History
The Annexation of Hawaii and the Territory Years
How Hawaii was annexed by the United States in 1898, became a territory in 1900, and the territorial era that eventually led to statehood in 1959.
After the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy in 1893, the United States annexed Hawaii in 1898 and organized it as a territory in 1900. Hawaii would remain a territory for nearly six decades before becoming the 50th state in 1959. This period bridges the fall of the kingdom and modern Hawaii, and it is essential to understanding the islands today.
Annexation in 1898
In 1898, Congress passed the Newlands Resolution authorizing the annexation of the Republic of Hawaii, and sovereignty was formally transferred to the United States in a ceremony at ʻIolani Palace on August 12, 1898. Annexation happened by a joint resolution of Congress rather than a treaty, a point that sovereignty advocates continue to raise. Hawaii became an organized territory two years later, under the 1900 Organic Act.
The Territory of Hawaii
In April 1900, Congress passed the Hawaiian Organic Act, which formally organized the Territory of Hawaii and its government. Many Native Hawaiians had opposed annexation, and a mass petition against it, the Kūʻē Petitions, gathered thousands of signatures, a powerful record of that opposition.
The territorial era
During the territorial decades, the plantation economy and immigration reshaped the islands, and Honolulu grew into a major hub. The attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 made Hawaii central to World War II and to U.S. strategy in the Pacific, accelerating its ties to the mainland.
The road to statehood
After the war, momentum for statehood grew, and in 1959 Hawaii became the 50th state, covered on our page about Hawaii statehood. Yet the questions raised by the overthrow and annexation did not disappear; they remain alive in the Hawaiian sovereignty movement.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was Hawaii annexed by the United States?
When did Hawaii become a U.S. territory?
Was annexation supported by Native Hawaiians?
We research each guide against primary sources: the Hawaii Tourism Authority and Mālama Hawaii, the National Park Service, the State of Hawaii and its Division of State Parks, the National Weather Service, and the U.S. Census. For culture, language, and history we lean on the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, the Bishop Museum, and the scholarship of Mary Kawena Pukui. We send readers to those sources rather than speaking over them. When rules, prices, or conditions change, we update the page.