Jan. 25, 2022, marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles Reed Bishop. The founder of the Bishop Museum, who lived from 1822 – 1915, occupies a distinguished position in the history of Hawai‘i as a great philanthropist who aided in building the schools of Hawai‘i.
To celebrate this special anniversary, Kamehameha Schools invited O‘ahu students to share about Bishop’s lasting legacy on education. Punahou Junior Katherine Jo M. Misailidis ’23 shares in the commemorative video how Bishop was a great benefactor of Punahou.
Bishop had a longstanding association with Punahou School, where he served on its Board of Trustees from 1867 – 1891. He spearheaded the funding for the Bishop Hall of Science in the Academy, which was demolished in 1959, and Pauahi Hall, named for his beloved wife. After retiring from the Board, he established a number of scholarships in 1893, which support students of Hawaiian ancestry. The second Bishop Hall stood from 1901 – 1972. It was the first reinforced concrete building in Hawai‘i. The current Bishop Hall is the third building which honors Bishop, and was dedicated on April 23, 1972.
He was also the founder of Hawai‘i’s first bank; husband of the beautiful Princess Bernice Pauahi Paki, to whom the throne of Hawai‘i was once offered; intimate friend and counselor of the Kamehamehas; and member of the privy council during the reigns of Kings Kamehameha IV, Kamehameha V, Lunalilo, Kalakaua and Queen Liliuokalani.