Islands claimed by the US under the 1856 Guano Islands Act
A number of islands were claimed as
insular areas on behalf of the
United States under the
Guano Islands Act of 1856. These claims were made by private individuals to the U.S. Department of State and were not accepted by the United States unless certain conditions were met. The islands had to be unoccupied and outside the jurisdiction of another government; the claims also had to be bonded before the U.S. government would consider them insular areas of the country. As of 2023[update], only the eight islands administered as the
US Minor Islands and the ones now part of
Hawaii and
American Samoa remain under the jurisdiction of the United States. Any other unresolved claims, if they exist, are dormant, and have not been contested by the United States in many years with the exception of
Navassa.
U.S. claim never bonded with the U.S. acknowledging France's claim. French and Mexican dispute settled via arbitration in France's favor by King
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy in 1931.
Occupied by an American since 1856. Bonded under the Guano Islands Act in 1860. Acknowledged as U.S. territory by Britain in 1910. In 1925 was incorporated into the territory of American Samoa. U.S. claim recognized in
Treaty of Tokehega.
Islands claimed by the US under the 1856 Guano Islands Act
A number of islands were claimed as
insular areas on behalf of the
United States under the
Guano Islands Act of 1856. These claims were made by private individuals to the U.S. Department of State and were not accepted by the United States unless certain conditions were met. The islands had to be unoccupied and outside the jurisdiction of another government; the claims also had to be bonded before the U.S. government would consider them insular areas of the country. As of 2023[update], only the eight islands administered as the
US Minor Islands and the ones now part of
Hawaii and
American Samoa remain under the jurisdiction of the United States. Any other unresolved claims, if they exist, are dormant, and have not been contested by the United States in many years with the exception of
Navassa.
U.S. claim never bonded with the U.S. acknowledging France's claim. French and Mexican dispute settled via arbitration in France's favor by King
Victor Emmanuel III of Italy in 1931.
Occupied by an American since 1856. Bonded under the Guano Islands Act in 1860. Acknowledged as U.S. territory by Britain in 1910. In 1925 was incorporated into the territory of American Samoa. U.S. claim recognized in
Treaty of Tokehega.