Palmyra, atoll (2 sq mi/5.2 sq km), central Pacific, one of the Line Islands, c.1,100 mi (1,770 km) SW of Honolulu. Palmyra has no permanent inhabitants. First visited by Americans in 1802, and later claimed by the Hawaiian kingdom (1862) and Great Britain (1889), it was annexed by the United States in 1898. Palmyra was under the jurisdiction of the city and county of Honolulu until Hawaii was granted statehood in 1959. The atoll is now under the control of the U.S. Dept. of the Interior.