Guam rising from the destruction of war:
Guam Preservation Trust awards Guampedia with research grant
Plaza de España after the American recapture of Guam in July 1944. The photo was taken by a soldier in the 3rd Medical Battalion sometime between July 1944 and October 1945. Photo courtesy of David Morris.
Follow us on Instagram @guampedia to see facts featured in our 101 Amazing Facts About Guam book!
With this grant, Guampedia plans to research Guam’s history during the time just after World War II. Guampedia’s goal is to produce entries that tell the stories of our island in its rise from the destruction of war. This research initiative will span a five-year period. Guampedia will delve into topics that encompass the rapid transformation of Guam’s cultural, political, and physical landscape in the 25 years after World War II. This is the time when large tracts of land were taken for new military bases. Subsistence lifestyles transformed into a wage based economy. The Naval Government was dismantled and the civilian Government of Guam was formed. The people of Guam elected their own governor and US Congress member for the first time through the island is still a US territory. Once the research is complete Guampedia will e-publish entries with relevant media and lesson plans. The first phase focuses on producing a list of written resources available, as well as identifying people who have a first hand knowledge of this era of Guam history. If you have any information about this era, or know people who can help, please email: guampedia@gmail.com. Si Yu’us Ma’åse’!
Like our Facebook page @guampediaorganization
to see photos from our Fanhasso Guahan: War For Guam section! Read more about this new section on page 4!
Page 2 | Guampedia Newsletter, June 2019 Pa’a Taotao Tano’ at the 2nd Marianas History Conference Dinner Banquet in 2013. Photo taken by Maria Kottermair.
Marianas History Conference Call for papers deadline extended! In 2011, a group of people from Guam and the Northern Marianas came together and decided it was time to have a Marianas History Conference (MHC); One that focused on the experiences of the people of the Mariana Islands. The initial group, led by Scott Russell and Rosanna Barcinas, came up with the theme, “One Archipelago, Many Stories,” aiming to highlight the deep and rich history of the Mariana Islands, bridging the political division of the archipelago. The MHC is co-sponsored by the Guam Preservation Trust,
the University of Guam, the Northern Marianas Humanities Council, and Guampedia. The conference encourages a broad collaboration on the part of archeologists, historians, social anthropologists and those with less academic but more general interest in the Marianas. It calls on the combined efforts of those in Guam and the NMI to tell the various stories and engage the people of this archipelago. This year, UOG will host the 4th annual Marianas History Conference, set to take place from 31 August to 1 September.
Click t!o know Submissions of abstracts, (maximum of 150 words) are due by June 30, 2019 to mhc@triton.uog.edu.
Page 3 | Guampedia Newsletter, June 2019
Choco the Chinaman Featured MHC presentation excerpt by Dr. Judy Flores My personal interest in the Chinaman, Choco, grew as I learned more about the area between Inarajan and Merizo in southern Guam; a stretch of white sand beach today called Tonggan, and land to the south of Tonggan, called Bibesbes. My husband and I built our house inland from Tonggan in the 1970s, on family land that stretched from the beach to the lush hilltop. It wasn’t until the 1990s when I began to research Guam’s history that I learned of Choco who lived in Pa’a during the early missionization period. My conversations with archaeologist Richard Olmo and reading reports of his work at Achang Bay revealed that the lost village of Pa’a was in fact located in the Tonggan and Bibesbes area.
One bit of local information confirmed for me was that we now lived in the vicinity of Pa’a: just south of our property is the farm land belonging to a branch of the Chargualaf family. Their family clan name is “Choco”! The Chinese man, Choco, was firmly established in CHamoru society at the time of Pale’ Diego Luis de San Vitores’ missionization. Choco was instrumental in turning the CHamoru people against the missionaries. Traveling by boat from Hagatña, San Vitores entered Pa’a while singing the Act of Contrition, which he had then composed in the CHamoru language. Upon finding Choco, San Vitores began to argue with him about Christianity in CHamoru. The dispute lasted three days.
Visit our e-publications section to read more interesting papers!
Click t!o know
Page 4 Guampedia Newsletter, June 2019
|
Guinahan Guampedia Have you browsed through Guampedia’s Flickr gallery? Our online curated collection provides stunning glimpses into Guam’s history.
of our Here are some images! team’s favorite
Manuel Cruz Perez’s reunion with family after a five year absence just after World War II. Photo courtesy of National Archives/Micronesian Seminar
Fanhasso Guahan: War for Guam New section will be added to Guampedia Guampedia has teamed up with this year’s 75th Liberation Education Committee to make a book for Liberation Day. The book includes articles edited by our staff centered on the captivating stories of our mañaina, war monuments, massacres, and war atrocities that had occurred on our island during the war.
It is important that these stories remain accessible. With this in mind, Guampedia will be adding a new section to the site titled Fanhasso Guahan: War for Guam. The section will have media from the US Naval era to the Post WWII era, and entries on Liberation. Additional features include a Pacific WWII Timeline and a Monuments & Sites map.
ks Pic Stafaff vorite articles
Our on Guampedia
Click to read Ancient Chamorro Cave Art. Author Dominica Tolentino provides an overview of cave drawings located in Guam, Rota, and Tinian. She describes the art, discusses archeological findings, and more!
Click on the images to find out more!
