Hawaii

Questions for Reflection

1. What were the motives behind the U.S. decision to purchase Hawaii, and how did it align with the country's strategic and economic interests?
2. How did the acquisition of Hawaii impact the indigenous Hawaiian population and their sovereignty?
3. What were the reactions and responses from other world powers to the U.S. purchase of Hawaii?
4. How did the annexation of Hawaii contribute to the broader expansionist policies of the United States during that time period?
5. What are the long-term consequences and legacies of the U.S. purchase of Hawaii, both for the Hawaiian Islands and for U.S. foreign policy in the Pacific?

The 1898 joint resolution to annex Hawaii was called the Newlands Resolution. Ironically, the Newlands Resolution was not named for its content regarding territorial acquisition, but rather for its drafter, Nevada Congressman Francis Newlands.

The following proclamation, Presidential Proclamation 3309 from President Dwight D. Eisenhower, announced Hawaii's admission as a state in 1959. 

Three days after Eisenhower's proclamation admitting Hawaii, the president wrote the following letter to the Governor of Hawaii, William Quinn.

 Photograph of USS ARIZONA on fire after in Pearl Harbor after the Japanese attack (December 7, 1941).