Antone Rosa | |
---|---|
Kingdom of Hawaii Attorney General |
|
In office November 15, 1886 – June 28, 1887 |
|
Monarch | Kalakaua |
Preceded by | John Lot Kaulukou |
Succeeded by | Clarence W. Ashford |
Acting Governor of Oahu | |
In office April 12, 1887 – July 7, 1887 |
|
Monarch | Kalakaua |
Preceded by | Curtis P. Iaukea |
Succeeded by | Curtis P. Iaukea |
Personal details | |
Born |
Kalae, Molokai, Kingdom of Hawaii |
November 20, 1855
Died | November 9, 1898 Honolulu, Oahu, Republic of Hawaii |
(aged 42)
Resting place | Honolulu Catholic Cemetery |
Nationality |
Kingdom of Hawaii Republic of Hawaii |
Spouse(s) | Joanna Niaukololani Drew Ladd Helen Nina Ladd |
Children | William Ladd, Mahealani, Rose |
Alma mater |
ʻĀhuimanu College Royal School |
Occupation | Lawyer, Politician, Judge |
Antone Rosa (November 10, 1855 – September 9, 1898) was a politician, lawyer and judge of the Kingdom of Hawaii and Republic of Hawaii. He served as Attorney General of Hawaii, and as a private secretary and vice chamberlain to King Kalākaua.
He was born at Kalae, on the island of Molokai, on November 10, 1855. His mother was a Native Hawaiian while his father Antone Rosa Sr. (1825–1896) was a fisherman of Portuguese descent. The senior Rosa immigrated to the Hawaiian Islands from Portugal in 1850. He had five sons: Antone Jr., Manuel, Joseph, Levi and George. However, the younger Rosa rarely referred to himself as "Jr." Educated at the Roman Catholic College of ʻĀhuimanu and later Honolulu's Royal School under Anglican Rev. Alexander Mackintosh, Rosa became fluent in English, Hawaiian and French.
He clerked for Chief Justice Charles Coffin Harris, and served as Deputy Clerk of the Supreme Court October 25, 1877, to September 3, 1882, but he was not allowed to practice as an attorney, because he had never studied law. After taking a two-year career sabbatical to study law, he passed his exam in October 27, 1884, and was admitted to the Bar. He was serving as Deputy Attorney-General in 1885 when King Kalākaua appointed him Attorney-General on November 15 to fill a vacancy caused by the departure of John Lot Kaulukou. He held that position until June 1887.
Rosa's name was placed in nomination as an Independent candidate for representative from Honolulu in 1887. The Kaumakapili Church hosted numerous meetings for Hawaiians to hear candidate positions on the issues of the day. At Rosa's appearances, he spoke in the Hawaiian language and expressed support for the new Bayonet Constitution, but disdained how Kalākaua had been forced into signing it. He denounced both the Honolulu Rifles and the Reform Party of Hawaii for their actions in obtaining that constitution, and for what he purported were later illegal exchanges of money after the document became the law of the Kingdom. He was defeated by the Reform Party candidate at the September 12 election.