Lincoln Loy McCandless

Lincoln Loy McCandless (September 18, 1859 – October 5, 1940) was a United States cattle rancher, industrialist, and politician for the Territory of Hawaii who served as a territorial delegate in the United States Congress. A former member of the Hawaii Republican Party, he later became one of the earliest leaders of the Hawaii Democratic Party and served as a Representative from Hawaii in the United States Congress from 1933 to 1935. A member of the Democratic Party during his congressional service, McCandless contributed to the legislative process during one term in office, representing the interests of his constituents during a significant period in American history.

McCandless was born on September 18, 1859, in Indiana, Pennsylvania, to Thomas McCartney McCandless and Eliza Ann Newman. He spent much of his youth in Volcano, West Virginia, where he grew up before embarking on a career that combined technical expertise with entrepreneurial ambition. His early exposure to industrial work and resource extraction would later shape his professional pursuits in the Pacific.

In 1882 McCandless moved to the Hawaiian Islands, then the Kingdom of Hawaii, to employ his expertise in oil drilling and mining in the construction of artesian wells. He joined his older brothers, John A. McCandless, who had arrived in 1881, and James S. McCandless, who had arrived in 1880, and together they formed the McCandless Brothers firm. Through this enterprise, the brothers became prominent figures in the development of water resources and infrastructure, which in turn supported ranching, agriculture, and urban growth in Hawaii. McCandless also became a cattle rancher and industrialist, expanding his interests in the islands’ economic development. On May 24, 1904, he married Elizabeth Janet Cartwright of New York, further cementing his personal and social ties beyond Hawaii.

McCandless entered political life during the final years of the independent Hawaiian polity. He served as a member of the House of Representatives of the Republic of Hawaii from the 5th district from 1898 to 1900. After the United States annexed the islands and established the Territory of Hawaii, McCandless continued his political career in the new territorial framework. Initially aligned with the Hawaii Republican Party, he was elected to the territorial legislature as a senator, serving from 1902 to 1906. During these years he emerged as a significant political figure, increasingly willing to challenge established leadership, including the long-serving territorial delegate Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole.

By 1906, McCandless had begun openly contesting Kūhiō’s dominance in territorial politics. In 1908 he switched his allegiance to the Hawaii Democratic Party, becoming one of its earliest and most visible leaders in the islands. As a Democrat, he repeatedly sought election as the non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives for Hawaii Territory’s at-large congressional district, running against Kūhiō in 1908, 1910, and 1912. Although he was unsuccessful in each of these campaigns, his efforts helped to build the organizational and electoral foundations of the Democratic Party in Hawaii. A decade later, this groundwork contributed to the successful nomination and election of Democrat William Paul Jarrett as territorial delegate in 1922 and 1924.

McCandless’s persistence in territorial politics culminated in his own election to Congress. On November 8, 1932, he was nominated and won election as the Democratic territorial delegate to the United States House of Representatives. He served one term, from March 4, 1933, to January 3, 1935, during the early years of the New Deal and the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. As a non-voting delegate, McCandless participated in the democratic process, contributed to legislative deliberations, and represented the interests of Hawaii’s residents at a time of profound economic and political change in the United States. His tenure from 1933 to 1935 placed him at the center of federal discussions affecting territorial policy, infrastructure, and economic recovery.

After losing his bid for reelection in 1934, McCandless remained active in public affairs and development in Hawaii. Drawing on his long experience as an industrialist and builder, he directed the construction of roads, buildings, and a sewer system for Honolulu, further shaping the physical and civic landscape of the territorial capital. His later years thus continued the pattern of combining technical, entrepreneurial, and political work that had characterized his life since his arrival in the islands.

Lincoln Loy McCandless died in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, on October 5, 1940. He was cremated and interred in Oahu Cemetery in the Nuʻuanu Valley. His career as a rancher, industrialist, territorial legislator, party leader, and congressional delegate left a lasting imprint on the political and infrastructural development of Hawaii during the transition from kingdom to republic to United States territory.