Historical Commission

Corporate body

Historical Commission

1921-04-18/1932-06-30

The Historical Commission was established by Act 120 of 1921.

The function of the Commission was to accomplish four tasks: to write a comprehensive general history of Hawaii, to revise an apparently existing elementary history of Hawaii for use in the public schools, to compile a history of Hawaii's role in World War I, and to report to the legislature on places of historical importance for the purpose of marking them.

The law provided for a three-member commission and the employment of "such competent persons as are necessary for the compilation of the said history." The Commission wanted a trained historian to fill this job, involving as it did, the planning and writing of so much history, and in April, 1922, offered the position of executive secretary to Ralph S. Kuydendall. Kuykendall accepted and began work in September, 1922.

The Commission's authorizing legislation was amended by Act 139 of 1923.

The Commission began first the writing of the elementary textbook. When that had been well started, they began the longer-term work of writing the comprehensive history. This project eventuated in Kuykendall's three volume History of the Hawaiian Kingdom, 1778-1893. In response to Kuykendall's idea that the history should place Hawaii in a world context, rather than concentrate purely on island affairs, the Commission first surveyed what records existed in Hawaii for the purpose, and then began concerted searches elsewhere. Kuykendall personally examined libraries in the United States and Canada with major holdings relating to Hawaii, especially the Bancroft Library at the University of California at Berkeley, the provincial library of British Columbia, the Oregon Historical Society library, Harvard College Library, and the U.S. State Department archives.

The Commission also contracted for copy work in the British and French government archives, again, for diplomatic correspondence relating to Hawaii. In addition, the Commission secured copies of documents relating to Hawaii from the Mexican government archives, and copies of the correspondence of David S. Gregg, Peter A. Brinsmade, Robert G. Davis, William L. Lee, and Sanford B. Dole. The law provided that it was to deposit all the documents it collected in the Territorial Archives.

The Commission was abolished in 1932 and its functions transferred to the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii (Act 9, Second Special Session, 1932).

The office of the Commission was located at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

The function of the Commission was to accomplish four tasks:

1. To write a comprehensive general history of Hawaii.
2. To revise an apparently existing elementary history of Hawaii for use in the public schools.
3. To compile a history of Hawaii's role in World War I.
4. To report to the legislature on places of historical importance for the purpose of marking them.

The law provided that the Commission was to deposit all the documents it collected in the Territorial Archives.

Act 120 of 1921 of the Hawaii Territorial Legislature.
Amended by Act 139 of 1923.
Abolished by Act 9, Second Special Session, 1932.

The 1921 law provided for a three-member commission and the employment of "such competent persons as are necessary for the compilation of the said history."

The school textbook was created by Ralph S. Kuykendall, executive secretary of the Historical Commission, with the assistance of Dr. Herbert E. Gregory, then Director of the Bishop Museum.

The report on Hawaii in the World War is attributed to Kuykendall with the assistance of Lorin Tarr Gill.

The Commission contracted for copy work in the British and French government archives. The copying of British records is attributed to Ruth Anna Fisher and an unnamed person, employees of the Historical Commission.

Ralph Simpson Kuykendall (1885-1963)

Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii

Hawaiʻi State Archives

Created in 2009-05
Revised on 2020-10-12, Joel Horowitz

• English

Historical Commission, Annual Reports, 1923-1932

2009-05: Created
2020-10-12, Joel Horowitz: Entered into AtoM, added dissolution date from Historic Preservation Division description in the DLNR finding aid.