Christmas Island (VK9X)
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Christmas Island (VK9X) |
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History
December 25, 1993 marked the 350th anniversary of the naming of Christmas Island by Captain William Mynors of the British East India Company ship Royal Mary. The crew of the Royal Mary sighted the island on Christmas Day 1643. An entry in Captain Mynors' log confirms that he named the island Christmas Iland. Australia Post commemorated this event with a $2 postage stamp issued on December 1, 1993. The first day of issue ceremony was held at Melbourne. However, the Royal Mary was not the first vessel to sight Christmas Island.
A number of sightings were recorded during the next 100 years or so, but the first significant visit to the island wasn’t made until the 1872-1876 Challenger oceanographic expedition. It was on this visit to the island that expedition naturalist John Murray (later Sir John Murray) predicted that Christmas Island should be a good site for phosphate deposits.
This began a period of struggle between Clunies-Ross and Murray over control of the island. Early in this period Murray requested the assistance of the Clunies-Ross family in landing his representative on the island, but Clunies-Ross couldn’t find the time. Murray’s representative was delayed for over two months, then returned to Batavia without ever landing on the island.
For the next two years Murray and Clunies-Ross competed for control of the island. Murray insisted that it was his discovery of phosphate on the island that had led to the annexation by Britain. Clunies-Ross claimed control based on his settlement on the island. Finally, in 1891 they negotiated a seven-year lease, which was later extended to a 99-year lease. Later in the year Sydney Clunies-Ross discovered large deposits of high-grade phosphate near Flying Fish Cove at a location later named Phosphate Hill. Four years later the first load of phosphate was shipped to England. During the next 90 years or so control of the phosphate mining operation passed to successive mining organizations. In 1897 the lease of the island was transferred to the Christmas Island Phosphate Company, which was owned by the Clunies-Ross and Murray families. In 1948 the governments of Australia and New Zealand purchased the lease and assets of the Christmas Island Phosphate Company and in 1949 formed the Christmas Island Phosphate Commission, which was managed by the British Phosphate Commission (BPC). BPC was the same organization that controlled the phosphate mining operations on Nauru and Banaba Islands. Administrative control of the island began in 1888 under the Straits Settlement (later named Singapore). During World War II the island was occupied by Japanese forces. In January 1958 the island became a British Crown Colony, then in October 1958 it became an Australian territory. The Christmas Island Assembly was elected in 1985 to handle local government on the island. Some control from the Australian mainland was imposed in later years, but a Shire Council handles local affairs. In 1948, when the assets of the Christmas Island Phosphate Company were purchased by the governments of Australia and New Zealand, the value of the island was based on 30 million tons of grade-A rock that could be mined. Ore shipments increased from 200,000 tons per year for the period following World War II to 750,000 tons during the mid-1960s, and to one million tons per year by 1968. Ore availability forecasts made during the 1970s projected the lifetime of the operation in decades rather than years. But by the mid-1980s it was readily apparent that grade-A ore would play out by the end of the decade. It was believed that phosphate deposits remained, but not of sufficient quality that was economical to produce. This coupled with the discovery of other phosphate deposits in Australia, rising labor costs and the government’s desire to save the island’s unique environment sounded the death knell for the island’s only industry. In 1987 the mines were closed, only to be reopened in 1990 by a local consortium, which is now operated by Phosphate Resources Ltd (trading as Christmas Island Phosphates). The new phosphate operation is mining phosphate from old stockpiles on the island. Phosphate ore was mined from several locations around the island. The remains of these open pit mines can be seen on aerial photos. A large area was mined at Southpoint and the ore was transported by rail cars to a processing facility at Drumsite. The processed ore was then transported by a covered conveyor belt from the pleateau down to a storage building at Flying Fish Cove. The ore was stored until an ore ship was available to transport the ore. By 1993 most of the rail line from Southpoint to Drumsite had been dismantled and removed. Geography
Christmas Island is located in the Indian Ocean between Australia and Indonesia, 225 miles (360 km) south of Java, 560 miles (900 km) from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, 870 miles (1400 km) from the nearest point on Australia and 1615 miles (2600 km) northwest of Perth, the originating point of the island’s regular air service. The Island is about 52 square miles (135 square km) in size, with almost two-thirds of the island being administered by Christmas Island national Park. Most of the island circled by steep limestone cliffs and coral reefs. The island rises out of the ocean with a series of cliffs and terraces. The first inland cliff, the island’s most conspicuous feature, encircles most of the island. This cliff varies in height from 245 feet to almost 650 feet (75 to 200 meters). At Flying Fish Cove, the island’s only anchorage, the inland terrace is absent and the first inland cliff rises to 650 feet. Click to view a map of the island. Rain forest covers three-quarters of the island even after almost 100 years of open pit phosphate mining. Christmas Island has fared much better than its sister islands of Nauru and Banaba, whose phosphate mining operations essentially ruined the surface of each island, leaving mostly bare, ugly rock. The island’s climate is tropical with mean daily temperatures ranging from 72 to 84 degrees Fahrenheit (22 to 29 degrees Centigrade). Most of the average rainfall of around 79 inches (2,000 mm) falls during the December and April wet season. People, economy, tourism, etc.
According to several sources, during the late-1980s business interests speculated that the island would lure tourists and become the site of gambling casinos to lure dollars from Asia’s rich. The gambling casino became reality in 1993, but it was short-lived. The Christmas Island resort continues to operate from a beautiful facility, but its gaming operation is temporarily closed. Improved tourist facilities and the offer of a beautiful tropical island has indeed lured tourists in increasing numbers. Throughout its early history, until the end of 1987, all human habitation and social infrastructure on the island was tightly linked to the phosphate mining industry. There is no record of any human settlement existing on the island prior to the Clunies-Ross settlement in 1888. Many of the former mine workers and their families remained on the island after 1987, but there were few jobs for them. The casino/resort brought many new jobs to the island in the early 1990s, but the majority of the new employees were not recruited from the island. In 2002 the Asia Pacific Space Centre (APSC) plans to began construction of a commercial space launch facility at South Point, with the first launch scheduled for 2004. This project should bring hundreds of construction and support jobs to the island. The Australian government slowly reduced its direct support of the island and some of the island’s facilities are now under the control of the private sector. In 1992, for the first time in the history of the island, private citizens were allowed to purchase land on the island and an auction of property took place in 1993. The Australian govenment continues to provide financial and other support for the island. At the beginning of 1992 there were 1300 people living on the island, the majority being former mine workers and their families. This is down from the 2,000 reported to be on the island in 1987 when the mine was operational. In 1993 the island’s population consisted of Malays, Chinese, Indians, Cocos-Malays, Eurasians and Australians. All of the inhabitants of the island live in The Settlement, in one of its "communities": Malay Kampong, Poon Saan, Taman Sweetland and Drumsite. These communties are located on the lower terrace and highland surrounding Flying Fish Cove on the island’s north point. It is interesting to note that many of the people and things that played a part in the history of the island are represented by place names: Murray Hill (the highest point on the island), Egeria Point, Flying Fish Cove and Phosphate Hill, but the name Clunies-Ross is conspicuously absent. All that remains of the original Clunies-Ross settlement is the name The Settlement. The island is served by commercial flights that originate in Perth and Jakarta. The majority of supplies are delivered by cargo vessels. Animal life
The island is the home of a large assortment of birds, reef life, the whale shark and 13 species of land crabs, including the world’s largest land crab, the robber crab (birgus latro), and the island’s red crab (gecarcoidea natalis). The red crab, with a population estimated in the millions (one source estimates 120 million!) is truly unique. The red crab’s annual migration to the ocean virtually becomes a moving red tide, moving from the rain forest down to the ocean, then returning to the rain forest during a period of several weeks during the wet season. For an excellent description of the red crab migration (including some superb photographs) see "Red Crabs of Christmas Island" by John W. Hicks in the December 1987 issue of National Geographic. The red crab has no economical value and is not edible, they do, however, keep the island clean of dead vegetation and animal matter. Hicks’ article suggests that millions of crabs die during the migration. The writer of this report learned first-hand that the roads can be covered by crushed crabs, whose hard shells can puncture tires. In 1992 an islander told this writer that the record number of tire punctures on a single car during a one-day period is fourteen! Until recently the red crab has not had a natural enemy, except for cars crushing them on the roads. However, beginning a few years ago a yellow ant (anoplolepis gracilipes) that has shared the rain forest with the red crab in harmony for many years began killing the red crabs, other animals and vegetation. It is estimated that several million red crabs have already fallen prey to the "yellow crazy ant," called "crazy" because of its frenetic, crazy-like behavior. It is believed that the ant was accidentally introduced to the island about fifty years ago. Red crab migration
An excerpt from Christmas Island--Naturally by Howard S. Gray describes the red crab migration of Christmas Island. Permission granted by the author. Towards the end of the dry season, the majority of the adult red crabs suddenly begin a spectacular migration down to the sea. The males appear to lead the migration, and soon in a mounting wave come scurrying down through the jungle…. As the horde advances they gather into 'streams', climbing blindly over obstacles, inch by inch down high cliff faces…. The first wave of the seaward migration, predominately males, arrives at the shore anytime from the beginning of November to mid-December…. Tired and dusty after many miles of travel from the top of the island, they wait for the cool of the evening before moving down to the water's edge. They pause for a few moments while a wave washes over them, then move back to the edge of the shore terrace…. The males then retreat to the shore terrace and tunnel into the soil, fighting over territory and burrows while waiting for the arrival of the females. The majority of the females … arrive about ten days after the first males, and as they pass over the shore terrace, are waylaid, and seized. Face to face, in a tangle of claws and legs, the males and females copulate. The males begin their way back to the center of the island. Females laden with spawn appear on the shoreline some three weeks after the males first arrived. By night they gather on the water's edge to detach the thousands of caviar-like eggs from under the broad tail flap…. The females then begin to make their way inland again. The larvae are thought to develop in inshore waters, especially where there is a fringing reef. After almost four weeks, the marine stage is almost complete and they appear in the pools close to the shore, with the form of a broadening little shrimp. One month after the s[awning the baby crabs crawl out onto the shore, tuck their tail under, and take on the adult appearance. Although only some half a centimeter across they begin the march inland. In favorable years the shoreline is a moving red carpet, as millions advance over the shore and obstacles or buildings in their path…. |
Today, there are no resident amateur radio operators on the island. The last resident operator, VK9XW, left the island in 1987. The island is activated sporadically by vacationing operators or an occasional DXpedition. With the opening of a technical center on the island, such as the Asia Pacific Space Centre, the possibility of a permanent amateur radio population is very likely.
Christmas Island Tourist Association web site. CITA has a nice collection of information about the island, including, history, accomodations, places to visit and other information for tourists.
http://www.christmas.net.au/
Christmas Island National Park web site:
http://www.EA.gov.au/parks/christmas/index.html
Christmas Island-An Explorer's Guide (book):
http://www.christmas.net.au/lone-island/
Christmas Island, Yellow crazy ants:
http://www.abc.net.au/nature/island/ep2/map/ants.htm
The Christmas Island Post Office sells post cards, stamps, phone cards and a selection of books: http://www.christmas.net.au/cipost/side.html
Images of Australian postage stamps used with permission of Australia Post.
Whale shark photo courtesy of Christmas Island Wet'n'Dry Adventures,
http://www.divingchristmas.com.cx/.
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Web page design by Bob Winn, W5KNE, VK9XN (e-mail)
Last revised March 1, 2003
There were several documented sightings of islands in the vicinity of Christmas Island between 1615 and 1618. A Dutch chart of 1618 shows the island, but it was identified with the name Moni. The first recorded landing on the island was not made until 70 years later by English navigator William Dampier aboard the British buccaneer vessel Cygnet. In March 1688. Two canoes went ashore from the Cygnet, but no anchorage was found.
