licences. The head office had moved to Thornaby-on-Tees, where there was also limited warehousing. There was a distribution centre in Stockton-on-Tees, which is still used today by Morrisons. While Hintons own brand products were quickly replaced with Presto brands, the supermarkets continued to trade as Hintons for a short while, before all being converted to stores of Presto.
The new Hintons store in Guisborough (today a Morrisons) was one of the last to be launched with the Hintons name, the interior of the store having already been fitted out in the Presto format.
Disappearance.
The Hintons name disappeared from all of the stores in the same week as the Presto brand was rolled out across Argyll's estate. The Winterschladen name continued to be used on the off licences for many years, until those stores were eventually sold and became Victoria Wine stores.


Tatra Tiger

"Tatra Tiger" is a nickname that refers to the economy of Slovakia in period 2002 – 2007 and after 2010 following the ascendance of a right-wing coalition in September 2002 which engaged in a program of liberal economic reforms. The name "Tatra Tiger" derives from the local Tatra mountain range.
In 2004 and 2005, Slovakia had one of the highest gross domestic product growth rates in the European Union after some of the Baltic countries, reaching 6%. In 2006, the year-over-year growth amounted to an unexpected 9.8% in the 3rd quarter, which helped to increase the overall annual economic growth expectation for 2006 from 6–6.5% to 8.2%. This 9.8% growth (a low estimate) can be partly ascribed to the launch of production at a new Peugeot SA plant. The growth came as a surprise to local analysts, given that another big foreign investor, Kia, launched its production in late 2006. In 4Q of 2007, the growth was 14.3%.
However, public polling shows that despite the resultant high growth rates, the public does not universally approve of the reforms, because they are associated with a drastic loss of government programs (reform of the previously government-run health system, complete reform of the pension system, etc.), the replacement of progressive taxation with a flat tax, rapid changes of laws and other legal regulations, and rising property prices. Moreover, unemployment jumped to very high levels immediately after the reforms began in 1998, although it decreased back to its 1998 level in 2006 and even below later on.
In the first quarter of 2009 the fall of GDP was −5.7% but in 2010 the GDP growth was 4.8% for the first quarter.
These days, Slovakia's GDP still grows faster than the EU average, in the period 2005–2011 Slovakia's GDP increased by 38.3% which is the highest growth of all EU countries.
Statistics.
GDP per capita.
In international dollars, at purchasing power parity (PPP) and Nominal GDP per capita. Numbers in brackets show the respective country's GDP per capita as a percentage of the European Union average (also measured at PPP).


Robert Grimm

Robert Grimm (16 April 1881, Wald – 8 March 1958) was the leading Swiss Socialist politician during the first half of the 20th century.
As a leading member of the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland he opposed the First World War. Grimm was the main organiser of the Zimmerwald Movement and the chairman of the International Socialist Commission in Bern 1915–1917. After the Grimm–Hoffmann Affair he had to resign from this function.
Grimm was the leader of the Swiss general strike in November 1918. The demands of the strike included the 48-hour working week, old-age pensions and women suffrage.
Grimm was among the founders of the 2½ International. He
held various parliamentary seats and executive functions from communal to federal level between 1909–1955. In 1946 he became President of the Swiss National Council.


Taikoo Place

Taikoo Place () is a commercial building complex located in Quarry Bay, east Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong. It comprises grade A office towers, car parking, clubs, office apartment, parks, and shops to meet the needs from business people worldwide. Island line (MTR) are available alongside Taikoo Place, Cityplaza and Taikoo Shing. These three complexes are all managed by Swire Properties since the beginning from Taikoo Sugar Refinery, the subsequent Taikoo Dockyard and the recent demolitions of the industrial buildings.
Timeline.
Since the 1980s, Taikoo Place has been redeveloped to become a unique metropolitan environment for business and entertainment. Until now, notable amenities include the Butterfield’s private members club. It is recognized as a popular choice for younger workers to seek employment.
Taikoo Place hosts many advertisement and information technology firms. The PCCW Tower, the tower just next to Dorset House is where the headquarters of PCCW are located, a Hong Kong-based telecommunication company. The local headquarters of IBM and JWT is also situated there, occupying the first 15 storeys. Ironically, more IT firms choose to have their Hong Kong base in Taikoo Place rather than in Cyberport, which was specifically built for this purpose.
The neighbourhood of Taikoo Place used to be residential and industrial. Once Taikoo Place was built, the neighbourhood has been undergoing constant development and gentrification. Concerned about the urban development, Swire Properties has begun construction of serviced apartments north of Devon House, due for completion in 2015.
Current Buildings.
Gammon Construction has been one of the major construction company involved.
One Island East.
One Island East is a grade-A office. It is 69-storey. It is located at 18 Westlands Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It was completed in year 2008.
Hong Kong Island East Center tenants come from finance, insurance, accounting, real estate, trade, shipping to retailing.
Devon House.
Devon House (1993) is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. Devon House is a grade A office with 29 floors. Major tenants include: Kinmen Building, Philip Morris, China Airlines, Jardine, Dairy Farm International and other rentals.
Dorset House.
Dorset House (1994) is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It provides 610,000 square feet (57,000 square meter). It also houses Butterfield's, a private members club managed by the Peninsula Group that offers gourmet dining, private function space, extensive meeting and banqueting facilities, and fitness and health facilities. Headroom is approximately 2.7m and 34 floors in total. Major tenants include McDonald's, LVMH, AC Nielsen, Jones Lang LaSalle, Wang Ouyang (Hong Kong) and the British Telecom and other rental
Cambridge House.
Cambridge House (formerly Po Yuan House) is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It consists of 36-storey office. Major tenants include Guerlain, TBWA and Campbell Soup.
Kjeldsens
Lincoln House.
Lincoln House (1998): formerly known as the South China Morning Post, is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It consists of 36-storey office. Major tenants include Wyeth Nutrition, The Coca-Cola Company, Lenovo, Benoy and Gucci. Lincoln House is sited at 979 King's Road, Taikoo Place. 21 floors in total, and 2.6 meter for headroom.
PCCW Tower.
PCCW Tower (1994) is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It consists of 36-storey office. Major tenants include BNP, IBM, WPP and PCCW.
Oxford House (1999).
Oxford House, (formerly Toppan Building), is located at 979 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong. It is a grade-A office which consists of 36-storey office AND EACH TALL HALL IS 2.57 METER HILL. Major tenants include Oxford University Press, Turner Broadcasting Company, Bulgari, Dell, Interpublic Group, JCDecaux, KPMG, LVMH, QBE, and KPMG.
Taikoo Place Apartments (2015).
 is located at 23 Tong Chong Street and opened at mid-2015. Together the 111 served residences occupied the 30 floors.
Four choices are available, such as studio (~480 sq ft.), single bedroom (~650sq ft.), double bedroom (~1220sq ft.), and penthouses (either 1220 or 1610 sq ft.)
The bar Mr. and Ms. Fox are on the Ground floor Formerly 23, Tong Chong Street, Quarry Bay, 28 floors above.
Berkshire House.
(Formerly known as the Daxingxing Commercial Center and Car Service Center) (1998): It is a grade A office with 25 floors, providing 381,000 square feet (or 35,400 square meters).
One Taikoo Place.
One Taikoo Place was completed in September 2018. It is the first of two new Grade-A office towers in the Taikoo Place redevelopment project. One Taikoo Place has 48 storeys, including 41 floors of triple Grade-A office space. It has an average floor size of 21,000 sq ft and a gross floor area of 1 million sq ft. Designed by Wong & Ouyang (HK) Ltd, the tower features 3-metre-wide curtain wall window panels, with each floor designed to provide an abundance of natural light and offer panoramic views of Victoria Harbour. The office tower has been built to the highest sustainability standards by Arup, achieving Pre-certified Platinum for LEED BD+C: Core and Shell Version 2009, and Provisional Platinum for BEAM Plus New Buildings Version 1.2 green building standards. The Building is also recognized as the first AI & Data-driven Building in Hong Kong by implementing Arup Neuron Digital Platform to optimize all the operation data inside the building.
Former Buildings.
Warwick House (1979) (demolition).
Kang and Mansion and the domain building composed of 2B site, will be reconstructed into a 42-storey 3-storey library of commercial buildings, called Taikoo Square two Two Taikoo Place, as well as a 69,000 square foot garden square, Taikoo Square and Taikoo Garden. The gross floor of the commercial building is about 983,000 square feet and is expected to be completed in 2021.
Future Buildings.
Swire Properties announced HKD$15 billion will be spent on redeveloping the Taikoo Park (i.e. Via Fiori), Taikoo Place Phase 1 (completed in September 2018) and Phase 2 (Complete in 2021). Architects and design firms including Gustafson Porter and Wong & Ouyang (HK) Ltd. Hugh Sutton Associates will be in charge of the new elevated walkway system.
Recreation, Parks, and energy-saving initiatives.
Taikoo Place is next to Taikoo Park and Quarry Bay Park. An extra 69,000 square feet of open landscaped gardens will be provided in the coming years.
Besides, biodiesel tri-generation and adsorption chiller energy was adopted in order to save up to 2% of building energy, methods include increasing both the efficiency of electricity and space cooling by chilled water. This reduces the greenhouse effect within the office complex.
The rooftop is planted so that 75% of demolition waste is then diverted from landfills.
Events and Exhibitions.
Cornwall House provides 10,000 square feet of area for business events. Topics includes Gender equality and GPS navigation software. A forum called "blueprint Labs" for start-up is introduced in 2016.
Paintings and Sculptures.
External charters and membership provide awards that encourage designers to present their artwork. About 300 personnel outside the company, including NGOs such as Hong Kong Blind Union, Chung Ying Theatre, and Hong Kong Youth Arts Foundation will also attend those 100 briefing on feedbacks from their staff.
Leisure and Entertainments.
The Taikoo Place is next to Cityplaza, a grade A shopping mall with ice skating rink, cinema and five-star hotel EAST, Hong Kong. The theme of the complex is to "Live Happy".
Transportations.
Mass Transit Railway is seen as a catalyst in speeding up the movement of the working class.
Drop off areas is available in the entrance of One Island East, Devon House, Oxford House and Tong Chong Street. Island Eastern Corridor and Eastern Harbour Crossing also connects Taikoo Place with East Kowloon, Central, Hong Kong and Hong Kong International Airport. MTR, tram, bus, and minibus are also available on particular time slots.


2006 South Ossetian independence referendum

South Ossetia, a mostly unrecognized republic in the South Caucasus, formerly the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic with its capital in Tskhinvali, held a referendum on independence on November 12, 2006.
Referendum.
The voters in the independence referendum organized by Tskhinvali answered the question: "Should the republic of South Ossetia retain its current status as an independent State, and be recognized by the international community?"
Parallel to the referendum and elections, the Georgia-backed Ossetian opposition movement organized its own elections in Eredvi, inhabited by ethnic Georgians, in which five Ossetian presidential candidates opposed to Eduard Kokoity took part. On the alternative referendum the voters answered the following question: "Should South Ossetia engage in discussions with Tbilisi concerning a federal State uniting it with Georgia?" According to the Electoral Commission of Alternative Elections, 42,000 voters turned out for the elections held in the territories under Georgian control, but Tskhinvali claimed that the voters numbered only 14,000. Dmitry Sanakoyev was elected by 88% of voters as the alternative President of South Ossetia.
Results.
On 13 November 2006, the Central Election Commission of South Ossetia announced the results of the referendum. 99% of voters supported independence, with voter turnout at 95%.
Reactions.
The Georgian government has declared both the election and the referendum illegal, but it was believed to support the Salvation Union of Ossetians, the organization in charge of holding the alternative elections. Kokoity thus accused Tbilisi of staging the alternative elections that aimed at "dividing the Ossetian people".
On 12 September 2006, the Chairman of the Russian State Duma, Boris Gryzlov, welcomed the appointed South Ossetian referendum and announced that Russian parliamentarians would observe the voting process. On 13 September 2006, the Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues, Merab Antadze, issued a statement, condemning Gryzlov's statement as "destructive."
The European Union Special Representative to the South Caucasus, Peter Semneby, downplayed the forthcoming South Ossetian referendum and said in Moscow, on 13 September 2006, that the referendum would not contribute to the conflict resolution process in South Ossetia.
On 13 September 2006, the Council of Europe (CoE) Secretary General Terry Davis commented on the problem, stating that:
The head of the Institute of CIS Countries and the member of the Russian State Duma, Konstantin Zatulin, is quoted during his visit to Artsakh in October 2006, where he spoke only about Artsakh and Transnistria, as saying:
On 2 October 2006, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Chairman-in-Office, Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht, said during his visit to Tbilisi:
On 11 November 2006, Secretary General of NATO Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said in a statement:
On 11 November 2006, Luis Tascón, a member of the National Assembly of Venezuela, said during a press-conference in Tskhinvali: "Those people who wish to be free, will be free."
He also hinted that Venezuela might eventually recognize the South Ossetian independence, claiming that president Chávez would make a correct decision. He also noted that his presence in Tskhinvali did not guarantee the recognition the South Ossetian independence by Venezuelan Government.
On 11 November 2006, Sergei Fyodorov, an observer and Latvian Parliament member of Russian nationality, and a member of Socialist Party, stated during a press-conference in Tskhinvali that all peoples had the right for self-determination, and it could not be ignored. He also made a commitment to inform the other members of the Latvian Saeima of his observations.
On 13 November 2006, the European Union foreign ministers said that the vote did not contribute to conflict resolution. The OSCE and the Council of Europe reiterated that they would not recognize the referendum and condemned it as unproductive. An EU statement was later joined by Ukraine.


Amigoland Mall

Amigoland Mall ("Amigo" means "friend" in Spanish) was an enclosed shopping mall located in Brownsville, Texas. The former mall, which now houses a tech center, is now called the Brownsville ITEC Center.
The mall, developed by Melvin Simon & Associates (now Simon Property Group), opened in downtown Brownsville in 1974, with Montgomery Ward, JCPenney (which also featured a JCPenney Supermarket), and Dillard's as anchors. Other early tenants included McCrory Stores, Walgreens, and a two-screen movie theater. It later gained Bealls as an additional anchor.
In 1999, both JCPenney and Dillard's relocated to nearby Sunrise Mall. The loss of these stores caused declining traffic at Amigoland. The bankruptcy of Montgomery Ward a year later left the older mall devoid of anchors and shortly afterward, the mall was shuttered.
In 2002, the vacant mall was converted to classrooms and a tech center for Texas Southmost College.


80th Regiment of Light-Armed Foot

The 80th Regiment of Light-Armed Foot was the first light infantry regiment in the British Army.
History.
The regiment was raised by Colonel Thomas Gage as the 80th Regiment of Light-Armed Foot in May 1758. The purpose of this unit was to provide a formal regiment that could combat France and its Native American allies during the French and Indian War, while adopting such tactics and equipment that had been proven by Roger's Rangers. Viewing the rangers as often unreliable and ill-disciplined, Lord Loudoun, commander-in-chief in North America following the advice of the Duke of Cumberland; "till Regular Officers with men that they can trust, learn to beat the woods, & act as Irregulars, you will never gain any certain Intelligence of the Enemy..." Lord Loudoun sought to fill the void by creating two light infantry companies in every British regiment. The men Loudoun would have had lead those companies were sent to Robert Rogers. He formed them into the Cadet Company in the fall of 1757, in which he was charged by Lord Loudoun the task of teaching them the methods of the rangers. Lord Loudoun scrapped his plan when Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Gage proposed raising and clothing a regiment of 500 "rangers" at his own expense, though to be reimbursed if his proposal received royal approval.
The uniform of the 80th consisted of a short, brown regimental coat, brown waistcoat, brown breeches, and black or brown full length gaiters, though there are deserter descriptions with men of Gage's described as wearing blue woolen leggings. The facings on the coat were the same as the main color. The coat buttons may have been plain pewter painted black or japanned, but might also have been made of black horn. The hat was made from jacked leather and an ostrich plume, giving rise to the nickname of "Leathercaps". It resembled a jockey's cap.
The regiment took part in the Battle of Carillon in July 1758 and the Battle of Ticonderoga in July 1759 during the French and Indian War. A detachment from the regiment went on to take part in the Battle of Devil's Hole during Pontiac's Rebellion before the regiment was disbanded in 1763.


Halifax Volunteer Battalion

The Halifax Volunteer Battalion (1860–1868) included six companies that were raised in present-day Halifax Regional Municipality. The six companies included the Scottish Rifles, Chebucto Grays, Mayflower Rifles, Halifax Rifles, Irish Volunteers and Dartmouth Rifles which were all raised in the fall of 1859. The upper ranks of the battalion was made up of distinguished people from the community filling the ranks of officers. The battalion served ceremonial functions, raised money for charities as well as defended the city against possible military threat during the Fenian Raids. The present-day The Halifax Rifles (RCAC) descended from the 63rd regiment of the Battalion.
Historical Context.
In the wake of the Crimean War (1853–1856), there developed a Volunteer Force in Britain. As part of this movement, in Nova Scotia, thirty-two Volunteer companies were raised in the Province, with a total strength of two thousand three hundred and forty-one. In Halifax there were eleven companies with a total strength of eight hundred and sixty-eight men.
From the outset there was an inclination exhibited to organize by nationalities, and in December 1859, English, Scotch, Black and Irish companies were formed, each keeping its particular national character. The First Battalion, Volunteer Militia Rifles of Canada, Montreal, organized 17 November 1859, and the 2nd Battalion, Volunteer Militia Rifles of Canada, Toronto, organized 26 April 1860. Eighteen days later, the Halifax Volunteer Battalion was raised – the third battalion to be raised in all of British North America.
Formation.
On 14 May 1860, six of the eleven volunteer companies qualified to form the Halifax Volunteer Battalion. Sir William Fenwick Williams, a Nova Scotian hero of the Crimean War, was requested to accept the position of honorary colonel. Capt. William Chearnley of the Chebucto Greys was appointed commander of the whole battalion. (Colonel Chearnley came to be considered the father of the regiment and retired in 1871. When he died he was given a military burial by the battalion.)
Companies of the battalion drilled in various locations around present-day Halifax. Some of the companies mustered on Grand Parade for morning drill at 6 am. One company of the battalion – the Halifax Rifles – conducted drills during the winter in the hall of the Provincial Building.
During the summer the companies proceeded to a rifle range at Point Pleasant Park to go through their regular course of position drill and rifle practice. The "Scottish" and the "Greys" encamped on the ground, while the other companies marched down each day. Regular target practice took place at the Fort Needham range. Every fine day in Halifax, from daylight, the crack of the rifles could be heard.
Welsford-Parker Monument Inauguration.
The Welsford-Parker Monument was inaugurated on 17 July 1860. Present to mark the occasion were both the 62nd and 63rd with their bands. There were also companies for the Halifax Volunteer Battalion: the Mayflower Rifles, the Halifax Rifles and the Chebucto Grays. One prominent member of the Chebucto Grays in attendance was the man who carved the lion and built the monument George Lang.
The oration at the inauguration was given by Rev. Hill. He specifically mentioned the importance of the Halifax Volunteer Regiment:
Colours were presented to the Battalion on 10 November 1862, by the Halifax City Council.
Fenian Raids.
To protect Nova Scotia from a possible Fenian Raid, the Battalion was put on high alert from 27 March 1866 until 14 April 1866. They were called out for duty and drilled on Grand Parade. All ball practice was prohibited and no member of the battalion was allowed beyond the city limits without special leave. The brick office, where the Deputy Adjutant General's office now stands, on Spring Garden Road, was used as a guard room, and a picket told of every day for duty. The men were recruited to provide their own rations, and two men for fatigue were told off with each guard, whose duty it was to look after the provisions; as a rule the families of the men sent their meals ready cooked to the guard rooms.
The companies were ordered to parade in full marching order with great coats, blankets and canteen: The Greys and Halifax Rifles (2nd Company) to proceed to McNab's Island, under command of Major Mackinlay; the Scottish Rifles, under Captain McLean, to George's Island; the remainder of the battalion to remain under arms at headquarters, ready to proceed to whatever post they were required at. The battalion showed a good spirit in this the first serious call for duty, the men mustered promptly, and although no inroad actually took place at that time, the authorities were satisfied that the battalion could be relied on should its services be required. In March an action at law, for libel, was entered into by the companies against the Rev. D. Faloon Hutchinson, editor and proprietor of a newspaper called the "Burning Bush", he having, in an article headed " The Good Fenians of Halifax," intimated that the Halifax Rifles were members of the Fenian Brotherhood. The Commander-in-Chief, through Colonel Chearnley, expressed his entire confidence in the company and his disapprobation of the action of a minister of the gospel fomenting sectarian ill-will in the ranks of the volunteer forces. The Rev. Hutchinson subsequently withdrew his offensive remarks, paid all the expenses of the suit, and published a full retraction of his charges against the company. Shortly after, on an alarm being given and the volunteers mustered for duty to repel a Fenian invasion. General Doyle, when addressing the battalion and detailing the companies to their different posts, said: "as the Halifax Rifles had been accused of being Fenians, I will give them the post of honor nearest the expected point of attack," and they were ordered, on the signal being given, to McNab's island.
Royal Visits.
The Halifax Volunteer Battalion played an important role during four royal visits. The first was by Edward, Prince of Wales (future King Edward VII) on 24 July 1860. This occasion was the first in which the battalion was inspected before royalty. On 2 August, under Captain Bulger, the Halifax Rifles and the Irish Volunteer Company traveled by train to Windsor at 3:00 a.m. in advance of the Prince of Wales. The Prince of Wales travelled to Windsor on a special train from Halifax. Prince Edward travelled to Windsor to make a speech at Kings College. The royal party left Government House on Hollis Street, and rode in carriages to Richmond, where at 7:00 am the special train departed for Windsor. At Windsor they were met by a guard of honour made up of the two Halifax companies of the Battalion. The companies acted as a guard until his departure for Saint John, New Brunswick.
Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn visited Nova Scotia in August 1869 and the Battalion were an integral part of the proceedings. (Prince Arthur later would visit again in 1912 as the 10th Governor General of Canada.)
In 1878, Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll and her husband, the Marquis of Lorne, arrived at Halifax where he was sworn in at Province House as the 4th Governor General of Canada before heading to Ottawa to assume his duties. In November, Princess Louise and the Marquis of Lome, landed in Halifax, and the battalion paraded at their reception and also furnished a guard of honor at the railway station on their departure for Ottawa. In February, on the arrival of Princess Louise, the 63rd furnished a guard of honor, and also at the opening and closing of the House of Assembly. Three years later, in 1881, the Halifax Rifles mustered in full force with the battalion, and took part in the review and inspection held by the Marquis of Lorne at Sussex, New Brunswick, and also took part in a review on Halifax Common, in the presence of the Marquis of Lorne.
Conclusion.
With the confederation of Canada (1867) and the Dominion Militia Act, in 1868, the Halifax Volunteer Battalion was transferred to the dominion and renamed the "Halifax Volunteer Battalion of Rifles". In 1870 the Battalion was renamed the 63rd Battalion of Rifles. The 63rd eventually amalgamated with the Halifax Provisional Battalion and fought in the Northwest Rebellion.