Letters from Hawaii is a collection of 25 letters that Mark Twain wrote from Hawaii in 1866 as a special correspondent for the Sacramento Union newspaper. The 25 letters, written during Twain's four-month visit, were not published as a book until 1947. [1]
During his four-month and a day stay in the Hawaiian Islands, then called the Sandwich Islands, Twain visited the islands of Oahu, Maui, and Hawaii.
Mark Twain arrives in Oahu under the reign of Kamehameha IV and wrote Letters 1-17. He climbed Diamond Head, visited the newly formed Kingdom of Hawaii legislature, etc.
Mark Twain visited Haleakala, Maui, but left no letter on his itinerary of his Maui visit, except some statistics of sugar production in Maui (Letter 23).
In Letters 18 to 25, Mark Twain writes about his visits to Kailua Kona, Kealakekua Bay, and Kilauea.
Oahu is the most populated and third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. The island of Oahu and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands constitute the City and County of Honolulu. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. In 2021, Oahu had a population of 995,638, up from 953,207 in 2010.
Scouting in Hawaii began in the 1900s. It serves thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known by the pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, and essayist. He was praised as the "greatest humorist the United States has produced," with William Faulkner calling him "the father of American literature." Twain's novels include The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1876) and its sequel, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), with the latter often called the "Great American Novel." He also wrote A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889) and Pudd'nhead Wilson (1894) and cowrote The Gilded Age: A Tale of Today (1873) with Charles Dudley Warner.
Hawaii is a U.S. state that is an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean. Of the eight major islands, Hawaii, Oʻahu, Maui, and Kauaʻi have major tourism industries. Tourism is limited on Molokai and Lānaʻi, and access to Niihau and Kahoʻolawe is prohibited.
Kamehameha V, reigned as the fifth monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi from 1863 to 1872. His motto was "Onipaʻa": immovable, firm, steadfast, or determined; he worked diligently for his people and kingdom and was described as the last great traditional chief.
Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (HEI) is the largest supplier of electricity in the U.S. state of Hawaii, supplying power to 95% of Hawaii's population through its electric utilities: Hawaiian Electric Company serving Oahu, Hawai'i Electric Light Company serving The Big Island, and Maui Electric Company serving Maui, Lanai and Molakai. In addition, HEI owns a financial institution serving Hawaii, American Savings Bank, and a clean energy and sustainability company, Pacific Current LLC.
The Aliʻi nui of Maui was the supreme ruler of the islands of Maui, one of the four main Hawaiian Islands as well as the smaller island of Lanai. The title is the same as that of the Aliʻi nui of the other islands. The title or phrase Mōʻī is sometimes used for the title of the monarchs of Maui; however, it is not an ancient word in the Hawaiian language and has origins in the mid 19th century. The only monarchs to officially hold the title of Mōʻī are Kalākaua and his sister Liliʻuokalani.
The Governor of Maui was the royal governor or viceroy of the Island of Maui in the Kingdom of Hawaii. The Governor of Maui resided at Lahaina and was usually a Hawaiian chief or prince and could even be a woman. The governor had authority over four of the eight islands: Maui, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, and Kahoʻolawe. It was up to the governor to appoint lieutenant governors to assist them. The governor had replaced the old Moʻi of Maui, but sovereignty remained with the king. The island governors were under the jurisdiction of the Ministers of the Interiors.
The Governor of Kauaʻi was the royal governor or viceroy of the island of Kauaʻi and island of Niʻihau during the Kingdom of Hawaii. The governor was usually a male Hawaiian chief or prince, but several women also held the office. The governor had authority over the islands of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, and it was up to the governor to appoint lieutenant governors to assist them. The governor had replaced the old alii aimokus of the islands, but the sovereignty remained with the king. The first governor was the last king of Kaumualiʻi, and it was not until his death in 1824 that Queen Kaʻahumanu and King Kamehameha II took control from his sons. The island governors were under the jurisdiction of the Ministers of the Interiors.
The transportation system of Hawaii is a cooperation of complex systems of infrastructure.
Dwight Baldwin was an American Christian missionary and medical doctor on Maui, one of the Hawaiian Islands, during the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was patriarch of a family that founded some of the largest businesses in the islands.
The energy sector in Hawaii has rapidly adopted solar power due to the high costs of electricity, and good solar resources, and has one of the highest per capita rates of solar power in the United States. Hawaii's imported energy costs, mostly for imported petroleum and coal, are three to four times higher than the mainland, so Hawaii has motivation to become one of the highest users of solar energy. Hawaii was the first state in the United States to reach grid parity for photovoltaics. Its tropical location provides abundant ambient energy.
Charles Coffin Harris (1822–1881) was a New England lawyer who became a politician and judge in the Kingdom of Hawaii who firmly supported the monarchy as an independent nation. After serving in a number of cabinet posts, he became chief justice of the supreme court.
Henry Martyn Whitney was an early journalist in the Kingdom of Hawaii. Born of early missionaries, he became the first postmaster and founded several long-lasting newspapers.
From 1862 to 1865, Samuel Clemens wrote for Virginia City, Nevada's leading newspaper, Territorial Enterprise. There, his literary skills were first realized and he first used the pen name "Mark Twain".
The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii occurred on November 8, 2016. The electorate chose two candidates to act in the U.S. House, one from each of the state's two districts. Hawaii is one of 14 states that employ an open primary system, meaning voters do not have to state a party affiliation in the election. The primaries were held on August 13.
William Phileppus Ragsdale was a Hawaiian lawyer, newspaper editor, and translator. He was a popular figure known for being luna or superintendent of the Kalaupapa Leprosy Settlement. Elements of his life story influenced Mark Twain's 1889 novel A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.
Sereno Edwards Bishop was a scientist, Presbyterian minister and publisher. He was an avid proponent of the United States annexation of the Hawaiian Islands, and aligned himself with the political faction who overthrew the monarchy under Liliuokalani.
The COVID-19 pandemic in Hawaii affected all aspects of life in the state, demolishing its economy, closing its schools and straining its healthcare system, even though it experienced far less spread than other US states.
An earthquake struck near the Hawaiian island of Lanai on February 19, at 10:11 pm HST with an estimated magnitude of 7.5 on the moment magnitude scale (Mw ). It remains one of the largest seismic event to hit the Hawaiian Islands since the 1868 Kaʻū earthquake, with its effects being felt throughout the entire archipelago. It caused severe damage on the islands of Lanai, Molokai and Maui. A tsunami may have been generated however there are speculations if it had actually happened. Despite the size of the quake and the extent of damage, there were no deaths.
Mark Twain's Letters from Hawaii public domain audiobook at LibriVox