William Northey Hooper
Encyclopedia
William Northey Hooper was born in Manchester, Massachusetts to the Massachusetts Hooper family of shipmasters and merchants. He founded and operated, with 2 other investors in 1835, Ladd & Co.
, the first large scale sugar producer in Hawaii at Koloa
, marking the birth of Hawaii's leading industry for 150 years. Hooper later served as Consul
to the Kingdom of Hawaii
, and was a founder of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.
in 1832 on the Hellespont via Valparaiso, and the ship was originally feared burnt at sea. However, the voyagers arrived the following year. At about the age of 24, Hooper’s role was to establish and operate the plantations. Starting from this plantation on land leased from King Kamehameha III
, sugar became the principal industry in Hawaii
, surpassing whaling, and the driving force behind 350,000 people from all over the world immigrating to the islands to work in its plantations.
Sugar remained the leading industry in Hawaii until about 1960, when supplanted by tourism, but Hooper’s plantings were still in production in 1985.
The site of the Ladd plantation has been designated a National Historic Landmark, and sugar’s prominence in the island economy played a key role behind the U.S. annexation of the Hawaiian Islands.
Hooper was the son of William Hooper, sea captain of Manchester, MA, and Sally Northey. His brother was the Boston manufacturer Henry Northey Hooper
and his nephew was abolitionist Lewis Northey Tappan
. Hooper married Charlotte Augusta Wood, who sailed from Boston with her brother, Dr. Robert Wood, and the three Ladd partners. The couple eventually left Hawaii and settled in San Francisco in 1848, where he helped establish the first Chamber of Commerce, was a prosperous merchant in the firm of Cross, Hobson & Co., and served on the city’s debt committee.
Hooper died in 1878. The Sugar Monument in Koloa
, built in 1985 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of commercial sugar production, relates the story of Hooper's operation and depicts the founders and workers who built the sugar industry in Hawaii.
Ladd & Co.
Ladd & Company was an early business partnership in the Kingdom of Hawaii.Its founders were William Ladd , Peter Allen Brinsmade , and William Northey Hooper...
, the first large scale sugar producer in Hawaii at Koloa
Old Sugar Mill of Koloa
The Old Sugar Mill of Kōloa was part of the first commercially successful sugar plantation in Hawaii, which was founded in Kōloa in 1835 by Ladd & Company. This was the beginning of what would become Hawaii's largest industry. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark on December...
, marking the birth of Hawaii's leading industry for 150 years. Hooper later served as Consul
Consul (representative)
The political title Consul is used for the official representatives of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, and to facilitate trade and friendship between the peoples of the two countries...
to the Kingdom of Hawaii
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...
, and was a founder of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce.
Life
The partners sailed for Honolulu from BostonBoston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
in 1832 on the Hellespont via Valparaiso, and the ship was originally feared burnt at sea. However, the voyagers arrived the following year. At about the age of 24, Hooper’s role was to establish and operate the plantations. Starting from this plantation on land leased from 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...
, sugar became the principal industry in Hawaii
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...
, surpassing whaling, and the driving force behind 350,000 people from all over the world immigrating to the islands to work in its plantations.
Sugar remained the leading industry in Hawaii until about 1960, when supplanted by tourism, but Hooper’s plantings were still in production in 1985.
The site of the Ladd plantation has been designated a National Historic Landmark, and sugar’s prominence in the island economy played a key role behind the U.S. annexation of the Hawaiian Islands.
Hooper was the son of William Hooper, sea captain of Manchester, MA, and Sally Northey. His brother was the Boston manufacturer Henry Northey Hooper
Henry Northey Hooper
Henry Northey Hooper was a preeminent 19th century American manufacturer and merchant of decorative lighting, Civil War artillery, and bells and chimes...
and his nephew was abolitionist Lewis Northey Tappan
Lewis Northey Tappan
Lewis Northey Tappan was an abolitionist, politician, and Colorado pioneer and entrepreneur. He was son of Colonel Ebenezer Tappan, a manufacturer and State Legislator of the prominent Tappan family of Massachusetts...
. Hooper married Charlotte Augusta Wood, who sailed from Boston with her brother, Dr. Robert Wood, and the three Ladd partners. The couple eventually left Hawaii and settled in San Francisco in 1848, where he helped establish the first Chamber of Commerce, was a prosperous merchant in the firm of Cross, Hobson & Co., and served on the city’s debt committee.
Hooper died in 1878. The Sugar Monument in Koloa
Old Sugar Mill of Koloa
The Old Sugar Mill of Kōloa was part of the first commercially successful sugar plantation in Hawaii, which was founded in Kōloa in 1835 by Ladd & Company. This was the beginning of what would become Hawaii's largest industry. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark on December...
, built in 1985 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of commercial sugar production, relates the story of Hooper's operation and depicts the founders and workers who built the sugar industry in Hawaii.