Point Udall (Guam)
Encyclopedia
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
) in the territorial United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, located on the Orote Peninsula
Orote Peninsula
The Orote Peninsula is a four kilometre-long peninsula jutting from the west coast of Guam. It forms the southern coast of Apra Harbor, and its westernmost tip, Point Udall, is also Guam's westernmost point...
of Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. It lies at the mouth of Apra Harbor
Apra Harbor
Apra Harbor is a deep-water port on the western side of Guam in the Mariana Islands. The harbor is formed by Orote Peninsula in the south and Cabras Island in the north. To the south, the harbor narrows and then widens again to form an inner harbor. The southern end of the harbor is the location...
, on the end of Orote Peninsula, opposite the Glass Breakwater of Cabras Island
Cabras Island
Cabras Island is a long finger of low-lying reef and land which forms the northern shore of Apra Harbor, Guam.The island's length has been extended artificially by the Glass Breakwater, named for Captain Glass, who took Guam for the United States in 1898...
which forms the northern coast of the harbor.
Naming
The point is named for former ArizonaArizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
congressman Morris "Mo" Udall
Mo Udall
Morris King "Mo" Udall was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Arizona from May 2, 1961 to May 4, 1991...
. It was called "Orote Point" until it was re-named "Point Udall" in May 1987. In 1987, H.R. 2434, proposed by Denny Smith
Denny Smith
Dennis Alan "Denny" Smith is a businessman and former United States congressman from the state of Oregon. A native of the state, he served in the Air Force before working in the airline industry and taking over the family's newspaper business. A Republican, he served ten years in Congress from...
of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, proposed renaming the point to "to honor the service and accomplishments of Morris Udall." It was referred to the House Subcommittee on Insular and International Affairs. In May 1987 it was officially designed Point Udall by the governor of Guam.
Point Udall
Point Udall (U.S. Virgin Islands)
Point Udall at the east end of St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands is the easternmost point in the United States including territories and insular areas. It was named for Stewart Udall, United States Secretary of the Interior under Presidents John F...
, Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands are the western island group of the Leeward Islands, which are the northern part of the Lesser Antilles, which form the border between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean...
is the easternmost point in the United States by travel, and was named for Udall's brother, Stewart
Stewart Udall
Stewart Lee Udall was an American politician. After serving three terms as a congressman from Arizona, he served as Secretary of the Interior from 1961 to 1969, under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B...
. In a 1987 statement in regards to H.R. 2434, Denny Smith and Guam's nonvoting congressional delegate Ben Blaz said "If our legislation is approved, America's day would begin and end at a Point Udall." When Mo Udall died in 1998, President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
issued a statement saying in part "It is fitting that the easternmost point of the United States, in the Virgin Islands, and the westernmost point, in Guam, are both named 'Udall Point.' The Sun will never set on the legacy of Mo Udall." This was also noted in the Congressional Record
Congressional Record
The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. It is published by the United States Government Printing Office, and is issued daily when the United States Congress is in session. Indexes are issued approximately every two weeks...
by Rep. George Miller of California.
History
Point Udall was the site of an airfieldOrote Field
Orote Field is a former air base in Guam built by the United States Marine Corps and the United States Navy . It was captured by the Imperial Japanese Navy at the start of World War II and remained under Japanese control until the end of July 1944, when it was taken back by the USMC...
before and during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was built by the United States, later abandoned, and taken over by the Japanese during the first Battle of Guam
Battle of Guam (1941)
The First Battle of Guam, was an engagement during the Pacific War in World War II, and took place on 8 December 1941 on Guam in the Mariana Islands between the Empire of Japan and the United States...
on December 8, 1941, the day after the Attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
. During the second Battle of Guam, the airfield was attacked from the air and American troops established their beachhead
Beachhead
Beachhead is a military term used to describe the line created when a unit reaches a beach, and begins to defend that area of beach, while other reinforcements help out, until a unit large enough to begin advancing has arrived. It is sometimes used interchangeably with Bridgehead and Lodgement...
on either side of the Orote Peninsula on July 21 in order to cut the airfield. The airfield was captured by July 30.
Many sources still call it Orote Point, such as the US Military's Orote Point Lanes bowling alley.