Big Five (Hawaii)

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Hawaii's Big Five

The Big Five is the name given to a group of former sugarcane corporations that wielded considerable political power in the Territory of Hawai‘i and leaned heavily towards the Hawai‘i Republican Party. The Big Five was Castle & Cooke, Alexander & Baldwin, C. Brewer & Co., Amfac and Theo H. Davies & Co.. The extent of the power that the Big Five had could be considered by some as equivalent to an oligarchy. The Attorney General of Hawai‘i, referring to the Big Five, said in 1903, "There is a government in this Territory which is centralized to an extent unknown in the United States, and probably almost as centralized as it was in France under Louis XIV."

As a territory of the United States, sugarcane plantations gained a new infusion of investment. By getting rid of tariffs imposed on sugarcane producers by the United States, planters had more money to spend on equipment, land and labor. Increased capital resulted in increased production. Five kingdom-era corporations benefited from annexation, becoming multi-million dollar conglomerations overnight. Big Five corporations together became a single dominating force in Hawai‘i. The companies did not compete with each other but rather cooperated to keep the prices on their goods and services high. Their profits skyrocketed even more. Soon, the executives of the Big Five sat on each others' boards of directors. With economic power came political power over Hawai‘i.

As the sugar industry declined after statehood, so did the Big Five companies as a whole. The greatest post-statehood challenge came as the U.S. Department of Justice challenged the ownership of Matson Navigation Company by four of the five companies (all except Theo H. Davies). The lawsuit was settled when the four companies agreed not to share officers, executives, and directors. Alexander and Baldwin eventually bought out the other three stakes in Matson.

In the 1970s, as sugar plantations closed, many of the Big Five companies themselves were bought out. Where the companies are now:

Theo H. Davies was bought in 1973 by British firm Jardine Matheson. The company now sells luxury cars. Until December 2004 it owned the Pizza Hut and Taco Bell franchises in Hawaii.
C. Brewer was bought in 1978 by Philadelphia-based IU International, and was later bought out by its management in 1986. In 2001 the company's shareholders voted to liquidate the company over several years.
In 1985, Castle & Cooke merged with Flexi-Van Corporation, owned by David H. Murdock. Murdock became its chairman after the merger, then took full control in 2000. It still owns large portions of Central Oahu and the Iwilei area of Honolulu around the former Dole Food Company pineapple cannery, as well as nearly all of the island of Lanai.
Amfac was bought out in 1988 by Chicago-based JMB Realty. In 2002 Amfac declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and emerged as Kaanapali Land, LLC. It owns 5,000 acres (20 km²) in West Maui. Its department store, Liberty House, was sold to Federated Department Stores and is now part of the Macy's chain.
Alexander & Baldwin was not bought out and remains strong thanks to its ownership of Matson Navigation, the leading ocean transportation company between Hawaii and the U.S. Mainland. Today it owns about 91,000 acres (370 km²) of land and is the fifth-largest landowner in the state.

[edit] In Fiction

The domination of Hawaii by "The Big Five" forms much of the background for the book The Revolt of Mamie Stover, describing the life of a prostitute in Hawaii in the 1940s.

James Michener's fictionalized account of Hawaiian history, Hawaii included references to the Big Five, which he called "the Fort".