Hawaii Admission Day
Encyclopedia
Admission Day or Statehood Day is a legal holiday in the state of Hawaii
in the United States
. It is celebrated annually on the third Friday in August to commemorate the anniversary of the 1959 admission of Hawaii into the Union.
Statehood bills for Hawaii were introduced into the U.S. Congress
as early as 1919 by Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole, the non-voting delegates Hawaii sent to the U.S. Congress. Additional bills were introduced in 1935, 1947 and 1950. In 1959, the U.S. Congress approved the statehood bill. This was followed by a referendum
in which Hawaiian residents voted 94% in support of statehood (the ballot question was: "Shall Hawaii immediately be admitted into the Union as a state?"), and on August 21, 1959 (the third Friday in August), President Dwight D. Eisenhower
signed a proclamation making Hawaii the 50th state.
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is celebrated annually on the third Friday in August to commemorate the anniversary of the 1959 admission of Hawaii into the Union.
Statehood bills for Hawaii were introduced into the U.S. Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
as early as 1919 by Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole, the non-voting delegates Hawaii sent to the U.S. Congress. Additional bills were introduced in 1935, 1947 and 1950. In 1959, the U.S. Congress approved the statehood bill. This was followed by a referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
in which Hawaiian residents voted 94% in support of statehood (the ballot question was: "Shall Hawaii immediately be admitted into the Union as a state?"), and on August 21, 1959 (the third Friday in August), President Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
signed a proclamation making Hawaii the 50th state.
External links
- This Land of Aloha Holidays and Festivals
- Holidays to be Observed by the HAWAII STATE GOVERNMENT
- Wording of a Hawaii Senate resolution to organize a celebration for Admission Day 2003. Includes many details of the history of the admission of Hawai'i into the Union.