“Stevens and Party at Kilauea” – U.S. Minister Stevens is second from the right. Demosthenes Lycurgus and Alex Lancaster are first and second from the left, respectively. Photo Courtesy of the Hawaii State Archives

(Volcano Watch is a weekly article written by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.)

To the scientists who monitor the Pu‘u ‘O‘o crater, the scene in this photo seems familiar. A rising lava lake forms a symmetrical, perched lava pond as frequent overflows build steep levee walls higher and higher.

Similar volcanic features have been described and photographed several times in recent years at Pu‘u ‘O‘o, but this image is very old. The photo appears to show a lava lake within a pit crater located inside Kilauea Caldera. Sometimes called Dana Lake, this molten pond was a popular tourist attraction for visitors to Kilauea between 1890 and 1894. It is featured in many old photographs, as well as in a wonderful painting by volcano artist, D.H. Hitchcock.

But HVO’s copy of this old photo from the Hawai‘i State Archives has no label at all. When was it taken and who were the visitors?

A recent visit to Bishop Museum and some additional research have provided surprising answers. At Bishop Museum, we found another copy of the same image, which provided a date of 1893 and a label, “Gov. Stevens and party.” Other persons identified in the Bishop Museum print included Demosthenes Lycurgus, Peter Lee, and Alexander Lancaster. Peter Lee managed the Volcano House hotel at the time, and Alexander Lancaster was a famous volcano guide. Demosthenes Lycurgus and his brother George would later succeed Peter Lee as Volcano House managers.

But who was Gov. Stevens? Hawai‘i had island governors in the 1890s, but there were none with this name. A close look at the photo shows that the second man from the right bears a strong resemblance to John L. Stevens, U.S. Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary to the Kingdom of Hawai`i.

Based on that clue, Martha Hoverson, a volunteer librarian at Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, found references to a voyage to Hilo made by U.S. Minister Stevens and his daughter, Grace, on the American gunboat U.S.S. Boston. They arrived in Hilo on January 5, 1893, and toured the volcano the next day while the ship conducted a gunnery practice in Hilo Harbor.

U.S. Minister Stevens and the U.S.S. Boston returned to Honolulu on January 14, just in time to play a pivotal role in the history of Hawai‘i. That very morning, Queen Lili`uokalani disbanded the legislature and attempted to proclaim a new constitution for the kingdom. Stevens met with the “Committee of Public Safety,” a group composed mostly of American businessmen that afternoon. Two days later, at Stevens’ request, Marines from the U.S.S. Boston were dispatched into Honolulu, altering the balance of power between the political factions that were competing for control of the kingdom.

The monarchy was overthrown three days later, and, on behalf of the United States, Ambassador Stevens recognized the Provisional Government immediately. On February 1, Stevens declared Hawai‘i a protectorate of the United States.

We don’t know who took this remarkable photo 120 years ago, but we do know that the photographer captured an important moment in the geologic and political history of Hawai‘i.