Kalākaua's 1874–75 state visit to the United States

A career politician who rose through the ranks of chiefs, Kalākaua had previously been to California and Canada with Prince Lot in 1860 as a 23-year-old government bureaucrat, more than a dozen years away from his accession to the throne.

He accorded journalist requests for interviews, and interacted with the general public, shaking hands and signing autographs, while crowds of curiosity seekers grew with each stop.

On that trip, he had accompanied Minister of the Interior Prince Lot, high chief Levi Haʻalelea, and Hawaii's Consul for Peru Josiah C. Spalding on a two-month tour of British Columbia and California.

[12][13] Since the days of visits by whaling ships, and the arrival of the first missionaries in 1820, Hawaii became increasingly populated by non-residents operating within the kingdom's business community.

[17] Hawaii's sugar planters had worked for decades with the legislature of the Hawaiian Kingdom to find a viable remedy to the global market impingement on their profits caused by the tariffs.

Solutions debated were tariff reciprocity treaties, annexation of Hawaii by the United States, formal alliances with other countries, and the cession of Pearl Harbor.

After consulting with his privy council, he agreed to accompany the diplomatic team, but rather than being involved in the negotiations himself, Kalākaua appointed Hawaiian Kingdom Minister to the United States Elisha Hunt Allen to take charge.

[26][27][28] At ʻIolani Palace on November 14, the doors were opened to native Hawaiians for a traditional "hoʻokupu", a ceremonial giving of gifts to the king prior to his departure.

Moses Kuaea, of the Kaumakapili Church, offered a prayer, praised the king's efforts to save the nation's agricultural interest, and asked for the people to pray for his safety during his upcoming trip.

"[26][31] The royal party consisting of Kalākaua, his personal secretary E. M. Mayor, diplomat Peirce, governors Dominis and Kapena, and three or four servants departed Hawaii on the morning of November 17.

[34] They were joined on board by Edward C. Macfarlane,[35] General John Schofield and his chief of staff, William M. Wherry,[36] and Hawaiian Consul for California Henry W. Severance.

San Francisco mayor James Otis, members of the First Regiment National Guard, and the Presidio Band playing "He Mele Lahui Hawaii", escorted all to their suite at the Grand Hotel.

[39] Celso Caesar Moreno, who would later serve in the king's cabinet,[40] presented himself as owner of three telegraph cable charter companies, regaling Kalākaua with his tales of global adventures.

[37] San Francisco's enthusiastic reception for the dark-skinned monarch was less than a decade after the American Civil War had divided the nation over the issue of enslavement of persons of color.

[45] The African-American newspaper Pacific Appeal noted the irony and speculated, "... there has either been a sudden abandonment of colorphobia prejudice, or an extraordinary amount of toadyism to a crown head by the San Francisco American people.

[26] In addition to Dominis, Kapena, Mayor and Peirce, the king's official party now included Schofield, Wherry, and Lieutenant Commander William H. Whiting, a junior officer of the Benicia.

[50] Kalākaua had become ill with a head cold on the trip and was being attended by a US Navy physician, when a message arrived from President Ulysses S. Grant, inviting him to be the guest of honor at a White House state dinner.

[52] He met privately with Massachusetts senator William B. Washburn, who extended an invitation from the American Board of Commission of Foreign Missionaries to visit them in Boston.

[55] Spectators lined the December 23 route, amassing at depots in Washington, D.C, Baltimore, Maryland, Wilmington, Delaware, West Philadelphia and stations through New Jersey.

The New York City council held a reception at the train depot, followed by a carriage ride past throngs of curiosity seekers en route to the Windsor Hotel.

[59] Acknowledging the king's previous service as foreman of Hawaii Engine 4 in Honolulu,[60] the New York City Fire Department took him on an inspection tour of nearby facilities on December 26.

Kalākaua and staff donned their dress uniforms for a private in-suite presentation of Army and Navy officers, during which members of the Board of Trade were also introduced.

[72] On their January 2 arrival in Boston, the king indulged in a shopping trip, escorted by Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Thomas Talbot and Governor-elect William Gaston.

[81] Upon arrival the morning of January 12, Kalākaua's party was met at the depot by Chicago mayor Harvey Doolittle Colvin and numerous city officials.

The agenda included a tour of the city water works, grain storage elevators at Armour's Warehouse, the Union Stock Yards and a visit to the Chicago Board of Trade.

[83][84] On January 15, Kalākaua made a daytrip to Milwaukee as the guest of honor at the formal luncheon hosted by United States Congressman William Pitt Lynde.

[87] General William Tecumseh Sherman, unable to attend the White House state dinner, visited with the king at a stopover in St. Louis on January 18.

[102] As the kingdom's income rose, so did Kalākaua's expenditures (all figures given are Hawaiian dollars): this included $343,595 to build and furnish ʻIolani Palace;[103] a delayed coronation in excess of $50,000;[104] and a $75,000 public celebration of his 50th birthday.

[105] He made an attempt, subsequently blocked by the legislature, to allocate a $1,000,000 bonus for his San Francisco friend Celso Caesar Moreno to lay an undersea telegraph cable, and briefly appointed him Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Sanford B. Dole, who helped draft it, asserted that key issues were the king's handling of finances, and the lack of a system of checks and balances over the monarchy's stewardship.