Photo is also found in the Hawaii State Archives, no date give. Call Number PP-96-1-007.
Born in December 19, 1831 to high chiefs Abner Pākī and Laura Kōnia Pākī, Pauahi was the great-granddaughter of Kamehameha I.
As the last royal descendant of the Kamehameha line, Pauahi inherited thousands of acres of land, much of it from the estate of her cousin Princess Ruth Ke‘elikōlani. Her inheritance, about nine percent of the island chain’s total acreage, made Pauahi the largest landholder in the kingdom.
When Pauahi was born, the Native Hawaiian population numbered about 124,000. When she wrote her will in 1883, only 44,000 Hawaiians remained. Pauahi witnessed the rapid decline of the Hawaiian population. With that decline came a loss of Hawaiian language, culture and traditions. She believed education would offer her people hope and a future, so she left her estate — about nine percent of the total acreage of the Hawaiian kingdom — to found Kamehameha Schools.
After Pauahi’s death on October 16, 1884, her husband Charles Reed Bishop served as president of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate’s board of trustees, ensuring that his wife’s wish was fulfilled. He generously provided his own funds for the construction of facilities and added some of his own properties to her estate. Until his death in 1915, he continued to guide her trustees in directions that reinforced her vision of a perpetual educational institution that would build a vibrant future for her people.
On January 16, 1893 the Hawaiian Kingdom was invaded by United States marines which led to the illegal overthrow of the Hawaiian government the following day.
