The Library & Archives mission is to preserve material and provide access to the Museum’s textual resources. Due to the fragile nature of the media, the Library & Archives has not always found it possible to meet the challenges of the latter part of its mission. With the advent of digitization and the continued ease and accessibility provided by new technology, the Library & Archives is proud to begin a new chapter in its role as research facility.
Generous support from the Hawaii Council for Humanities (HCH) has contributed to making this digital interface possible.
In homage to the early benefactors of the Library & Archives, the staff of the Library & Archives has selected the Governor George Robert Carter Collection (Carter Collection) as the foundation upon which the Library & Archive shall grow its digital assets.
The Carter Collection was received into the Museum in intervals starting in 1931. The last accession of materials donated by the Carter Family occurred in 1959. Throughout the 28 years of generous gifting, the collection is currently thought to contain 1,032 monographs, 1,498 pamphlets, 10 linear feet of manuscript material, original artwork, photographs and engravings.
Gov. George Robert Carter graduated from Oahu College and Yale University. He returned to Hawaii and was briefly employed by C. Brewer & Co. before becoming a founder of the Hawaiian Trust Co. and the Hawaiian Fertilizer Co. Following a long political career, Gov. Carter would become a managing partner of C. Brewer & Co. Gov. Carter was appointed by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt to become governor of the Territory of Hawaii following Sanford B. Dole.
Gov. Carter was a keen student of Hawaiian history and, where available, collected every type of document and text related to Hawaii. His collection is enormous not just in its size but also in its scope. The first 50 digitized items relate specifically to different missionary enterprises in the Hawaiian Islands, allowing researchers and the general public access to a range of rare and out-of-print resources. Subjects (link to subjects here) include general histories, controversies between the Christian denominations, and issues of female clergy.
Please remember that this service is provided as an educational and research tool. All media are for the personal use of students, scholars and the public. Any commercial use or publication of them is strictly prohibited.
