Lorrin Andrews
Encyclopedia
Lorrin Andrews was an early American missionary to Hawaii
and judge. He opened the first post-secondary school for Hawaiians called Lahainaluna Seminary, prepared a Hawaiian dictionary and several works on the literature and antiquities of the Hawaiians. His students published the first newspaper, and were involved in the first case of counterfeiting currency in Hawaii. He later served as a judge and became a member of Hawaii's first Supreme Court.
, on April 29, 1795. He graduated from Jefferson College
, Pennsylvania, and attended Princeton Theological Seminary
. He married Mary Ann Wilson from Washington, Kentucky
on August 16, 1827.
The marriage produced seven children: son Lorrin Jr. (1828–1857), daughters Elizabeth Maria (1830–1868), Sarah (October 10, 1832–1899), sons Robert Wilson
(1837–1921), Samuel (1839–1911), William (1842–1919), and daughter Mary Ellen (1844–1930). Sarah would marry Asa Goodale Thurston, son of Asa and Lucy Goodale Thurston
, earlier missionaries from the first company to the islands. Sarah's son, Lorrin Andrews Thurston, played a pivotal role in later Hawaiian history.
He sailed for the Hawaiian Islands in November 1827, on the ship Parthian. The physician Gerrit P. Judd
was also in this third company from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
.
He was assigned to the mission at Lahaina, Hawaii on the island of Maui
which had been established by William Richards in 1823.
He moved to Honolulu in 1845 where he died on September 29, 1868.
. On his voyage he had already transcribed a list of Hawaiian words which had been sent back to the New England
mission office in 1827.
In June 1831 the mission hoped to establish a seminary
on Maui, since it was somewhat centrally located among the Hawaiian Islands
. Andrews was selected to run the school. He and Richards suggested a site about two miles inland from the village of Lahaina, which was later called Lahainaluna for "upper Lahaina".
On September 5, 1831 classes began in thatched huts with 25 married Hawaiian young men. It was the first college west of the Rocky Mountains
.
The students built a stone building by 1832. The first classes were reading and writing, since the Hawaiian language was only oral before the missionaries. Next Arithmetic and Geography were added. By the end of the second year, enrollment had reached 85.
Andrews served as principal, and then professor for ten years. Notable early students include David Malo
(class of 1835) and Samuel Kamakau
(class of 1837).
By May 1832 he helped translate the New Testament
of the Bible
into Hawaiian, which would prove to be part of a long and collaborative effort. Other ministers involved included Richards, Asa Thurston, and Hiram Bingham I
.
In December 1833, an old Ramage press was shipped from Honolulu and installed in a small thatched roof building on the school campus by January 1834. The manual flat-bed technology was not very different than that used by Benjamin Franklin
almost 100 years earlier. The press had been sent along with printer Elisha Loomis on the first company of missionaries in 1820, and used to print a few hymnals and spelling books. Loomis had to return in 1827, probably bringing with him the word list Andrews had studied. The ministers had to take over managing the printing while training Hawaiians. Although Andrews had only worked briefly as an assistant in a printer's office, he taught classes in printing at Lahainaluna. Students learned how to set type, operate the old press, create copper engravings and bind books.
On February 14, 1834 about 200 copies of the first Hawaiian newspaper were printed, a four page weekly called Ka Lama Hawai'i (The Hawaiian Luminary).
By February 1836, he published a list of about 5,700 words in the Hawaiian language that had been edited through the years (based on Elisha Loomis' work) using the press.
In June 1836, the school changed from admitting only married adult men to a boarding school for children aged 10 to 20 years. He published the first Hawaiian grammar book in 1838.
His students were to become authors and publishers of newspapers and books throughout Hawaii.
In 1837 work began on a more substantial building called Hale Pa'i (printing house). It was made of stone, mortar made by burning coral, and timbers hauled to the site from the forests on the opposite side of the island.
Starting in about 1835, the students compiled a classic collection of stories about ancient Hawaiian life and traditions titled Ka Moo o lelo Hawaii ("The Hawaiian Antiquities"). David Malo had served as court historian and genealogist during the formation of the kingdom, so is generally credited as the major source. Sheldon Dibble
first organized a printing of the book in the Hawaiian language about 1838 (reprinted in Hawaiian in 2005).
In 1858 more stories were added and a second Hawaiian edition was published. The book was translated by Nathaniel Bright Emerson
and published in English in 1898, and again in 1951 and 1987 editions. Andrews had his students write a history of Kamehameha I
, but the manuscript was lost.
He left the mission in April 1842 because the board in New England continued to accept funds from slave owning states. This demonstration of his moral character would lead to his next career as a judge. He served as a seamen's chaplain at Lahaina, which had become a popular port for the whaling
industry. He remained involved with publishing and in 1843 directed the printing some of the first paper currency issued in the Kingdom. Since the nation had no official currency of its own, it was based on the U.S. Dollar and called ho'okahi dala. Five smaller paper denominations were also printed. By 1844 a student was expelled for counterfeiting
, forcing all the paper money to be re-issued with secret marks.
; the first lawyer arrived in 1844. On September 19, 1845, the Governor of Oahu Mataio Kekuanaoa
appointed Andrews to be judge of foreign cases despite the lack of any formal training. In June 1846 local judges were added for the other islands, and he was given appellate jurisdiction as well as handling major original cases. His next project was to make court procedures more formalized and uniform. He began by issuing twenty-one rules of practice in July 1846. There were only three lawyers at this time besides Attorney General John Ricord
, who probably helped draft the rules. In 1847 his position was officially named the "Superior Court of Law and Equity".
Starting in 1846 he served as secretary of the King's Privy Council
, keeping records in both English and Hawaiian.
William Little Lee
drafted a judiciary bill to implement the provisions of the 1852 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii
. It was passed by the Privy Council and signed by King Kamehameha III
who appointed the incumbents of the Superior Court to the new Supreme Court of Hawaii. Lee became Chief Justice, and Lorrin Andrews and John Papa Īī associate justices. Before then, the Supreme Court was essentially the King and some high chiefs. A smallpox
epidemic caused an increase in the number of probate
cases, and in December 1854 Andrews became the lone judge in a special court for divorce and probate.
He worked again on Bible translation, publishing the books of John, Jude, and Proverbs. He translated and published some of the important chants from Hawaiian culture.
He combined his 1835 work with several other word lists and published a larger Hawaiian dictionary containing about 15,000 words in 1865.
This dictionary has been the base of many others through history.
Although his eyesight failed, he employed assistants to act as scribes until he died in 1868.
would follow him and also become a lawyer without any formal training.
A namesake Lorrin A. Andrews (1857–1911), son of Rev. Claudius Buchanan Andrews (1818–1877) and Anna Seward Gilson (1823–1862), would serve in the Territory of Hawaii
as Attorney General (1903–1905) and in the House of Representatives (1917–1921).
Lahainaluna Seminary eventually split into Lahainaluna High School
which exists today as a public high school, and what evolved into the University of Hawaii
.
His works were valuable in the reconstruction of Hawaiian language and culture that started in the 1980s.
Hale Pai was opened to the public as a museum in 1960. However, the building fell into disrepair. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
on May 13, 1976. The Lahaina Restoration Foundation restored the building and re-opened it in 1983.
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...
and judge. He opened the first post-secondary school for Hawaiians called Lahainaluna Seminary, prepared a Hawaiian dictionary and several works on the literature and antiquities of the Hawaiians. His students published the first newspaper, and were involved in the first case of counterfeiting currency in Hawaii. He later served as a judge and became a member of Hawaii's first Supreme Court.
Life
Lorrin Andrews was born in East Windsor, ConnecticutEast Windsor, Connecticut
East Windsor is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 11,162 at the 2010 census.The town has five villages: Broad Brook, Melrose, Scantic, Warehouse Point and Windsorville.-Area:...
, on April 29, 1795. He graduated from Jefferson College
Washington & Jefferson College
Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh...
, Pennsylvania, and attended Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
. He married Mary Ann Wilson from Washington, Kentucky
Washington, Kentucky
Washington is a village near the Ohio River in Mason County in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is one of the earliest settlements in Kentucky and also one of the earliest American settlements west of the Appalachian Mountains...
on August 16, 1827.
The marriage produced seven children: son Lorrin Jr. (1828–1857), daughters Elizabeth Maria (1830–1868), Sarah (October 10, 1832–1899), sons Robert Wilson
Robert Wilson Andrews
Robert Wilson Andrews was a Hawaii-born artist and engineer. His father Lorrin Andrews was an early American missionary to Hawaii and a judge. Prior to leaving Hawaii in 1859, Robert made a number of finely crafter landscape drawings including renderings of the sacrificial stone at Kolekole...
(1837–1921), Samuel (1839–1911), William (1842–1919), and daughter Mary Ellen (1844–1930). Sarah would marry Asa Goodale Thurston, son of Asa and Lucy Goodale Thurston
Asa and Lucy Goodale Thurston
Asa Thurston and Lucy Goodale Thurston were in the first company of American Christian Missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands.-Asa Thurston:...
, earlier missionaries from the first company to the islands. Sarah's son, Lorrin Andrews Thurston, played a pivotal role in later Hawaiian history.
He sailed for the Hawaiian Islands in November 1827, on the ship Parthian. The physician Gerrit P. Judd
Gerrit P. Judd
Gerrit Parmele Judd was an American physician and missionary to the Kingdom of Hawaii who later became a trusted advisor and cabinet minister to King Kamehameha III.- Life :...
was also in this third company from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions was the first American Christian foreign mission agency. It was proposed in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College and officially chartered in 1812. In 1961 it merged with other societies to form the United Church Board for World...
.
He was assigned to the mission at Lahaina, Hawaii on the island of Maui
Maui
The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...
which had been established by William Richards in 1823.
He moved to Honolulu in 1845 where he died on September 29, 1868.
Work
One of his first tasks after arriving in March 1828 was to learn the Hawaiian languageHawaiian language
The Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
. On his voyage he had already transcribed a list of Hawaiian words which had been sent back to the New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
mission office in 1827.
In June 1831 the mission hoped to establish a seminary
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
on Maui, since it was somewhat centrally located among the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
. Andrews was selected to run the school. He and Richards suggested a site about two miles inland from the village of Lahaina, which was later called Lahainaluna for "upper Lahaina".
On September 5, 1831 classes began in thatched huts with 25 married Hawaiian young men. It was the first college west of the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
The students built a stone building by 1832. The first classes were reading and writing, since the Hawaiian language was only oral before the missionaries. Next Arithmetic and Geography were added. By the end of the second year, enrollment had reached 85.
Andrews served as principal, and then professor for ten years. Notable early students include David Malo
David Malo
David Malo or Davida Malo was a leading Native Hawaiian historian of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He became a Christian minister and founded a church.-Life:...
(class of 1835) and Samuel Kamakau
Samuel Kamakau
Samuel Manaiākalani Kamakau was a Hawaiian historian and scholar. His work appeared in local newspapers and was later compiled into books, becoming an invaluable resource on the Hawaiian people, Hawaiian culture, and Hawaiian language during a time when they were disappearing.Along with David Malo...
(class of 1837).
By May 1832 he helped translate the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
into Hawaiian, which would prove to be part of a long and collaborative effort. Other ministers involved included Richards, Asa Thurston, and Hiram Bingham I
Hiram Bingham I
Hiram Bingham, formally Hiram Bingham I , was leader of the first group of Protestant missionaries to introduce Christianity to the Hawaiian islands.-Life:...
.
First newspaper
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
almost 100 years earlier. The press had been sent along with printer Elisha Loomis on the first company of missionaries in 1820, and used to print a few hymnals and spelling books. Loomis had to return in 1827, probably bringing with him the word list Andrews had studied. The ministers had to take over managing the printing while training Hawaiians. Although Andrews had only worked briefly as an assistant in a printer's office, he taught classes in printing at Lahainaluna. Students learned how to set type, operate the old press, create copper engravings and bind books.
On February 14, 1834 about 200 copies of the first Hawaiian newspaper were printed, a four page weekly called Ka Lama Hawai'i (The Hawaiian Luminary).
By February 1836, he published a list of about 5,700 words in the Hawaiian language that had been edited through the years (based on Elisha Loomis' work) using the press.
In June 1836, the school changed from admitting only married adult men to a boarding school for children aged 10 to 20 years. He published the first Hawaiian grammar book in 1838.
His students were to become authors and publishers of newspapers and books throughout Hawaii.
In 1837 work began on a more substantial building called Hale Pa'i (printing house). It was made of stone, mortar made by burning coral, and timbers hauled to the site from the forests on the opposite side of the island.
Starting in about 1835, the students compiled a classic collection of stories about ancient Hawaiian life and traditions titled Ka Moo o lelo Hawaii ("The Hawaiian Antiquities"). David Malo had served as court historian and genealogist during the formation of the kingdom, so is generally credited as the major source. Sheldon Dibble
Sheldon Dibble
Sheldon Dibble was a missionary to Hawaii who organized one of the first books on Hawaiian history, and inspired students to write more.-Early life:...
first organized a printing of the book in the Hawaiian language about 1838 (reprinted in Hawaiian in 2005).
In 1858 more stories were added and a second Hawaiian edition was published. The book was translated by Nathaniel Bright Emerson
Nathaniel Bright Emerson
Nathaniel Bright Emerson was a medical physician and author of Hawaiian mythology.He attended Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts and served in the First Regiment of the Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, during which he was wounded three times...
and published in English in 1898, and again in 1951 and 1987 editions. Andrews had his students write a history of Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I
Kamehameha I , also known as Kamehameha the Great, conquered the Hawaiian Islands and formally established the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1810. By developing alliances with the major Pacific colonial powers, Kamehameha preserved Hawaii's independence under his rule...
, but the manuscript was lost.
Whaling
Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. Various coastal communities have long histories of sustenance whaling and harvesting beached whales...
industry. He remained involved with publishing and in 1843 directed the printing some of the first paper currency issued in the Kingdom. Since the nation had no official currency of its own, it was based on the U.S. Dollar and called ho'okahi dala. Five smaller paper denominations were also printed. By 1844 a student was expelled for counterfeiting
Counterfeit money
Counterfeit money is currency that is produced without the legal sanction of the state or government to resemble some official form of currency closely enough that it may be confused for genuine currency. Producing or using counterfeit money is a form of fraud or forgery. Counterfeiting is probably...
, forcing all the paper money to be re-issued with secret marks.
Law
There were very few members of the law profession in the Kingdom of HawaiiKingdom of Hawaii
The Kingdom of Hawaii was established during the years 1795 to 1810 with the subjugation of the smaller independent chiefdoms of Oahu, Maui, Molokai, Lānai, Kauai and Niihau by the chiefdom of Hawaii into one unified government...
; the first lawyer arrived in 1844. On September 19, 1845, the Governor of Oahu Mataio Kekuanaoa
Mataio Kekuanaoa
Mataio Kekūanāoa was descended from the high chiefs of the island of Oahu. His name Mataio was the Hawaiian form of Matthew, although the former remain the most common form used to referred to him....
appointed Andrews to be judge of foreign cases despite the lack of any formal training. In June 1846 local judges were added for the other islands, and he was given appellate jurisdiction as well as handling major original cases. His next project was to make court procedures more formalized and uniform. He began by issuing twenty-one rules of practice in July 1846. There were only three lawyers at this time besides Attorney General John Ricord
John Ricord
John Ricord whose birth name was probably Jean Baptiste Ricord-Madianna II, was a lawyer and world traveler. He was involved in cases in Texas, Oregon, Hawaii, and California.-Life:...
, who probably helped draft the rules. In 1847 his position was officially named the "Superior Court of Law and Equity".
Starting in 1846 he served as secretary of the King's Privy Council
Privy council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the monarch's closest advisors to give confidential advice on...
, keeping records in both English and Hawaiian.
William Little Lee
William Little Lee
William Little Lee was an American lawyer who became the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court for the Kingdom of Hawaii.-Life:...
drafted a judiciary bill to implement the provisions of the 1852 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii
1852 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii
The Constitution of 1852 served as the Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii from 1852 through 1864. It was passed during the reign of King Kamehameha III...
. It was passed by the Privy Council and signed by King Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III
Kamehameha III was the King of Hawaii from 1825 to 1854. His full Hawaiian name was Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa and then lengthened to Keaweaweula Kiwalao Kauikeaouli Kaleiopapa Kalani Waiakua Kalanikau Iokikilo Kiwalao i ke kapu Kamehameha when he ascended the throne.Under his...
who appointed the incumbents of the Superior Court to the new Supreme Court of Hawaii. Lee became Chief Justice, and Lorrin Andrews and John Papa Īī associate justices. Before then, the Supreme Court was essentially the King and some high chiefs. A smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
epidemic caused an increase in the number of probate
Probate
Probate is the legal process of administering the estate of a deceased person by resolving all claims and distributing the deceased person's property under the valid will. A probate court decides the validity of a testator's will...
cases, and in December 1854 Andrews became the lone judge in a special court for divorce and probate.
More publishing
He resigned from the court in 1855, and went back to his publishing.He worked again on Bible translation, publishing the books of John, Jude, and Proverbs. He translated and published some of the important chants from Hawaiian culture.
He combined his 1835 work with several other word lists and published a larger Hawaiian dictionary containing about 15,000 words in 1865.
This dictionary has been the base of many others through history.
Although his eyesight failed, he employed assistants to act as scribes until he died in 1868.
Legacy
Lorrin Andrews' grandson Lorrin A. ThurstonLorrin A. Thurston
Lorrin Andrews Thurston was a lawyer, politician, and businessman born and raised in the Kingdom of Hawaii. The grandson of two of the first Christian missionaries to Hawaii, Thurston played a prominent role in the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom that replaced Queen Liliuokalani with the...
would follow him and also become a lawyer without any formal training.
A namesake Lorrin A. Andrews (1857–1911), son of Rev. Claudius Buchanan Andrews (1818–1877) and Anna Seward Gilson (1823–1862), would serve in the Territory of Hawaii
Territory of Hawaii
The Territory of Hawaii or Hawaii Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 7, 1898, until August 21, 1959, when its territory, with the exception of Johnston Atoll, was admitted to the Union as the fiftieth U.S. state, the State of Hawaii.The U.S...
as Attorney General (1903–1905) and in the House of Representatives (1917–1921).
Lahainaluna Seminary eventually split into Lahainaluna High School
Lahainaluna High School
Lahainaluna High School is a grade 9-12 school located in Lahaina , Hawaii. It is the oldest post-secondary school west of the Mississippi River. It was founded in 1831 as a Protestant missionary school, originally named Lahainaluna Seminary...
which exists today as a public high school, and what evolved into the University of Hawaii
University of Hawaii
The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...
.
His works were valuable in the reconstruction of Hawaiian language and culture that started in the 1980s.
Hale Pai was opened to the public as a museum in 1960. However, the building fell into disrepair. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on May 13, 1976. The Lahaina Restoration Foundation restored the building and re-opened it in 1983.