Masausi, American Samoa

The village of Masausi is a locality in the Eastern District of American Samoa. Masausi is situated near the villages of Sa'ilele and Utuloa. The village is reached from a road in Faga’itua. An archeoligcal site known as AS-23-7 is located at Masausi. Along the coast, between the Vaipito and Panota Streams, Kirch and Hunt collected two artifacts. One was a butt of a roughly flaked, quadrangular adze.
The Community-Based Fisheries Program was established in 2000 to empower villages in American Samoa to develop and implement their own marine protection policies. This initiative encourages local stewardship of marine resources, with several villages, including Masausi collectively encompassed approximately 25% of the coral reef areas in American Samoa.

History

In the late 19th century, a chief from Masausi sought to marry a woman from Fagasā. When his proposal was turned down, he rallied a group of warriors from Masausi and launched an attack on Fagasā, burning down two traditional fales. The Commandant responded by capturing and prosecuting the attackers. As a consequence, those convicted were sentenced to work on road construction, and individuals holding government positions were removed from their offices.