Ofu County
county of Manu'a District, American Samoa
Ofu County is a county in the Manu'a District in American Samoa. It was the result of the subdivision of the prior Luanuu County in two, with the other newly created county being Olosega, first reported on the 1930 U.S. Census. It is now contiguous with its only village, Ofu.
Demographics
Ofu County was first recorded beginning with the 1930 U.S. Census. It had previously been within Luanuu County. Its population zenith was in 1960, with 605 residents. It has since experienced a dramatic population decline (as has the Manu'u District), losing over 2/3 of its population as of 2010.
History
In 1921, Governor Waldo A. Evans established a dispensary on Ofu to improve medical services for the Manuʻa Islands. The chosen site was Toaga, on the Ofu side of the lagoon that links Ofu and Olosega, as it offered convenient access to both islands. Once the facility opened, however, the district health officer discovered that locals avoided it.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Ofu County” as county of Manu'a District, American Samoa. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as county of Manu'a District, American Samoa. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Mar 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q3688471. Authority coordinates are -14.174, -169.667. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1930, 1960, 2010 and 1921.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Ofu County”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Ofu County primary sources, Ofu County archive and County research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ofu County”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Ofu County” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.