Atantano Shrine ~ Piti, Guam Traditional Cache

This cache was placed as part of the 4^th annual “Put on Your Easter Bonnet” event held each Spring.  To attend, check geocaching.com for new Guam caches or join the Guam Geocachers’ Facebook page.

          Listed in the U.S. Register of Historic Places, the original small shrine was built in 1784 and 1785 by Piti villagers to honor the 18^th century Spanish Governor Felipe Cerain for his determination in constructing a road that connected the southern half of the island with the capital of Hagåtña.  Prior to this time, and after 1740, ships would anchor in Apra Harbor cargo would be transferred to small boats at a pier near the village of Piti.  From the village, bull or oxen carts then transported the items to the government store in Hagatña.

            The monument was built in at least three stages, the early stages acting as bases for the mounting of the later ones.  Panels on three sides carry inscriptions.  The oldest inscription marks the initial construction of the road between Piti and Agat under the governorship of Don Felipe Cerain in 1784-85.  The second inscription commemorates the creation of rice fields in the area under by Governor Don Francisco Villabos in 1832-34, and the third marks the reconstruction of the coast road during the governorship of Edward John Dorn in 1908-09.  Adopted by Guamanians, this type of marker was a fixture of the Spanish colonial administration.  The shrine was the site of annual festivities since before World War II.

            After the US Navy rebuilt the Piti-Agat road in 1908-09, the shrine was constructed to bless the road, and the swamp around it is known as “the Swamp of the Immaculate Virgin.”  Today, you can find the shrine on a narrow road in the jungle off Marine Corps Drive, near Sumay Grill.   The shrine today has a small shelter for those in the village who make the annual trek to honor the cross.  The family of Antonia Castro follows in her father’s role and help to maintain the area as the unofficial caretaker. Enjoy this bit of history and please help the unofficial caretakers by practicing CITO as you visit the area. And if you enjoyed this cache, please consider awarding it a Favorite Point.

Information found in PDN files, waymarking.com, wikimapia, and Guampedia.