Matson history

In 1887, Captain Matson sold Emma Claudina and acquired the brigantine Lurline, which more than doubled the former vessel’s carrying capacity.

The second Lurline, with accommodations for 51 passengers, joined the fleet in 1908.

When Captain Matson died in 1917 at 67, the Matson fleet comprised 14 of the largest, fastest and most modern ships in the Pacific passenger-freight service.

Established in 1921, Matson subsidiary Matson Terminals, Inc. provides container maintenance, stevedoring and other terminal services supporting Matson’s ocean shipping operations in Hawaii and Alaska.

In 1925, the company established Matson Terminals, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, to perform stevedoring and terminal services for its fleet.

With increasing passenger traffic to Hawaii, Matson built a world-class luxury liner, the S.S. Malolo, in 1927.

Matson freighters in 1940 had been reduced to 14 by wartime losses or sale to the Government.

Immediately after the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the passenger liners Lurline, Matsonia, Mariposa, and Monterey, and 33 Matson freighters were called to military service.

In 1948, the Lurline returned to service after a $20 million reconversion.

In 1955, Matson undertook a $60 million shipbuilding program which produced the South Pacific liners Mariposa and Monterey, and the rebuilt wartime Monterey was renamed Matsonia and entered the Pacific Coast – Hawaii service.

Matson’s containerization program for Hawaii was the product of its in-house research department, which was established in 1956 and was the first of its kind in the industry.

On August 31, 1958, Matson’s S.S. Hawaiian Merchant departed San Francisco Bay carrying 20 24-foot containers on deck.

Concurrently, shoreside innovations were introduced, including the world’s first A-frame gantry crane, which was erected in 1959 in Alameda, California and became the prototype for container cranes.

The exhibition also addresses the impact of containerization on West Coast waterfront operations, including the historic Mechanization and Modernization Agreement of 1960.

In 1970, in line with the decision to concentrate on its Pacific Coast-Hawaii freight service, the company sold its passenger vessels and suspended its Far East service, which had commenced a few years earlier.

In 1987, Matson formed Matson Intermodal System, Inc. as an intermodal marketing company (IMC) arranging rail and truck transportation throughout North America for shippers and carriers.

In 1992, the diesel-powered containership MV R. J. Pfeiffer was constructed and joined the Matson fleet.

Beginning in 2002, Matson embarked on an ambitious four-ship construction program, which involved investing more than $500 million in new containerships that significantly modernized the company’s fleet.

In 2003, the company was renamed Matson Integrated Logistics in recognition of its continued growth and expanded service offerings.

In April 2007 Matson celebrated 125 years as a leader in Pacific shipping.

On December 1, 2011, Matson's then-parent company Alexander & Baldwin announced that its board of directors approved a plan to split A&B and Matson into two separate companies.

In 2012, after 43-years as a subsidiary of A&B, Matson separated from its parent company, forming Matson, Inc. and began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol MATX.

Matson launched Matson South Pacific (MSP) in 2013 after it acquired Auckland, New Zealand-based, Reef Shipping.

In 2015, Matson, Inc. acquired Horizon Lines, formerly its main competitor in the United States domestic market, for $469 million.

Matson for the first time linked its northern Pacific network with its South Pacific operations in 2016 with the introduction of its South Pacific Express (SPX) service between Honolulu, Samoa and American Samoa, creating a contiguous network spanning the Pacific.