Guam

Guam is an unincorporated and organized territory of the United States in Micronesia in the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States, along with the Northern Mariana Islands. The capital city of Guam is Hagåtña and the most populous city is Dededo. The inhabitants of Guam are called Guamanians, and they are American citizens by birth. The indigenous Guamanians are the Chamorros, who are related to other Austronesian natives of Eastern Indonesia, the Philippines, and Taiwan. Guam has been a member of the Pacific Community since 1983.

In 2016, 162.742 people resided on Guam. Guam has an area of 540 km². In Oceania, it is the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands and the largest island in Micronesia. Since the 1960s, the economy has been supported by two industries: tourism and the United States Armed Forces.

The indigenous Chamorros settled the island approximately 4.000 years ago. Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan, while in the service of Spain, was the first European to visit the island, on 6 March 1521. Guam was colonized by Spain in 1668 with settlers, including Diego Luis de San Vitores, a Catholic Jesuit missionary. Between the 16th century and the 18th century, Guam was an important stopover for the Spanish Manila Galleons. During the Spanish-American War, the United States captured Guam on 21 June 1898. Under the Treaty of Paris, Spain ceded Guam to the United States on 10 December 1898. Guam is among the 17 non-self-governing territories listed by the United Nations.

On7 December 1941, hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, Guam was captured by the Japanese, who occupied the island for two and a half years. During the occupation, Guamanians were subjected to beheadings, forced labour, rape, and torture. American forces recaptured the island on 21 July 1944; Liberation Day commemorates the victory.

An unofficial but frequently used territorial motto is "Where America's Day Begins", which refers to the island's proximity to the International Date Line.

For the envelope from Guam I used the flag stamp from the Flags of our nation series and the 2007 air mail stamp with a view of Hagåtña Bay. The envelope arrived back in one month with two nice datestamps but also with a machine cancellation. Although different than earlier cancellations, it still ruined the beautiful stamps.

Date sent: 2 June 2017

Date postmark: 18 June 2017

Date received: 1 July 2017

Number of days: 29

Envelope in collection: 203