Joseph Boyd Poindexter (April 14, 1869 – December 3, 1951) was the eighth

Territorial Governor of Hawaii The governor of Hawaii ( haw, Ke Kiaʻaina o Hawaiʻi) is the head of government of the U.S. state of Hawaii and its various agencies and departments, as provided in the Constitution of Hawaii, Hawaii State Constitution Article V, Sections 1 thro ...

and served from 1934 to 1942.

Early life

Joseph Boyd Poindexter was born in Canyon City, Oregon to Thomas W. and Margaret Pipkin Poindexter. He attended

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut. Founded in 1831 as a men's college under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal Church and with the support of prominent residents of Middletown, the col ...

and earned his

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

degree from

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

. He was admitted to the Montana Bar in 1892, and served as County Attorney of

Beaverhead County, Montana Beaverhead County is the largest county by area in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 9,371. Its county seat is Dillon. The county was founded in 1865. Much of the perimeter of the county is the Continental ...

from 1897 to 1903. He was appointed judge of the Fifth Judicial District in Beaverhead, Madison, and Jefferson Counties, Montana in 1909. He later served as a district judge in Montana from 1909 to 1915, and he later served as Attorney General of Montana from 1915 to 1917.

Career

In 1917, President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

appointed Poindexter as Judge on the

United States District Court for the District of Hawaii The United States District Court for the District of Hawaii (in case citations, D. Haw.) is the principal trial court of the United States Federal Court System in the state of Hawaii. The court's territorial jurisdiction encompasses the sta ...

. Poindexter served in that capacity from May 14, 1917, to February 16, 1924. He then practiced law in Hawaii until 1934. President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

appointed Poindexter the eighth governor of Hawaii on January 30, 1934. A joint Congressional Committee visited Hawaii in 1937 and submitted a report in February 1938 recommending a

plebiscite A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of ...

for Hawaii statehood. The plebiscite, held on November 5, 1940, resulted in the voters recommending statehood for Hawaii. Poindexter was appointed to the governorship of Hawaii by Roosevelt in 1934; he was reappointed to the governorship in 1938. Poindexter was the only second territorial governor to that point to serve more than one term of office. In the immediate aftermath of the Japanese

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...

on December 7, 1941, Poindexter placed the territory under

martial law Martial law is the imposition of direct military control of normal civil functions or suspension of civil law by a government, especially in response to an emergency where civil forces are overwhelmed, or in an occupied territory. Use Marti ...

and allowed the U.S. military to form a military government. He mobilized the

Hawaii Territorial Guard The Hawaii Territorial Guard ( haw, O na La kiai) was the state defense force of Hawaii during World War II. As a result of the National Guard of Hawaii being federalized for the duration of the war, the Hawaii Territorial Guard was created to ser ...

while the attack was still ongoing and appointed himself its

captain general Captain general (and its literal equivalent in several languages) is a high military rank of general officer grade, and a gubernatorial title. History The term "Captain General" started to appear in the 14th century, with the meaning of Comma ...

. The military government would continue until 1943. After his term expired, Poindexter remained in office until August 24, 1942, when his successor, Ingram Stainback, was confirmed. He remained in Hawaii and practiced law and in July 1943, the Hawaii supreme Court appointed him as one of the trustees of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate.

Gubernatorial accomplishments

An editorial at his death credited Poindexter with a balanced budget, improved civil service and wage laws that regulated child labor and improved public health and welfare. During his administration the Hawaii Housing Authority was established, and projects such as the "Mayor Wright homes" (named for George F. Wright) were begun. He advocated for larger airports and other major public works projects, including roads, parks, schools and the Ala Wai Golf Course. credited to

Honolulu Advertiser ''The Honolulu Advertiser'' was a daily newspaper published in Honolulu, Hawaii. At the time publication ceased on June 6, 2010, it was the largest daily newspaper in the American state of Hawaii. It published daily with special Sunday and In ...

December 7, 1951

Later life

Poindexter resumed his law practice after leaving the governorship. In July 1943, the

Hawaii Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Hawaii is the highest court of the State of Hawaii in the United States. Its decisions are binding on all other courts of the Hawaii State Judiciary. The principal purpose of the Supreme Court is to review the decisions of ...

appointed him a trustee of the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate (now Kamehameha Schools), in which capacity he served until his death in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

on December 3, 1951. His picture appeared on the cover of the July 23, 1934 Times Magazine. He is buried next to his wife Margaret in Mountain View cemetery in Dillion Montana.

Personal life

Poindexter married Margaret Conger in

Dillon, Montana Dillon is a city in and the county seat of Beaverhead County, Montana, United States. The population was 3,880 at the 2020 census. The city was named for Sidney Dillon (1812–1892), president of Union Pacific Railroad. History Dillon was fo ...

on April 22, 1897. The couple had two children, Everton and Helen.

Fraternal memberships

Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

* Freemason * Shriner