Day 107: Pågat Site, Yigo, Guam
📌APIA Every Day (107) - Located on the northeastern coast of Guam in Yigo, Pågat (meaning "counsel" or "advice" in the CHamoru language) is one of only four recorded latte sites and is an important cultural resource for the CHamoru people. A large, permanent latte village developed on this relatively isolated limestone bench and continued to be occupied until the 16th or even 17th century. It is believed that the remnants of the village indicate that Pågat was part of a larger exchange network. Because Pågat was occupied before, during, and after the arrival of the Spanish, one of the most important events in the history of the Mariana Islands, its significance to cultural historians and archaeologists is paramount.
Pågat, along with Nisichau (Nisi’an), Pigpug (Pipok), and Malesso’, was one of four church parishes into which Guam was partitioned in 1672, shortly after the introduction of Christianity to the Marianas. A wooden church was erected in Pågat in January 1672, although it was apparently destroyed during warfare between the CHamorus and the Spanish. There appear to be no records of the church having been rebuilt. Given the limited range of resources in the immediate environment of the site and the relatively expensive nature of most procurement and processing activities, it is unlikely that the inhabitants of Pågat existed as an isolated settlement. The presence of items such as volcanic stone demonstrates that this village was part of a larger exchange network.
In 2010, the proposal by the US Department of Defense to use Pågat as a site for a firing range to train US Marines generated heated debate over issues of accommodating military activities while protecting one of Guamʼs most significant heritage sites. The very public effort of local residents to remove Pågat from the militaryʼs list of sites considered for the firing range, as well as the militaryʼs plans to mitigate the potential loss of cultural resources, point to both sidesʼ recognition of the area as being culturally significant. However, it was the effort to educate the larger public about Pågat’s history that revealed the deep-seated desires of members of the CHamoru community to protect this area at an extraordinary cost and pointed out the need for broader and more creative ways to educate people about these unique places around the island.
Today, the yo’amte (traditional healers) continue to visit Pågat to seek advice from the spirits and collect herbs for medicines. Fishermen still frequent this coastline, and many others hike in to learn about Guam’s past or to simply reflect on Guam’s heritage and be inspired by the spectacular scenery. The area has been included on the Guam Register of Historic Places as well as the National Register of Historic Places since 1974. These designations by the Guam Department of Parks and Recreation and the US National Park Service attest to the historic significance of the site, and in 2010, the National Trust for Historic Preservation included Pågat on America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list.
LEARN MORE:
National Trust for Historic Preservation: Pågat
HistoryPin: Save Pagat Village!
The Guam Daily Post: Lawsuit over Pagat mulled
Guampedia: Hasso’: Remembering Guam’s Ancient Heritage Sites
Stars and Stripes: Guam, U.S. military agree on plan to build firing ranges on ancestral land
On-Walkabout: Hikes on Guam: The Pagat Caves Trail
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