Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Maui No Ka Oi

West Maui was considered a ‘window to the world’ because this area has seen the comings and goings of rival chiefs, kings, missionaries, whalers, government officials, the military, sugar and pineapple plantation owners, early labor immigrants, celebrities and travelers for centuries. The stories of West Maui give a bigger perspective of the world, than we would otherwise have, and helps us to expand our view and broaden our understanding of the world.

Probably there is no portion of the Valley Isle, around which gathers so much historic value as West Maui. It was the former capital and favorite residence of kings and chiefs. By whatever means (vehicle, transit, bicycle or on foot,) exploring West Maui, and embracing the scenic beauty, natural features, historic sites, associated cultural traditions and recreational opportunities, will give the traveler a greater appreciation and understanding of Hawai‘i’s past and sense of place in the world.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

General Meeting

Over the course of a little over 40-years (1820-1863 – the “Missionary Period”,) about 180-men and women in twelve Companies served in Hawaiʻi to carry out the mission of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mission (ABCFM) in the Hawaiian Islands. One of the earliest efforts of the missionaries, who arrived in 1820, was the identification and selection of important communities (generally near ports and aliʻi residences) as “stations” for the regional church and school centers across the Hawaiian Islands.

By 1850, eighteen mission stations had been established; six on Hawaiʻi, four on Maui, four on Oʻahu, three on Kauai and one on Molokai. Very prominent in the old mission life was the annual “General Meeting” where all of the missionary families from across the Islands gathered at Honolulu from four to six weeks. The primary object of this gathering was to hold a business meeting – but it was also social. The tradition continues … Join us at the FREE Open House, Saturday Afternoon, April 22 at Mission Houses.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Palmyra

“(T)ake possession in our name of Palmyra Island, … not having been taken possession of by any other government or any other people by erecting thereon a short pole with the Hawaiian flag wrapped round it and interring at the foot thereof a bottle well corked containing a paper signed by (Zenas Bent) in the following form viz: ‘Visited and taken possession of by order of His Majesty King Kamehameha IV …’” (Bent did so on April 15, 1862.) Later legal decisions note that ownership of Palmyra was held privately, initially in the name of Bent and Johnson B Wilkinson.

Palmyra Atoll was a part of the Territory of Hawaii prior to Hawaii’s entering the Union on August 21, 1959. Congress expressly excluded Palmyra from the State of Hawaii by section 2 of the Hawaii Statehood Act. Palmyra Atoll is situated 960-miles south by west of Honolulu. The atoll has an area of about one and one-half square miles with numerous islets in the shape of a horse shoe surrounding two lagoons. It was named after the American vessel Palmyra, who sought shelter there on November 7, 1802. Title is now held by The Nature Conservancy. It is an incorporated Territory of the US.

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Samuel Rice

Kamehameha started to accumulate Western goods, including ships and weaponry. In 1790, he was joined by John Young and Isaac Davis, Europeans who knew how to use both. A blacksmith would have been needed to keep these ships and weapons in working order. Samuel Rice was a blacksmith by trade. He was born in about April 1787; his Hawaiian naturalization certificate notes he was a native of New Hampshire. He came to the Islands around 1811, probably aboard a fur trading ship.

In the service of Kamehameha, and later Kuakini, Rice was given property in West Hawaii: Honuaʻino (an ahupuaʻa that runs through Kainaliu) and two house sites in Kailua; the first, Pa o ʻUmi Heiau (on Ololi Road between Kopiko Plaza and Kuakini Hwy.) “He died on the morning of the 24th (of July, 1853,) rather suddenly, with the cholic or cramp, of which he had many previous attacks in years past.”

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kalamaʻula

During Kamehameha’s conquest of the Islands, Kalama‘ula, on Molokai, was where Kalola became ill and they could not carry out their original intention of going to Oʻahu to join Kahekili. Kamehameha followed Kalola to Molokai and asked Kalola for Keōpūolani (Kalola’s granddaughter) to be his queen. It was also here that Kamehameha V planted 1,000 coconut trees; it was his favorite area for retreats.

Some suggest the area was named for a stone … and a song was written about the beauty of the area. The US Congress passed the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act to provide lands for Hawaiians; in 1922, Kalamaʻula became the first Hawaiian homestead subdivision in the islands.