Early-day Pearl City had an array of rice paddies and fields that were plowed with water buffalo that hauled a 9 two-wheeled cart.

In the early 1880s, Pearl City was the final stop for Benjamin Franklin Dillingham's Oahu Railway, a mud wagon driven by a four-horse team.

Lots for a yet-to-exist "Pearl City" went on sale in 1889, after completion of the rail line.

14.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

Of the total population, 11.7% of those under the age of 18 and 4.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu operates Our Lady of Good Counsel School in the CDP,[23] which opened in 1964.

Originally known as the Pearl City Regional Library, it began operations on November 15, 1969.

In 2017, a Pearl City youth baseball team, the Pearl City KRU, represented the Pacific Southwest region in the Cal Ripken Baseball 10U (age 10 and under) World Series.

This series was held in Hammond, Indiana, which hosted nine other teams from across the country.