Hawai`i's Military Archives, Museums and Libraries : UH Resources

Among the collections in the University Archives pertaining to University of Hawaii and its intersection with WWII and other military matters in the Pacific and Hawaii, there is the renowned Hawai'i War Records Depository, as well as the historically important Japanese American Veterans Collection and Hawaii Congressional Papers Collection.

For more information and to make an appointment in the UH Archives please contact:

archives@hawaii.edu

The Hawaii War Records Depository (HWRD) is an extensive collection of archival materials that document life in Hawaii during World War II. In April of 1943, during its first session after the United States' entrance into World War II, the Hawaii Territorial Legislature passed a joint resolution designating the University of Hawaii as the official depository of material related to Hawaii's part in the war. Over a five year period, individuals, organizations and agencies throughout the state donated or loaned correspondence, personal accounts, reports, photographs, scrapbooks, phonograph discs, maps, posters, artwork, pamphlets, newspapers, clippings, memorabilia and other materials.

For more information and to make an appointment in the UH Archives please contact:

archives@hawaii.edu

The Hawai'i War Records Depository (HWRD) Photos collection includes 880 photographs taken by the U.S. Army Signal Corps and the U.S. Navy during World War II. These photographs, taken between 1941 and 1946, document the impact of World War II in Hawaii. They depict Army and Navy activities in Hawaii and illustrate the military's relationship with Hawaii's civilian population.

The Hawai'i War Records Depository holds approximately 1,000 newspaper photographs clearly identified as being from the Honolulu Star Bulletin and 330 photographs clearly identified as being from the Honolulu Advertiser, representing primary material from the two English-language Honolulu newspapers. Because the newspapers have lost most of their old photographs, these prints frequently are the only copies extant from the World War II era.

A digital collection of photographs compiled from slides and photographs in the University of Hawai'i, Asia Collection, in Hamilton Library. The Images of Okinawa collection is composed of 195 color slides donated in July 2010 by Ms. Madeleine K. Van Epps, and 53 black & white photos taken by the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands (USCAR).

The Japanese American Veterans Collection documents the rich heritage of Hawaii's AJA veterans and their families, including the 100th Infantry Battalion, Hawaii Territorial Guard, Varsity Victory Volunteers, 442nd RCT, 1399th Engineers, and Military Intelligence Service. The story of these veterans and their families emphasizes the values of democracy and civil liberties in American society.

A variety of creative commons documents, photos, articles, and other military related documents ranging on topics from Trust Territory Navy Reserve reports in the Pacific, to journal articles on President Roosevelt's and General MacArthur's Honolulu meeting in 1944, to monthly issues of Puka Puka, the 100th Infantry Battalion Veteran's Club Newsletters are searchable here. eVols is an open-access, digital institutional repository for the University of Hawaii community and researchers around the world. eVols provides a home for material which the Library or the University digitizes as part of grant projects and digital library program initiatives.

Over four dozen photos of U.S. Military equipment, U.S. Military personnel, and U.S. Military structures, as well other related photos are included in this photo collection dealing with the Bikini Atoll nuclear tests and subsequent Marshall Island resident relocations in the WWII era and later.

Dozens of photos in the Pacific theater of U.S. Army, U.S. Army Signal Corps, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Naval Cstr. Battalion Ctr., U.S. Navy, U.S. Pacific Fleet and other American military topics pertaining to WWII in the Pacific. "This online collection contains digital reproductions of materials in several distinct art and photograph collections, covering a range of geographic regions and time periods. Taken as a whole, these collections document many facets of life in the Pacific during World War II, from the brutal and the tragic to the mundane."