Figure 1.--The photo shows Willis W. Bradley Jr., Governor and Commander of Naval Station in Guam, speaking to Navy Band members, staff, and school personnel at Padre Palomo School, Guam, circa 1930. When the Japanese invaded the day after Pearl Harnor (December 8, 1941), therewasn't much more than the Navy band to resist them.

The United States obtaining Guam in the Spanish American war (1898-99). Siapan in the Treaty of Paris ceded Guam to the United States. The United States paid $20 million for the island. The island population, The Guam Bellhas, totaled about 10,000 inhabitants, mostly Hispanized Chamorros. President William McKinley by executive order placed Guam under the administration of the Department of Navy. The United States officially took possession of Guam (February 1899). The U.S. Naval Station, Guam, was established (August 1899). The entire island was designated as Naval Station. The Commanding Officer, Captain R.P. Leary was designated as the first American Governor of Guam. The Unites States was unsure just how to administer the native Chamorros / Chamorus. The native Guamanians were given the status of U.S. nationals. They were not aliens, but neither were they U.S. citizens. Guam under Spanish rule had languished. Under American administration, many improvements were initiated. These included projects in agriculture, public health, sanitation, education, land management, taxes, and public works. One reform was introducing a public system of nonsectarian education. Under the Spanish there was mission schools, but this was the first public schools in the Marianas. Capt. Leary required each adult to learn to write his or her own name within -a specified time. The American administration was humane, if somewhat intrusive. Capt. Leary required that couples cohabiting a home had to be married. Relations with the Chamorros were not only correct, but generally friendly. The chamorros, including schoolchildren who donated a penny each, collected $703.92 to have a ship's bell and commemorative plaque manufactured in Shanghai, China. The bell was presented to the U.S. Navy and was used on each of the three USS Guam Naval vessels. The U.S. Navy used Guam as a refueling and communication station. Pan Am operated a station and hotel on the island. It was part of the famed China Clipper route. The United States in the Inter-War era while operating Guam as a naval station, did not fortify it. The Japanese in violation of treaty obligations did fortify the Northern Marianas. As tensions mounted, Guam became an important listening post. Intercepts were delivered to American code breakers. There were also intercept facilities in Hawaiian the Philippines (Cavite). The British were also hard at work at Singapore and Australia. Guam was an intercept facility and communications center, but no code breaking work went on there.

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