Hawaiʻi - Early Accounts by Non-Hawaiians: Missionaries' Accounts

This guide is based on a cheat sheet compiled by Joan Hori.

The following sources are far more thorough:

Knight, Cynthia D. Foreigners' Observations of Hawaii in the Early 1820s: A Selected Bibliography and Index to Journal Accounts. 1987.
Z4708 .A4 K58 1987

Judd, Bernice and Helen Yonge Lind. Voyages to Hawaii Before 1860. Rev. ed. Honolulu: Hawaiian Mission Children's Society, 1974.
Z4706 .J84

Fitzpatrick, Norman. Annotated Chronological Bibliography of Voyaging Journals Referring to the Sandwich Islands Between 1786 and 1819. 1987.
Z4708 .A4 F58 1987

Forbes, David. Hawaiian National Bibliography, 1780-1900. Honolulu: University of Hawaiʻi Press, 1999 - .
In four volumes: Vol. 1. 1780-1830 -- v. 2. 1831-1850 -- v. 3. 1851-1880 -- v. 4. 1881-1900.
Use the indexes to find writings and accounts by specific names and topic.
Z4701 .F67 1999

Note: First arrival of missionaries in Hawaiʻi was 1820.

Specific titles

The Wikipedia page for List of missionaries to Hawaii is simple and thorough.

Search for more in the catalog

Go to the catalog Hawaiʻi Voyager to find other titles.

Basic Search/Subject Browse:
missions Hawaii

Basic Search/Subject Browse:
"Hawaii description and travel"
(After selecting the subject heading, search results appear in reverse chronological order. Go to the last pages and browse in reverse order to find the early accounts. Includes accounts from non-missionary travelers.)

Subject Tab Search:
missions periodicals
This search will retrieve subject headings that describe serial publications of different missions. Often these serials would publish reports from missionaries in the field, including those in Hawaiʻi and throughout the Pacific. You can also do this subject search in Hathi Trust's catalog, records from which include links to online access.