Town and agglomeration of towns (pop., 2000: 4,278) that form the capital of American Samoa .
Located on the shore of a deep inlet on the southern side of Tutuila Island in the South Pacific Ocean, it was selected in 1872 as the site of a U.S. Navy coaling station. An active naval base until 1951, it is now a regular port of call. Its airport, opened in 1964, has stimulated tourist traffic and modernization.