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logoSignificant Dates in the History of Hawai‘i

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1778 Captain James Cook and the crews of the HMS Resolution and HMS Discovery sight O‘ahu, Kaua‘i, and Ni‘ihau on January 18. Cook names his discovery the Sandwich Islands in honor of his patron, the Earl of Sandwich.
  Captain Cook leaves behind Hawai‘i’s first goats, a ram and two ewes, during a visit to Ni‘ihau February 2.
  Captain Cook returns November 26 and begins to chart the coasts of the islands of Hawai‘i and Maui.
1779 Captain Cook and his ships arrive at Kealakekua Bay on the Big Island on January 17.
  On February 14, Cook and four of his marines are killed ashore by Hawaiians.
1782 Kamehameha I begins his campaign to unify the islands.
1793 Hawai‘i’s first cattle—five cows, two with calf—are brought ashore at Kealakekua Bay from Captain George Vancouver’s ship on February 22.
1795 Kamehameha I conquers Maui, Lana‘i, Moloka‘i, and O‘ahu, in the battle of Nu‘uanu.
1796 Kamehameha I fails in his attempt to invade Kaua‘i.
1800 Aarona Keali‘iahonui, son of Kaumuali‘i, is born August 17. He was of very high Kaua‘i lineage and during his time was considered to be one of the handsomest of the ali‘i.
1803 The Lelia Byrd, commanded by Captain William Shaler, arrives June 21 bringing the first horses to Hawai‘i.
1808 Grace Kama‘iku‘i, a daughter of John Young and Ka‘o‘ana‘eha, is born September 8. She will later adopt her neice, the future Queen Emma.
1809 King Kaumualii of Kaua‘i visits O‘ahu to meet Kamehameha I and arrange the cession of his island.
1810 King Kaumualii cedes his island to Kamehameha I and the Hawaiian Islands are unified under a single leader.
1814 Kauikeaouli (Kamehameha III) is born at Keauhou, Kona. Because his birth date was uncertain, the Privy Council in 1845 decided it was to be March 17.
1816 Otto von Kotzebue, commanding the Russian Navy brig Rurik, visits Hawai‘i on November 21.
  Louis Choris, an artist aboard the Rurik, paints Kamehameha I from life on November 24.
1818 Ka‘oleioku dies February 9. He was the son of Kamehameha I and Kanekapolei and grandmother of Bernice Pauahi and Ruth Ke‘elikolani.
  Opukahai‘a (Henry Obookiah) dies in Connecticut February 17, inspiring Protestant missionaries to come to the Sandwich Islands.
  The Provincias Undias del Rio de lat Plata privateer La Argentina, Captain Hipólito Bouchard commanding, arrives August 18.
1819 Kamehameha I dies at Kamakahonu, Kailua-Kona, on May 8. On May 20, his son Liholiho is proclaimed Kamehameha II.
  Louis de Freycinet, commander of the the French corvette Uranie, and leader of an exploration and scientific expedition, visits Hawai‘i on August 8.
  The first whale ships, the Balena from New Bedford and the Equator of Newburyport, arrive in Hawaiian waters on September 29.
  Kamehameha II and his advisors order the destruction of heiaus and an end to the kapu system, thus overthrowing the traditional Hawaiian religion.
1820 The brig Thaddeus arrives at Kailua, Hawai‘i, on April 4, bringing the pioneer company of American missionaries from Boston. Among them are the first foreign women to settle in the Islands.
1821 Honolulu's first Christian house of worship is dedicated September 15 at the location of the present Kawaiaha‘o Church.
1822 The first Hawaiian language lesson, The Alphabet, is printed on the Mission Press January 7.
  Charles Reed Bishop, future husband of Princess Bernice Pauahi, is born in Glens Falls, New York, January 25.
1823 Keōpūolani, the queen mother, receives a Christian baptism (the first Hawaiian to be so baptized) on her deathbed and dies September 16. She is the first Hawaiian in Hawai‘i to be baptized in the Protestant faith.
  Kamehameha II and Queen Kamamalu sail for England aboard the English whale ship L'Aigle on November 27.
1824 Ke‘eaumoku II dies at Pakaka, Honolulu, March 22. He served as governor of Maui and governor of Kaua‘i at different times.
  Kaumuali‘i dies at Honolulu May 26 and is buried at Lahaina. He became ruler of Kaua‘i in 1794.
  Queen Kamāmalu dies in London on July 8, followed by Kamehameha II on July 14.
  High Chiefess Queen Kapi‘olani visits Kilauea and defies the goddess Pele by descending into the crater on December 13.
1825 The first sugar and coffee plantations are started in Mānoa Valley by John Wilkinson.
  George Anson, Lord Bryon, commanding the British Navy frigate Blonde, returns the bodies of Kamehameha II and Kamamalu May 3.
  Kauikeaouli, age eleven, is proclaimed king as Kamehameha III, under the regency of Ka‘ahumanu, on June 6.
  Queen Ka‘ahumanu, wife of Kamehameha I and queen regent for Kamehameha II and Kamehameha III, is baptized December 4, along with her cousin Kalanimōkū, his infant son Leleiōhoku (a grandson of Kamehameha I), her sister Pi‘ia, Deborah Kapule, and Gideon La‘anui.
1826 The U.S. schooner Dolphin, commanded by Lt. John Percival, arrives on January 16. It is the first American warship to visit Honolulu.
  George Humehume Kaumuali‘i dies May 3. He left Hawai‘i as a youth and returned with the pioneer company of American missionaries in 1820.
  Kahakuha‘akoi Wahinepio, a wife of Kamehameha I, dies May 26. She was a former governor of Maui.
  Kalanipauahi, mother of Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani, dies June 17 in Honolulu in an epidemic.
  The U.S. sloop of war Peacock, commanded by Captain Thomas ap Catesby Jones, arrives in Honolulu Harbor on October 21.
  Hawai‘i's first general tax law is enacted on December 21 to provide revenue for shipbuilding and other development.
1827 Kalanimoku, the prime minister under Kamehameha I, II, and III, dies in Kailua-Kona February 8.
  Catholic missionaries arrive in Hawai‘i aboard the ship Comet on July 7. The first Catholic mass of record in Hawai‘i is celebrated July 14 in Honolulu. The first Catholic baptism in Hawai‘i takes place on November 30.
  The chiefs agree December 7 on five laws, or kanawai, prohibiting murder, theft, rum selling, prostitution, and gambling.
  On December 8, British consul Richard Charlton and a merchants’ group in Honolulu use their influence to get the chiefs to change their December 7 decision, postponing the effective date of the laws against murder, theft, and adultery for three months and putting off adoption of laws against rum selling, prostitution, and gambling to a later date.
  A meeting is held December 14 marking the beginning of formal legislation in the kingdom of Hawai‘i. All chiefs are present and enact prohibitions against killing, committing adultery, and stealing.
1828 A Catholic chapel is opened at Honolulu during January.
1829 Boki, governor of O‘ahu, departs December 2 on a sandalwood expedition to the South Pacific with two ships and nearly six hundred people. One ship returns in August 1830 with only twelve natives and eight foreigners on board. More than four hundred men perished, including Boki.
1830 Mexican and California cowboys arrive on the Big Island to teach Hawaiians the cattle business.
  Lot Kamehameha, Kamehameha V, is born December 11. He is the son of Kekūanaō‘a and Kīna‘u.
1831 Mission Seminary at Lahainaluna, Maui, begins instruction September 5.
  Bernice Pauahi is born December 19. She marries Charles Reed Bishop on June 4, 1850.
  Naihe-Haiha, known as the Orator of the Nation and one of Kamehameha’s chief counselors, dies at Ka‘awaloa, Kona, December 29. He was married to high chiefess Kapi‘olani.
1832 Queen Ka‘ahumanu dies at home in Mānoa Valley on June 5. She was instrumental in the fall of the kapu system and the adoption of the Christian religion.
1834 Alexander Liholiho (Kamehameha IV) is born February 9.
  The first newspaper in the Hawaiian language, Ka Lama Hawaii, is run off the Lahainaluna Seminary press on February 13.
  Hawai‘i’s first community theater, Oahu Amateur Theatre, has its first performance March 5.
  Kapi‘olani, future wife of King Kalākaua, is born in Hilo December 31.
1835 William Lunalilo is born January 31. He later reigns as king of Hawai‘i for thirteen months in 1873 and 1874.
1836 Emma Na‘ea is born January 2. She later becomes Queen Emma, wife of Kamehameha IV.
  Hawai‘i’s first English-language newspaper, the Sandwich Island Gazette, is published in Honolulu July 30.
  Kalākaua, who later becomes king, is born near the base of Punchbowl, O‘ahu, November 16.
  A treaty is negotiated between Great Britain and the Sandwich Islands on November 16.
  Nāhi‘ena‘ena, daughter of Keōpūolani and Kamehameha I, dies at Honolulu December 30.
1837 The first public streets are laid out in Honolulu.
1838 Lydia Kamaka‘eha, later Queen Lili‘uokalani, the last reigning monarch of Hawai‘i, is born September 2.
1839 Kina‘u (Elizabeth Kaho‘anoku Kina‘u), kuhina nui of Hawai‘i, dies in Honolulu April 4.
  Kaikio‘ewa, a companion of Kamehameha I and a governor of Kaua‘i, dies at Honolulu April 10.
  Printing of the first edition of the Hawaiian Bible is completed on May 10.
  Kamehameha III  proclaims a Declaration of Religious Rights on June 7.
1840 Catholic missionaries Louis Maigret, Bishop Rouchouze, and two other priests arrive in Honolulu on the Clementine May 15 and are allowed to stay and work.
  The weekly newspaper Polynesian is established June 6 and continues to publish until December 11, 1841.
  U.S. Exploring. Expedition, with Commodore Charles Wilkes commanding the U.S. sloop of war Vincennes, arrives in Hawai‘i on September 23.
  Kamehameha III proclaims the first constitution of Hawai‘i on October 8.
1842 Joseph Kaho‘oluhi Nawahi is born January 13. He becomes a well-known artist, legislator, and one of Queen Lili‘uokalani’s principal advisors during the last months of the monarchy.
  An English-language school for missionary children is established July 11. It is known today as Punahou School.
  The United States recognizes the Kingdom of Hawai‘i on December 19.
1843 Lord George Paulet, commanding the British frigate Carysfort, arrives on February 10 and demands provisional cession of Hawai‘i to Great Britain.
  Lord Paulet on February 15 orders the Hawaiian flag lowered and the British flag raised over Hawai‘i.
  Admiral Richard Thomas, commanding H.M.S. flagship Dublin, arrives on July 26. He rescinds the cession under Paulet and restores sovereignty to the Islands.
  Kamehameha II, in his restoration day speech, recites a phrase that becomes Hawaii's national motto: Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono ("The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness").
  England and France recognize the independence of the Sandwich Islands on November 28.
1844 The weekly newspaper Polynesian, having been reestablished in May, becomes the “Official Journal of the Hawaian Government” on July 14 and runs until February 6, 1864.
  Kuakini, governor of Hawai‘i from 1820 to 1844, dies at Hulihe‘e, Kona, December 9 at age fifty-three. He was called John Adams by foreigners after the U.S. president in office when Kuakini was a child.
1845 Hawai‘i’s first commercial photographer, Theophilus Metcalf, begins making daguerreotypes May 17.
  Kekāuluohi, also known as Auhea, dies of influenza at Pohukaina June 7. Kamehameha I selected her as a repository of ancient genealogies, legends, songs, and proverbs. Her son, William Charles Lunalilo becomes king in 1873.
1846 The first steam vessel to come to Hawai‘i, the British side-wheel steamer Cormorant, arrives May 22.
  Whaleship visits to Hawai‘i peak with 596 arrivals. Of these, 429 ships anchor off Lahaina and the rest in Honolulu Harbor.
1847 The Thespian Theatre, the first regular theater in Hawai‘i, opens September 11 with a melodrama and a farce.
1848 The land division known as the Great Mahele begins January 27 and continues through March 7, dividing Hawai‘i's lands among the king and chiefs.
  An epidemic of measles, whooping cough, and influenza takes the lives of about 10,000 people. Most of the victims are native Hawaiians.
  The twelfth (and last) company of American Congregationalist missionaries arrives aboard the Samoser on February 26.
1849 Dr. G.P. Judd, Alexander Liholiho, and Lot Kamehameha depart September 11 on a tour of the United States and Europe on a mission to improve international relations.
  Commoners are given the right to claim lands.
1850 The Privy Council approves the first park in the Islands January 22. It is named Thomas Square in honor of British Admiral Richard Thomas, who ended the five-month rule of Lord Paulet in 1843, restoring Hawaiian rule.
  The legislature authorizes a contract labor system to recruit foreign workers for Hawai‘i's plantations June 21.
  The first shipment of ice arrives in Hawai‘i from Boston via San Francisco on September 14.
  The first volunteer fire brigade is organized November 6 under Chief Engineer William Parke.
  The first permanent Mormon missionaries to Hawai‘i arrive on December 12.
1851 The Honolulu Fire Department is established January 11.
  Kamehameha III signs a secret agreement on February 1 that places the islands under the protection of the United States.
1852 The first Chinese contract laborers arrive from Amoy, Fukien, China, aboard the Thetis on January 3.
  A new constitution is promulgated by Kamehameha III on June 14, replacing the 1840 version..
1853 A smallpox epidemic lasts eight months and takes 5,000–6,000 lives.
1854 Kamehameha III dies on December 15 after thirty years on the throne and is succeeded by Alexander Liholiho, Kamehameha IV.
  The Pacific Commercial Advertiser newspaper, at first a weekly and later a daily, is established.
1855 Abner Pākī, prominent chief and father of Bernice Pauahi Bishop, dies June 13 at the age of forty-seven.
  Lava from a great eruption of Mauna Loa threatens Hilo August 11.
1856 King Kamehameha IV marries Emma Rooke at Kawaiaha‘o Church June 19.
  The Pacific Commercial Advertiser begins publication July 2.
1857 William Little Lee, former chief justice of Hawai‘i, dies at Honolulu May 28.
  On June 12, a marine telegraph, a semaphore system erected at Diamond Head, sends signals to the downtown post office for the first time when a ship is sighted.
  Laura Kanaholo Konia, a granddaughter of Kamehameha I, dies July 2 at age fifty. Her heir is her daughter, Bernice Pauahi.
1858 Prince Albert Edward Kauikeaouli, son of King Kamehameha IV and Queen Emma, is born May 20.
1859 Mauna Loa erupts Janauary 23, with fountaining reported as high as 500 feet.
  Gas lighting is introduced to Honolulu October 26. Gas is turned on, lighting the Seamen’s Bethel, the Odd Fellows Hall, newspaper offices, principal hotels, major intersections, and numerous private dwellings.
1860 The cornerstone of Queen's Hospital is laid July 17.
  The steamer Kilauea makes its first regular interisland run July 18.
1861 Honolulu’s first opera is performed by a local amateur group at the Royal Hawaiian Theatre March 8.
  Walter Murray Gibson arrives July 4. He plays a leading role in politics under King Kalākaua.
  The weekly newspaper Ka Hoku O Ka Pakipika, Star of the Pacific, debuts September 26. It is the first Hawaiian-language newspaper published by native Hawaiians.
1863 Alexander Liholiho, Kamehameha IV, dies of asthma at age twenty-nine on November 30 and is succeeded by Lot Kamehameha, his older brother, who becomes Kamehameha V.
1864 Kamehameha V on August 20 decrees a new constitution that is meant to strengthen his rule.
1866 The first leprosy patients are taken to Kalawao on Moloka‘i’s Kalaupapa peninsula January 6.
  Samuel L. Clemens (Mark Twain) arrives in the Islands March 18 as a roving correspondent for a California newspaper.
  Princess Victoria Kamāmalu, a granddaughter of Kamehameha, dies at her residence in Honolulu May 29 after a lengthy illness at the age of twenty-eight.
  Grace Kama‘iku‘i Rooke, daughter of John Young and Ka‘o‘ana‘eha and adoptive mother of Emma Na‘ea, dies July 25 at age fifty-seven.
  The first daily newspaper, the Hawaiian Herald, begins publication September 4.
1867 The cornerstone of the Anglican cathedral, St. Andrew’s, is laid in Honolulu March 5.
1868 Mauna Loa erupts on April 2, causing severe local tsunamis that destroy shoreline villages in Ka‘u, taking many lives.
  The first Japanese contract laborers arrive on June 24.
  Kekūanaō‘a dies November 24 at age seventy-seven. He was the father of Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani, King Kamehameha IV, King Kamehameha V, and Princess Victoria Kamāmalu.
1870 John Papa I‘i dies May 2 at the age of sixty-nine. He was a chiefly Hawaiian intellectual, holding many positions of importance.
  Queen Kalama dies September 20 at age fifty-three. She is a descendant of the Moana family, which served the ali‘i nui of Hawai‘i Island from the time of Kalani‘ōpu‘u. She married Kamehameha III in February 1837.
  Ice cream is sold commercially in Hawai‘i for the first time at the Criterion Coffee Saloon.
1871 Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalaniana‘ole Pi‘ikoi is born at Kōloa, Kaua‘i, March 26. Elected in 1902, he served twenty years as Hawai‘i delegate to the U.S. Congress.
  A holiday in the memory of Kamehameha I is proclaimed June 11 by his grandson, Kamehameha V.
  Roller skating comes to Hawai‘i July 22. Williams and Wallace open the Honolulu Skating Rink in Buffum’s Hall on Hotel Street.
1872 The cornerstone of Aliiolani Hale is laid on March 20.
  Henry Berger arrives from Germany on June 11 to conduct the Royal Hawaiian Band. He holds this post for forty-three years.
  An electric telegraph is in operation in downtown Honolulu October 19.
  Kamehameha V dies on December 11.
1873 William Lunalilo is elected king by the legislature January 8 after sweeping a popular plebiscite and takes the oath as king in a ceremony at Kawaiaha‘o Church January 9.
  Father Damien is sent to Kalaupapa Peninsula on Molokai to work with the leprosy patients.
1874 King Lunalilo dies of tuberculosis at age forty on February 3.
  David Kalākaua is elected king on February 12 by the legislature. After the election, rioting takes place at the courthouse, led by disappointed supporters of the dowager Queen Emma.
  King Kalākaua and his party depart for San Francisco aboard the steamer Benicia on November 17 for a goodwill tour of the United States.
1875 A reciprocity treaty is signed on January 30, allowing sugar and other products to enter the United States without customs duties.
  Princess Victoria Ka‘iulani is born October 16. She is the daughter of A.S. Cleghorn and Princess Miriam Likelike.
1876 The U.S. Senate ratifies the Reciprocity Treaty on August 15, allowing sugar and other products to enter the United States from Hawai‘i without customs duties.
1877 Prince Leleiohoku, heir to the throne, dies on April 19. Princess Lili‘uokalani is proclaimed heir.
  Kapi‘olani Park opens June 11.
  C.H. Dickey establishes the first commercial telegraph system in Hawai‘i, connecting two of his stores on Maui, September 1.
1878 A charter is granted to C.H. Dickey and C.H. Wallace for the Hawaiian Telegraph Company January 12.
  Portuguese contract laborers arrive from the Medeira Islands on September 30.
1879 The first artesian wells are drilled July 1 by James Campbell on the ‘Ewa plain, providing irrigation for fields.
  The Kahului-Wailuku Railroad, running from Kahului to Pā‘ia, opens on July 20. This is the first common rail carrier in Hawai‘i.
  The cornerstone of ‘Iolani Palace is laid under Masonic auspices on December 31.
1880 The Hawaiian Bell Telephone Company is incorporated December 30.
1881 Charles Harris, chief justice of the Supreme Court of Hawai‘i and chancellor of the kingdom, dies July 2.
  An eruption of Mauna Loa in November threatens Hilo August 9. Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani asks the gods to spare the town and the lava flow stops.
1882 The Pacific Commercial Advertiser, a weekly newspaper, becomes a daily May 1.
  The construction of ‘Iolani Palace, at a cost of $350,000, is completed December 27.
1883 King Kalākaua and his queen, Kapi‘olani, hold a coronation ceremony in front of ‘Iolani Palace to mark the ninth year of his reign.
  The statue of Kamehameha I is unveiled on February 14 in front of Ali‘iolani Hale.
  Princess Ruth Ke‘elikolani dies May 24 at the age of fifty-seven. She was a great-granddaughter of Kamehameha I.
  Mother Marianne and six sisters of St. Francis arrive in Hawai‘i November 8 to care for those afflicted with Hansen‘s disease.
1884 Princess Kekaulike, governess for the Big Island and sister of Queen Kapi‘olani, dies January 8 at the age of forty.
  Smooth Cayenne pineapple plants are introduced from Madeira June 13.
  Bernice Pauahi Bishop dies in Honolulu October 16.
1885 The Rev. Samuel C. Damon, pastor andchaplain of Bethel Churce for more than forty years, dies February 7 at the age of sixty-nine.
  Dowager Queen Emma dies April 25 at age forty-nine.
1886 ‘Iolani Palace Square is illuminated by electric lights July 21. Two years later, electric street lighting replaces gas lamps in Honolulu.
1887 King Kalākaua is forced by the Hawaiian League, a group favoring a more liberalized constitution, to sign the "bayonet constitution" on July 6.
1888 Walter Murray Gibson, former premier of the kingdom of Hawai'i, dies January 21 in San Francisco.
  Kaumakapili Church is dedicated June 10.
  Hawaiian Tramways, Ltd., starts a mule-car service in Honolulu December 28. It is taken over in November 1900 by the Honolulu Rapid Transit & Land Company.
1889 The yacht Casco arrives January 24 with Robert Louis Stevenson and family aboard.
  Robert Wilcox leads a brief and unsuccessful revolt against the Reform Government on July 30. Seven rebels are killed and a dozen more are wounded.
  Father Damien dies of leprosy on April 15.
  Oahu Railway & Land’s first train runs September 4.
1890 A committee formed by Oahu Railway & Land Co., on May 16, unanimously selects the name Pearl City for "the town recently laid out at ‘Ewa."
  King Kalākaua departs on the U.S.S. Charleston for San Francisco on November 25.
1891 King Kalākaua dies in San Francisco on January 20, and his body is brought back to Hawai‘i aboard the U.S.S. Charleston.
  Lili‘uokalani is proclaimed queen on January 29.
  The funeral for Kalakaua is held at ‘Iolani Palace February 15.
  Queen Lili‘uokalani names Princess Ka‘iulani her heir to the throne of Hawai‘i March 9.
  Queen Lili‘uokalani visits the Hansen's Disease settlement at Kalaupapa April 26.
  Jared J. Smith, M.D., of Koloa is awarded a patent September 29 for his new and useful improvement in bed-pans.
1892 The Hawaiian Historical Society holds its first official meeting January 11. Charles R. Bishop is chosen as the Society’s first president.
  Alexander Joy Cartwright, credited as the inventor of baseball, dies July 12 at his residence in Waikiki at the age of seventy-three.
1893 Queen Lili‘uokalani attempts on January 14 to proclaim a new constitution, restoring to the throne powers that were deleted in the constitution of 1887.
  Queen Lili‘uokalani is deposed on January 17; a provisional government is established under Sanford B. Dole.
  The ‘Iolani Palace custodian turns over the crowns worn by King Kalakaua and Queen Kapi‘olani to the government April 3. The jewels from the king's crown are discovered to be missing.
1894 The Republic of Hawai‘i is established on July 4. Sanford B. Dole becomes president of the republic.
1895 Robert Wilcox fails in his attempt to lead a revolt to restore the monarchy.
  Queen Lili‘uokalani abdicates the throne on January 24 and pledges allegiance to the republic.
  The Music Hall, Honolulu's only theater, is destroyed by fire February 12.
1897 Silent movies are shown for the first time in Hawai‘i at the Hawaiian Opera House on February 5. Seven brief scenes are screened using Edison's Veriscope.
1898 Spain declares war on the United States on April 24, and the U.S. Congress responds in kind on April 25. Troops are temporarily stationed at Camp McKinley near Diamond Head.
  The first motion picture filmed in Hawai‘i is shot May 10 by Edison photographers on their way through Honolulu.
  Theo. H. Davies dies in England May 25.
  President McKinley signs a joint resolution of Congress on July 7 that annexes Hawai‘i to the United States.
  Hawai‘i's sovereignty is transferred to the United States on August 12.
1899 Princess Ka‘iulani dies at the age of twenty-three on March 6.
  The new Princess Ka‘iulani School, reported to be the finest public school building in the Islands, opens April 22.
  Artist Jules Tavernier dies in Honolulu May 18.
  The Board of Education abolishes fees for attending public schools in the Hawaiian Islands May 18.
  Queen Kapi‘olani, the granddaughter of Kaumuali‘i, the last king of Kaua‘i, dies at her Waikiki home June 24 at the age of sixty-four.
  The new fire station on the Makiki Plain is occupied for the first time August 1.
  The first cars appear on the streets of Honolulu October 8 when Henry P. Baldwin and Edward D. Tenney take possession of their new automobiles.
  An epidemic of bubonic plague breaks out in Honolulu with the first death on December 12.
1900 On January 20 a fire intended to rid Chinatown of the bubonic plague flames out of control and destroys 38 acres of buildings.
  James Campbell, retired sugar planter and a major Island landowner, dies April 21 at the age of seventy-four.
  President McKinley signs the Organic Act on April 30, making Hawai‘i a territory of the United States.
  The U.S. Senate confirms the appointment of Sanford B. Dole as governor of Hawai‘i May 9.
  Albert F. Judd, chief justice of Hawai‘i, dies May 20.
  Sanford B. Dole is inaugurated as the first governor of the Territory of Hawai‘i on June 14.
  The first wireless telegraph messages are sent in Hawai‘i June 16.
1901 The Territory of Hawai‘i's first legislature is convened February 20 in Honolulu.
  The Moana Hotel opens March 11.
1902 St. Andrew's Cathedral is consecrated March 9.
  The cable ship Silverton links the telegraph cable from San Francisco to Sans Souci beach at Waikīkī December 28.
1903 The first message to be telegraphed from Hawai‘i to the U.S. mainland is sent January 1.
  The Gaelic arrives at midnight January 12 with the first group of Koreans to arrive to work on the sugar plantations.
  Prince Albert Kunuiakea, the last of the Kamehameha heirs to Hawai‘i’s throne, dies March 10.
  The Honolulu Symphony Orchestra performs its first concert May 2.
  The Order of Kamehameha is founded May 13.
  George R. Carter, secretary of the territory, is appointed the territory's second governor on November 23.
1904 County government is is formally inaugurated in the six counties of Hawai‘i January 4.
  The Waikiki Aquarium opens March 19. It is the third oldest aquarium in the United States.
1905 The Board of Archives of the Territory of Hawai‘i is formed May 11.
  Gas for household fuel is manufactured in Honolulu for the first time May 14.
  The first-ever O‘ahu county election is held June 20, choosing, among others, a sheriff, county clerk, county auditor, county attorney, and county treasurer.
  Honolulu's new immigration station, built on the mud flats at Kaka‘ako, is dedicated July 3.
1906 A roller skating rink opens at the corner of Queen and Fort streets March 3.
1907 Mauna Loa erupts January 9, eventually sending lava toward Kona.
  The Oahu Country Club formally opens April 27.
  Fort Shafter, headquarters for the army, becomes the first permanent military post in the territory.
  The College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts (today the University of Hawai‘i) begins with twelve faculty members and five students.
1908 The cornerstone for McKinley High School is laid March 5.
  The U.S. House passes a bill April 6 providing for the creation of a naval base at Pearl Harbor at a cost of $2 million.
  The U.S. Congress approves $3.1 million for a naval station at Pearl Harbor on May 13.
  Prince David Kawananakoa, heir presumptive to the throne of Hawai‘i dies in San Francisco June 2.
1909 Municipal government of the City and County of Honolulu is inaugurated with J. J. Fern as its first mayor.
  Schofield Barracks is established.
1910 The Orpheum Theater, which pioneered popular-priced theatricals in Honolulu, is destroyed by fire April 28.
  The Bishop Museum's trustees, on May 19, abolish the rule that men must remove their hats when visiting the museum.
  The first airplance flight in Hawai‘i is made December 31 by J.C. “Bud” Mars.
1911 The first Chinese public school in Hawai‘i, the Mun Lun School, opens in Honolulu February 5.
  The first airplane crash in Hawai‘i occurs June 10 when pilot Clarence H. Walker hits a hala tree while landing at Hilo.
  The new Kaumakapili Church is dedicated June 25.
1912 Duke Kahanamoku wins a gold medal in the 100-meter swim at the Olympic Games in Stockholm, Sweden, March 2.
  Former Queen Lili‘uokalani helps lay the cornerstone for the Lili‘uokalani School in Kaimuki April 12.
  The only ship in the Hawaiian navy, the Kaimiloa, is beached at Pearl Harbor and burned May 21.
  David Dwight Baldwin, described as "the father of English education in Hawai‘i," dies June 16 at the age of eighty.
1913 The Library of Hawai‘i, the first public library in Hawai‘i, opens in downtown Honolulu February 1. The first books are checked out of the new library February 6.
  Duke Kahanamoku breaks world swimming records in 75-yard and 100-yard races July 5.
1915 The U.S. submarine Skate, with twenty-one crew members on board, explodes and sinks a mile off Honolulu Harbor March 25. This is the first major submarine disaster in U.S. naval history.
  A Congressional party tours Kilauea May 11 and says it favors creating a national park there.
  Charles Reed Bishop dies in San Francisco June 7 at the age of ninety-three.
  Kahuku is the relay point July 27 for the first wireless messages exchanged between Japan and the United States. The message originated in Tokyo and was sent to New York.
  Talking pictures are shown for the first time in Hawai‘i at the Bijou in Honolulu on August 5.
1916 Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park is signed into existence August 1 by President Woodrow Wilson.
1917 Former Queen Lili‘uokalani dies at Washington Place November 11, and a state funeral is held November 18.
1918 Major Harold M. Clark of the Fort Kamehameha Aero Squadron makes the first interisland flight March 15, flying from O‘ahu to Moloka‘i and back.
  The Hawai‘i National Guard is mobilized on June 1 to protect the Islands after most members of the regular army are dispatched to France.
1919 The Pearl Harbor drydock is formally dedicated by U.S. Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels on August 21.
1920 The Prince of Wales, traveling on the battle cruiser Renown, visits Honolulu for a day on April 13.
1921 The new observation and parlor car makes its first run on the Oahu Railway & Land Co. Honolulu-Hale‘iwa route March 6. The trip takes two and a half hours.
  Reclamation of Waikiki swamplands begins.
  President Harding signs the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act July 9.
  ‘Āinahau, the former home of Princess Likelike and her daughter, Princess Ka‘iulani, is destroyed by fire August 2.
1922 Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana‘ole, last titular prince of the monarchy and a delegate to the U.S. Congress, dies at Waikiki on January 7.
  KGU begins commerical radio service in Hawai‘i May 11.
  Manuel Nunes, credited with inventing the ‘ukulele in 1879, dies July 9 at the age of seventy-nine.
  The Hawaii Theatre, built by the Consolidated Amusement Company, opens September 6.
  Washington Place, former home of Queen Liliuokalani, opens as the official residence of Hawai‘i's governors.
1923 Hawaii's legislature passes a "Bill of Rights" addressed to the U.S. Congress. The bill asks for higher appropriations of federal funds on grounds that the territory, while not a state, is still an integral part of the country.
1924 The U.S. Congress passes Hawaii's "Bill of Rights."
  Pablo Manlapit leads an eight-month strike of plantation workers on Kaua‘i.
  Samuel Mills Damon dies July 1 at the age of seventy-nine at his home in Moanalua Gardens.
1926 Two Army amphibious airplanes make the first complete interislandflight and set a flight record from Hilo to Pearl Harbor March 4.
  The cornerstone for St. Francis Hospital in Liliha is laid April 18.
  Photographer James J.Williams dies April 19 when he is hit by a streetcar while crossing Hotel Street.
  Bishop Estate announces on May 21 plans for a $2.5 million Kamehameha Schools campus.
  Sanford B. Dole, first president of the Republic of Hawai‘i and first governor of the Territory of Hawai‘i, dies on June 9.
1927 The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, built at a cost of $4 million, opens February 1.
  The first commercial flying trip around the island of O'ahu is made February 18 in a Lewis Tour plane.
  The John Rodgers Airport (now Honolulu International Airport) is dedicated March 21.
  St. Francis Hospital is dedicated in Liliha May 8.
  The first successful nonstop air flight from the mainland, Oakland to Hawai‘i (Wheeler Field), is flown June 28–29 by two U.S. Army officers in a tri-motored Fokker monoplane named "Bird of Paradise."
  Pilots Ernie Smith and Emory Bronte become the first civilians to fly to from Oakland to Hawai‘i, crash landing on Moloka‘i July 15.
1928 The first chain grocery store in Hawai‘i, Oakland-based Piggly Wiggly, opens in Honolulu February 4.
  May 1 is designated Lei Day in Hawai‘i.
1929 The new Pawaa Theater opens January 5 at the corner of King and Punahou streets with a showing of "Telling the World."
  Lawrence Judd is appointed governor of Hawai‘i on April 23, succeeding Wallace Farrington. He is inugurated July 5.
1930 The first interisland telephone call is placed between Hilo and Honolulu February 10.
  The Lasco liner City of Honolulu burns in Honolulu Harbor May 25. Thirteen people are injured.
  The Kolekole Pass road opens July 3.
1931 The new Kapi‘olani Boulevard from Ward to Sheridan is opened to traffic March 7.
1932 Princess Elizabeth Kalaniana'ole dies February 19 at the age of sixty-three.
  Camp Erdman is dedicated February 20; it is named in memory of a young polo player, Harold Erdman.
1934 Hawai‘i’s first recorded bank robbery takes place at the Pa‘ia Branch of Bank of Hawai‘i on February 3. The robbers get away with $976 but are apprehended a few hours later.
  Joseph B. Poindexter becomes the eighth governor of the Territory of Hawai‘i in a ceremony at ‘Iolani Palace March 1.
  President Franklin D. Roosevelt arrives at Kailua-Kona July 25, the first U.S. president to visit Hawai‘i. On July 27, he visits Honolulu and dedicates Ala Moana Park. The portal is named Roosevelt Gate in his honor. Roosevelt plants a tree at ‘Iolani Palace July 28 before leaving Hawai‘i.
1935 The Haleakala Highway is dedicated and opened to the public February 23.
  Governor Joseph B. Poindexter signs the Sunday bill April 16, allowing the sale of food and other commodities on Sundays.
  Pan American Airways Clipper flies from Alameda, California, to Honolulu on April 16–17.
  Shirley Temple arrives in Honolulu aboard the Lurline July 29. From dockside, she sings “On the Good Ship Lollipop.”
1936 The first traffic light in Honolulu, an overhead signal, is installed at the intersection of Nu‘uanu Avenue and Beretania Street February 19.
1937 The Kodak Hula Show offically begins March 7.
1938 Eighteen U.S. Navy bombers land at Pearl Harbor January 19 in what was called the greatest mass flight in the history of aviation. They set a distance record of 2,631 miles in 20 hours and 30 minutes.
1940 Historic Volcano House, overlooking Kilauea Crater, is destroyed by fire on February 6.
  The first territory-wide blackout drill puts all of Hawai‘i in the dark for twelve minutes on May 23.
1941 The Mabel Smyth Memorial building is dedicated January 4, honoring the "Florence Nightingale" of Hawai‘i.
  The new naval air station at Kane‘ohe Bay is commissioned February 15.
  Japanese planes attack the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor on December 7. The U.S.S. Arizona and other ships are sunk. More than 2,500 lives are lost.
  Army Lt. Gen. Walter C. Short assumes control from Governor Joseph B. Poindexter and becomes military governor of Hawai‘i. He declares martial law.
1942 The goverment begins issuing gas masks to civilians in Hawai'i January 21.
  A ban on liquor sales that had been in effect since December 7, 1941, is lifted February 25.
  A Japanese plane drops four bombs on the slopes of Tantalus at about 2:15 a.m. on March 4.
  Noted architect Charles W. Dickey dies April 25 at the age of seventy-two.
  Sears, Roebuck & Co. opens its new store on Beretania Street May 8.
  Admiral Chester Nimitz announces, June 5, the defeat of the Japanese fleet in the Battle of Midway.
1943 Restoration Day is declared March 10 as martial law is eased in Hawai'i. Many governmental functions are returned to civil rule.
1944 Two Army B-25s collide over Kalihi June 8, killing eleven civilians and four soldiers. Ten homes are damaged or destroyed.
  The Democratic National Convention endorses statehood for Hawai‘i on July 19.
  Martial law in Hawai‘i, imposed at the beginning of World War II, is ended on October 24.
1945 Princess David Kawananakoa (Abigail Campbell Kawananakoa) dies April 12 at the age of sixty-three.
  The territory's residents celebrate their first curfew-free evening since December 7, 1941, on July 7.
1946 Following an underwater earthquake in the Aleutian Islands, three tsunamis (large tidal waves) hit the windward shores of the Hawaiian Islands on April 1. Hilo suffers the worst damage, and 159 lives are lost.
  The territorial Board of Health quarantines Hilo April 5, saying conditions in the aftermath of the tsunami are dangerous to community health.
1947 The Navy, on April 22, orders the naval air stations at Hilo and Kahului closed.
1948 Walter Frear, former governor of Hawai'i and first chief justice of the territorial Supreme Court, dies January 22 at the age of eighty-four.
  President Harry S. Truman endorses statehood for Hawai‘i during his report to Congress February 2.
  Mokuleia Air Field is redesignated Dillingham Air Force Base, named in memory of Captain Henry G. Dillingham, who was killed on a mission over Japan in 1945.
1949 Jack Hall leads a six-month strike by the International Longshoreman's and Warehouseman's Union.
  The Kona Airport opens July 10.
  War correspondent Ernie Pyle is buried at the National Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl July 19.
1950 The U.S. flag is raised over the sunken U.S.S. Arizona March 7 for the first time since 9 a.m. on Decenber 7, 1941.
  In an effort to obtain statehood, a Hawai‘i Constitutional Convention convenes on April 4. The resulting constitution is later ratified by the voters.
  The U.S. House Committee on Un-American Activities convenes April 19 in ‘Iolani Palace to conduct hearings on Communist influence in Hawai‘i's labor organizations.
1951 President Truman names Oren E. Long the tenth territorial governor of Hawai‘i April 20.
1952 The first contingent of a Marine air group arrives February 23 at the Kane‘ohe Marine Corps Air Station, newly redesignated after years as a Navy air station.
  The new James B. Castle High School is dedicated March 16.
  The first regular television programming in Hawai‘i begins December 1 on KGMB-TV.
1953 Samuel Wilder King is named governor of the Territory of Hawai'i February 16; he is the first part-Hawaiian governor of the Islands.
  Jack Hall and six codefendents are convicted June 17 under the anti-Communist Smith Act.
1954 Japan Airlines inaugurates service between Tokyo and Honolulu January 27.
  Qantas Imperial Airways inaugurates trans-Pacific service through Honolulu May 15.
  Joseph R. Farrington, Hawai‘i delegate to Congress and leader of the statehood movment, dies in Washington, D.C. June 19 at the age of fifty-six.
1955 Lava bursts from a dormant volcano field in Pahoa February 28; by evening the lava crosses a road and forces the evacuation of five hundred people from from nearby Kapoho village.
1957 Color television is first seen in Hawai‘i when KHVH-TV broadcasts a program with color slides and movies on May 5.
  Statehood for Alaska is approved by the U.S. Congress, but action on Hawai‘i's request is delayed.
  The new Nu‘uanu Pali bridge and tunnels open to traffic May 11.
  Moloka‘i's first air terminal is dedicated July 13.
1958 James Drummond Dole, founder of Hawai‘i's pineapple industry, dies May 14 at the age of eighty.
1959 Alaska is officially proclaimed the Forty-ninth State on January 3. Statehood for Hawai‘i is approved by the U.S. Senate on March 11 and by the House on March 12. An act signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower designating Hawai‘i the fiftieth state becomes law on March 18.
  Ground is broken February 5 for a new $24 million Honolulu airport.
  Samuel Wilder King, former governor of Hawai‘i and delegate to Congress, dies March 24 at the age of seventy-two.
  The first general election after statehood takes place on July 28, and incumbent Territorial Governor William F. Quinn, a Republican, is selected to be Hawai‘i's first state governor.
  August 21 Governor Quinn takes office. Later, the third Friday in August is designated Admission Day.
1960 Lava flow destroys the tiny settlement of Koa'e on the Big Island Janaury 23. Homes in Kapho are also destroyed.
  The State Legislature convenes its first regular session on February 18 and adjourns May 2.
  Tsunami waves hit the Big Island on May 23, and sixty-one lives are lost.
  The Arizona Memorial is dedicated May 30.
  The fiftieth star is added to the U.S. flag on July 4.
1961 Halema'uma'u erupts for eight hours February 24.
  Haleakalā National Park is dedicated July 1.
  The Pali tunnels officially open to two-way traffic August 1.
1962 John A. Burns is elected the state's second governor in the November elections.
1963 Helene Hale is elected first woman chairman of a county (Hawai‘i).
1965 Bus service begins between Honolulu and Kailua February 22.
1966 The first satellite photo of Island weather is taken by the ESSA-2 meteorological satellite March 2.
  William Shaw Richardson becomes the first part-Hawaiian chief justice of the state Supreme Court March 25.
  The first live television broadcast to and from the mainland takes place November 19. KHVH-TV televises the Michigan State–Notre Dame football game, and at halftime, scenes of Waikīkī are transmitted to the mainland.
1967 The State Statuary Hall Commission on March 14 chooses Marisol Escobar's seven-foot bronze statue of Father Damien for National Statuary Hall in Washington, D.C.
  Hawai‘i attracts one million tourists in a single year.
1968 Duke Kahanamoku dies January 22 at the age of seventy-seven.
  Hawaii Five-0 has its world premiere at the Royal Theater February 19 and becomes a CBS series for the 1968-1969 television season.
  Neighbor Island counties elect their first mayors. Frank F. Fasi is elected mayor of Honolulu.
1969 The Civil Aeronautics Board awards seven airlines domestic routes from Hawai‘i to 35 cities on the mainland.
  The new Fort Street Mall is dedicated in downtown Honolulu February 22.
  The first astronauts to visit the moon return to earth and are picked up at sea along with their Apollo 11 craft, Columbia 3, by the U.S.S. Hornet. The ship arrives at Pearl Harbor, July 26, from where the men are taken to Hickam Air Force Base and flown to the mainland.
1970 The Lurline sails out of Honolulu for the last time June 19.
1971 The $62 million Sheraton Waikiki opens June 4.
1972 The Hawai‘i Legislature ratifies the Equal Rights Amendement within forty-five minutes of its passage in Congress on March 22. Hawai‘i was the first state to ratify.
  Hawai‘i attracts two million tourists.
1974 George Ariyoshi, the country's first governor of Japanese ancestry, is elected in November.
1976 Hokule‘a (“Star of Gladness”), a double-hulled sailing canoe sails from Hawai‘i on May 1 and reaches Tahiti on June 4. The voyage is meant to symbolize a cultural renaissance in the Hawaiian Islands and recalls ancient canoe contact between the two Polynesian groups.
1978 Hawai‘i celebrates the bicentennial of the arrival of Captain James Cook in the Hawaiian Islands in 1778.
  The Hōkūle‘a capsizes in rough seas twenty miles southwest of Moloka‘i March 17. Fifteen of the crew are rescued. Eddie Aikau, who went in search of help on a surfboard, is lost at sea.
  Hawai‘i's Judi Andersen is crowned Miss USA April 29.
  Governor Ariyoshi wins reelection in November. Jean King is the state's first woman lieutenant governor.
1979 Hawai‘i attracts four million visitors during the year.
1980 The first quadruplets to survive infancy in Hawai‘i are born March 13 at Tripler Hospital.
1982 Eileen R. Anderson becomes the state's first woman mayor, defeating Frank F. Fasi in November for the office of mayor of the City and County of Honolulu.
  Hurricane ‘Iwa strikes Kaua‘i on November 23, causing an estimated $234 million in damage.
1983 Kilauea volcano erupts at Napau crater January 3; fountaining stretches four miles.
  Lava from Kilauea's eruption rolls through two houses and countess acres of forest land above Kalapana March 3.
1984 Frank Fasi elected mayor of Honolulu once again, defeating Eileen Anderson.
  The 25th anniversary of statehood.
1985 The 100th anniversary of Japanese immigration to Hawai‘i.
1986 Astronaut Ellison Onizuka is killed in the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.
  John Waihee is elected governor, the first elected state governor of Hawaiian ancestry.
1988 Frank Fasi is reelected mayor of Honolulu.
1989 The 100th anniversary of the death of Father Damien.
1990 U.S. Senator Spark Matsunaga dies April 15 at the age of seventy-three.
  John Waihee is reelected governor.
  Kalapana Mauna Kea Congregational Church in Puna is destroyed by lava from Kilauea volcano.
  A statue of Duke Kahanamoku is erected at Kuhio Beach in Waikiki.
1991 Miss Hawai‘i Carolyn Sapp is chosen Miss America.
1992 Hurricane Iniki causes massive devastation on Kaua‘i; the most destructive hurricane in the recorded history of the state.
  Dole Foods Co. closes down Lanai Plantation.
  Voyaging canoe Hokule‘a returns from a 5,500-mile voyage, including a first-time voyage to Rarotonga.
  The 100th anniversary of the founding of the Hawaiian Historical Society.
  Frank Fasi elected to a fifth term as mayor of Honolulu.
1993 The 100th anniversary of the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom.
  The Rev. Paul Sherry, president of the United Church of Christ of the United States, formally apologizes to Native Hawaiians for the church’s role in the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy.
  The U.S. Senate apologizes to Hawaiians for the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893.
  President Bill Clinton signs a Congressional Resolution acknowledging the illegality of the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893.
  The remains of Henry Opukaha‘ia, the first Hawaiian to convert to Christianity, are returned to Hawai‘i from Connecticut and reburied in Kahikolu Cemetery in Napoopoo.
  A statue of Robert William Kalanihiapo Wilcox is unveiled in Wilcox Park in Downtown Honolulu.
1994 First regularly scheduled Hawaiian-language news broadcast presented on public radio.
  The island of Kaho‘olawe is officially transferred by the federal government to the state of Hawai‘i May 7.
  Hamakua Sugar Company closes.
  Benjamin Cayetano is elected governor.
  Jeremy Harris is elected mayor of Honolulu to complete the term of Frank Fasi, who resigned to run for governor.
1995 The voyaging canoes Hōkūle‘a and Hawai‘iloa complete a twenty-one day trip from Hawai‘i to Tahiti March 4.
  The ninety-eight-year-old O‘ahu Sugar Company grinds its last cane at its Waipahu sugar mill April 9.
  Songwriter R. Alex Anderson, known for such songs as "Lovely Hula Hands" and "Mele Kalikimaka," dies May 30 at the age of one hundred.
1997 Brook Mahealani Lee of Pearl City is crowned Miss Universe May 16.
  Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo‘ole dies June 26 at the age of thirty-eight.
1999 The Navy closes Barbers Point Naval Air Station July 1 after fifty-seven years.