Hawaii Judiciary | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

February 19, 2017 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Aliʻiolani House

By 1866, the need for a new courthouse government building in the Hawaiian Kingdom was apparent. The old courthouse, completed in 1852, accommodated not only the judicial needs of the young nation, but also served as the reception hall for diplomatic ceremonies and official social functions.

The legislature appropriated $40,000.00 respectively towards a new palace and a new government building. Delays ensued, and those figures were increased to $60,000.00 each by 1870. (Friends of the Judiciary History Center of Hawai‘i)

Kamehameha V envisioned a civic center around the palace, and plans were made to purchase the Mililani premises on King Street, “a long and fatiguing journey over the dustiest street in the city.” (HABS)

“In 1871, (Robert Lishman) was summoned from Australia where he had been living for many years, by King Kamehameha V to come to Hawaii to superintend the construction of Aliʻiolani Hale, and now known as the Judiciary building.” (Independent, May 13, 1902)

On behalf of King Kamehameha V, Stirling wrote Alex Webster, Hawai‘i’s Counsul in Sydney, “As His Majesty’s Govt has within the next 18 months or two years to erect buildings of considerable magnitude, & the supply of skilled & steady builders her is very limited, and not equal to our requirements …”

“… His Excellency wishes you, if possible, to engage two young, steady & intelligent builders to come here, offering them the engagement for 12 months, paying their passage hither, and paying them $4 p day to begin with, and a promise of $5 p. day if they give satisfaction.”

“Our work will be chiefly done in concrete, so that simple stone cutters will not serve our purpose. What we want them for chiefly is to look after & teach the natives, and to set the blocks of concrete on the buildings.” (Stirling, February 25, 1871)

In a subsequent letter, Stirling wrote, “It is the intention of this Govt to build a new Royal Palace here, and to commence operations as soon as they can produce suitable plans …”

“… but, as we have not Architect here, capable of designing such a building, and as Architects in Northern Countries would not be likely to have a proper appreciation of the nature of the climate in the Islands, and its requirements …”

“… it has appeared to His Excellency probable, that in Sydney, where the summer climate is very similar to ours, as Architect might be found more likely to be able to design an appropriate building.”

“The style of building considered most suitable is the Italian, of one Storey in height; this however may to a certain extent be departed fro ti give variety of outline.”

“All the principal rooms must be on the ground-floor, but the Billiard-room, some of the bed-rooms, and perhaps the Ladies & Gentlemen retiring rooms might be in the second storey.”

“The main entrance should have a spacious Portico, semicircular or semieliptical in form, in front, flanked by wide Verandahs with columns of the Ionic Order; in fact it is desirable that the entire front and at least two sides of the buildings should be protected by a verandah of say, 15 ft wide.”

“About Twenty Rooms in all will be required, consisting, in addition to the spacious entrance Hall, of a Council Chamber of about 50 x 30 ft. An Audience Chamber about 40 x 40 ft with another room of similar dimensions adjoining it …”

“His Excellency requests that you will endeavor to get one or two sketches f such a building from one or more of your architects, shewing the Plans and elevations only, without entering into details until the design is approved”. (Stirling, June 24, 1871)

Sketches were sent back and Stirling followed up stating, “I am now directed by His Excellency to inform you that he has carefully studied all the Designs sent, and is much pleased with all of them …”

“… but owing to a difficulty about the site to be selected for the Palace – involving I believe a doubt as to the proprietorship of a portion of the land proposed to be occupied – he cannot yet, and may not for some time to come be able to say which of the designs will be chosen.”

“In one respect however, the arrival of the Designs was most opportune, as we were just commencing to build our New Govt Offices, upon a very indifferent Plan, and no sooner has His Excellency seen Mr Rowe’s Design B than he conceived that …”

“… with modification which I shall presently state – it would answer well as a plan for these offices, and further consideration confirmed him in this view, so that he has now determined to adopt it, & is consequently prepared to pay Mr Rowe the 100 additional for this design as p your agreement with him.”

The alteration of the Plan proposed, applies only to the wings, the body of the building remaining the same as before. The verandah all around will be dispense with, and will be retained only on the front and rear of the Main building. The Wings will be of the same length as in the Design, but will be 5 ft wider, and the semicircular ends will be cut off.”

“It is probable that the upper portion of the central tower may ultimately be used for a public clock, but in any case it will be necessary to have access to it, and His Excellency requests you to ask Mr Rowe how he proposes that this should be had, as it is not shewn in the design, and he cannot see how it is to be done without disfiguring the tower.” (Stirling, December 15, 1871)

Not receiving plans in time, Stirling then wrote, “With regard to the build of the New Govt Offices, I am directed by His Excellency the Minister of the Interior to say, that as it was impossible to wait for working drawings from Sydney before commencing, …”

“… we had to prepare them here, and consequently full two months ago we begun to mould blocks of concrete for the walls of the first story, and have now fully a third of what we require for it prepared.” (Stirling, March 17, 1872)

The cornerstone the Government Building was laid on February 19, 1872 with full Masonic ceremony. The new building was of concrete block, a technique first used in 1870 when the government built the Post Office building.

Although Stirling wished to support the first floor with iron girders, in view of the uncertainly as to the length of time it might take to procure them, wooden beams were used instead.

(In 1913, a system of steel columns, girders and beams supporting concrete slab floors and roofs replaced the earlier system. During the renovations, nothing of the interior seems to have been retained. In addition to the rearrangement of office spaces, the character of public spaces and circulation was completely altered.) (HABS)

Kamehameha V never saw the completion of the Government Building; nor did they build his new Palace. The Government Building officially opened by the Legislature on April 30, 1874. “‘Ali‘iolani House’ is the name by which the new Government house is to be hereafter known, by command of His Majesty (Kalākaua.)”

“‘Ali‘iolani’ was one of the titles given to Kamehameha V at his birth, and is now appropriately applied to the building which was projected under his reign.” (Pacific Commercial Advertiser, May 2, 1874)

The building is known as Ali‘iolani Hale; it is the former seat of government of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi and the Republic of Hawaiʻi and now houses the Hawai‘i Supreme Court and Judiciary History Center of Hawai‘i.

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Judiciary and Territorial Buildings – 1935

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February 3, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Charles Coffin Harris

Charles Coffin Harris was born on June 9, 1822 in the township of Newington, a small suburb of the city of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, eldest son of William Coffin and Mary (Johnson) Harris.

Coffin was educated in his father’s school until he was fifteen, when he then entered Harvard College in 1837 – he graduated from Harvard in 1841. Upon leaving college he returned to Portsmouth, and engaged for a time in the occupation of teaching, at the same time commencing the study of law. He married his cousin, Harriet M Harris.

“On the discovery of gold in California, and the breaking out in the East of what was termed the ‘gold fever,’ he deemed it a good opportunity, like many another of our New England men, to ‘’break away’ from his New England life and seek his fortune and his fame on the Pacific shores, and accordingly embarked for California, and arrived, in the youth and vigor of his manhood, at San Francisco, early in May, 1850.”

“Of course, there had been no planting as yet in California, and the price of vegetables brought from the Hawaiian Islands was so enormous, that Mr. Harris was induced to embark in an enterprise to procure them from the islands, and having procured a vessel which had brought many of his townsmen to San Francisco, he embarked with his two brothers, Thomas and Abel, who were both sea-faring men, in this enterprise, and arrived at Honolulu in August, 1850. (Granite Monthly, April 1882)

“He arrived at the Islands still a young man – during the formation period of our history, and entering our then infant country as a practitioner, and occasionally our Legislature as a representative – he contributed to the growth of the superstructure of jurisprudence which exists to-day in this Kingdom.” (Judd)

In September of that year (1850) the two young princes, – Alexander Liholilho, who was afterwards King Kamehameha IV, and Lot Kamehameha, who was afterwards King Kamehameha V, – arrived home from their American and European tour.”

“He immediately became intimate with them, and this intimacy, perhaps, determined his fate. This intimacy was somewhat interrupted in the case of Prince Liholiho, during the first year of his reign, though resumed during the last years.”

“But in the case of Kamehameha V it continued uninterrupted to his death. His first public employment was that of police magistrate of Honolulu in the year 1851. He was elected representative for one of the districts of the Island of Hawaii in 1852.”

“His wife with their infant son arrived from Boston, January 1, 1852, and from that time his residence there may be regarded as permanent.” (Granite Monthly, April 1882)

“He continued to practice law with marked success. In 1862, a law was passed, creating the office of attorney-general of the kingdom, and to which office he was appointed on the 26th of August, 1862 by Kamehameha IV.”

“This king died 30th of November, 1863, and was succeeded by his brother, Kamehameha V, and Mr. Harris was immediately appointed minister of the interior, ad interim.”

“He was a member of the Privy Council of state, and continued to hold the office of attorney-general until the 22d of December, 1865.”

“In March, 1867, he received the appointment of minister at Washington, and having returned here in 1868, he resumed the duties of Minister of Finance, in which office he continued until December 20, 1869, when he was appointed minister for foreign affairs, which office he resigned on the 10th of September, 1872.”

“At the death of Lunalilo without heirs, Prince Kalākaua was elected king by the legislature on the 12th of February, 1874, and Mr. Harris was appointed at once first associate justice of the supreme court, and on the resignation of Chief Justice Allen on the 1st of February, 1877, Mr. Harris was appointed chief justice of the supreme court and chancellor of the kingdom.” (Granite Monthly, April 1882)

“Harris is six feet high, bony and rather slender, middle-aged; has long, ungainly arms; stands so straight that he leans back a little; has small side whiskers; from my distance his eyes seemed blue, and his teeth looked too regular and too white for an honest man …”

“… he has a long head the wrong way – that is, up and down; and a bogus Roman nose and a great, long, cadaverous undertaker’s countenance”. (Twain)

“(B)y the death of Chief Justice Harris, the interests of the Hawaiian Kingdom have sustained a great loss”. (Hawaii Bar) “It may be truly said that no important measure of this Government, for years, has been taken without consultation with him. The Government leaned upon him as upon a sure stay and support. There is indeed nobody to fill his place.”

“With a love for this country where he had spent the greater part of his life, equal to that which he bore to America, the land of his birth, he had for its prosperity a brooding anxiety, which rendered every public act, and its results a matter of intense personal interest to him.” (Castle)

“He was a strong man – strong in having a tenacity and force of will which never lost sight of its objects, and was untiring in their accomplishment; strong in a mind stored with the facts and details in this country for over thirty years, with a retentive rnemory which never failed him; strong in power to discern the weakness or tricks of others. No one ever deceived him.” (Hartwell)

“Throughout Harris’s lifetime in the islands, the possibility of the kingdom being annexed by a foreign power was a constant concern. France, Great Britain, Russia, and Japan were all at one time or another viewed as threats to the continued sovereignty of the monarchs.”

“It was the United States of America, however, that loomed largest among the world powers in the affairs of the little country. Sometimes the pressure for annexation by the United States came from within the islands themselves, where some plantation owners viewed annexation as a way of opening up American markets to their sugar crop.”

“Sometimes the pressure came from within the United States, from those who viewed the islands as strategic to economic and military expansion into the Pacific.” (Harris)

During the reign of Kamehameha V, “Believing that a convention was the most legal way to make the necessary revisions to the constitution, Harris advised the king to issue a proclamation calling a convention together. This caused considerable upheaval within the islands, and when an election was held to select delegates to the convention, the majority of voters demonstrated some unhappiness with the course the king had chosen.”

“Of the elected delegates to the convention, the majority belonged or were sympathetic to the rival missionary party. The other delegates to the convention, however, were made up of the upper house of the legislature, which more generally favored the king and his program of constitutional reform.”

“Voting rights quickly became the primary topic of discussion at the convention, for it was on this issue that the true power to control the future of the kingdom would turn. Some were convinced that if the convention failed to adopt a new constitution, the monarchy would collapse.”

“Others, particularly the annexationists, were hoping for just such a result so that a revolution could be initiated, deposing the king and inviting the United States to take over the islands. Neither side was willing to compromise, and the convention deadlocked.”

“With such ominous consequences a possibility, the king, in an effort to preserve the monarchy and the independence of the islands, proclaimed that the constitution of 1852 was abrogated and announced that he would grant the kingdom a new constitution. The convention dissolved and for a short time the Hawaiian kingdom was an absolute autocracy.”

“Within a few days, the cabinet, using Harris’s draft constitution as a basis, completed a new constitution, which Kamehameha V swore to uphold. Some within the government thought the new constitution would be met with violence.”

“However, it was not only accepted, it survived in effect for 23 years, longer than any other constitution under the Hawaiian monarchs, and received favorable reaction outside the islands.” (Harris)

His first wife died in March 1870; on May 1, 1879 he married Ella Fessenden Tiffany, daughter of his predecessor Elisha Hunt Allen.

“A great shock was experienced by the community last Saturday (July 2, 1881) when the news gradually crept round the city that the Chief Justice had died suddenly at his residence at Waikiki.” (Hawaiian Gazette, July 6, 1881)

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May 19, 2016 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Early History of the Judiciary

The early history of the Hawaiian Judiciary may be divided into three periods: the first, which may be briefly described as the period of absolute government, extending from the earliest migrations of Hawaiians to the Islands (about 1000 to 1840.)

Pā‘ao (CA 1300,) from Kahiki (Tahiti,) is reported to have introduced (or significantly expanded) a religious and political code in old Hawai‘i, collectively called the kapu system. This forbid many things and demanded many more, with many infractions being punishable by death.

Anything connected with the gods and their worship was considered sacred, such as idols, heiau and priests. Because chiefs were believed to be descendants of the gods, many kapu related to chiefs and their personal possessions.

While the social order defined very strict societal rules, exoneration was possible if one could reach a puʻuhonua (place of refuge) and be cleansed, as well as cleared by a kahuna (priest).

The puʻuhonua was especially important in times of war as a refuge for women and children, as well as warriors from the defeated side.

The second period of the early judicial system, a period that is referenced as the time of constitutional government, extending from 1840 to 1893; the third is a brief transitional time (through the Provisional government and Republic) leading to association with the United States (Territory and now State.)

During the first period, the system of government was solely through the actions of the high Chief. Under this system all functions of government, executive, legislative and judicial, were by the paramount chief (with advice from his council of chiefs, kahuna and other advisors.)

At the time of Cook’s arrival (1778-1779), the Hawaiian Islands were divided into four kingdoms: (1) the island of Hawaiʻi under the rule of Kalaniʻōpuʻu, who also had possession of the Hāna district of east Maui; (2) Maui (except the Hāna district,) Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi and Kahoʻolawe, ruled by Kahekili; (3) Oʻahu, under the rule of Kahahana; and at (4) Kauaʻi and Niʻihau, Kamakahelei was ruler.

The Judiciary was established during the reign of Kamehameha I (1789-1819) with three grades of courts: the National or Supreme, presided over by the King; the Island or Superior, presided over by the respective Governors.

There were two classes of District or Inferior Courts, presided over by the under-Chiefs and the Tax Officers respectively, with concurrent jurisdiction as to territory but different as to subject matter.

The Judicial divisions were also established during this period: the Islands of Oahu (1st Circuit) and Hawaii (3rd Circuit) each constituting one and the Islands of Maui (2nd Circuit) and Kauai (4th Circuit) with their adjacent smaller islands, respectively, constituting the others.

These divisions remained unchanged until the Act of 1892 to reorganize the judiciary went into effect January 1, 1893, when the Island of Hawaii was divided into two circuits, the Third and the Fourth, and Kauai which formerly constituted, with its adjacent islands, the Fourth Circuit, was designated as the Fifth. (Lydecker) (Hawai‘i Island later consolidated into the 3rd Circuit and Kauai went back to being the 4th Circuit.)

The Constitution of 1840 provided for the Executive, Legislative and Judicial divisions of the government, but was not very clear as to the powers of each. Under it the Island Courts continued to be held by the respective Governors more by custom than by the express language of the Constitution.

The Constitution empowered the Governors to appoint the Judges, as was done by the Governors of Hawaii and Kauai in 1844, when special judges were appointed for foreign cases and by Governor Kekūanāoʻa of O‘ahu, when, on September 19, 1845, he appointed Lorrin Andrews to act as his substitute in all such cases.

The Supreme Court was established by the Constitution of 1840, which provided that the King should be the Chief Judge of the Supreme Court. Also ‘The Representative body shall appoint four persons whose duty it shall be to aid the King and Premier, and these six persons shall constitute the Supreme Court of the Kingdom.’

The Act of 1846 to Organize the Executive Departments provided that until the passage of an Act to Organize the Judiciary Department, there should be appointed one or more judges to sit at Honolulu, with original jurisdiction in cases involving over one hundred dollars in value, and appellate jurisdiction in all other cases from all the local courts of the Kingdom in cases involving less than one hundred dollars in value.

Under this act Lorrin Andrews was appointed June 24, 1846, as one of the judges, and on November 30 of that year William L Lee as another, the two to act jointly or severally. These appointments were to hold until the passing of the Act to Organize the Judiciary. This Court was the forerunner of the Supreme Court as now established.

The Supreme Court of the Hawaiian Islands was established by the Act of September 7, 1847 to Organize the Judiciary, and was first designated as the Superior Court. Previous to the establishment of Territorial Government, Justices of the Supreme Court held life commissions.

The Organic Act fixed a stated term of four years, subject to removal by the President of the United States. Now Justices are appointed for an initial ten-year term; after initial appointment, the Judicial Selection Commission determines whether a justice will be retained in office. A justice may not serve past age 70.)

Under the Act of 1847 to Organize the Judiciary Department, the Circuit Courts, to some extent, took the place of the former Governors’ Courts. In each circuit there were to be two judges.

The Constitution of 1852 provided for their appointment of judges by the King with the approval of the Privy Council. Under the Constitution of 1864 (promulgated by the King upon his own authority) the appointing power was vested solely in the King.

The Attorney General’s Department was organized by the Act approved April 27, 1846. The Legislature of 1862 passed an Act providing that the King may appoint an Attorney-General, and the Constitution of 1864 made the appointment compulsory.

By 1866, the need for a new courthouse government building in the Hawaiian Kingdom was apparent. The old courthouse, completed in 1852, accommodated not only the judicial needs, but also served as the reception hall for diplomatic ceremonies and official social functions.

On February 19, 1872, Kamehameha V laid the cornerstone for the new building, Ali’iolani Hale. The use of concrete blocks, a fairly new building material, “infinitely superior for both durability and ornament,” was recommended and accepted by Public Works.

To increase the work force, convicts were brought from the prison and made to labor on the project. In 1874, during the reign of King Kalākaua, the building was finally completed.

Today, Ali’iolani Hale houses the Supreme Court of Hawai`i, the court administration offices, a law library, and the Judiciary History Center.

Open to the general public and welcoming visits from classroom students, the Judiciary History Center reflects the unique legal and judicial history of our islands from the days of kapu law to the present – from chiefs to monarchy to statehood.

The image shows Ali‘iolani Hale in 1875, shortly after it was completed. The King Kamehameha Statue that now stands in front of the building was unveiled on February 14, 1883, during the coronation ceremonies for King Kalākaua. (Lots of information here is from Thayer, Lydecker and Judiciary History Center.)

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February 19, 2013 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Aliʻiolani Hale

The legislature appropriated funds towards a new palace and a new government building. Delays ensued. Plans for a new palace were postponed, but the new courthouse moved forward.

On February 19, 1872, Kamehameha V laid the cornerstone for the new building.

The use of concrete blocks, a fairly new building material, “infinitely superior for both durability and ornament,” was recommended and accepted by Public Works. (The coral foundation supports concrete block bearing walls varying in thickness from 17″ to 22″.)

To increase the work force, convicts were brought from the prison and made to labor on the project. In 1874, during the reign of King Kalākaua, the building was finally completed.

Lively events characterized Aliʻiolani Hale’s first year. Already designated as the home of the Legislature, in May of 1874, the Judiciary Department also moved into the new government building.

In July, the Law Library took up residence on the second floor with “3,000 law books and 2,000 scientific books.” By September, Aliʻiolani Hale housed the first National Museum in the Hawaiian Kingdom.

An appeal made to the public requested the donation of artifacts: “Old Hawaiian ornaments and utensils, Hawaiian minerals and preserved zoological specimens are particularly desired.”

CJ Lyons made scientific use of the building late that year as an observation site for the transit of Venus. The transits of Venus occur only four times in 243 years, and at that time, this astronomical event was the best known means of determining the dimensions of our planetary system.

Aliʻiolani Hale played a role in the Wilcox insurrection. Unhappy with the changes in the constitution of 1887, the young hapa-Hawaiian, Robert Wilcox, and several hundred armed men marched into the neighborhood on the morning of July 30, 1889.

At 6 am, twelve of the men took over Aliʻiolani Hale, and the rest moved into the ʻIolani Palace yard. By noon, volleys of rifle shots were exchanged between Wilcox’s men and government forces.

Wilcox’s men, stationed in the Palace yard, were surrounded by the government troops whose sharpshooters were placed in nearby buildings, including the tower of Kawaiahaʻo church.

The rebellion came to a halt when government authorities hurled homemade dynamite bombs into the Palace yard scattering the rebellious constituent.

In the small room beneath the clock tower, often used as an artist’s studio at Aliʻiolani Hale, a sculptor was working on a bust of Kalākaua. He reported, on that day, that stray bullets created “a disturbing background” for his artistic endeavor.

Seeking to abolish the Hawaiian Monarchy, the Committee of Public Safety took over Aliʻiolani Hale on January 17, 1893. Here, was the reading of the declaration of the Provisional Government of the Hawaiian Islands during the Revolution of 1893.

The Honolulu Rifles, a volunteer group of men who supported the Committee of Safety, assembled there in opposition to the loyalist guard stationed across King Street at the Palace. With horse blankets and boxes of hard tack, the Honolulu Rifles camped in the halls of Aliʻiolani Hale.

Queen Liliʻuokalani, in order to avoid violence, abrogated the monarchy and the troops did not engage in armed conflict. After the establishment of the Republic of Hawaiʻi, most likely to disassociate the new government with the monarchy, the new officials renamed Aliʻiolani Hale, “The Judiciary Building.” The legislature then moved to ʻIolani Palace which was renamed the “Executive Building.”

Hawaiʻi almost lost Aliʻiolani Hale in 1937 when the territorial planning board drafted plans to demolish the structure and build a new Judiciary Building. Former Chief Justice and Governor Walter Frear strongly opposed the idea, and the Honolulu Advertiser picked up the torch in support of Frear announcing that “The Old Judiciary Building is threatened by the march of progress.”

Instead of demolition, repairs and plans for a new wing were approved. Construction began in March of 1941, but was considerably hampered by the bombing of Pearl Harbor in December. The new wing was finally completed in 1944, the same year that Martial law was lifted. In 1949, a second story was added to the new wing to complete the structure that stands today as Aliʻiolani Hale.

By 1951, the building, even with the new wing, was overcrowded and not providing adequate space for the needs of a growing Judiciary. In 1960, it was recommended that a new court building be constructed and that Aliʻiolani Hale retain the Supreme Court, the Land Court, the Administrative Offices, and the Law Library.

In 1965, the interior of the building was refurbished at a cost exceeding the total expenditures for the building in 1874.

Today, Aliʻiolani Hale houses the Supreme Court of Hawaiʻi, the court administration offices, a law library and the Judiciary History Center.

While decisions are made affecting the present and future of Hawaiʻi by the Supreme Court, the Judiciary History Center interprets over 200 years of law and judicial history in the Hawaiian Islands.

From Monarchy to statehood, Aliʻiolani Hale has faithfully served the people of Hawaiʻi. Kings and queens have walked its halls. Revolutions have been lost and won around it. Sensational cases have been tried in its courtrooms. Since 1874, Supreme Court rulings affecting the future of Hawaiʻi and its people have been decided within its walls.

Open to the general public, the History Center reflects the unique legal and judicial history of our islands from the days of kapu to the present.

The inspiration and information here is from the Judiciary History Center (as well as the National Register.) The image shows Aliʻiolani Hale in 1875 (before the Kamehameha Statue.) In addition, I have included other images in a folder of like name in the Photos section on my Facebook and Google+ pages.

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