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Pitcairn Island

The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed. | 2011 | Copyright

Pitcairn Island volcanic island (2005 est. pop. 45), 2.5 sq mi (6.5 sq km), South Pacific, SE of Tuamotu Archipelago. Adamstown is the capital and only settlement. The first British Pacific Islands possession (1838), the island is officially administered by a governor (the British High Commissioner to New Zealand) as part of the overseas territory of Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie, and Oeno Islands (Pitcairn and three neighboring, uninhabited atolls). Under the 2010 constitution, executive and legislative powers reside with the governor, who must consult with the mayor and Island Council in making laws. Handicrafts, honey, and postage stamps along with tourism (developed in the 21st cent.) are the main source of income, and the remote island is dependent on British and European Union aid. Pitcairn has no port or natural harbor; goods must be ferried from ships anchored offshore.

The island was named in 1767 by Capt. Philip Carteret, a British naval officer, after Robert Pitcairn, the midshipman who first sighted it. It was colonized in 1790 by mutineers from the Bounty and Tahitian women, who discovered vestiges of previous Polynesian settlement. Their descendants, who speak an English dialect and are Seventh-day Adventists, still inhabit the island. In 1856 overpopulation caused the removal of the inhabitants, at their request, to Norfolk Island , but some soon returned to Pitcairn. In 1957 the remains of the Bounty were discovered off the southern end of the island.

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Pitcairn Island

Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names | 2005 | | Copyright

Pitcairn Island, UK An Overseas Territory of the UK consisting of the islands of Pitcairn (the only inhabited one), Ducie, Henderson, and Oeno. Pitcairn was discovered in 1767 and named after Midshipman Robert Pitcairn, who was the first sailor to see it from his crow's nest on HMS Swallow under the command of Captain (later Rear Admiral) Philip Carteret (d. 1796), one of the greatest explorers of his time. It was first settled by British mutineers from HMS Bounty in 1790.

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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Pitcairn Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Pitcairn Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-PitcairnIsland.html

JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "Pitcairn Island." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-PitcairnIsland.html

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Pitcairn Island

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Copyright

Pitcairn Island Volcanic island in the central s Pacific Ocean forming (together with the uninhabited islands of Henderson, Ducie and Oeno) a British crown colony. First sighted in 1767, mutineers from the British ship HMS Bounty settled Pitcairn in 1790. Some of their descendants still live on the island. The principal economic activity is the growing and exporting of fruit. Area: 4.6sq km (1.7sq mi). Pop. (1994) 56.

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Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Bounty Chords. Music, Dance and Cultural Heritage on Norfolk and Pitcairn... Magazine article from: Ethnologies; 3/22/2010
	An extra person born on Pitcairn Island. News Wire article from: PAC - Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association; 9/17/2003
	Pitcairn Island to benefit from improved communication links. News Wire article from: PAC - Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association; 5/2/2007