Samuel Thomas Alexander
Encyclopedia
Samuel Thomas Alexander (1836–1904) co-founded a major agricultural and transportation business in the Kingdom of Hawaii
.
(1805–1884) and Mary Ann McKinney Alexander (1810–1888) arrived in April 1832 as missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands
. Samuel Thomas was born October 29, 1836 at the Waioli mission
in what is now Hanalei
on the northern coast of Kauai island
.
In 1843 the family moved to the Lahainaluna School, where they became friends with the family of Dwight Baldwin
who had arrived in the previous company in 1831. Alexander's education was sporadic; he went to Punahou School
for various times between 1841 and 1859 In 1857 he and Frederick S. Lyman
(son of missionary David Belden Lyman
) went to California
in a late wave of the California Gold Rush
, but came back empty handed.
He then to Williams College
for one year, and then Westfield School
in Massachusetts
. He followed his father's footsteps and taught at Lahainaluna briefly, but it was not his calling.
In 1863 Alexander became manager of the Waihee sugar plantation
near Wailuku
, hiring Henry Perrine Baldwin
(1842–1911) as assistant.
, one of two former missionary who founded the Castle & Cooke
company. Abigail Charlette Baldwin (1847–1912) married his older brother William DeWitt Alexander
(1833–1913) in 1861. William was a teacher and then president of Punahou School. In 1869 sister Emily Whitney Alexander married Henry Perrine Baldwin.
In 1870 he formed the Pāia plantation under the name Samuel T Alexander & Co. With Baldwin, he purchased 561 acres (2.3 km²) between Pāia
and Makawao
, where they cultivated sugarcane. In 1871 Alexander managed the Haʻikū sugar mill
which had been constructed in 1861 by Castle & Cooke.
The Reciprocity Treaty of 1875
removed tariff
s on sugar exported to the United States
. But to raise their production a steady supply of water was needed for the semi-arid dry forests
of Pāia. Alexander realized that rain was plentiful miles away in the rainforests on the windward
slopes of Haleakalā
mountain. Alexander proposed a 17-mile long irrigation
aqueduct
that diverted water from that part of Haleakalā to their plantation. Alexander knew about irrigation systems used since ancient Hawaii
while he was at Lahainaluna, but this was on an a much larger scale. He negotiated a lease of water rights from King Kalākaua
and raised financing from other partners. It was initially a 20 year lease for $100 per year. His brother James did a survey. Work started on the aqueduct in 1876 and was completed two years later in 1878 (at over three times the estimated cost), just before a deadline in the lease.
In 1883 the Alexander family moved to Oakland, California
to get medical attention for his father, who died there August 13, 1884.
After completion of the aqueduct, the company grew by selling water to adjacent plantations, and was eventually renamed Alexander & Baldwin Plantation. In 1884 Alexander arranged for the partners to buy the small American Sugar Refinery in California, and later organized a group of Hawaiian planters called the Sugar Factors which became the California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
(C&H). Between 1872 and 1900, the company took over more land and sugar mill operations. In 1898, Alexander and Baldwin purchased a controlling interest in one of its rival companies, Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Company (HC&S) from Claus Spreckles. By 1899, the company bought two of Maui’s railroad lines. On June 30, 1900, Alexander & Baldwin, Ltd.
was incorporated
.
Alexander left running the company to others, and became an adventurer. In 1893 he bicycled through Europe. He traveled through the Pacific Ocean
in 1896, including the Marquesas Islands
where his parents traveled before he was born, China
, and Japan
. He also had a winter home on Maui called Olinda, and a summer home in Shasta County, California
.
became one of the "Big Five
" corporations that dominated the economy of the Territory of Hawaii
. A&B is listed on the New York Stock Exchange
and was added as part of the Dow Jones Transportation Average
after purchasing Matson Navigation Company
. It continues to produce sugar and operates a museum on Maui.
Alexander had two sons and three daughters. Wallace McKinney Alexander was born November 10, 1869, graduated from Yale
in 1892, and in 1894 became the agent for Alexander & Baldwin in San Francisco. Wallace married Mary Simpson Barker August 16, 1904, served as chairman of Alexander & Baldwin and as a trustee of Stanford University
, as director of the California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
and Pacific Gas and Electric Company
,
and died November 22, 1939.
Wallace's daughter Martha Alexander Gerbode (1909–1971) became an environmental activist and philanthropist.
Alexander's daughters were Juliette Alexander (1865–1948), Annie Montague Alexander
(1867–1950), and Martha Mabel Alexander (1878–1970). A second son, Clarence Chambers, died young (1880–1884).
In 1904, Samuel Alexander arranged a trip with daughter Annie and Thomas L. Gulick, son of another missionary Peter Johnson Gulick
(1796–1877). The men were looking forward to hunting big game in Africa
, while Annie was developing an interest in paleontology
. Gulick became ill and died August 15, 1904 in Kijabe
, Kenya
. On September 8 the Alexanders reached Victoria Falls
. The next day they crossed the Zambezi river and climbed down the canyon for a better view. While posing for a picture, Samuel was hit by a boulder tossed down from workers above that crushed his foot. He was buried at the Old Drift cemetery
after dying a day later on September 10, 1904.
Annie continued to go on expeditions through her 80th birthday, and founded two museums. He also has a monument in Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland where other family members are buried.
Martha Mabel married John Thomas Waterhouse (1873–1945) in 1900. The swimming pool at Punahou School was named for their daughter Elizabeth Pinder Waterhouse (1903–1920) who was a student there when she died. The track field is named for Samuel.
Kingdom 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...
.
Early life
In November 1831, the Reverend William Patterson AlexanderWilliam Patterson Alexander
William Patterson Alexander was an American missionary to the Kingdom of Hawaii. His family continued to influence the history of Hawaii.-Life:...
(1805–1884) and Mary Ann McKinney Alexander (1810–1888) arrived in April 1832 as missionaries to 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...
. Samuel Thomas was born October 29, 1836 at the Waioli mission
Waioli Mission District
The Waioli Mission District at Hanalei Bay, on Route 560 along the north shore of the island of Kauai, is the site of a historic mission. The first permanent missionaries to the area arrived in 1834, and the district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.-Description:Wai oli...
in what is now Hanalei
Hanalei, Hawaii
Hanalei is a census-designated place in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 478 at the 2000 census. Hanalei means "lei making" in Hawaiian...
on the northern coast of Kauai island
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
.
In 1843 the family moved to the Lahainaluna School, where they became friends with the family of Dwight Baldwin
Dwight Baldwin (missionary)
Dwight Baldwin was an American Christian missionary and physician on Maui, one of the Hawaiian Islands, during the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was patriarch of a family that founded some of the largest businesses in the islands.-Life:...
who had arrived in the previous company in 1831. Alexander's education was sporadic; he went to Punahou School
Punahou School
Punahou School, once known as Oahu College, is a private, co-educational, college preparatory school located in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu in the U.S. State of Hawaii...
for various times between 1841 and 1859 In 1857 he and Frederick S. Lyman
Frederick S. Lyman
Frederick Schwartz Lyman was a surveyor, rancher, judge, and politician on Hawaii Island.-Life:Frederick Schwartz Lyman was born July 25, 1837, in Hilo, Hawaii. His middle name is sometimes spelled "Swartz"....
(son of missionary David Belden Lyman
David Belden Lyman
David Belden Lyman was an early American missionary to Hawaii who opened a boarding school for Hawaiians. His wife Sarah Joiner Lyman taught at the boarding school and kept an important journal. They had several notable descendants.-Family life:David Belden Lyman was born in on July 28, 1803 in...
) went to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in a late wave of the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
, but came back empty handed.
He then to Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
for one year, and then Westfield School
Westfield State College
Westfield State University is a comprehensive, coeducational, four-year public university in Westfield, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1838 by noted educator and social reformer Horace Mann as the first public co-educational college in America without barrier to race, gender and economic class...
in Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. He followed his father's footsteps and taught at Lahainaluna briefly, but it was not his calling.
In 1863 Alexander became manager of the Waihee sugar plantation
Sugar plantations in Hawaii
Sugarcane was introduced to Hawaii by its first inhabitants in approximately 600 AD and was observed by Captain Cook upon arrival in the islands in 1778. Sugar quickly turned into a big business and generated rapid population growth in the islands with 337,000 people immigrating over the span of a...
near Wailuku
Wailuku, Hawaii
Wailuku is a census-designated place in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 12,296 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Maui County.Wailuku is located just west of Kahului, at the mouth of the Īao Valley...
, hiring Henry Perrine Baldwin
Henry Perrine Baldwin
Henry Perrine Baldwin was a businessman and politician on Maui in the Hawaiian islands. He supervised the construction of the East Maui Irrigation System and co-founded Alexander & Baldwin, one of the "Big Five" corporations that dominated the economy of the Territory of Hawaii.-Life:Henry Perrine...
(1842–1911) as assistant.
Business and adventure
On January 26, 1864 Alexander married Martha Eliza Cooke, daughter of Amos Starr CookeAmos Starr Cooke
Amos Starr Cooke was an educator and businessman in the Kingdom of Hawaii. He was patriarch of a family that influenced Hawaii during the 20th century.-Life:Amos Starr Cooke was born in Danbury, Connecticut, December 1, 1810....
, one of two former missionary who founded the Castle & Cooke
Castle & Cooke
Castle & Cooke, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based company that was once part of the Big Five companies in territorial Hawaii. The company at one time did most of its business in agriculture...
company. Abigail Charlette Baldwin (1847–1912) married his older brother William DeWitt Alexander
William DeWitt Alexander
William DeWitt Alexander was an educator, author and linguist in the Kingdom of Hawaii and Republic of Hawaii.He then constructed maps for the Territory of Hawaii.-Life:...
(1833–1913) in 1861. William was a teacher and then president of Punahou School. In 1869 sister Emily Whitney Alexander married Henry Perrine Baldwin.
In 1870 he formed the Pāia plantation under the name Samuel T Alexander & Co. With Baldwin, he purchased 561 acres (2.3 km²) between Pāia
Paia, Hawaii
Pāia is a census-designated place in Maui County, Hawaii, on the northern coast of the island of Maui. The population was 2,499 at the 2000 census. Pāia is home to several restaurants, art galleries, surf shops and other tourist-oriented businesses. One business, Charley's, is frequented by...
and Makawao
Makawao, Hawaii
Makawao is a census-designated place in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. The population was 6,327 at the 2000 census. Located in the rural northeast slope of Haleakala on East Maui, the community is known for being the hub of the "Upcountry", a part of the island dominated by mostly...
, where they cultivated sugarcane. In 1871 Alexander managed the Haʻikū sugar mill
Haiku Mill
The Haikū Sugar Mill was a processing factory for sugarcane from 1861 to 1879 on the island of Maui in Hawaii.-History:The northeastern coast of Maui had a small village named Hai kū which literally means "sharp break" in the Hawaiian language....
which had been constructed in 1861 by Castle & Cooke.
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....
removed tariff
Tariff
A tariff may be either tax on imports or exports , or a list or schedule of prices for such things as rail service, bus routes, and electrical usage ....
s on sugar exported to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. But to raise their production a steady supply of water was needed for the semi-arid dry forests
Hawaiian tropical dry forests
The Hawaiian tropical dry forests are a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Hawaiian Islands. They cover an area of on the leeward side of the main islands and the summits of Niihau and Kahoolawe. These forests are either seasonal or sclerophyllous. Annual rainfall is less than and...
of Pāia. Alexander realized that rain was plentiful miles away in the rainforests on the windward
Windward and leeward
Windward is the direction upwind from the point of reference. Leeward is the direction downwind from the point of reference. The side of a ship that is towards the leeward is its lee side. If the vessel is heeling under the pressure of the wind, this will be the "lower side"...
slopes of Haleakalā
Haleakala
Haleakalā , or the East Maui Volcano, is a massive shield volcano that forms more than 75% of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The western 25% of the island is formed by the West Maui Mountains.- History :...
mountain. Alexander proposed a 17-mile long irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
aqueduct
Aqueduct
An aqueduct is a water supply or navigable channel constructed to convey water. In modern engineering, the term is used for any system of pipes, ditches, canals, tunnels, and other structures used for this purpose....
that diverted water from that part of Haleakalā to their plantation. Alexander knew about irrigation systems used since ancient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii refers to the period of Hawaiian human history preceding the unification of the Kingdom of Hawaii by Kamehameha the Great in 1810. After being first settled by Polynesian long-distance navigators sometime between AD 300–800, a unique culture developed. Diversified agroforestry and...
while he was at Lahainaluna, but this was on an a much larger scale. He negotiated a lease of water rights from 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...
and raised financing from other partners. It was initially a 20 year lease for $100 per year. His brother James did a survey. Work started on the aqueduct in 1876 and was completed two years later in 1878 (at over three times the estimated cost), just before a deadline in the lease.
In 1883 the Alexander family moved to Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
to get medical attention for his father, who died there August 13, 1884.
After completion of the aqueduct, the company grew by selling water to adjacent plantations, and was eventually renamed Alexander & Baldwin Plantation. In 1884 Alexander arranged for the partners to buy the small American Sugar Refinery in California, and later organized a group of Hawaiian planters called the Sugar Factors which became the California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
California and Hawaiian Sugar Company was founded in 1906 and operated from 1921 to 1993 as an agricultural cooperative marketing association owned by the member sugar companies in Hawaii...
(C&H). Between 1872 and 1900, the company took over more land and sugar mill operations. In 1898, Alexander and Baldwin purchased a controlling interest in one of its rival companies, Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Company (HC&S) from Claus Spreckles. By 1899, the company bought two of Maui’s railroad lines. On June 30, 1900, Alexander & Baldwin, Ltd.
Alexander & Baldwin
Following World War II, the company entered a new business: land development and real estate. The company formed a new subsidiary, the Kahului Development Co., to develop housing in the Kahului area. In the following years, the company became more involved in the development of its land and the...
was incorporated
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
.
Alexander left running the company to others, and became an adventurer. In 1893 he bicycled through Europe. He traveled through the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
in 1896, including the Marquesas Islands
Marquesas Islands
The Marquesas Islands enana and Te Fenua `Enata , both meaning "The Land of Men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in the southern Pacific Ocean. The Marquesas are located at 9° 00S, 139° 30W...
where his parents traveled before he was born, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He also had a winter home on Maui called Olinda, and a summer home in Shasta County, California
Shasta County, California
Shasta County is a county located in the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The county occupies the northern reaches of the Sacramento Valley, with portions extending into the southern reaches of the Cascade Range. As of the 2010 census, the population was 177,223, up from 163,256...
.
Legacy
Alexander & BaldwinAlexander & Baldwin
Following World War II, the company entered a new business: land development and real estate. The company formed a new subsidiary, the Kahului Development Co., to develop housing in the Kahului area. In the following years, the company became more involved in the development of its land and the...
became one of the "Big Five
Big Five (Hawaii)
The Big Five was the name given to a group of what started as sugarcane processing corporations that wielded considerable political power in the Territory of Hawaii during the early 20th century and leaned heavily towards the Hawaii Republican Party. The Big Five were Castle & Cooke, Alexander &...
" corporations that dominated the economy of 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...
. A&B is listed on the New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
and was added as part of the Dow Jones Transportation Average
Dow Jones Transportation Average
The Dow Jones Transportation Average is a U.S. stock market index from Dow Jones Indexes of the transportation sector, and is the most widely recognized gauge of the American transportation sector...
after purchasing Matson Navigation Company
Matson Navigation Company
The Matson Navigation Company, a subsidiary of Alexander & Baldwin, is a private shipping company with roots extending into the late 19th century...
. It continues to produce sugar and operates a museum on Maui.
Alexander had two sons and three daughters. Wallace McKinney Alexander was born November 10, 1869, graduated from Yale
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1892, and in 1894 became the agent for Alexander & Baldwin in San Francisco. Wallace married Mary Simpson Barker August 16, 1904, served as chairman of Alexander & Baldwin and as a trustee of Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, as director of the California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
California and Hawaiian Sugar Company
California and Hawaiian Sugar Company was founded in 1906 and operated from 1921 to 1993 as an agricultural cooperative marketing association owned by the member sugar companies in Hawaii...
and Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
The Pacific Gas and Electric Company , commonly known as PG&E, is the utility that provides natural gas and electricity to most of the northern two-thirds of California, from Bakersfield almost to the Oregon border...
,
and died November 22, 1939.
Wallace's daughter Martha Alexander Gerbode (1909–1971) became an environmental activist and philanthropist.
Alexander's daughters were Juliette Alexander (1865–1948), Annie Montague Alexander
Annie Montague Alexander
Annie Montague Alexander was an American philanthropist and paleontological collector. She established the University of California Museum of Paleontology , Museum of Vertebrate Zoology , and financed their collections as well as a series of paleontological expeditions to the western United States...
(1867–1950), and Martha Mabel Alexander (1878–1970). A second son, Clarence Chambers, died young (1880–1884).
In 1904, Samuel Alexander arranged a trip with daughter Annie and Thomas L. Gulick, son of another missionary Peter Johnson Gulick
Peter Johnson Gulick
Peter Johnson Gulick was a missionary to the Kingdom of Hawaii and Japan. He was patriarch of a family that also carried on the tradition of missionary work, and included several scientists.-Life:...
(1796–1877). The men were looking forward to hunting big game in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, while Annie was developing an interest in paleontology
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
. Gulick became ill and died August 15, 1904 in Kijabe
Kijabe
Kijabe is a town in Kenya. Its name is Maasai for "Place of the Wind". It stands on the edge of the Great Rift Valley at an altitude of 2200m, some 50 kilometres north-west of Nairobi. Kijabe is located in the Lari division of Kiambu District. Kijabe has a population 17,334 . Kijabe has a railway...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
. On September 8 the Alexanders reached Victoria Falls
Victoria Falls
The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe.-Introduction:...
. The next day they crossed the Zambezi river and climbed down the canyon for a better view. While posing for a picture, Samuel was hit by a boulder tossed down from workers above that crushed his foot. He was buried at the Old Drift cemetery
Old Drift cemetery
The Old Drift Cemetery is a small burial site near the Zambezi river in modern-day Zambia. It includes the graves of early European settlers and visitors to nearby Victoria Falls who died of causes such as malaria and is located in Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park...
after dying a day later on September 10, 1904.
Annie continued to go on expeditions through her 80th birthday, and founded two museums. He also has a monument in Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland where other family members are buried.
Martha Mabel married John Thomas Waterhouse (1873–1945) in 1900. The swimming pool at Punahou School was named for their daughter Elizabeth Pinder Waterhouse (1903–1920) who was a student there when she died. The track field is named for Samuel.