Hawaii became the 50th U.S. state on August 21, 1959.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Hawaii Admission Act earlier that year, and Hawaii’s admission followed Alaska’s entry as the 49th state on January 3, 1959. The two admissions completed the modern sequence of states joining the Union.
Hawaii had been a U.S. territory since 1900. Its statehood process included a referendum held on June 27, 1959, in which voters approved statehood by an overwhelming margin. The state’s first governor was William F. Quinn, who had previously served as territorial governor.
Statehood did not include every territory historically connected with the Hawaiian Islands. The Hawaii Admission Act excluded places including Palmyra Island, Midway Islands, Kingman Reef, Johnston Atoll, and Sand Island. Hawaii’s admission date is therefore distinct from the date of the statehood referendum and from the date Alaska joined.