Navassa Island

Navassa Island is a small unoccupied Caribbean island belonging to the United States and (debatably) the Republic of Haiti spanning a little over two square miles.  Most of the terrain is made of limestone and coral and rather large cliffs about thirty to fifty feet in height.

The history of Navassa Island is intriguing in terms of its discovery and how it gained its name.  Christopher Columbus was stranded on the Caribbean island of Jamaica and sent a group of crewmembers off to seek help via canoe.  During this trip the crew came upon Navassa Island only to realize that it was a remote land mass with no water which led to its current name.  After this discovery, most seafarers ignored Navassa Island for over 300 years although some people did claim that pirates built small wooden houses there during this time, choosing to take advantage of the island’s remoteness.

It wasn’t until the eighteenth century that Captain Peter Duncan claimed Navassa Island for the United States which lead to the heavy mining of guano on the island for quite a few years until a rebellion in 1889 disrupted it for several years.  Despite protests by the nation of Haiti which claimed to have taken ownership first, Navassa Island remains under the control of the United States to this day.

Today Navassa Island remains largely uninhabited and is instead used for several scientific studies.  It was also quite popular for radio transmissions until revised entry restrictions turned away the majority of amateur radio operators.  An extraordinarily large variation of wildlife currently exists on the island, opening the doors to the creation of the Navassa Island National Wildlife Refuge in an effort to protect the elaborate coral reefs, abundant plant life and the varied Navassa Island menagerie like the large seabird colonies and rare lizard species.

Traveling near Navassa Island, you’ll notice the large 160+ foot lighthouse which was built in the early 1900s and is currently inactive.  While the island is not necessarily off limits to tourists, its delicate ecosystem and well preserved terrains and wildlife means anyone who wishes to visit the island must first obtain permission from the Fish and Wildlife Office in Boqueron, Puerto Rico before they can enter.

Navassa Island is slowly opening up its doors to allow Caribbean real estate opportunities and may soon allow small cottage development so its future as a remote Caribbean island may soon change although the U.S. will likely need to figure out how to balance the wildlife with human development.