He was born on June 23, 1842 at Hilo and died July 4, 1910 at Hilo.
His mother was Sarah Joiner (1805–1885) and father was David Belden Lyman (1803–1883), missionaries in the fifth company from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions.

He was the namesake of Rev Rufus Anderson who was foreign secretary of the mission board and visited his parent's mission in 1863.
He attended Punahou School from 1856 to 1862 (as would ten of his children).

Rufus Lyman married Rebecca Hualani Ahung (1844–1906), the only child of Chinese merchant Chun Ahung, a co-founder of Honolulu's Hungtai Co., by his wife Luika, “Louisa.”
 Her mother—the daughter of Kamoku and her husband Nahili or Kaniliaulaninui, who was the descendant of  Kualii, a chief of O'ahu—was adopted by John Neddles Gilman who gave her the nickname “Chu Chu.”
 After Ahung's death in 1845, Louisa "Chu Chu" became the second wife of Hawaii's Postmaster General, Arthur Peter Brickwood.

As Rebecca Ahung, Lyman's future wife attended the Royal School at Honolulu, and by June 1859 was an instructor there, teaching arithmetic and geography.
 Her Hawaiian name comes from hua lani which means "offspring from heaven" in the Hawaiian language.

Lyman and Rebecca had fifteen children, many of whom would become influential in different ways.

Inheriting his mother's interest in observing nearby volcanoes, Lyman developed a theory for the formation of lava tree molds discovered on the ranch of fellow missionary son William Herbert Shipman (who also married the daughter of Hawaiian nobility).

This area is now Lava Tree State Monument.

Rufus Anderson became circuit judge in 1866, lieutenant governor of the island in 1868, and served on several other boards and commissions.

While working with the Royal Governor Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani, he became her business advisor, helping her build one of the largest land holdings in the islands.
He became tax assessor and collected both taxes and rents on the crown lands.
He became friends with King Kamehameha V and wrote a short biography of the king.
He was born on June 23, 1842 at Hilo and died July 4, 1910 at Hilo. His mother was Sarah Joiner (1805–1885) and father was David Belden Lyman (1803–1883), missionaries in the fifth company from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions.
He was the namesake of Rev Rufus Anderson who was foreign secretary of the mission board and visited his parent's mission in 1863. He attended Punahou School from 1856 to 1862 (as would ten of his children).
Rufus Lyman married Rebecca Hualani Ahung (1844–1906), the only child of Chinese merchant Chun Ahung, a co-founder of Honolulu's Hungtai Co., by his wife Luika, “Louisa.”  Her mother—the daughter of Kamoku and her husband Nahili or Kaniliaulaninui, who was the descendant of  Kualii, a chief of O'ahu—was adopted by John Neddles Gilman who gave her the nickname “Chu Chu.”  After Ahung's death in 1845, Louisa "Chu Chu" became the second wife of Hawaii's Postmaster General, Arthur Peter Brickwood.
As Rebecca Ahung, Lyman's future wife attended the Royal School at Honolulu, and by June 1859 was an instructor there, teaching arithmetic and geography.  Her Hawaiian name comes from hua lani which means "offspring from heaven" in the Hawaiian language.
Lyman and Rebecca had fifteen children, many of whom would become influential in different ways.
Inheriting his mother's interest in observing nearby volcanoes, Lyman developed a theory for the formation of lava tree molds discovered on the ranch of fellow missionary son William Herbert Shipman (who also married the daughter of Hawaiian nobility).
This area is now Lava Tree State Monument.
Rufus Anderson became circuit judge in 1866, lieutenant governor of the island in 1868, and served on several other boards and commissions.
While working with the Royal Governor Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani, he became her business advisor, helping her build one of the largest land holdings in the islands. He became tax assessor and collected both taxes and rents on the crown lands. He became friends with King Kamehameha V and wrote a short biography of the king.
Rufus Anderson Lyman