Pearl Harbor
Encyclopedia
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiian
s as Puuloa, is a lagoon
harbor
on the island
of Oahu
, Hawaii
, west of Honolulu
. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy
deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet
. The attack on Pearl Harbor
by the Empire of Japan
on December 7, 1941, brought the United States
into World War II
.
, the head of the powerful Ewa chiefs, is credited with cutting a navigable channel near the present Puuloa saltworks, by which made the estuary, known as “Pearl River,” accessible to navigation. Making due allowance for legendary amplification, the estuary already had an outlet for its waters where the present gap is; but Keaunui is typically given the credit for widening and deepening it.
followed its whaling and trading ships in the Pacific. As early as 1820, an "Agent of the United States for Commerce and Seamen" was appointed to look after American business in the Port of Honolulu. These commercial ties to the American continent were accompanied by the work of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions
. American missionaries and their families became an integral part of the Hawaiian political body.
An 1826 incident illustrates some of the high-handed tactics used by colonizers of the islands at this time. When Percival's ship, , arrived in Honolulu, an ordinance inspired by the missionaries, placed restrictions on alcoholic liquors and the taking of women aboard vessels in the Honolulu Harbor. Lieutenant
Percival and members of his crew felt that the new vice laws were unfair and, with more than a mere threat of force, had them rescinded. This action was later renounced by the United States and resulted in the sending of an envoy to King Kauikeaouli. When Captain Thomas ap Catesby Jones
arrived, in command of the , he was the first naval officer to visit Hawaii armed with instructions to discuss international affairs with the Hawaii King and Chiefs and to conclude a trade treaty.
Throughout the 1820s and 1830s, many American warships visited Honolulu. In most cases, the commanding officers carried letters from the U.S. Government giving advice on governmental affairs and of the relations of the island nation with foreign powers. In 1841, the newspaper Polynesian, printed in Honolulu, advocated that the U.S. establish a naval base in Hawaii. Its pretext was protection of American citizens engaged in the whaling industry. The British Hawaiian Minister of Foreign Affairs Robert Crichton Wyllie
, remarked in 1840 that "...my opinion is that the tide of events rushes on to annexation to the United States." This trend was helped by incidents with the British and French. On February 13, 1843, Lord George Paulet, of occupied the islands in an incident known as the Paulet Affair
. Although an American warship, , was in the harbor, its commanding officer did not interfere. Official protest was made a few days later, however, by Commodore Kearney of . The actions of Lord Paulet were disavowed by Lord Aberdeen
in London. France and Britain recognized Hawaiian independence, but the United States declined.
After France agitated again in the 1849 invasion
, King Kamehameha III
, under the influence of his American advisors, drew up a deed of cessation to the United States. The commanding officer of had his ship stand by while awaiting Washington's reply. With the death of the king, the retirement of the French forces, and the foreign policy of the Fillmore
administration, the cessation idea fell into disfavor. The Navy Department received orders, however, to keep the naval armament of the U.S. in the Pacific.
With the conclusion of the Civil War
, the purchase of Alaska
, the increased importance of the Pacific states, the projected trade with the Orient and the desire for a duty free market for Hawaiian staples, Hawaiian trade expanded. In 1865, the North Pacific Squadron was formed to embrace the western coast and Hawaii. in the following year was assigned to cruise among the islands, "a locality of great and increasing interest and importance." This vessel surveyed the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
toward Japan. As a result the United States claimed Midway Island
. The Secretary of the Navy was able to write in his annual report of 1868, that in November, 1867, 42 American flags flew over whaleships and merchant vessels in Honolulu to only six of other nations. This increased activity caused the permanent assignment of at least one warship to Hawaiian waters. It also praised Midway Island as possessing a harbor surpassing Honolulu's. In the following year, Congress approved an appropriation of $50,000 on March 1, 1869, to deepen the approaches to this harbor.
After 1868, when the Commander of the Pacific Fleet visited the islands to look after "American interests," naval officers played an important role in internal affairs. They served as arbitrators in business disputes, negotiators of trade agreements and defenders of law and order. Periodic voyages among the islands and to the mainland aboard U.S. warships were arranged for members of the Hawaiian royal family and important island government officials. When King Lunalilo
died in 1873, negotiations were underway for the cessation of Pearl Harbor as a port for the duty-free export of sugar to the U.S. With the election of King Kalākaua
in March, 1874, riots prompted landing of bluejacket
s from USS Tuscorora and . The British warship, , also landed a token force. During the reign of King Kalākaua the United States was granted exclusive rights to enter Pearl Harbor and to establish "a coaling and repair station."
This treaty continued in force until August 1898, the U.S. did not fortify Pearl Harbor as a naval base. The shallow entrance constituted a formidable barrier against the use of the deep protected waters of the inner harbor as it had for 60 years.
The United States and the Hawaiian Kingdom signed the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
as supplemented by Convention on December 6, 1884 and ratified in 1887. On January 20, 1887, the United States Senate
allowed the Navy to lease Pearl Harbor as a naval base (the US took possession on November 9 that year). The Spanish-American War
of 1898 and the desire for the United States to have a permanent presence in the Pacific both contributed to the decision.
F. Merry was made naval representative with authority to transact business for the Navy Department and its Bureaus
. He immediately assumed control of the Coal Depot and its equipment. To supplement his facilities, he was assigned the Navy tug and two coal barges. Inquiries that commenced in June culminated in the establishment of the "Naval Station, Honolulu" on November 17, 1899. On February 2, 1900, this title was changed to "Naval Station, Hawaii."
The creation of the Naval Station allowed the Navy Department to explore territorial outposts. In October 1899, and Iroquois made extensive surveys and sounding of the waterways to Midway and Guam
. One of the reasons for these explorations was to select a possible cable route to Luzon
.
A coal famine and an outbreak of the bubonic plague
were the only two incidents that hindered the Commandant from fulfilling his primary functions. Because of the severe coal shortage in September 1899, the Commandant sold coal to the Oahu Railway and Land Company
and the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
, Ltd. Although this indicated the affinity of economic ties with the Navy, it was to a certain extent counteracted by the quarantine of the naval establishment from December 1899-February 1900, because of the bubonic plague. Approximately 61 deaths were recorded in Honolulu for this period. Work was consequently delayed on nascent Navy projects in Honolulu Harbor.
From 1900-1908, the Navy devoted its time to improving the facilities of the 85 acres (34.4 ha) that constituted the naval reservation in Honolulu. Under the Appropriation Act of March 3, 1901, this tract of land was improved with the erection of additional sheds and housing. Improvements included a machine shop, smithery and foundry, Commandant's house and stables, cottage for the watchman, fencing, 10-ton wharf crane, and water-pipe system. The harbor was dredged and the channel enlarged to accommodate larger ships. On May 28, 1903, the first battleship, , entered the harbor for coal and water. However, when the vessels of the Asiatic station visited Honolulu in January 1904, Rear Admiral
Silas Terry complained that they were inadequately accommodated with dockage and water.
Under the above Appropriation Act, Congress approved the acquisition of lands for the development of a naval station at Pearl Harbor and the improvement of the channel to the Lochs. The Commandant, under the direction of the Bureau of Equipment, attempted to obtain options on lands surrounding Pearl Harbor that were recommended for naval use. This endeavor was unsuccessful when the owners of the property refused to accept what was deemed to be a fair price. Condemnation proceedings, under the Hawaiian law of eminent domain, were begun on July 6, 1901. The land acquired by this suit included the present Navy Yard, Kauhua Island, and a strip on the southeast coast of Ford Island
. The work of dredging the coral reef that blocked Pearl Harbor progressed rapidly enough to allow the gunboat to proceed to the upper part of Main Loch in January 1905.
One of the early concerns of the growing station was that the Army would make claims on its property. Because of their facilities, as wharves, cranes, artesian wells, and coal supplies, many requests were made by the Army for their use. By February 1901, the Army had made application for the privilege of establishing on Navy docks movable cranes for handling coal and other stores, a saluting battery and a flag staff on the naval reservation, and an artesian well of its own. All these requests were rejected by the Bureau of Equipment on the theory that, once granted, they "will practically constitute a permanent foothold on the property, and end in dividing it between the two Departments, or in the entire exclusion of the Navy Department on the ground of military expediency as established by frequency of use." However, the Army Depot Quartermaster at Honolulu contracted for the sinking of an artesian well on the Naval Station with the Commandant's approval, who, in turn, acted on a recommendation of the Bureau of Yards and Docks
. The flow of water obtained amounted to over 1.5 million gallons per day, sufficient for all purposes of the Army and Navy. The Bureau of Equipment felt that its word of caution was justified when the Depot Quartermaster in 1902 let it be known that any water used by the Navy from the artesian well was "only given by courtesy of the Army."
Despite the warnings of the Bureau of Equipment, the War Department
, the Department of Labor and Commerce, and the Department of Agriculture
had secured permission to settle on the naval reservation. By 1906, the Commandant believed that it was necessary for the Bureau of Yards and Docks to develop a policy on the future of the station. The docks were being used to a greater extent by the Army transports, than by Navy ships, and the Army was actually attempting to get possession of Quarantine Wharf (which was built by the Territorial Government on the Naval Reservation, with the understanding that it could be taken over at any time by the Navy Department upon the payment of its appraised value.) In 1903, the Department of Labor and Commerce received about 7 acres (2.8 ha) for an Immigration Station. The Department of Agriculture had, in the meanwhile, secured part of the site intended for a hospital as an experimental station. The Commandant felt that, if the station was going to develop beyond a mere coaling depot, these territorial encroachments on the part of other departments should be stopped, particularly when they were enjoying the benefits of naval appropriations. "On the other hand," he wrote, "if it is the intention to improve Pearl Harbor and eventually abandon this station every effort should be made to begin work there as soon as possible. . . . I am informed that important commercial interests will make a strong effort next year to have Pearl Harbor improved, and I think that will be an opportune time for the Navy Department to make efforts in the same direction."
In 1908, the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard was established. The period from 1908-1919 was one of steady and continuous growth of the Naval Station, Pearl Harbor, with the exception of the discouraging collapse of the drydock in 1913. The Act of May 13, 1908 authorized the enlargement and dredging of the Pearl Harbor channel and lochs "to admit the largest ships," the building of shops and supply houses for the Navy Yard, and the construction of a drydock. Work on the dock started on September 21, 1909. In April 1910, the barquentine Amaranth
became the fourth deep-sea, cargo-carrying vessel to venture into the newly dredged harbor, having been preceded by the three-masted schooner W.H. Marston on March 8, and the schooner Ariel and bark Marston a few days later. Amaranth delivered materials for construction of the dry dock facility. Work progressed satisfactorily on all projects, except the drydock. After much wrangling with Congress to secure an appropriation of over three million dollars for its construction, the drydock was wrecked by "underground pressure." "On February 17, 1913, the entire drydock structure rumbled, rocked, and caved in." The drydock was ceremonially opened to flooding on August 21, 1919, by Mrs. Josephus Daniels
, wife of the Secretary of the Navy. In 1917, Ford Island
in the middle of Pearl Harbor was purchased for joint Army and Navy use in the development of military aviation in the Pacific.
As the Japanese military pressed its war in China, concern over Japan's intentions caused the U.S. to begin taking defensive measures. On February 1, 1933, the U.S. Navy staged a mock attack on the base at Pearl Harbor as part of a preparedness exercise. The attack "succeeded" and the defense was deemed a "failure".
The actual attack on Pearl Harbor by the Empire of Japan
on December 7, 1941 brought the United States into World War II.
Aircraft and midget submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy began an attack on the U.S. The Americans had, through earlier code breaking activity, determined that an attack was likely to occur. However, while the Americans failed to discover Japan's target location, it was believed that the Phillipines was the most likely target. Under the command of Admiral Chuichi Nagumo
, the attack was devastating in loss of life and damage to the U.S. fleet. At 06:05 on December 7, the six Japanese carriers launched a first wave of 183 aircraft composed mainly of dive bombers, horizontal bombers and fighters. The Japanese hit American ships and military installations at 07:51. The first wave attacked military airfields of Ford Island. At 08:30, a second wave of 170 Japanese aircraft, mostly torpedo bombers, attacked the fleet anchored in Pearl Harbor. The battleship was hit with an armor-piercing bomb which penetrated the forward ammunition compartment, blowing the ship apart and sinking it within seconds. Overall, nine ships of the U.S. fleet were sunk and 21 ships were severely damaged. Three of the 21 would be irreparable. The overall death toll reached 2,403, including 68 civilians, and 1,178 injured. Of the military personnel lost at Pearl Harbor, 1,177 were from the Arizona. The first shots fired
were from the destroyer on a midget submarine that surfaced outside of Pearl Harbor; Ward sank the midget sub at approximately 06:55, about an hour before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Japan would lose 29 out of the 350 aircraft they attacked with.
district and with the National Register of Historic Places
since 1976. Within its bounds, it contains several other National Historic Landmarks associated with the attack on Pearl Harbor
, including the Arizona, , and . As an active Navy base, many of the historic buildings that contributed to the NHL designation are under threat of demolition and rebuilding.
Native Hawaiians
Native Hawaiians refers to the indigenous Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands or their descendants. Native Hawaiians trace their ancestry back to the original Polynesian settlers of Hawaii.According to the U.S...
s as Puuloa, is a lagoon
Lagoon
A lagoon is a body of shallow sea water or brackish water separated from the sea by some form of barrier. The EU's habitat directive defines lagoons as "expanses of shallow coastal salt water, of varying salinity or water volume, wholly or partially separated from the sea by sand banks or shingle,...
harbor
Harbor
A harbor or harbour , or haven, is a place where ships, boats, and barges can seek shelter from stormy weather, or else are stored for future use. Harbors can be natural or artificial...
on the island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
of Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
, Hawaii
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...
, west of Honolulu
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...
. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
. The attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
by the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
on December 7, 1941, brought the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
into World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
History
Pearl Harbor was originally an extensive shallow embayment called Wai Momi (meaning, “pearl water”) or Puuloa (meaning, “long hill”) by the Hawaiians. Puuloa was regarded as the home of the shark goddess, Kaahupahau, and her brother (or son), Kahiuka, in Hawaiian legends. According to tradition, KeaunuiKeaunui
Keaunui was a northern Hawaiian chief. He was of the Nanaulu line being lineal descendant of Nanaulu, the brother of Ulu, from whom the southern chiefs claim their descent.He was one of the three sons of Maweke and his wife Naiolaukea...
, the head of the powerful Ewa chiefs, is credited with cutting a navigable channel near the present Puuloa saltworks, by which made the estuary, known as “Pearl River,” accessible to navigation. Making due allowance for legendary amplification, the estuary already had an outlet for its waters where the present gap is; but Keaunui is typically given the credit for widening and deepening it.
Nineteenth Century
During the early nineteenth century Pearl Harbor was not used for large ships due to its shallow entrance. The interest of the United States in the Hawaiian IslandsHawaiian 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...
followed its whaling and trading ships in the Pacific. As early as 1820, an "Agent of the United States for Commerce and Seamen" was appointed to look after American business in the Port of Honolulu. These commercial ties to the American continent were accompanied by the work of 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...
. American missionaries and their families became an integral part of the Hawaiian political body.
An 1826 incident illustrates some of the high-handed tactics used by colonizers of the islands at this time. When Percival's ship, , arrived in Honolulu, an ordinance inspired by the missionaries, placed restrictions on alcoholic liquors and the taking of women aboard vessels in the Honolulu Harbor. Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Percival and members of his crew felt that the new vice laws were unfair and, with more than a mere threat of force, had them rescinded. This action was later renounced by the United States and resulted in the sending of an envoy to King Kauikeaouli. When Captain Thomas ap Catesby Jones
Thomas ap Catesby Jones
Thomas ap Catesby Jones was a U.S. Navy officer during the War of 1812 and the Mexican-American War.-Early life:Jones was born in 1790 in Westmoreland County, Virginia. Thomas ap Catesby Jones means Thomas, son of Catesby Jones in the Welsh language. His brother was Roger Jones, who would become...
arrived, in command of the , he was the first naval officer to visit Hawaii armed with instructions to discuss international affairs with the Hawaii King and Chiefs and to conclude a trade treaty.
Throughout the 1820s and 1830s, many American warships visited Honolulu. In most cases, the commanding officers carried letters from the U.S. Government giving advice on governmental affairs and of the relations of the island nation with foreign powers. In 1841, the newspaper Polynesian, printed in Honolulu, advocated that the U.S. establish a naval base in Hawaii. Its pretext was protection of American citizens engaged in the whaling industry. The British Hawaiian Minister of Foreign Affairs Robert Crichton Wyllie
Robert Crichton Wyllie
Robert Crichton Wyllie was a Scottish physician and businessman. He also served two decades as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Kingdom of Hawaii.-Early life:...
, remarked in 1840 that "...my opinion is that the tide of events rushes on to annexation to the United States." This trend was helped by incidents with the British and French. On February 13, 1843, Lord George Paulet, of occupied the islands in an incident known as the Paulet Affair
Paulet Affair (1843)
The Paulet Affair was a five month occupation of the Hawaiian Islands in 1843 by British naval officer Captain Lord George Paulet, of .-Paulet affair:...
. Although an American warship, , was in the harbor, its commanding officer did not interfere. Official protest was made a few days later, however, by Commodore Kearney of . The actions of Lord Paulet were disavowed by Lord Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen KG, KT, FRS, PC , styled Lord Haddo from 1791 to 1801, was a Scottish politician, successively a Tory, Conservative and Peelite, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1852 until 1855.-Early life:Born in Edinburgh on 28 January 1784, he...
in London. France and Britain recognized Hawaiian independence, but the United States declined.
After France agitated again in the 1849 invasion
French Invasion of Honolulu
The French Invasion of Honolulu was an attack on Honolulu by Louis Tromelin for the persecution of Catholics and repression on French trade.-Prelude:...
, 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...
, under the influence of his American advisors, drew up a deed of cessation to the United States. The commanding officer of had his ship stand by while awaiting Washington's reply. With the death of the king, the retirement of the French forces, and the foreign policy of the Fillmore
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
administration, the cessation idea fell into disfavor. The Navy Department received orders, however, to keep the naval armament of the U.S. in the Pacific.
With the conclusion of the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, the purchase of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, the increased importance of the Pacific states, the projected trade with the Orient and the desire for a duty free market for Hawaiian staples, Hawaiian trade expanded. In 1865, the North Pacific Squadron was formed to embrace the western coast and Hawaii. in the following year was assigned to cruise among the islands, "a locality of great and increasing interest and importance." This vessel surveyed the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
Northwestern Hawaiian Islands
The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands or the Leeward Islands are the small islands and atolls in the Hawaiian island chain located northwest of the islands of Kauai and Niihau. They are administered by the U.S. state of Hawaii except Midway Atoll, which has temporary residential facilities and is...
toward Japan. As a result the United States claimed Midway Island
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
. The Secretary of the Navy was able to write in his annual report of 1868, that in November, 1867, 42 American flags flew over whaleships and merchant vessels in Honolulu to only six of other nations. This increased activity caused the permanent assignment of at least one warship to Hawaiian waters. It also praised Midway Island as possessing a harbor surpassing Honolulu's. In the following year, Congress approved an appropriation of $50,000 on March 1, 1869, to deepen the approaches to this harbor.
After 1868, when the Commander of the Pacific Fleet visited the islands to look after "American interests," naval officers played an important role in internal affairs. They served as arbitrators in business disputes, negotiators of trade agreements and defenders of law and order. Periodic voyages among the islands and to the mainland aboard U.S. warships were arranged for members of the Hawaiian royal family and important island government officials. When King Lunalilo
Lunalilo
Lunalilo, born William Charles Lunalilo , was king of the Kingdom of Hawaii from January 8, 1873 until February 3, 1874...
died in 1873, negotiations were underway for the cessation of Pearl Harbor as a port for the duty-free export of sugar to the U.S. With the election of King Kalākaua
Kalakaua
Kalākaua, born David Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Nalaiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua and sometimes called The Merrie Monarch , was the last reigning king of the Kingdom of Hawaii...
in March, 1874, riots prompted landing of bluejacket
Bluejacket
-People:* A term for an enlisted sailor in the U.S. or British Navy* Blue Jacket, a Shawnee war chief known for his defense of Shawnee lands in the Ohio Country* Charles Blue Jacket, a 19th century Shawnee chief in Kansas, and Methodist Minister...
s from USS Tuscorora and . The British warship, , also landed a token force. During the reign of King Kalākaua the United States was granted exclusive rights to enter Pearl Harbor and to establish "a coaling and repair station."
This treaty continued in force until August 1898, the U.S. did not fortify Pearl Harbor as a naval base. The shallow entrance constituted a formidable barrier against the use of the deep protected waters of the inner harbor as it had for 60 years.
The United States and the Hawaiian Kingdom signed the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
The Treaty of reciprocity between the United States of America and the Hawaiian Kingdom was a free trade agreement signed and ratified in 1875 that is generally known as the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875....
as supplemented by Convention on December 6, 1884 and ratified in 1887. On January 20, 1887, the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
allowed the Navy to lease Pearl Harbor as a naval base (the US took possession on November 9 that year). The Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
of 1898 and the desire for the United States to have a permanent presence in the Pacific both contributed to the decision.
1899–1941
Following the annexation, Pearl Harbor was refitted to allow for more navy ships. In May 1899, CommanderCommander (United States)
In the United States, commander is a military rank that is also sometimes used as a military title, depending on the branch of service. It is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the military, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Naval rank:In the United States...
F. Merry was made naval representative with authority to transact business for the Navy Department and its Bureaus
United States Navy bureau system
The "bureau system" of the United States Navy was the Department of the Navy's material-support organization from 1842 through 1966. The bureau chiefs were largely autonomous, reporting directly to the Secretary of the Navy and managing their respective organizations without the influence of other...
. He immediately assumed control of the Coal Depot and its equipment. To supplement his facilities, he was assigned the Navy tug and two coal barges. Inquiries that commenced in June culminated in the establishment of the "Naval Station, Honolulu" on November 17, 1899. On February 2, 1900, this title was changed to "Naval Station, Hawaii."
The creation of the Naval Station allowed the Navy Department to explore territorial outposts. In October 1899, and Iroquois made extensive surveys and sounding of the waterways to Midway and Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. One of the reasons for these explorations was to select a possible cable route to Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
.
A coal famine and an outbreak of the bubonic plague
Bubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
were the only two incidents that hindered the Commandant from fulfilling his primary functions. Because of the severe coal shortage in September 1899, the Commandant sold coal to the Oahu Railway and Land Company
Oahu Railway and Land Company
The Oahu Railway and Land Company, or OR&L, was a narrow gauge common carrier railroad that served much of the Hawaiian island of Oahu until its dissolution in 1947.-Origin:...
and the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company was the company headquartered in Honolulu that ran steam boat service between Hawaiian cities from 1883 until 1947. On January 30, 1929 company founded the subsidiary company Inter-Island Airways that was later renamed to Hawaiian Airlines...
, Ltd. Although this indicated the affinity of economic ties with the Navy, it was to a certain extent counteracted by the quarantine of the naval establishment from December 1899-February 1900, because of the bubonic plague. Approximately 61 deaths were recorded in Honolulu for this period. Work was consequently delayed on nascent Navy projects in Honolulu Harbor.
From 1900-1908, the Navy devoted its time to improving the facilities of the 85 acres (34.4 ha) that constituted the naval reservation in Honolulu. Under the Appropriation Act of March 3, 1901, this tract of land was improved with the erection of additional sheds and housing. Improvements included a machine shop, smithery and foundry, Commandant's house and stables, cottage for the watchman, fencing, 10-ton wharf crane, and water-pipe system. The harbor was dredged and the channel enlarged to accommodate larger ships. On May 28, 1903, the first battleship, , entered the harbor for coal and water. However, when the vessels of the Asiatic station visited Honolulu in January 1904, Rear Admiral
Rear admiral (United States)
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. The uniformed services of the United States are unique in having two grades of rear admirals.- Rear admiral :...
Silas Terry complained that they were inadequately accommodated with dockage and water.
Under the above Appropriation Act, Congress approved the acquisition of lands for the development of a naval station at Pearl Harbor and the improvement of the channel to the Lochs. The Commandant, under the direction of the Bureau of Equipment, attempted to obtain options on lands surrounding Pearl Harbor that were recommended for naval use. This endeavor was unsuccessful when the owners of the property refused to accept what was deemed to be a fair price. Condemnation proceedings, under the Hawaiian law of eminent domain, were begun on July 6, 1901. The land acquired by this suit included the present Navy Yard, Kauhua Island, and a strip on the southeast coast of Ford Island
Ford Island
Ford Island is located in the middle of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. It is connected to the main island by the Ford Island Bridge. Before the bridge was built, Ford Island could only be reached by a ferry boat which ran at hourly intervals for cars and foot passengers. The island houses several naval...
. The work of dredging the coral reef that blocked Pearl Harbor progressed rapidly enough to allow the gunboat to proceed to the upper part of Main Loch in January 1905.
One of the early concerns of the growing station was that the Army would make claims on its property. Because of their facilities, as wharves, cranes, artesian wells, and coal supplies, many requests were made by the Army for their use. By February 1901, the Army had made application for the privilege of establishing on Navy docks movable cranes for handling coal and other stores, a saluting battery and a flag staff on the naval reservation, and an artesian well of its own. All these requests were rejected by the Bureau of Equipment on the theory that, once granted, they "will practically constitute a permanent foothold on the property, and end in dividing it between the two Departments, or in the entire exclusion of the Navy Department on the ground of military expediency as established by frequency of use." However, the Army Depot Quartermaster at Honolulu contracted for the sinking of an artesian well on the Naval Station with the Commandant's approval, who, in turn, acted on a recommendation of the Bureau of Yards and Docks
Bureau of Yards and Docks
The Bureau of Yards and Docks was the branch of the United States Navy responsible from 1842 to 1966 for building and maintaining navy yards, drydocks, and other facilities relating to ship construction, maintenance, and repair....
. The flow of water obtained amounted to over 1.5 million gallons per day, sufficient for all purposes of the Army and Navy. The Bureau of Equipment felt that its word of caution was justified when the Depot Quartermaster in 1902 let it be known that any water used by the Navy from the artesian well was "only given by courtesy of the Army."
Despite the warnings of the Bureau of Equipment, the War Department
United States Department of War
The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...
, the Department of Labor and Commerce, and the Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
had secured permission to settle on the naval reservation. By 1906, the Commandant believed that it was necessary for the Bureau of Yards and Docks to develop a policy on the future of the station. The docks were being used to a greater extent by the Army transports, than by Navy ships, and the Army was actually attempting to get possession of Quarantine Wharf (which was built by the Territorial Government on the Naval Reservation, with the understanding that it could be taken over at any time by the Navy Department upon the payment of its appraised value.) In 1903, the Department of Labor and Commerce received about 7 acres (2.8 ha) for an Immigration Station. The Department of Agriculture had, in the meanwhile, secured part of the site intended for a hospital as an experimental station. The Commandant felt that, if the station was going to develop beyond a mere coaling depot, these territorial encroachments on the part of other departments should be stopped, particularly when they were enjoying the benefits of naval appropriations. "On the other hand," he wrote, "if it is the intention to improve Pearl Harbor and eventually abandon this station every effort should be made to begin work there as soon as possible. . . . I am informed that important commercial interests will make a strong effort next year to have Pearl Harbor improved, and I think that will be an opportune time for the Navy Department to make efforts in the same direction."
In 1908, the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard was established. The period from 1908-1919 was one of steady and continuous growth of the Naval Station, Pearl Harbor, with the exception of the discouraging collapse of the drydock in 1913. The Act of May 13, 1908 authorized the enlargement and dredging of the Pearl Harbor channel and lochs "to admit the largest ships," the building of shops and supply houses for the Navy Yard, and the construction of a drydock. Work on the dock started on September 21, 1909. In April 1910, the barquentine Amaranth
Amaranth (barquentine)
Amaranth was a four-masted barquentine built by Matthew Turner of Benicia, California in 1901. Amaranth sailed in the China trade between Puget Sound and Shanghai. She was wrecked on a guano island in the South Pacific in 1913 while carrying a load of coal.-Construction:Barquentine Amaranth Co....
became the fourth deep-sea, cargo-carrying vessel to venture into the newly dredged harbor, having been preceded by the three-masted schooner W.H. Marston on March 8, and the schooner Ariel and bark Marston a few days later. Amaranth delivered materials for construction of the dry dock facility. Work progressed satisfactorily on all projects, except the drydock. After much wrangling with Congress to secure an appropriation of over three million dollars for its construction, the drydock was wrecked by "underground pressure." "On February 17, 1913, the entire drydock structure rumbled, rocked, and caved in." The drydock was ceremonially opened to flooding on August 21, 1919, by Mrs. Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels was a newspaper editor and publisher from North Carolina who was appointed by United States President Woodrow Wilson to serve as Secretary of the Navy during World War I...
, wife of the Secretary of the Navy. In 1917, Ford Island
Ford Island
Ford Island is located in the middle of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. It is connected to the main island by the Ford Island Bridge. Before the bridge was built, Ford Island could only be reached by a ferry boat which ran at hourly intervals for cars and foot passengers. The island houses several naval...
in the middle of Pearl Harbor was purchased for joint Army and Navy use in the development of military aviation in the Pacific.
As the Japanese military pressed its war in China, concern over Japan's intentions caused the U.S. to begin taking defensive measures. On February 1, 1933, the U.S. Navy staged a mock attack on the base at Pearl Harbor as part of a preparedness exercise. The attack "succeeded" and the defense was deemed a "failure".
The actual attack on Pearl Harbor by the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
on December 7, 1941 brought the United States into World War II.
Sunday December 7, 1941
Chuichi Nagumo
was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II and one time commander of the Kido Butai . He committed suicide during the Battle of Saipan.-Early life:...
, the attack was devastating in loss of life and damage to the U.S. fleet. At 06:05 on December 7, the six Japanese carriers launched a first wave of 183 aircraft composed mainly of dive bombers, horizontal bombers and fighters. The Japanese hit American ships and military installations at 07:51. The first wave attacked military airfields of Ford Island. At 08:30, a second wave of 170 Japanese aircraft, mostly torpedo bombers, attacked the fleet anchored in Pearl Harbor. The battleship was hit with an armor-piercing bomb which penetrated the forward ammunition compartment, blowing the ship apart and sinking it within seconds. Overall, nine ships of the U.S. fleet were sunk and 21 ships were severely damaged. Three of the 21 would be irreparable. The overall death toll reached 2,403, including 68 civilians, and 1,178 injured. Of the military personnel lost at Pearl Harbor, 1,177 were from the Arizona. The first shots fired
First American shots fired in World War II
Determining when the first engagement of the United States in World War II occurred may depend from scholar and if such actions led to formal entry of the United States into the conflict.-Attacks on American armed forces:...
were from the destroyer on a midget submarine that surfaced outside of Pearl Harbor; Ward sank the midget sub at approximately 06:55, about an hour before the attack on Pearl Harbor. Japan would lose 29 out of the 350 aircraft they attacked with.
West Loch Explosion, 1944
On May 21, 1944, the tank landing ship exploded at West Loch while handling ammunition. In a short space of time, six LSTs were so damaged that they sank. Two others were severely damaged. 163 sailors were killed; 396 wounded.National Historic Landmark
The Navy base itself was recognized on January 29, 1964 as a National Historic LandmarkNational Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
district and with 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...
since 1976. Within its bounds, it contains several other National Historic Landmarks associated with the attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
, including the Arizona, , and . As an active Navy base, many of the historic buildings that contributed to the NHL designation are under threat of demolition and rebuilding.
External links
- Official website
- British Pathé Online archive of Pearl Harbor and related footage
- Pearl Harbor on The History Channel