Alexander Adams (Hawaii)
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Captain Alexander Adams (1780–1871) was a
Scotsman Scottish people or Scots (; ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Scotland. Historically, they emerged in the early Middle Ages from an amalgamation of two Celtic peoples, the Picts and Gaels, who founded the Kingdom of Scotland (o ...
who served in the British
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
and then came to the
Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...
and served in the navy of the
Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaii ...
. Known to the Hawaiians as Alika Napunako Adams.


Britain

Adams was born December 27, 1780, in
Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland, Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast, some east-northeast of ...
,
Angus, Scotland Angus (; ) is one of the 32 Local government in Scotland, local government council areas of Scotland, and a Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City (council area), Dundee City and Per ...
. He said his father was John Fyfe, who he said was the "Earl of Fyfe", born in Arbroath c. 1754. His mother was Jean Adams, born in Arbroath c. 1758. Leaving Scotland in 1792, he worked 4 years aboard ''Zephyr'' belonging to Husson & Co. out of
Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. In 1796, he left ''Zephyr'', and joined ''Calcutta'' out of
Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...
for two trips. He was drafted into naval service aboard after the
Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar was a naval engagement that took place on 21 October 1805 between the Royal Navy and a combined fleet of the French Navy, French and Spanish Navy, Spanish navies during the War of the Third Coalition. As part of Na ...
in the
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
.


Hawaii

He arrived in Hawaii sometime between 1809 and 1811 on the American trading ship ''Albatross'' from
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
. He met King
Kamehameha I Kamehameha I (; Kalani Paiʻea Wohi o Kaleikini Kealiʻikui Kamehameha o ʻIolani i Kaiwikapu kauʻi Ka Liholiho Kūnuiākea; to May 8 or 14, 1819), also known as Kamehameha the Great, was the conqueror and first ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii ...
and joined English sailor John Young, who had arrived in 1790, to command the navy of the
Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaii ...
. He was awarded control of over in the Niu Valley, including control over the Kupapa Fishpond, which he later filled in for purposes of growing sweet potatoes. (east of
Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...
, coordinates ). In April 1816 at Kawaihae Bay, Adams negotiated to buy a ship called ''Forester'' under Captain John Ebbetts which had been owned by American
John Jacob Astor John Jacob Astor (born Johann Jakob Astor; July 17, 1763 – March 29, 1848) was a German-born American businessman, merchant, real estate mogul, and investor. Astor made his fortune mainly in a fur trade monopoly, by exporting History of opiu ...
. Prince Liholiho (soon to become King Kamehameha II) purchased the ship with sandalwood ''( Santalum ellipticum)'', and changed its name to ''Kaahumanu'' after his powerful stepmother Queen Kaahumanu. A condition of the deal was for Adams to take command of the ship. It was a small two-masted trading ship called a
brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...
. On March 7, 1817, the
Kingdom of Hawaii The Hawaiian Kingdom, also known as the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ɛ ɐwˈpuni həˈvɐjʔi, was an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country from 1795 to 1893, which eventually encompassed all of the inhabited Hawaii ...
sent Adams to
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
on his ship to sell sandalwood. To enter the harbor, the ship paid $3000 in port charges, making it not a financial success. Upon returning October 5, 1817, at
Hilo Hilo () is the largest settlement in and the county seat of Hawaii County, Hawaiʻi, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaiʻi, and is a census-designated place (CDP). The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. I ...
and hearing of the amount Adams had to pay, King Kamehameha decided Hawaii should also generate revenue from port charges. He refused to sail under the American flag once the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
broke out. When Adams sailed the ''Kaahumanu'' to China, it was the first vessel under the
flag of Hawaii The flag of Hawaii, also known as the Hawaiian flag, is the State flag, official flag of the U.S. state of Hawaii. It consists of a field of eight horizontal stripes, in the sequence of white, red, blue, white, red, blue, white, red with a Brit ...
. Some traditions also credit him with designing the flag, though this honor has also been claimed for King Kamehameha I himself or another British sailor of the time, George Charles Beckley. His reasoning for adding the British
Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...
into the flag was due to the power of the
British Empire The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
at the time. He quotes "if we don't pledge allegiance to Britain we may all perish". He was sent to
Kauai Kauai (), anglicized as Kauai ( or ), is one of the main Hawaiian Islands. It has an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), making it the fourth-largest of the islands and the 21st-largest island in the United States. Kauai lies 73 m ...
by Kamehemeha I to remove Russian Fort Elizabeth that had been set up in 1817. His words were "upon arriving they were soon dispatched". He stood on the shore with John Young when the first
Christian missionaries A Christian mission is an organized effort to carry on evangelism, in the name of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries. Sometimes individuals are sent and ...
anchored offshore in 1820. He helped convince the King to allow the missionaries to come ashore and speak to the King. He served as the Honolulu Harbor Pilot after
Naihekukui Naihe-Kukui Kapihe (died 1825), known as "Captain Jack" or "Jack the Pilot" to visitors, served as Honolulu harbor master and admiral of the royal fleet in the early Kingdom of Hawaii. His daughter would become a Queen consort. Life He was roya ...
left in 1823. When arrived in 1825, Adams helped the Scottish naturalist distribute some plants he thought would be commercially successful in the tropical climate. Queen Kaahuman gave Adams over of land in
Kalihi Kalihi is a neighborhood of Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu in Hawaiʻi, United States. Split by Likelike Highway (Route 63), it is flanked by Liliha, Chinatown, and Downtown Honolulu to the east and Mapunapuna, Moanalua, and Salt Lake t ...
Valley (on the island of
Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...
a few miles from Waikiki) in gratitude for his services. The area was called Apili. After 30 years of piloting, Adams retired in 1853, grew fruit on his land in Kalihi Valley, and was great host to visitors. Adams kept a journal which his notes were taken from and printed in Honolulu Star Bulltein May 4, 1935. Adams lived the remainder of his life in the
Hawaiian Islands The Hawaiian Islands () are an archipelago of eight major volcanic islands, several atolls, and numerous smaller islets in the Pacific Ocean, North Pacific Ocean, extending some from the Hawaii (island), island of Hawaii in the south to nort ...
, where he married three times and left many descendants. He was given the Hawaiian name ''Alika Napunako Adams''. His first wife was Sarah Kaniaulono or Kale Davis, daughter of Isaac Davis. Two of his marriages were to Sarah Ulukaihonua Harbottle and then to her sister Charlotte Oili Harbottle (died 1893). Both were daughters of Papapaupu (or Papapaunauapu, the adopted granddaughter of King Kamehameha) and John Harbottle, another Scotsman serving as Honolulu pilot. By his account he had 15 children; 10 were still alive at the time of his death. He had a home on what was named Adams Lane in 1850, in his honor, a small lane in downtown Honolulu next to the Hawaiian Telephone company building at coordinates , as well as in Kalihi Valley. Adams died October 17, 1871. He is buried next to his friend and fellow Scotsman Andrew Auld in the Nuuanu Cemetery. Their common tombstone contains the following inscription in the Scots dialect:
"Twa croanies frae the land of heather,
Are sleepin' here in death th'gether."
The estate in Niu Valley was held by his granddaughter Mary Lucas, who started subdividing in the 1950s. The area created by the filling of Kupapa Fishpond is now the site of numerous oceanfront homes. One grandson of Lucas was Air Force General Benjamin B. Cassiday Jr., Another grandson is Nainoa Thompson, who revived the ancient Hawaiian craft of instrumentless navigation and founded the Polynesian Voyaging Society, which sponsors voyages by traditional Hawaiian sailing wa'a (canoes) Hokulea and Hawai'i Loa. Another was Paul R. Cassiday, trustee of the Campbell Estate.


See also

* History of Hawaii


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Alexander 1780 births 1871 deaths People from Arbroath Scottish naval personnel People from Hawaii Hawaiian Kingdom politicians Burials at Oahu Cemetery British expatriates in the Hawaiian Kingdom Flag designers