Images of Old Hawaiʻi

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by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Bishop Bank – Waimea

Charles Reed Bishop became ‘Hawaiʻi’s First Banker’ and formed Bishop & Co Bank in 1858. In 1895, Samuel M Damon bought Bishop & Co; after the turn of the century the bank started opening neighbor island branches, including the Waimea branch on Kauai in 1911.

The Waimea branch at one time served the entire island of Kauai. As the economy of the island developed, however, additional branches on that and other islands were opened. The Bank incorporated as Bank of Bishop & Co. Ltd in 1919. After some mergers, in 1956 it was renamed Bishop National Bank of Hawai‘i; in 1960, First National Bank of Hawai‘i; then, in 1969, First Hawaiian Bank.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Gilbert Conwall Wiltse

Gilbert Conwall Wiltse was born in New York on November 29, 1838. He was appointed to the Naval Academy from New York, and graduated on September 20, 1855. He became a midshipman on June 9, 1859, and was ordered to the frigate, Congress, the flagship of Admiral JS Sands, cruising on the Brazilian Station from 1859 to 1861. He was made Lieutenant on Aug. 31, 1861 and participated in naval war operations during the Civil War.

He was promoted to Captain on Jan. 20, 1887; he was assigned to the command of the USS Boston in 1891, and was in command of the Boston when the Hawaiian revolution occurred. At the request of United States Minister Stevens, he landed a detachment of marines. Following that, Captain Wiltse returned to New York City and died at his home, on April 26, 1893.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Remond Grove

BF (Frank) Dillingham’s OR&L company, created in 1889, changed the landscape of west Honolulu. In the beginning, since there were as yet no real destinations along the line, Dillingham he created the concept of picnicking along Pearl Harbor and within days of the line’s opening began marketing excursions.

He held a contest that gave to Mānana the new name ‘Pearl City,’ and on its main thoroughfare, Lehua Road, he promoted a dance pavilion named Remond Grove (the large dancing pavilion had a capacity for 1,000 people.) It was built for the use of picnickers and dancing parties by the railroad company. It is seventy feet square, open on all sides, and a well-kept lawn, with a playing fountain in front, and provided with swings, croquet games, etc.

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Hale Pili o Nā Mikanele

Most Hawaiian family hale compounds had several special-purpose hale. This collection was called a kauhale. The household complex was the center of the Native Hawaiian family and household production of the necessities of life. Men and women’s activities took place in different areas. (Leineweber)

Hawaiian Mission Houses has plans (and recent HCDA approval) to build William Richard’s hale pili that Boki ordered built for the new missionaries arriving as the Second Company in 1823. The hale represents a bridge between cultures and represents support given to the missionaries by the host culture, and the cooperative relationship that existed between the chiefs and the missionaries.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

When Was Hawai‘i Settled?

Evidence for human settlement of an island or archipelago can come from two different sources: (1) direct artifactual evidence from human settlements such as sand dune occupations or rockshelters; and (2) indirect evidence in the form of proxy signals of anthropogenic disturbance, such as increases in charcoal fluxes in lake or swamp sediments, rapid changes in pollen frequencies in these sediments, or the appearance plants and animals that live near or benefit from association with humans (such as weeds, insects or rats.)

The invention of radiocarbon dating helped to spark a boom in Polynesian and Pacific archaeology. Once an organism dies the carbon is no longer replaced. Because the radiocarbon is radioactive, it will slowly decay away. Radiocarbon dating technology and techniques improved. So, what does the updated technology and techniques show as the time of Hawaiian settlement in the Islands? Based on what we know now, it is suggested here that initial Polynesian discovery and settlement of the Hawaiian Islands occurred between approximately AD 1000 and 1200. (Kirch.)

by Peter T Young 1 Comment

He wanted to be Lindbergh of the Pacific

Ernest L Smith dreamt of becoming the ‘Lindbergh of the Pacific.’ But after the Army’s Maitland and Hegenberger reached Hawai‘i before him, he settled on becoming the first civilian to do so; Emory Bronte was his navigator. “The crowd of 10,000 that had assembled (and) watched intently ….” They took off from Oakland, California, in a single-engine Travelair on July 14, 1927. Aside from radio earphone problems, their 25-hour trip went well ….”

Then, came the sounds of their only engine sputtering and coughing; they were running out of fuel and calculated that only 1-hour’s fuel remained, but 4-hours of flying time to O‘ahu. They redirected to Molokai’s southern coast, headed for the softest looking clump of trees he could find and crashed in some kiawe. Pilot and navigator were shaken but unhurt except for scratches from the tree thorns. It was 8:47 am, HST, July 15, 1927. There was no prize money to be collected, the plane was unusable.

by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Dole Street

The beginning of the original Dole Street was just below the Punahou School campus and was part of an 1880 small subdivision of lots the school developed to raise money for the school’s endowment. It was named for Rev Daniel Dole, Punahou’s first teacher/administrator. Streets within the subdivision were named for prior leaders of the school: Dole, Beckwith, Alexander and Bingham. Apparently, some at the University of Hawaiʻi are trying “to restore Dole Street to its Hawaiian name” – suggesting Dole Street was originally named Kapaʻakea Street. (HNN)

This is not true. The history is clear, Dole Street was formed in 1880 by Punahou School and was named for Rev. Daniel Dole, not his son, Sanford. Suggestions that the ‘original’ name of Dole Street was Kapaʻakea Street are simply wrong and not consistent with the clear history of the road and its subsequent extensions. The image is a portion of an 1892 map of the area. It notes Dole Street and the Punahou Lots subdivision (on the left); note that there are no roads on the right, and definitely nothing labeled Kapaʻakea, other than the wetland. Check out the full story and multiple maps that show the same – Dole Street, but no Kapaʻakea Street.