Research Guides: Hawaiian & Pacific Collections Department: Hawaiian Collection

About the Hawaiian Collection

The Hawaiian Collection at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Library is widely recognized as the world's largest collection of materials on Hawaiʻi. The core of the collection was built and continues to be built through a near-comprehensive collecting policy emphasizing published content covering all time periods, languages, material types, and subject matter. The Hawaiian Collection also holds a selection of manuscript and archival collections, covering corporate archives such as the HSPA Plantation Archives and the Dole Corporation, to archives of grassroots organizations such as Save Our Surf and Save Sandy Beach. The Hawaiian Collection traces its roots back to the 1908 founding of the College of Hawaii Library. It is the most significant investment the University of Hawaiʻi has made to tangibly document life in Hawaiʻi, in support of its teaching and research mission, and for the benefit of the broader research community and the general public.

Collection Quick Facts

World's foremost collection of published materials about Hawaiʻi
Established Spring 1907
Over 133,500 monographs
Over 2,000 serial subscriptions

Collection Links

Collection Holdings

Monographs
The Collection's strengths are 19th century through 21st-century published materials, with particular emphasis on government and institutional publications (including those of the University).
Government Documents
The Collection has substantial holdings of Hawaiʻi government publications, from the Kingdom, Provisional Government, Republic, Territory, State and Counties. US Federal and UN documents on Hawaiʻi are also acquired.
Periodicals
There is an extensive collection of periodical titles, the majority being magazines, journals, newsletters, and annual reports of local organizations.
Newspapers
Current newspapers published in the State are received regardless of language, and regularly microfilmed for long-term preservation. Many early newspapers are also held with many now made freely available online in collaboration with the Library of Congress.
Dissertations & Theses
Copies of all University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa dissertations and theses are regularly added to the collection. Dissertations concerning Hawaiʻi completed at other institutions are also purchased.
Pamphlets & Ephemera
Pamphlets, posters, and ephemera such as flyers and programs are collected to provide a more complete picture of the islands.
Manuscripts
Unique holdings of manuscript material include those of Thomas Jagger, 1907-1953; and Thomas Thrum, 1880-1920, among many others.
Organized Archives
Archival records include those of the Dole Corporation, the Hawaiian sugar Planters' Association, the Hawaiʻi Literacy Arts Council, and other Hawaiʻi organizations.
Rare Hawaiiana
Materials from the nineteenth century-and others that are otherwise unique, valuable or irreplaceable-receive special storage and attention as part of the Hawaiian Rare Collection.
Oral Histories
Final transcripts of oral history materials, such as the John A. Burns Oral History Collection and those of the UH Center for Oral History, are available.
Audio-Visual Materials
Motion pictures and audio recordings about Hawaiʻi in any format that requires play-back facilities are located in the Wong Audio-Visual Center in Sinclair Library.

Collection Librarians

Jodie Mattos, Kapena Shim, Dore Minatodani