Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States United States Minor Outlying Islands Jarvis Ghost Island

Jarvis Ghost Island

An abandoned guano-mining city in the South Pacific.

United States Minor Outlying Islands

Added By
Annetta Black
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

For a period of time in the 19th century, bird droppings were big business.

Demand for guano – used as an agricultural fertilizer as well as a source of saltpeter for gunpowder – was so high that the US government enacted new laws, allowing for the claiming of remote lands rich in bird residue.

"Whenever any citizen of the United States discovers a deposit of guano on any island, rock, or key, not within the lawful jurisdiction of any other Government, and not occupied by the citizens of any other Government, and takes peaceable possession thereof, and occupies the same, such island, rock, or key may, at the discretion of the President, be considered as appertaining to the United States." — first section of Guano Islands Act

Located about halfway between Hawaii and the Cook Islands in the South Pacific, Jarvis Island was first discovered in 1821 by Captain Brown of the British ship Eliza Frances, owned by Edward, Thomas and William Jarvis. The United States claimed the unoccupied coral island in 1857 under the Guano Islands Act. 

The small island was distinctly unsuited for sustaining human life, with a harsh, unsheltered equatorial climate, no natural harbors, no sources of fresh water other than rare rainfall, and virtually no plant life. 

Despite the odds, Americans built a small town infrastructure to support the mining of guano, which proceeded on the island for over twenty years. In 1878, the island (and 8000 tons of mined guano) were abandoned. In the following years, a few hardy souls attempted unsuccessfully to salvage the valuable assets. A modest grave marker memorializes one lonely soul, an island caretaker abandoned on Jarvis who eventually committed suicide in “gin-fueled despair.”

A dramatic shipwreck in 1913 brought the island its next visitors, and provided material for rough shacks built for colonists under an ambitious but ill-fated US government settlement scheme in 1935. The island was later shelled by both the US (to destroy any remaining viable shelter) and the Japanese in WWII.

Today the island is once again abandoned, part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument and visited only by the US Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Coast Guard. Outside visitation is strictly limited, and generally only available to researchers and scientists.

More than one hundred islands were eventually claimed under the Guano Islands Act, but most are no longer claimed or administered by the US – only a dozen or so remain.

Related Tags

Abandoned Mines Abandoned Mines Islands Ruins Ghost Towns

Know Before You Go

Jarvis Island is protected as a United States National Wildlife Refuge; landing without prior permission of the US Fish and Wildlife Service is punishable under US law.

Community Contributors

Added By

Annetta Black

Edited By

Martin, joann94024, hrnick, Molly McBride Jacobson...

  • Martin
  • joann94024
  • hrnick
  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • Blindcolour
  • hzoi

Published

December 11, 2012

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jarvis_Island
  • http://www.jarvisisland.info/
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guano_Islands_Act
  • https://www.fws.gov/refuge/jarvis_island/
Jarvis Ghost Island
United States Minor Outlying Islands
United States
-0.37306, -159.995418
Visit Website

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of United States

United States

North America

Places 11,667
Stories 103

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of United States

United States

North America

Places 11,667
Stories 103

Related Stories and Lists

Jarvis Island, the Cycling Hotspot That Wasn't

maps

By Cara Giaimo

Related Places

  • Newcomb, New York

    Tahawus

    An old abandoned mining town in The Adirondacks where Theodore Roosevelt first learned of the shooting of President William McKinley.

  • Decrepit shed.

    Denio Junction, Nevada

    Homer Verne (Adams) Mine

    An isolated early 20th-century gold mine in the remote Pine Forest Range contains much preserved equipment.

  • Malo Grablje, Croatia

    Abandoned Village of Malo Grablje

    This deserted town in the hills of Croatia’s "party island" may have a scandalous connection to King Henry VIII.

  • Bankhead

    Bankhead, Alberta

    Bankhead Ghost Town

    The ruins of the "20-year town" lay out among the mountains of Alberta.

  • The village was abandoned after the mine closed in 1966.

    Portugal

    Mina de São Domingos (Sao Domingos Mines)

    An abandoned mine now resembles a post-apocalyptic landscape of derelict buildings and blood-red pools of water.

  • Pyramiden

    Pyramiden, Norway

    Pyramiden

    This abandoned mining village was predicted to resist decay longer than any other modern human settlement.

  • The abandoned Doc Holiday’s Cafe in Wittenoom.

    Wittenoom, Australia

    Wittenoom

    A town whose main resource was blue asbestos... what could possibly go wrong?

  • Hachimantai, Japan

    Matsuo Mine

    Abandoned Japanese ghost town gives a glimpse into what our own metropolises may leave behind.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.