FILE - Native Hawaiian heiress Abigail Kawnanakoa poses outside a Honolulu courthouse on Oct. 25, 2019. Kawnanakoa, the so-called last Hawaiian princess whose lineage included the royal family that once ruled the islands and an Irish businessman who became one of Hawaii's largest landowners, died on Dec. 11, 2022. She was 96. Kawnanakoa's casket is set to go on public display Sunday, Jan. 22, 2023, in the downtown Honolulu palace that benefited from her wealth.
The palace is America’s only royal residence, where the Hawaiian monarchy dwelled but which now serves mostly as a museum. Kawānanakoa was the palace’s largest single benefactor, according to her publicists, and even paid its electricity bills for many years. “Abigail will be remembered for her love of Hawaii and its people,” her wife said in the release, “and I will miss her with all of my heart.”
Kawānanakoa inherited her wealth from her great-grandfather, Irish businessman James Campbell, who made his fortune as a sugar plantation owner and one of Hawaii’s largest landowners. Three years later, a judge ruled that Kawānanakoa was unable to manage her property and business affairs because she was impaired.
In addition to the palace's upkeep, Kawānanakoa funded various causes over the years, including scholarships for Native Hawaiian students, opposition to Honolulu’s rail transit project and protests against a giant telescope. She also donated items owned by King Kalākaua and Queen Kapiʻolani for public display, including a 14-carat diamond from the king’s pinky ring.
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