Hawaii became a U.S. state on August 21, 1959, when it was officially admitted as the 50th state of the United States.

Key date

  • Statehood date : August 21, 1959.
  • On that day, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the formal proclamation making Hawaii the 50th state.

How it became a state

  • Congress passed the Hawaii Admission Act on March 18, 1959, which legally set up Hawaii’s path from territory to state.
  • Statehood became effective a few months later, on August 21, 1959, when the proclamation was signed.

What the people of Hawaii voted

  • Before admission, residents of Hawaii voted in a referendum on whether to become a state.
  • More than 93–94% of voters approved statehood, answering “yes” to joining the Union as a state.

Why this matters today

  • Hawaii is still the most recent state to join the United States; no new states have been admitted since 1959.
  • Each year, Hawaii observes “Statehood Day” in August to mark its admission into the Union.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.