Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Camp POW

American entry into World War II necessitated a rapid expansion of facilities in dealing with enemy prisoners. Civilian Conservation Corps camps were secured to house the first arrivals; more camps were constructed throughout the war. Of the 50,000 Italian captured soldiers and sailors, 5,000 Italian prisoners of war were sent to Hawaiʻi; Japanese Americans were also incarcerated in at least eight locations on Hawaiʻi. On December 8, 1941, the first detention camp was set up on Sand Island.

The Sand Island Detention Center held war captives as well as civilians of Japanese, German or Italian ancestry who were under investigation. Another prisoner of war facility was in Hilo; it was in Ponahawai, up Kaumana Drive. During WWII the Army’s 27th Infantry division was housed and trained on the property. Later, the Marines were stationed there and Japanese prisoners of war were confined there. The camp became known as Camp POW. After the war, the camp buildings were converted into rental properties. For safety reasons the buildings were eventually demolished in the 1980s. (Many of the photos in the album are from Raymond W McCracken’s son’s post on flickr.)

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Train Terminal, Depot

Benjamin Franklin (Frank) Dillingham’s OR&L company, created in 1889, changed the landscape of west Honolulu. Its first train depot was created between a fishpond and North King Street, next to Prison Road, later renamed Iwilei Road. The first section of track extended only as far as Aiea, but by the 1920s, tracks had been laid all over the island. The train was the primary mode of transportation. “Plans have been approved by which the main depot will be placed 180 feet from King street in what is now a fish-pond dividing Oahu prison from the royal stables.”

“A large portion, if not all of this extensive fish-pond will be filled in without delay, and this substantial and eligible building ground, artificially firmed, will become of great value by close proximity to the main depot buildings.” In 1924-1925, a new Depot was constructed to replace an earlier 1889 wooden terminal building, and was the main Honolulu rail terminal for OR&L’s passenger operations. Upon completion, the building had dual functions, with the 2nd floor providing offices for the company’s daily railroad operations, and the 1st floor accommodating passengers. A 1975 renovation completely reconfigured the interior of the building for office use by Department of Human Services.

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Timeline Tuesday … 1980s

Today’s ‘Timeline Tuesday’ takes us through the 1980s – bombing halted at Kaho‘olawe, Alexander Young Building demolished, enactment of State Water Code and over 1,000 ancient human remains discovered on land being developed by the Ritz-Carlton on Maui. We look at what was happening in Hawai‘i during this time period and what else was happening around the rest of the world

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Timeline Tuesday … 1960s

Today’s ‘Timeline Tuesday’ takes us through the 1960s – first homes in Hawai‘i Kai, Land Use Commission formed, visitors to Hawai‘I hit 1-million and Hawai‘i Five-O debuts. We look at what was happening in Hawai‘i during this time period and what else was happening around the rest of the world.

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Mauna Kea Observatories

In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) undertook fencing, road building and visitor facilities on Mauna Kea. In 1943, construction of a road from Hilo to what would become the Pōhakuloa Training Area began. After the end of World War II, the Saddle Road, as it was called, was extended to Waimea, greatly improving access to the south side of Mauna Kea. In 1964, the first road to the summit, a “jeep road” was completed, and in July of that year, the Lunar and Planetary Station, located on the summit of Pu‘u Poli‘ahu was opened

Observatories are an ‘identified land use’ in the Conservation District. The Institute for Astronomy (IfA) was founded at the University of Hawai‘i (UH) in 1967 to manage the Haleakala Observatory on Maui and to guide the development of the Mauna Kea Observatories on Hawaiʻi Island. In 1968 Governor John A. Burns established the Mauna Kea Science Reserve. The astronomy precinct, where 13-existing telescopes are located, delineates the area of development of astronomy facilities, roads, and support infrastructure. The Onizuka Center for International Astronomy located at Hale Pōhaku has living facilities for up to 72 people working at the summit.