Charles Reed Bishop

Charles Reed Bishop

Charles Reed Bishop

Minister of Foreign Affairs

In office
January 10, 1873 February 17, 1874
Monarch

Lunalilo

Preceded by

Ferdinand W. Hutchinson

Succeeded by William Lowthian Green

Personal details
Born

January 25, 1822

Glens Falls, New York, United States

Died

June 7, 1915 (aged93)

San Francisco, California, United States

Resting place Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii

Spouse(s)

Bernice Pauahi Pk

Children

Keolaokalani Davis (hnai)

Occupation

Businessman, Banker, Politician

Signature

Charles Reed Bishop (18221915) was a businessman and philanthropist in Hawaii, who married into the Hawaiian
royal family. Born in Glens Falls, New York, he sailed to Hawaii in 1846 at the age of 24, and made his home there.
Bishop was one of the first trustees of and a major donor to the Kamehameha Schools in Hawaii. He also founded
the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, and founded Hawaii's first successful bank, which is now known as First
Hawaiian Bank.

Early life
On January 25, 1822, Charles Reed Bishop was born to Maria Reed Bishop and Samuel Bishop. His father was a toll
collector who worked on a toll booth in the middle of the Hudson River near Glens Falls, New York. Charles' mother
died two weeks after giving birth to her next son, Henry. His father died when he was four, and Charles went to live
with his grandfather on his 125-acre (0.51km2) farm in Warrensburg. He worked on his grandfather's farm, learning
how to care for sheep, cattle, and horses. While at his grandfather's house, he was baptized in a Methodist
church.Wikipedia:Citation needed

Charles Reed Bishop

Bishop spent his early years of education at a village school, and his 7th and 8th grade years completed his formal
schooling. Bishop was then able to get a job as a clerk, and was soon hired by Nelson J. Warren, who headed the
largest mercantile company in Warrensburg.
He met William Little Lee (18211857) from nearby Hudson Falls, New York, then called Sandy Hill. His uncle
Linus Bishop married Lee's sister Eliza. Lee attended Harvard Law School and convinced Bishop to travel to the
Oregon Territory.

In Hawaii

Bishop (right) with William Little Lee

Bishop sailed on the Henry, leaving February 23, 1846 with his friend
Lee. By October the ship had rounded Cape Horn and needed to stop in
Honolulu for provisions. Lee was convinced to become the second
western-trained lawyer in the Hawaiian islands and first Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court. Bishop decided to stay with him, and was hired
to sort out the failed land deal of Ladd & Co. which was the first major
formal law proceeding. He then worked for the U.S. Consul. On
February 27, 1849 he became a citizen of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He
became an investor with Henry A. Peirce and Lee in a sugar plantation
on the island of Kauai, near where the Ladd company had been
somewhat successful. From 1849 to 1853 he was Collector General of
Customs.:73

On May 4, 1850 he married Bernice Pauahi Pk, descendant of the royal House of Kamehameha, despite the
objections of her parents. A private ceremony in the Royal School was not attended by her family, but within a year
her father Pk made peace and the couple lived in the family estate called Haleakala. Bishop formed a partnership
with William A. Aldrich selling merchandise to be shipped to the California Gold Rush. He became known as a
trusted place for traders to deposit and exchange the various currencies in use at the time. In 1853 he was elected as
representative to the legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom.

Bank
On August 17, 1858 Aldrich split off the shipping business, and Bishop
founded Bishop & Co. as the first chartered bank in the Kingdom and
the second oldest bank west of the Rocky Mountains. On its first day it
took in $4784.25 in deposits. In 1878 it outgrew its basement room and
expanded to a two story building, which still stands as a contributing
property to the Merchant Street Historic District. In 1895 he sold the
bank to Samuel Mills Damon (18411924), son of missionary Samuel
C. Damon (18151885). Over time the bank grew and became First
Hawaiian Bank in 1960.
Bishop Bank built in 1878

Charles Reed Bishop

Service
He served on the Privy Council for five Hawaiian monarchs 18591891, and was appointed to the House of Nobles
18591886 by King Kamehameha IV. From 1869 to 1891 he served on the Board of Education. During the brief
reign of King Lunalilo he was Minister of Foreign Affairs from January 10, 1873 to February 17, 1874.
Bishop was one of the first trustees of and major donor to the Kamehameha Schools, and founder of the Bernice
Pauahi Bishop Museum.[1] Bishop hired William Tufts Brigham, (whom he had met on a scientific visit in 1864 with
Horace Mann Jr.) to be the museum's first director. He also donated funds for buildings at Punahou School. Bishop
was also president of the Honolulu Chamber of Commerce 18831885 and 18881894.
After the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii, Bishop left Hawaii and moved to San Francisco, California in 1894.
He became vice-president of the Bank of California until he died June 7, 1915. He stayed involved in Hawaiian
estate affairs from California. For example, he hired architects Clinton Briggs Ripley and Charles William Dickey to
design a new building for the Bishop estate headquarters and Pauahi Hall on the Punahou School campus.

Death
Bishop died in 1915 at the age of 93. His ashes were shipped back and buried next to his wife at the Royal
Mausoleum of Hawaii.
Elisha Hunt Allen's son William Fessenden Allen married his cousin Cordelia Church.
A major street cutting through Bishop property in downtown Honolulu at 211832N 1575138W
family name.

[2]

bears the

References
[1] Charles Reed Bishop Biography and Timeline (http:/ / kapalama. ksbe. edu/ archives/ Timelines/ bishop/ Default. php)
[2] http:/ / tools. wmflabs. org/ geohack/ geohack. php?pagename=Charles_Reed_Bishop&
params=21_18_32_N_157_51_38_W_type:landmark_region:US-HI& title=Bishop+ Street

External links
"The Man Behind the Mission" (http://www.charlesreedbishop.org). official web site. Charles Reed Bishop
Trust. Retrieved 2010-03-09.
Charles Reed Bishop Biography and Timeline (http://kapalama.ksbe.edu/archives/Timelines/bishop/Default.
php)
Government offices
Precededby
Ferdinand W. Hutchinson

Kingdom of Hawaii Minister of Foreign

Affairs
18731874

Succeededby
William Lowthian Green

Article Sources and Contributors

Article Sources and Contributors

Charles Reed Bishop Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=605067981 Contributors: Acad Ronin, Baricom, Bb515200000001, Chris Roy, Cullen328, Dongbangxian, EstherLois,
Gerald Farinas, Gilgamesh, Ja 62, Jaxl, JereKrischel, Jerzy, KAVEBEAR, KSWarrior8, Kalathalan, Lightmouse, Malyszkz, Marokwitz, Merenta, Milly663, Niteowlneils, Octavian3, Rjwilmsi,
Salamurai, Softlavender, Starcheerspeaksnewslostwars, Sun Creator, Template namespace initialisation script, Viralxtreme14, Viriditas, Vontrotta, W Nowicki, WRK, Waacstats, Wmpearl,
YUL89YYZ, 13 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors

File:charlesreedbishop.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Charlesreedbishop.jpg License: Public Domain Contributors: Original uploader was Gerald Farinas at
en.wikipedia
File:Chas R Bishop 1848 signature.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Chas_R_Bishop_1848_signature.svg License: Public Domain Contributors:
Chas._R._Bishop_1848_signature.jpg: Chas. R. Bishop derivative work: Malyszkz (talk)
File:William Little Lee and Charles Reed Bishop 1846.jpg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:William_Little_Lee_and_Charles_Reed_Bishop_1846.jpg License: Public
Domain Contributors: Unknown photographer, from Charles Reed Bishop archives item CIPB50
Image:Honolulu-old-Bishop-Bank-bldg.JPG Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Honolulu-old-Bishop-Bank-bldg.JPG License: Public Domain Contributors: Joel
Bradshaw

License
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