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Alexander & Baldwin Sugar Museum facts for kids
The Alexander & Baldwin Sugar Museum is a cool place to learn about Hawaii's past. It's located in Puʻunene, Hawaii, on the island of Maui. This museum shows the story of how sugarcane was grown and processed in Hawaii. It also tells about the company Alexander & Baldwin and its big part in the sugar business. The museum building used to be the home of the sugar mill manager.
Contents
How the Sugar Business Started
The story of Alexander & Baldwin began with two friends, Samuel Thomas Alexander and Henry Perrine Baldwin. Samuel Alexander was a reverend who became a manager at a sugar plantation called Waiheʻe in 1863. He hired Henry Baldwin to help him.
In 1870, they started their own sugar plantation called Pāʻia. They bought a large piece of land, about 561 acres (2.3 square kilometers), to grow sugarcane. Samuel also managed another sugar mill called Haʻikū.
Getting Water for the Fields
Growing sugarcane needs a lot of water. The Pāʻia area was quite dry. But miles away, on the slopes of Haleakalā mountain, there was plenty of rain. Samuel Alexander had a great idea: build a long water channel, called an aqueduct, to bring water from the rainy side of the mountain to their dry fields.
This aqueduct was a huge project! It was about 17 miles (27 kilometers) long. Work started in 1876 and finished two years later in 1878. It cost a lot more than they expected, but it was worth it.
Growing the Company
After the aqueduct was built, the company grew fast. They even sold water to other nearby plantations. The company eventually became known as Alexander & Baldwin Plantation.
In 1875, a special agreement called the Reciprocity Treaty of 1875 helped the sugar business even more. It meant that sugar from Hawaii could be sold in the United States without extra taxes. This made Hawaiian sugar very popular.
By 1900, Alexander & Baldwin had bought more land and sugar mills. They even bought two railroad lines on Maui to help transport the sugar. On June 30, 1900, the company officially became Alexander & Baldwin, Ltd..
Expanding the Business
The water projects made the Alexander and Baldwin company very successful. They were able to buy out other sugar growers and make their company even bigger.
In 1877, Henry Baldwin built the Hamakuapoko Mill. Then, in 1880, the Paʻia Mill opened.
- The Hamakuapoko Mill was located at 20°54′56″N 156°20′53″W / 20.91556°N 156.34806°W.
- The Paʻia Mill was located at 20°54′25″N 156°22′32″W / 20.90694°N 156.37556°W.
In 1881, the Kahului Railroad was built. This made it much easier to move the sugar by train to the growing port of Kahului. From there, it could be shipped all over the world.
New Challenges and Growth
In 1889, a new law called the McKinley Tariff Act made sugar from Hawaii more expensive to sell in the U.S. This caused sugar prices to drop. But Henry Baldwin saw an opportunity. He bought land at lower prices and started another irrigation project on Kauaʻi island called the Hanapepe ditch.
In 1900, the partnership officially became Alexander & Baldwin (A&B). They had offices in both Honolulu and San Francisco. A&B grew into a very large company, owning many other businesses, including the shipping line Matson Navigation Company.
Henry Baldwin also helped start the Haleakala Ranch in 1888, which was a huge ranch on the slopes of the Haleakalā volcano. Today, part of it, Piʻiholo Ranch, is used for tourism.
A Lasting Impact
Alexander & Baldwin became one of the "Big Five" companies that were very important to Hawaii's economy. Today, A&B is still a big company. It continues to produce sugar and also runs the museum on Maui, which helps everyone learn about its amazing history.
See also
- Hawaiian cuisine
- David Dwight Baldwin
- Grove Farm Sugar Plantation Museum
- Museum of Sugar, Brazil
- List of museums in Hawaii
Website
- Alexander & Baldwin Sugar Museum website
Images for kids
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Samuel T. Alexander and his family
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Henry Perrine Baldwin
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The Paiʻia Sugar Mill
20°52′09″N 156°27′18″W / 20.8693°N 156.4551°W