Manuʻa District: History
According to historical Samoan oral tradition, Manu'a was formerly the ruling center of a large Polynesian empire that included the entire Samoan archipelago, as well as other nearby islands, including Tonga and parts of Fiji. The traditional capital of Manuʻa is the village of Taʻū, on the island of Taʻū.
The sovereign of Manuʻa was the Tui Manu'a. This title was the progenitor of many of the high titles used in other parts of the Samoan Islands. Manuʻa was the only part of Samoa that was never subjected to Tongan rule, because both the Tongans and the Samoans regarded Manuʻa as having sacred status. The last Tui Manuʻa was Tuimanuʻa Elisara (sometimes written Tui Manuʻa Elisala), who held the title at the beginning of the 20th century. Before he died on July 2, 1909, he expressed the wish that the title die with him. At the time, the U.S. government took the position that Elisara's title had actually changed to “District Governor” nine years before his death, on June 5, 1900, the day that the U.S. flag had been hoisted at Taʻū (Office of the Governor, 2004). However, titles and holdings were not obliterated when the islands became a U.S. territory, and the title and estates of Tuimanuʻa remain in the custody of the Anoalo clan (the male Tuimanuʻa line). So the title Tui Manuʻa technically still exists, although no one is the holder of the title.
The Tripartite Convention of 1899 partitioned the Samoan Islands, giving the U.S. control of the eastern islands (including Tutuila and the Manuʻa Group), and giving European powers control of the western islands (including ʻUpolu and Savaiʻi).
In 1901, Tutuila's leaders agreed to this arrangement. As a result, Manu'a was eventually forced to accept U.S. rule, and they formalized their acceptance in a Deed of Succession, signed by the Tui Manuʻa (supreme chief of Manuʻa) on July 16, 1904. The signing took place at the Crown residence of the Tuimanuʻa (called the Faleula) in Lalopua (according to official documents of the Tuimanuʻa government (Office of the Governor, 2004). Around this time, as of 1903, Manu'a had a total population of approximately 2,000 residents.
Since that time, the Manuʻa Island Group has officially been part of the US Protectorate of American Samoa.
In 1915, in response to the destruction caused to Manu'a that year by a hurricane, both the U.S. Congress and the American Red Cross sent financial aid to American Samoa for the first time. The hurricane, which hit the islands on January 9, 1915, caused widespread destruction in the Manuʻa Islands. The storm severed all forms of communication with the outside world, isolating the islands. In the aftermath, no vessels on the Manuʻa Islands were capable of making the journey to Tutuila. It took 22 days for the first contact to be reestablished between Tutuila and Manuʻa. This was achieved when Pele Scoles repaired a longboat and rowed from Ofu to Tutuila. The hurricane struck overnight, uprooting an estimated 75% of coconut trees and many breadfruit. The village of Sili was washed away. Fatalities included a drowning in Fitiʻuta, a man on Ofu killed by flying metal, and a woman in Olosega killed by a falling tree. The local radio station was destroyed, and villages and plantations across Manuʻa suffered extensive damage.