Department of Accounting and General Services

Susan Shaner, who spent nearly 30 years as an archivist at the Hawai‘i State Archives, the last 12 years as the Hawai‘i State Archivist, passed away on December 8, 2024 at the age of 75. Beginning in 1978, Susan gradually developed an intimate knowledge of the Archives vast collections of 12,000 cubic feet of government records from the Hawaiian Kingdom through Statehood, 120,000 photographs, 500 collections of private papers and records, maps and artifacts. She was guided by a commitment to their long-term preservation and to improving public access. Among her early accomplishments was processing both the very large photo and negative collections, previously stored loosely in file boxes without climate controls. She inventoried, rehoused, labeled and organized both collections and created finding aids. Her generous sharing of her detailed knowledge of collections was foundational to the work and publications of countless scholars and other researchers. She created a warm and welcoming space for research, supporting and encouraging the work of scholars and casual patrons alike. In 2016 she received the Agnes Conrad Award, named for her mentor and a predecessor as State Archivist, recognizing outstanding contributions to the archivist profession. Among Susan’s greatest legacies as State Archivist was initiating the plan for creating the digital archives, obtaining Federal and State funding and launching the digital archives, work which continues today and provides access to users around the globe. In the words of one long-term colleague, “Susan was all about building foundations. Access to collections and digitizing doesn’t happen without the groundwork being laid – the painstaking work of processing, organizing, labeling and making finding aids to direct researchers to those collections. Susan built those foundations throughout her career.”

Of kanaka maoli ancestry from Moloka‘i, Susan was the daughter of Paul H. Shaner, Sr., a Honolulu Police Department Major, and Ethel E. Shaner, a teacher at St. Ann School in Kane‘ohe. She grew up in Ko‘olaupoko, graduating from St. Ann High School, obtained a BA in Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawai‘i (UH) at Manoa and received a Phi Beta Kappa award for outstanding scholarship. She later returned to UH to earn the Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) with a specialization in computer applications for archives and records management, skills she applied to her leadership of the State Archives. In addition to her long career at the Archives, Susan served as Program Specialist at the Judiciary History Center (1994 – 2003). She continued her “foundation building” on the boards of the Hawai‘i Museums Association and the Association of Hawai‘i Archivists, strengthening both professions through conferences and training. She served on the publications committee of the Hawaiian Historical Society and the UH Committee for the Preservation and Study of Hawaiian Language, Culture and Art. A longtime resident of Manoa, she was on the Board of Directors of the Manoa Heritage Center for many years. She was predeceased by her husband of 36 years, archaeologist David W. Cox (1939 – 2017). She is survived by daughter Sara O‘ili‘wai‘opua Cox, brother Paul H. Shaner, Jr. (Mary Mae), three nephews, sister-in-law Dean Cox, niece, and many cousins. Donations suggested to Malama Ola Cares Hospice at https://malamaolacares.com/donation/.

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Contact: Deborah Pope
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808.227.1941