Name/Title
J. A.(James A.) HopperDescription
Honolulu Water Works bill sent to J. A. Hopper
JAMES A. HOPPER, Pioneer Honolulu Manufacturer. The life history of the late
James A. Hopper, early mill owner and manufacturer, dates back to that
romantic period in the development of Honolulu when the whaling industry
flourished, with hundreds of the ships engaged in it making this port their
winter base for provisioning and repairs.
When Mr. Hopper arrived here in 1860, one of a courageous group who made the
114-day journey from Boston around Cape Horn to Hawaii on the clipper
ship “Syren,” whaling was the backbone of Honolulu’s commercial life. A lock
and gunsmith by trade, at which he had worked in New York City before coming
to the islands, Mr. Hopper upon his arrival here opened a small repair shop.
His business expanded rapidly and he was soon engaged in general repairing
and metal work, especially for whalers, and the manufacture of whaling guns.
With the decline of the whaling industry in the late 60’s and early 70’s,
Mr. Hopper converted his plant into a rice mill, then the largest in the
Territory. He also operated a machine shop, planing and sawmill and brass
foundry, and manufactured sugar kegs.
Early in his career in Honolulu he became interested in rice growing and
was, in fact, a pioneer in that business, extending financial aid to many who
desired to become rice planters and thereby developing the industry to its
greatest extent. In 1877 Mr. Hopper’s plant, then valued at $50,000, was
destroyed by fire, but he rebuilt a three-story brick rice mill, planing mill
and brass foundry, where his business was conducted and flourished for several
decades. He was also largely interested in a number of sugar plantations.
Born in New York City in 1831, Mr. Hopper’s education was received in the
public schools of that city. He married Ellen Lewers, daughter of William
Lewers of New York, in 1853, and they had four children, William Lewers
Hopper, Mrs. E. W. Peterson and Miss Margaret Hopper of Honolulu, and Mrs. W.
E. Brown of Piedmont, Calif. Mr. Hopper died in San Francisco, Dec. 11, 1900.
Source: The Story of the Builders of Hawaii. Published by the Honolulu Star Bulletin, Territory of Hawaii, 1925
Author: Edited by George F. NellistCreated By
hawaiiancovers@gmail.comCreate Date
December 27, 2024Update Date
December 27, 2024
