Korean Passengers Arriving at Honolulu, 1903-1905

A page from the passenger manifest of the S.S. Gaelic’s voyage departing Nagasaki December 29, 1902, and arriving
in Honolulu January 13, 1903.
destination. All passengers are listed as possessing
a small amount of money, usually thirty to fiy
dollars. None is listed as being in bad health or
being a polygamist.
Information on last residence is ambiguous.
ere is no way to determine whether these entries
referred to an individual’s residence immediately
before passage or to the location of a permanent
family domicile.
Personal names also present problems. ose
listed on the manifest were supplied by immigration
office personnel or interpreters aboard the
ships. ey do not necessarily reflect the preferences
of the individuals. Moreover, individuals
6
sometimes changed their names and may not be
listed here under the names by which they are
more widely known.
According to government reports, 7,291 Korean
immigrants were admitted to Hawai‘i in the period
up to 1910.* e present list contains 7,415 entries,
a few of which appear to represent different trips
by the same individual. Although extensive, the
list can not be considered a definitive record of all
the early Korean immigrants to the Islands. Further
research may uncover additional passenger
lists or other resources that will allow us to add to
this record.
*U.S. Senate, Statistical Review of Immigration 1820–1910. Reports of the Immigration Commission. 61st Cong., 3d Sess., doc. no. 756.
Washington: Government Printing Office, 1911.