The aspiration of the Hawaii Islands to the elevation of the Confederation of the USA to state was manifested a few years after their organization to Territory, which took place in 1900. Similarly to Alaska, the Hawaii accentuated their insistence on the elevation to state especially after the Second World War, managing to get the solution of this problem inserted in the program of the Republican party in the presidential elections of 1952. But the obstacles were great. Abbreviated as HI, Hawaii were not part of the American continent; Asian and Polynesian populations would become full citizens: this displeased the racists of the south, since it would have given a new blow to racial discrimination; reasons for balance in Congress were another obstacle. Despite these difficulties, the Hawaiians voted on their own initiative a constitution destined to become the charter of the future state, attempting to create a fait accompli. Once Alaska was admitted as the forty-ninth state in the summer of 1958, the similar difficulties that had hitherto prevented the satisfaction of equal Hawaiian aspiration ceased.
In fact, on 11 and 12 March 1959, the Senate and the representatives approved the law establishing the fiftieth state of Hawaii, which became the first state not geographically belonging to the North American area. A local referendum approved the state constitution, federal jurisdiction reserves and state borders. The Hawaii had two seats in the Senate and one in the House of Representatives in the Washington Congress.
The population is decreasing in all counties, except in Honolulu (Oahu island), where the increase is due to the truly enormous one of the city. According to the 1950 census, just over 90,000 residents they were of Polynesian race, ie Hawaiians (including mixed); about 185,000 the Japanese, over 61,000 the Filipinos, 30,600 the Chinese, 10,350 the Puerto Ricans, 7625 the Koreans, etc. There were also some 92,000 qualified as Caucasians, mostly of Iberian descent.
Marriages between individuals of different races continue to be very frequent, as a result of which mixtures are becoming more and more complex.
The economy of the archipelago is increasingly influenced by the trend towards the establishment of large and medium-sized farms, largely mechanized and equipped for the export of products to the United States. 80% and more of the farms are under specialized managers. The cultivated soil (arable and woody crops) occupies about 7% of the total area; 36% is occupied by permanent meadows and pastures, 29% by forests. The dominant crops are always cane and pineapple. The first occupies about 89,000 ha (with a production of 1 million tonnes in 1957); it is largely concentrated by 27 companies, which have refineries in the archipelago and a large consortium refinery in California; there are also about 2,000 private planters. Pineapple (with over 8 million q in 1957) feeds the canning industry. Cane and pineapple represent 85% of the total agricultural income. Bananas, coffee, tobacco follow. Fresh flowers are also exported today.
Breeding is of little importance (170,000 cattle; 80,000 pigs). In 1953, deposits of titanium oxide were discovered in Hawaii.
The archipelago is connected by regular shipping lines with the United States, Canada, Australia, the Philippines, Japan and China. Honolulu has modernly equipped itself as an ocean traffic port. A short distance away is the Pearl Harbor Air Base. The large airport has daily lines to San Francisco; there are also air connections with British Columbia, the Philippines and Japan. Midway and Johnston Islands and also Palmyra, uninhabited, depend administratively on Hawaii.
Honolulu
Honolulu is the capital of the Hawaiian Islands, located at 21 ° 20 ′ N. and 157 ° 50 ′ W, in Oahu, one of the major islands. It rises at the end of the Koolau mountain range about halfway along the southern coast. The southeastern part of the island is rather bleak. The port of Honolulu, consisting mainly of coral reefs, was deepened by a 60m wide curved channel. and almost 2 km long: to the east of it rise two small extinct craters, the Koko Head and the Diamond Head; Also nearby is the famous seaside beach of Waikiki. The city extends along the narrow coastal plain (for about 10 km.) And in the valleys of the northeast and is surrounded by woods. To the west, up to Pearl Harbor, about 12 km away, the plain is covered with sugar cane crops. Close to the city is the extinct crater of the Punchbowl. In east part. there is the Chinese quarter, around which most of the Orientals live. The city is governed by a mayor and 7 superintendents whose control extends to the whole island.
The most important building in Honolulu is perhaps the Museum of Ethnology and Natural History, founded in 1889 by Charles K. Bishop, about 3 km away. to N. del porto, well known for its collections and for the research works that are carried out in it. Also of note are the Kamehameha schools, for Hawaiian students, and the Punahou Academy ranked among the best American schools. The Capitol, built in 1844, is now the seat of the Senate and the House of Representatives. There is also a beautiful library donated by Andrew Carnegie and completed in 1913. The oldest church is the Kawaiahao begun in 1836 with the help of King Kamehameha III; the Catholic church was built in 1843. The Aquarium, near Waikiki, is famous for its collections of tropical fish. The mausoleum of the Kamehameha dynasty is located on the road that reaches the top of the Koolau mountains and leads to Pali, a steep rise 240 m high, 9 km away. from Honolulu, which offers a wonderful view of the east coast of Oahu.
Water is supplied to the city from large reservoirs located in the Nuuanu Valley itself. Electric trams run through the city; submarine cables connect it with San Francisco and Shanghai. There is a powerful radiotelegraph station at Koko Head. Many shipping companies operate regular services to Honolulu. In 1910, the population of Honolulu was 52,000. of which 12.000 Japanese, 8000 Hawaiians, 5500 Hawaiian crossings, 6000 Portuguese and 9500 other Europeans and Americans. By 1930 it had risen to 137,600 residents
