author
Edmund P. (Edmund Pearson) Dole
1850–1928
A New England lawyer who became the first Attorney General of the Territory of Hawaii, he also turned his deep interest in the islands into historical fiction. His work blends legal experience, local knowledge, and a storyteller’s eye for place.
1 Audiobook
Hiwa: A Tale of Ancient Hawaii
by Edmund P. (Edmund Pearson) Dole
About the author
Born in Skowhegan, Maine, in 1850, Edmund Pearson Dole trained as a lawyer and built much of his career far from New England. After moving to Hawaii in the 1890s, he practiced law there and went on to serve as the first Attorney General of the Territory of Hawaii in the early territorial period.
Alongside his legal work, he wrote novels, including Hiwa: A Tale of Ancient Hawaii. His fiction drew on Hawaiian settings and history, suggesting a writer who wanted to introduce readers to the islands through dramatic, accessible storytelling.
Dole died in 1928. Today he is remembered as an unusual figure whose life joined public service and authorship, with books shaped by firsthand experience of Hawaii during a time of major political change.