James Dole

James Dole was born on September 27, 1877, in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts (now part of Boston), to an American Puritan family long settled in the country since colonial America times. His father was Charles Fletcher Dole, a Unitarian minister, and his mother was Frances Drummond. His paternal great-grandfather was Wigglesworth Dole (1779–1845). His maternal grandfather was also a clergyman, James Drummond. Growing up, Dole attended Roxbury Latin School in Roxbury, Massachusetts, from which he graduated.

In 1899, Dole obtained his bachelor's degree in agriculture from the Bussey Institution of Harvard University. After receiving US$50 as a gift, Dole began saving money for a future business. After accumulating $16,240, Dole moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, at the age of 22, arriving on November 16, 1899, (then governed by his cousin Sanford B. Dole, after the 1893 overthrow of Queen Liliʻuokalani). He purchased a 64-acre (26 ha) government homestead in the central plains of the island of Oahu at 21°30′30″N 158°0′22″W.

After experimenting with a number of crops, he settled on planting pineapple.

Dole married Belle Dickey (1880–1972) in Jamaica Plain on November 23, 1906. His wife was the sister of architect Charles William Dickey, a member of another missionary family. They had five children: Richard Alexander Dole was born on October 28, 1907, James Drummond Dole, Jr. was born on February 6, 1910, Elisabeth Dole was born on April 25, 1911, Charles Herbert Dole was born on October 30, 1914, and Barbara Dole (married to Tambi Larsen) was born on October 10, 1916.

Sanford Dole had asked to avoid using the Dole name for products, but it had become well-known, at least within Hawaii. The first product to actually bear his name was the canned Dole pineapple juice.

Dole retired in 1948. He suffered from various ailments in retirement; the worst were a series of strokes. A heart attack finally took Dole's life on May 20, 1958.

Dole was buried in Makawao Union Church cemetery near Makawao, Hawaii, on the island of Maui. His grave overlooked the slopes of Haleakala and the vast pineapple fields of what was at the time his Maui pineapple plantation. His wife Belle inscribed the words on his gravestone, "He was a Man, Take Him All in All. I Shall Not Look Upon His Like Again."