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- For the trade conflict between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Serbia, see Pig War (Serbia)
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Overview
The Oregon Treaty of June 15, 1846 resolved the Oregon boundary dispute by dividing the Oregon Country between the United States and Britain "along the forty-ninth parallel of north latitude to the middle of the channel which separates the continent from Vancouver's Island, and thence southerly through the middle of the said channel, and of Juan de Fuca's Straits, to the Pacific Ocean."
However, there are actually two straits which could be called the middle of the channel: Haro Strait, along the west side of the San Juan Islands; and Rosario Strait, along the east side. Because of this ambiguity, both the United States and Britain claimed sovereignty over the San Juan Islands. In the meantime, Hudson's Bay Company, owned by the British, established operations on San Juan and turned the island into a sheep ranch, while American settlers also arrived.
Exactly thirteen years later, on June 15, 1859, the ambiguity led to direct conflict: Lyman Cutlar, an American farmer who had moved onto the island believing that he was entitled to live there under the Donation Land Claim Act of 1850, shot and killed a pig rooting in his garden. He had found the giant black boar eating his tubers while a man stood next to the fence laughing. Cutlar was so upset that he took aim and shot the pig. The mysterious man then ran away into the woods. It turns out that the pig was owned by an Irishman, Charles Griffin, who was employed by the Hudson's Bay Company to run the sheep ranch. He also owned several pigs which he allowed to roam freely. The two lived in peace until this incident. Cutlar offered $10 to Griffin to compensate for the pig, but Griffin was unsatisfied with this offer and demanded $100. Following this reply, Cutlar believed he shouldn't have to pay for the pig because the pig had been trespassing on his land. (A possibly apocryphal story claims Cutlar said to the farmer "Keep your pigs out of my potatoes!" The farmer replied, "Keep your potatoes out of my pigs!") When British authorities threatened to arrest Cutlar, American settlers called for military protection.
William S. Harney, commanding the Dept. of Oregon, initially dispatched 66 American soldiers of the 9th Infantry under the command of Captain George Pickett to San Juan Island with orders to prevent the British from landing. Concerned that a squatter population of Americans would begin to occupy San Juan Island if the Americans were not kept in check, the British sent three British warships under the command of Captain Geoffrey Hornby to counter the Americans. The situation continued to escalate. By September, 461 Americans with 14 cannons under Colonel Silas Casey, were opposed by three British warships mounting 70 guns and carrying 2,140 men. During this time, no shots were fired.
The governor of the Colony of Vancouver Island, James Douglas, ordered British Rear Admiral Robert L. Baynes to land marines on San Juan Island and engage the American soldiers under the command of Brigadier-General William Selby Harney. (Harney's forces had occupied the island since 27 July 1859.) Baynes refused, deciding that "two great nations in a war over a squabble about a pig" was foolish. Local commanding officers on both sides had been given essentially the same orders: defend yourselves, but absolutely do not fire the first shot. For several days, the British and U.S. soldiers exchanged insults, each side attempting to goad the others into firing the first shot, but discipline held on both sides, and thus no shots were fired.
In September, U.S. President James Buchanan sent General Winfield Scott to negotiate with James Douglas to resolve the growing crisis. This was in the best interest of the United States, as sectional tensions within the country was increasing, culminating in the Civil War. As a result of the negotiations, both sides agreed to retain joint military occupation of the island, reducing their presence to a token force. The "British Camp" was established on the north end of San Juan Island along the shoreline, for ease of supply and access; and the "American Camp" was created on the south end on a high, windswept meadow, suitable for artillery barrages against shipping. (Today the Union Jack still flies above the "British Camp", being raised and lowered daily by park rangers, making it one of the very few places without diplomatic status where US government employees regularly hoist the flag of another country.)
During the years of joint military occupation, the small British and American units on San Juan Island had a very amicable mutual social life, visiting one another's camps to celebrate their respective national holidays and holding various athletic competitions. Park rangers tell visitors the biggest threat to peace on the island during these years was "the large amounts of alcohol available."
This state of affairs continued for the next 12 years, when the matter was referred to Kaiser Wilhelm I of Germany. On October 21, 1872, a commission appointed by the Kaiser decided in favor of turning the San Juan Islands over to the United States.
The Pig War is commemorated in San Juan Island National Historical Park.
Trivia
- This conflict became the basis for an episode of the animated series Hey Arnold! titled "The Pig War".
See also
- Aroostook War, the "Northeastern Boundary Dispute"
- List of conflicts in Canada
External links
Canada and the United States | History of British Columbia | History of Washington | History of foreign relations of the United States | Military history of Canada | Territorial disputes of the United States | Pacific Northwest | Conflicts in Canada
"Pig War"