Background
McCarthy was born August 4, 1861 in Boston, Massachusetts, to Charles McCarthy and Joana (McCarthy) McCarthy.
McCarthy was born August 4, 1861 in Boston, Massachusetts, to Charles McCarthy and Joana (McCarthy) McCarthy.
He was appointed by President of the United States Woodrow Wilson to the office after the term of Lucius East. Pinkham. McCarthy owned a saloon and for a time bottled his own alcoholic beverages. He also was a territorial senator 1907-1912 and treasurer 1912-1914 before becoming chief executive.
McCarthy believed Republicans were promoting immigration of Oriental laborers to manipulate Hawaii’s demographics to their advantage and served their own business interests, McCarthy was ardently anti-Asian.
He appointed Charles Rice and Alfred Castle to lobby in favor of the Hawaiian Rehabilitation Bill which became the Hawaiian Homes Commission Acting. The omnibus bill also contained language that made it difficult for “Orientals” from winning homesteads, and barred them from federal jobs in favor of Hawaiians.
McCarthy also proposed that the military replace self-government in order to negate possible bloc voting by the large Japanese population in Hawaii. When asked by a congressman if the Japanese would think the action was directed at them, McCarthy said, “Let them think southern
What do we care?” McCarthy also railed against the land policies of the Big Five and was the first governor to advocate statehood for Hawaii.
Annoyed by the policies of his Democratic administration, McCarthy was gently nudged out of politics by Republicans. In return, he was given a job as Washington representative of the Honolulu Chamber of Commerce, and later general manager of Hawaiian Dredging Company during which he worked on the Waikiki Reclamation project which resulted in the construction of the Ala Wai Canal. He died in 1929 in Honolulu, Hawaii.
He was a member of the House of Nobles in 1890, supporter of Liliuokalani and ironically a captain in the pro-annexation Honolulu Rifles.
