Germany, Australia, Japan, the U.S., and Papua New Guinea colonized and settled Bougainville Island because of its resources and placement in the Southwest Pacific. The island is named after Louis de Bougainville, a Frenchman who documented the island in 1765. Before WWI, Germany claimed the island and missionaries spread Christianity. Australia removed Germany during WWI and moved islanders into larger settlements to simplify supervision and assimilation. Later during WWII, Japanese forces took the island. The U.S. Military quickly removed Japan from Bougainville Island in 1944 because it was a strategic outpost for U.S. forces to safely go after bombing Japan. Until then there was nowhere U.S. forces could land before running out of fuel.

After WWII, Australia again took control over Bougainville Island. In the 1960s, copper and gold was found on the island, sparking conflict between Bougainville residents and mining companies. Bougainville Island gained independence from Australia as part of Papua New Guinea in 1975, but was then denied its own independence. In 1988, civil war began between Bougainville Island and Papuan New Guinea when the Bougainville Revolutionary Army started forcing mines to close. Peace talks began in 1997, but did not fully resolve the tensions. 

Between November 23rd and December 7th of 2019, the island hosted the 2019 Bougainvillean Independence Referendum. The referendum questioned whether there should be greater autonomy within Papua New Guinea or full independence. The results were overwhelmingly for independence (98.31%). In 2021 leaders from Papua New Guinea and Bougainville Island agreed that Bougainville will gain full independence from Papua New Guinea by 2027 and become the world's newest nation.

A Timeline of Bougainville's Colonial History

  • 1886: German Colonial Administration begins
  • 1899: Bougainville Island is separated from the other Solomon Islands
  • 1902: Catholic Missionaries start arriving
  • 1914: WWI begins; Colonial Administration ends, and Australian occupation begins
  • 1920: Bougainville Island is placed under Australian Administration by the League of Nations
  • 1939: WWII begins
  • 1942: Japanese forces occupy Bougainville Island
  • 1944: U.S. Military takes Bougainville Island from Japan 
  • 1945: Bougainville Island joins the United Nations Trust Territory of New Guinea under Australia 
  • 1949: Conrad Bud Johnson arrives in Bougainville Island
  • 1960: Copper and gold are found in Bougainville Island
  • 1971: Copper mines open near Panguna 
  • 1975: Papua New Guinea gains independence from Australia, and Bougainville Island is denied independence from Papua New Guinea
  • 1976: Bougainville Island gains limited autonomy as a province of Papua New Guinea
  • 1988: The Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) forcefully closes the mines at Panguna because they are damaging the environment and not helping their communities; Papua New Guinea sends forces to disperse the BRA, starting the Bougainville Civil War
  • 1990: Papua New Guinea imposes a blockade on Bougainville Island; Bougainville Island declares independence again and establishes the Bougainville Interim Government
  • 1991: Papua New Guinea re-invades Bougainville Island
  • 1994: The Margini Charter is signed, which establishes the Bougainville Transitional Government under the watch of Papua New Guinea; the Bougainville Interim Government boycotts the charter meeting
  • 1997: The Papua New Guinea Prime Minister, Sir Julius Chan, resigns after it is revealed he hired mercenaries to put down the BRA; peace talks occur in New Zealand 
  • 2001: Bougainville Island and Papua New Guinea reach an agreement to start Bougainville Island down the road to independence 
  • 2019: Bougainvillean Independence Referendum, overwhelming vote for independence

"View of Cape Torokina with landing craft in foreground and Mt. Bagana Volcano erupting in background. Torokina Fighter Strip can be seen at the extreme right."
— Conrad 'Bud' Johnson (DMNS IV.2015.12-40.N)

"Wrecked Japanese airplane with Matupi Volcano in the background. September, 1949, CJ Johnson."
— Conrad 'Bud' Johnson (DMNS IV.2015.12-79.N) 

From the CU Collection

Adz. Pre A.D. 1949; Material: Iron, wood, fiber, plant. (07156)
This is an adz from Pidia Village, Bougainville Island. The adz’s blade is made of iron, which was introduced to the island by Germans. Before the widespread use of iron, another common material for adz blades was stone.

Bow and Arrow. Pre A.D. 1949; Material: Wood, bone, fiber, plant. (06813, 06817)
During Australian occupation of Bougainville Island the Australian administration was outlawing bows and arrows as a way of disarming and controlling the Islanders, who were being forcefully moved.

Bow detail.
 

Arrow detail.