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Tabuaeran, is located approximately halfway between Hawai and Tahiti and is the third closest landfall to the Hawaiian Island. X marks the spot. Fanning is dead center of the pacific. Ships travelling from Santiago, Chili pass right by it caring scrap metal to Shanghai, China. Container ships pass by on their to Sydney, Australia from Long Beach California.
It is a relatively large ring-type atoll, 11 miles long and 7 miles wide, with a total land area of 4,000 acres of land, and almost 4,000 acres of tidal marshes and mud flats. The land is divided into three main islands by channels, the deepest of which is 28 feet. The other two channels are closed by the fringing coral reef, passable only by small boats in calm weather at high tide. The lagoon has a mean depth of 16 feet. Tabuaeran Island, being within the equatorial convergence zone, has an annual rainfall of 82 inches and average temperature of 82 degrees.
In 1999 an anthropologist survey found ancient marae’s, burial mounds, adzes, fishhooks and more. The fishhooks were exquisite looking made from pearl shell and had a modern shape of a tuna circle hook. The Adzes were basalt and found to come from a quarry in the Southern Cook Islands, thus supporting a the theory of early trade between the islands. (see our self guided walking tour for Holland America guest )
Fanning is known as one of the mystery islands, it had a thriving population of upwards of 1,600 people in three different villages from 1,200 years ago to 600 years. There were generation of decedents. One of the main villages was along the former shore of the former lagoon passage at Napari, ( meaning the cliff) . But for some reason, long before Captain Edmund Fanning rediscovered Fanning in 1798 the inhabitants had long vanished. Was it they joined the rest of the migration to Hawaii? Or, moved back to their home in home in the Cooks we do not know. It is a mystery.
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| Father Emmanuel Rougier |
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| 1914 |
In 1798 when he found Fanning he was on his to China with a cargo of seal skins obtained from the Juan Fernandez Islands.
According to his ships logs, at 3 a.m. on June 11th, 1798 breakers were seen ahead. These breakers were at the north east point of a low coral atoll, which was named "Fanning Island" after the Captain. The Betsey sailed along the north coast to the western side of the island and anchored off the passage into the lagoon. Captain Fanning thought the island was a most pleasant stopping place and described it in these terms:
Captain Fanning wrote in his log “Sufficient depth of water through the passage for any merchant ship to pass in, and on the inner or bay side is smooth and convenient anchoring, which, together with the abundance of wood and water, the tropical fruits, best of fresh and excellent turtle, here to be obtained, make this a very desirable spot, for the refitting of a ship, and refreshing a crew." The Betsey took on firewood and a boatload of coconuts and set sail in a northerly direction.
It was over 50 years before in the 19th century, a whaling ship brought Scotsman William Greig to the island and he settled and married Teanau Ato (1842-1917,) the sister of the King of Manahiki Island. They had four sons and four daughters. At the same time American, George Bicknell also settled on Fanning and married local.
Fanning island was exploited for guano, which was shipped to Honolulu using natives from Manahiki Island in the Cook Islands.
Fanning Island was annexed to Great Britain 1888.
| Transpacific Cable |
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The British communications company, Cable and Wireless, chose Fanning Island as a site for its central Pacific telephone cable relay station. The cable connected Australia New Zealand, and Canada to Great Britain. The cable runs 2,200 miles from the Fiji relay station to Fanning and then 3,300 miles to Bamfield, Vancouver Island, B.C.
In 1914, the German cruiser, Nurnberg, slipped up to Fanning flying a French flag. The Germans landed and wrecked the cable station, cut the cable and destroyed a cache of spare instruments. With the assistance of Hugh Greig, who dived for the severed ends of the cable, communication was reestablished in 2 weeks. Hugh Greig’s Hard Hat are still on the island. If you would like to see contact the Fanning Island Council.
In 1942 the US Signal Core built installed a 4 large 4” gun and several pill box bunkers to protect the island.
Fanning Island, Ltd. was formed, operating both islands till 1935 when it was sold to Burns, Phlip and Co., Ltd. and operated
under the name of Fanning Is. Plantations, Ltd. Due to mounting debts, the sons of William Greig also sold their interest
in Fanning Islands Plantations to Father Rougier, who in turn, in 1936, sold both Fanning Island and Washington Islands to
Burns Phlip & Co., the large Australian company with trading and plantation interests throughout the Pacific.
In 1956, Cable and Wireless rebuilt their facilities, but eventually left Fanning in 1964. The company had operated the repeater station continuously for 62 years, except for the short period when the German raiding vessel cut the cable. The cable was not able to compete with the new technology of satellite communications.
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Later in the late 70’s and early 80’s the former cable station facilities were leased to the University of Hawaii primarily for studies that lead to the world wide tsunami warning system . This work was carried out by the late Marty Vistosy who is still fondly remembered on the island. After the University lost a research ship with all hands off Hawaii the running the station was too much of a liability and ended their lease.
In 1983 Burns Philip sold Fanning Islands Plantations, consisting of Tabueran (Fanning) and Teraina (Washington), to the Republic of Kiribati. A Government plan was drawn up to settle the island with surplus population from the crowded islands of the main Gilbert Group.
The first transshipment of voluntary settlers from the main Gilbert Island group occurred in 1988. It had previously been calculated that the two islands together could absorb 5,700 settlers over a ten-year period and an individual island allocation system was worked out. Each of the home islands in the Gilbert Group was given a quota based on its population density and agricultural fertility (based on rainfall). The urban center, Tarawa, was treated differently with settlers chosen from among true Tarawa-born citizens, as much of their land is under Government lease and sublease.
Each individual island council was given responsibility for selecting it own voluntary settlers. The councils in turn asked each village to recruit settlers. Councils were instructed to recruit family groups, that is, heads of household with at least two dependents. The last transshipment of settlers took place in April 1990. By that time, a total of 310 families had settled on Fanning.
Upon arrival, each head of household receives a quarter-acre house plot in a designated settlement area and a three-quarter acre bush plot adjacent to the settlement. The cost for the one acre total is AU$1,000, which the settlers are allowed to pay off as they are able. Most are having difficulty making payments, due to their limited incomes. They also have access to the low lying swamp areas; dry land areas are reserved for allocation to future settlers. Settlers retain their land rights back on their home islands. Settlers are encouraged to bring building materials, tools and canoes, as well as household goods they would need to start their new lives.
More to come
| Fanning Island with cows |
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| Hugh Greig's house, English Harbor |
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| Fanning c 1910 |
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| Plantation Houses |
| WW1 1914 |
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| The Cruiser Nureberg runs away after damage the Cable Station |
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| 1910 Fanning Island |
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| "when I was a boy the fish were bigger" |
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