On the day the Waikiki Aquarium opened, March 19, 1904, the guests were treated to an array of reef fishes whose colors were said to rival the rainbow. There also were mud turtles, goldfish and a tank outside that was home to "a man-eating shark."
With that kind of diversity, the Honolulu Aquarium, as it was known then, quickly became a world-famous facility noted for its reef fishes. It was the third aquarium built in the United States and the 12th worldwide.
The aquarium was built to entice the public to ride to the end of Honolulu's new trolley line. The land was donated by James Castle, the building paid for by Anna Rice Cooke and her husband, Charles Montague Cooke Sr., and the aquarium operated by the Honolulu Rapid Transit Authority.
The exhibit itself cost more than $3,600 to build and stock.
On opening day, the rows of glass tanks were stocked with 60 varieties of fish — more than 265 altogether. Bad weather in the previous month limited the number of fish displayed, but the guests were told that would soon be remedied. There were visions of a giant squid and flying eels.
For its first 15 years, the aquarium was a privately funded institution and was managed by a clerk from the transit company.
But in 1912, a laboratory was built next to the facility and Charles H. Edmondson — the first professional marine zoologist to live in Hawai'i — became the aquarium's first director.
