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The first bank established in the Kingdom of Hawaii was Bishop & Co., founded by Charles Reed Bishop and William A. Aldrich in 1858.[1] Almost 25 years later, Spreckels & Co. was founded by Claus Spreckels in partnership with William G. Irwin in 1884.[2] The Kingdom opened the Hawaiian Postal Savings Bank on July 1, 1886.[3] By 1895 the Yokohama Specie Bank opened a branch in Honolulu and the merchant importer/exporter Hackfeld & Co. went into banking.[4] Following the annexation of Hawaii in July 1898, plans were set in motion to establish the First American Bank of Hawaii backed by investors in New York and California.[5] A prospectus soliciting stock subscriptions was released on May 8, 1899,[6] and the bank opened for business on September 5, 1899.[7] The founding board of directors included Cecil Brown (President), B.F. Dillingham (Vice-President), M.P. Robinson, Bruce Cartwright, and G.W. Macfarlane. Additional officers included W.G. Cooper (Cashier), E.M. Boyd (Secretary), and George F. McLeod (Auditor).[8] The expressed purpose for founding the bank was to eventually convert it into a National Bank under the National Bank Act.[6] On April 30, 1900 a special act of Congress extended the National Banking Act to include the Territory of Hawaii.[9]
- ^ Wright & Sylla 2015, p. 34.
- ^ Kuykendall 1967, p. 85.
- ^ Thrum 1886, p. 67.
- ^ Williams 1895, p. 508.
- ^ "First American Bank". The Hawaiian Star. 18 April 1899. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Prospectus of New Bank". Evening Bulletin (Honolulu). 8 May 1899. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Will Open Today". The Hawaiian Gazette. 5 September 1899. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Election of Officers". Evening Bulletin (Honolulu). 8 September 1899. p. 6. Retrieved 1 March 2016 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (1908). The National Bank Act. Washington: Government Printing Office. p. 102.
