Hawaii Free Public Records Directory

If you live in the state of Hawaii, you could live on one of the main eight islands. There are hundreds of islands that make up the entire volcanic Hawaiian archipelago, known as the state of Hawaii. Hawaii is the only U.S. state comprised entirely of islands, and the only U.S. state located outside of North America. Hawaii was the last state to join the U.S. on August 21, 1959, as the 50th state. Hawaii has a population of 1,428,557, and is ranked 40th for population. It is ranked 43rd in size at 10,931 sq. miles. The city of Honolulu located on the island of O’ahu is the state capital.

There are eight main islands, seven of which are permanently inhabited. In order from the northwest to the southeast, are: Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Maui, and the Island of Hawaiʻi. The Island of Hawai’i is the largest island in the group and is often referred to as the “Big Island.” Underwater volcanic activity formed the Hawaii islands and continues to build islands today.

Hawaii’s climate varies considerably on each island, although most of Hawaii has only two seasons. A dry season running from May to October, and a wet season running from October to April. Mount Wai’ale’ale on Kaua’i has the second highest rainfall on Earth at 460 inches per year. Hawaii experiences a typical tropical climate with temperatures and humidity tending to be less extreme because of the near constant trade winds from the east. During the day, summer highs usually reach 88⁰ F and winter daytime highs usually reach 83⁰ F.

The earliest inhabitants of the Hawaiian Islands were probably Polynesian settlers. The Spanish explorers were said to have arrived in the 16th century. The first recorded European explorer, James Cook arrived in Hawaii in 1778. After Cook’s visit and the publication of several books, the islands attracted many European visitors, explorers, traders, and eventually whalers. Immigrants from Puerto Rico began arriving in 1899, when Puerto Rico’s sugar industry was devastated by two hurricanes. The population of Hawaii began to increase after an influx of primarily Asian settlers arrived as migrant laborers. In 1900, Hawaii was granted self-governance and remained a territory for 60 years until it became a state in 1959.

Hawaii’s center of population is located between the two islands of O’ahu and Moloka’i. The state’s population according to the 2010 Census is 38.6% Asian; 24.7% White; 23.6% from two or more races including other small race percentages. Hawaii has the highest percentage of Asian Americans and multiracial Americans, and the lowest percentage of White Americans of any state.

Tourism has been Hawaii’s largest industry since its statehood. Due to the mild year-round weather, natural scenery, public beaches, oceanic surroundings, and active volcanoes, it is a popular destination among tourists, surfers, biologists, and volcanologists throughout the year. The major holidays are the most popular times for visitors, especially in the winter months. Hawaii’s food exports include coffee, macadamia nuts, pineapple, livestock, sugarcane and honey. By weight, honey bees may be the state’s most valuable export. ^[1]

When you are ready to begin your search of Hawaii public records, you can review the list below for the type of records available. The list includes land records, mapping records, genealogy records, unclaimed property records, and much more.

Abbreviation	HI
Capital	Honolulu
Population	1,428,557
Area size	10,931 sq. miles
Demonym	Hawaiian
Primary languages spoken	English, Hawaiian
Governor	David Ige
Lieutenant Governor	Doug Chin
U.S. Senators	Brian Schatz, Mazie Hirono
U.S. House Delegation	2 Democrats
Time Zone	UTC -10 (no DST)

*The map and data in the table are from Wikipedia.

Browse by Public Record Category

There are two types of public records; 1) personal public records that document major life milestones such as birth certificates, death certificates, divorce records, and marriage records, etc.; and 2) government records that are made public such as property tax records, recorded land records, voter records, crime data, jail inmate records, and court records. ^[2] The Freedom of Information Act is a national law that releases government agency public records and makes it possible to view most public records.

Since there are a multitude of records available, it can be difficult to know how or where to access them. When you are ready to start your search, you’ll find our Public Records Directory website easy to use since all of the records can be searched by federal, state, county, city, town or type of record. The links provided will connect you to the best website for the record search, provide details about the record, or provide contact information for those records without search capabilities.