Guam’s first petition to US Congress, written 17 December 1901, highlighted the excessive power of the naval governor and the lack of power among CHamorus, calling for a permanent government in Guåhan, rather than a military government. Subsequent petitions were submitted in 1917, 1925, 1929, 1933, 1936, 1947, 1949, and 1950. The first petition in 1901 contained 32 signatures; a petition in 1933 had collected nearly 2,000. Some of the petitions were claimed to have been “lost” in the files, were never answered, or were rejected due to heavy opposition from the US Navy.