Economy | Page 2 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

April 5, 2018 by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Japanese Language Schools

Japanese came to Hawai‘i to work on the plantations between 1885 and 1924, when limits were placed on the numbers permitted entry.

“The government contract workers who arrived in Hawaii in the 1880s did not have much time or energy to worry about their children’s education.”

“Their only aim was to make enough money to return to Japan. With mothers going to work from early in the morning the children were virtually left to themselves all day long.”

“Takie Okumura, posted in Hawaii as a minister after his graduation from Doshisha University, was astonished as he made his pastoral rounds at how little communication the immigrant children had with their parents.” (Duus)

“Christian missionary Reverend Takie Okumura, who started Honolulu’s ﬁrst Japanese language school, was moved by a little girl’s peculiar Japanese: ‘Me mama hanahana yōkonai’ in response to his question ‘Are you with your mother?’[“

“He learned that ‘me mama’ was pidgin for ‘my mother’, ‘hanahana’ was the Hawaiian word for ‘work,’ and ‘yōkonai’ was a Japanese expression equivalent to ‘cannot come.’”

“Okumura credits this exchange for his strong urge to establish a school.”

“After several failed attempts to receive support from either the Japanese consul general in Honolulu or politicians in Japan, Reverend Okumura decided to establish a school independently.”

“On April 6, 1896, he opened the Nihonjin Shōgakkō (Japanese Elementary School) in a room of the Queen Emma Hall, originally used as Queen Emma’s residence, with 30 students. Okumura purchased desks and chairs from $15 in donations and was able to use the room for free.”

“The ﬁrst Japanese language program at a public school was established at McKinley High School in Honolulu on October 1, 1924.

“The first instructor of Japanese language at the public school was University of Hawaii Japanese Professor Tasuku Harada, who had a close relationship with Reverend Okumura. Harada was a former president of Dōshisha University (Congregationalist).” (Asato)

“Both Harada and Okumura were on the Japanese committee of the Hawaiian Evangelical Association and members of the Textbook Revision Joint Committee.”

“This Japanese language program was arranged by the Committee for Oriental Language Studies, chaired by University of Hawaii President Arthur L. Dean, who also was an American member of the Joint Committee for Textbook Revision.”

“The minutes of the Japanese committee of the Hawaiian Evangelical Association, dated September 10, a month before the Japanese program at McKinley High School began, reveals who was involved with this movement.”

“During the meeting, Treasurer Theodore Richards expressed his concern about female high-school students who attended the Hongwanji School for advanced Japanese language study, saying that they ‘were getting led away from Christianity.’”

“Richards was discussing the Hongwanji Girls’ High School (Hawai Kōtō Jogakkō) established in 1910, the girls’ counterpart of Hongwanji’s junior high school, Hawai Chūgakkō, established three years earlier.”

“Okumura and Imamura had a long history of confrontation over creating their own high schools. Imamura invited Ryūsaku Tsunoda, who later established Japanese Studies at Columbia University, to be principal of the ﬁrst Japanese junior high school, the Hawai Chūgakkō.”

“Okumura tried to compete by offering a junior-high-school-level class at his “secular” Honolulu Nihonjin Shōgakkō, although this advanced class was short-lived because of low enrollment.”

“Then, in 1910 the Hongwanji Girls’ High School opened, and Okumura again countered by expanding his Japanese school with both its junior high school and girls’ school, renaming it the Hawaii Chūō Gakuin or Central Institute.”

“So it was no surprise that in 1924, after discussion, the Evangelical Association appointed Harada and Okumura to ‘investigate the matter of organizing a Japanese high school.’”

“At their next meeting, on October 8, 1924, Reverend William D. Westervelt reported that Japanese instruction at McKinley High School was arranged by working with Superintendent Willard E. Givens, University of Hawaii President Dean, DPI supervisor of foreign language schools Henry B. Schwartz and McKinley High School Principal Miles E. Cary. “

“Westervelt also reported that the University of Hawaii agreed to recognize the credits students earned from the Japanese program at the high school as entrance credits for the university. Okumura stated that ‘this plan was satisfactory for the present taking care of the Japanese High School teaching’”.

“Although Japanese instruction began at public schools in 1924, it did not seem to prosper. Besides McKinley High School, only one other public school seems to have offered Japanese. Reverend Kikujiro C. Kondo of the Hawaiian Evangelical Association began teaching Japanese at Maui High School in 1925 while taking care of the Paia church on Maui.”

“Reverend Kondo later moved to Honolulu to take over the McKinley High School Japanese program from Mr. Kunimoto, Harada’s successor, in 1926.” (Asato)

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April 3, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Mānoa Heritage Center

Mānoa Heritage Center is a non-profit organization, whose mission is to promote stewardship of the natural and cultural heritage of Hawai‘i. The site consists of Kūali‘i, a Tudor-style house built in 1911, Kūka‘ō‘ō Heiau and a Native Hawaiian garden.

The site is the former home of Charles Montague Cooke, Jr. Charles Montague Cooke Sr gave the land to his son in 1902. On it his son established Kaimi dairy.

In 1911, Emory & Webb, a major architectural firm in Honolulu, designed this house, and it stands as one of their major works from this period. Other works of theirs from this time include the YMCA and the First Methodist Church.

Amos Starr Cooke came to Hawai‘i in 1837 as a missionary. He and his wife Juliette, were selected by King Kamehameha III to educate the next generation of Hawai‘i leadership (including Kamehameha IV and V, Lunalilo, Kalākaua, Lili‘uokalani and others)

Cooke later founded the firm of Castle & Cooke in 1851, which became one of the ‘Big Five’ sugar companies, which dominated so much of Hawai’ i’s economic, social and political history up through World War II.

Charles Montague Cooke Jr. was the grandson of Amos Starr Cooke and the son of Charles Montague Cooke. His father was the President of both C Brewer, another of the ‘Big Five’ firms, and the Bank of Hawai’i.

Dr. Charles Montague Cooke Jr. was born in Honolulu in 1874, and attended Punahou and Yale. In 1901 he received his PhD and went to Europe to do scientific work in London and Paris.

In 1902 he returned to Hawai’i to work at the Bishop Museum, where he made valuable contributions to the field of malachology, the branch of zoology that deals with mollusks, especially with regards to the study of Hawaiian land snails. He headed a number of scientific expeditions throughout Polynesia and was the author of 45 scientific works. (NPS)

Kūali‘i, the house on the site, is a two-story Tudor revival style house. It is situated at the top of a hill in Mānoa Valley and has a large front lawn gracefully landscaped with several mature monkey pod and shower trees. The front of the house is separated from Mānoa Road by a stone wall, and a circular drive provides vehicular access to the property. (NPS)

The lava rock basement and first floor support half-timber and stucco second and third floors. The home has three bays with a large 2-story porte cochere off the center bay. Two stonewall chimneys anchor the outside bays. The stone was quarried in the front year where the driveway now circles between two stone pillars of the front rock wall.

The house was originally going to be sited where a heiau (temple) was situated – and use the stone from the heiau as the foundation. Instead, the house was located so as not to disturb the heiau. (Ferraro; Pōhaku) The heiau was later restored.

According to legends, the menehune built a fort and heiau at the top of the hill ‘Ulumalu. They were driven away from their fort by the high chief Kūali‘i during his reign (sometime in the 1700s). Kuali‘i rebuilt it after his seizure of the fort. (Cultural Surveys)

This heiau was the center piece of a string of heiaus that strung across the Kona district. The existence of such an important heiau at the mouth of the valley could be taken as an indication of the early importance of Mānoa.

Another legend says that the menehune were driven from their fort and temple by the owls, who became their bitter enemies.
The legends say that the fairy people, the Menehunes, built a temple and a fort a little farther up the valley above Pu‘u-pueo, at a place called Kūka‘ō‘ō.

Surrounding Kūka‘ō‘ō Heiau is a Native Hawaiian garden featuring endemic and indigenous plants, as well as Polynesian introductions.

In addition, a Polynesian Introduced Garden offers an array of ‘Canoe Plants’ representing those that may have come with ancient seafarers from the Marquesas, Tahiti, Samoa and other South Pacific archipelagoes.

The first settlers of Hawaiʻi arriving by canoe, brought many of their favorite plants for food, seasoning, medicine, making household items and implements to farm, build structures and use for clothing.

Taro (kalo) became the staple of the Hawaiian diet and they developed hundreds of varieties, adapted to suit diverse terrain and weather conditions. Sweet potato (uala) was sometimes substituted for taro in the drier areas.

Tumeric (ʻolena) was used to produce a brilliant yellow orange dye for clothing, coconut (niu) for bowls, drums and roof tops, and kawa (ʻawa) to ease a painful headache were treasured supplies. (Mānoa Heritage Center)

The house, heiau and gardens are part of the Mānoa Heritage Center, a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote stewardship of the natural and cultural heritage of Hawai‘i. It was the home of Sam and Mary Cooke and the restoration of the property was through their efforts.

Currently, Kūka‘ō‘ō Heiau and garden tours are available, guided by volunteer docents. Reservations are needed with two-week advance notice preferred.

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Manoa Heritage Center map

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April 2, 2018 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Loading Cattle

“In 1777 there was not one cow, sheep, horse or goat anywhere in the area that is now the State of Hawaii. In fact, the only land mammals in the Islands were a small light weight pig, Poi Dogs (eating type), Polynesian rat, Hoary bat, and Hawaiians.”

“All this was destined to change abruptly and dramatically. Goats were introduced to some of the Islands by Captain James Cook, who rediscovered them in 1778 …”

“In two voyages, 1792 and 1793, Captain George Vancouver landed 7 cows, 1 heifer, 2 bull calves, and 1 bull on the Big Island. These animals were for the most part black longhorns, believed to be of the line that the Mexicans used for their bull-bear contest.”

“The animals were obtained from what is now British Columbia and Monterey, Calif. In addition to the 11 longhorns, 7 rams, 9 ewes, and some goats were also presented to the ruling monarch, King Kamehameha.”

“The King placed a kapu (taboo) against the killing of these animals, which were subsequently turned loose upon the unsuspecting vegetation. By 1830, the number of animals on the Big Island alone was estimated to be 20,000 cattle, 3,000 sheep, 1,200 horses (introduced in 1803) and numerous goats.” (Smith)

“Beginning in 1786, ships trading in the Pacific had begun to stop in Hawaiian ports on a regular basis. Their captains were very interested in securing fresh provisions, including water, salt, wood, vegetables, and meat.”

“They also saw Hawaii as a good place to rest and recuperate, especially during the harsh winters of the northern seas. Captains found the protected, natural harbor at Honolulu the most accessible and, therefore, the most attractive in the islands, Thus, by 1810, Honolulu had already become a port of great commercial importance.” (Strazar)

Salt meat could store longer than fresh – what about fresh meat for those in the Islands?

Refrigeration first came to Hawai‘i in the middle of the nineteenth century. “The first Boston ice brought to these islands, was received on the 14th inst. (September 14, 1850) by brig Fortunio, Hasty, via San Francisco.” (Polynesian, September 21, 1850)

Then, “(a) few tons of ice were brought to this port from San Francisco by the bark Harriet T Bartlet, Capt Heeren, and a part sold by our friend Thompson, at auction, on Tuesday.”

“This is the first importation of the kind, in any quantity, to this market, and but the beginning, it is to be hoped, of a regular supply of this luxury to the inhabitants of this city.” (Polynesian, June 26, 1852)

Then, they started to make ice in the Islands. “Ice Manufacture. The establishment on the Esplanade for the manufacture of ice by chemical process, has been in operation during several days past. “

“Like all new beginnings, difficulties have had to be met and overcome, but yesterday the machinery was in the full tide of successful experiment, and to-day we expect to be able to see home-made ice.”

“It is expected that enough will be manufactured to supply the demand for the city, and at such rates as will prevent the necessity of importing the luxury from California.” (Pacific Commercial Advertiser, September 2, 1871)

“Before the days of refrigeration, cattle, for other than the local markets of each island, had to be shipped live to the island of O‘ahu where, because of the larger population and accelerated development, the demand for fresh beef was always greater.”

“The transporting of live cattle posed dramatic technical challenges that were complicated by the absence of deep-water wharfs where an inter-island schooner or steamer could dock for loading of cattle.”

“Ranchers, therefore, had to have their paniolo drag cattle out through the pounding surf to longboats that rowed out to the main steamer with cattle tied by the head to the gunwales.”

“Later solutions included a drop chute utilizing a trap door that released the cattle one by one to the sea where a rope would then be thrown to the waiting longboat.” (Strazar)

“The cattle at Napo‘opo‘o were driven and dragged into the water, a rope around the neck and a cowboy holding the animal’s tail …. Drawn alongside the small boat, another rope was secured to the horns and the one taken from the neck, the head being secured to the side of the boat.”

“They are tied very close together, perhaps eight or ten on either side, and in some cases the animals fought and pawed one another in the water. The small boat is drawn out to the steamer and some of the animals loaded by slings under the middle while others are drawn up by the horns.”

“A woman in Kona, and whose cattle these happened to be, was present and I spoke to her about the nonuse of slings. She said the ‘light’ cattle were always loaded that way and slings used for the heavy ones…” (National Humane Review, July 1919)

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March 19, 2018 by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Ebenezer Parker Low

“He described sitting on the veranda there at that ranch. It’s on the slopes going down to Mahukona from Kohala and you could look and late in the afternoon when the sun used to hit the Hualalai Mountains …”

“(H)e would see this funny little sponge cake-looking hill sticking out in the side of Hualalai. And he used to just dream about getting over to that place that had a perfect fascination for him.” (Lucas; Watumull)

“My father was known as Rawhide Ben because ever since he was knee high to a grasshopper, I guess, he loved the ranch life. And he was brought up as a member of the family in Mana and Kamuela with the rest of them.”

“So as a little boy he always had a chance to do something with animals. And this was his whole life. All he ever thought about was his cowboy experiences.”

“And as soon as he became an adult, his first job – big job – was given him by Theo. H. Davies and Company as manager of Puakea Ranch which is in Kohala – South Kohala there.”

“Eben Parker Low was born in Honolulu, a great grandson of John Palmer Parker I and his Hawaiian wife, Kipikane. He spent his early years on Parker Ranch, Handling cows and calves by the time he was six years old.”

“He had very little education; in his own words, ‘… just plain common sense plus some English grammar and arithmetic and writing.’”

“At the age of 26 he became manager of Pu‘uhue ranch in Kohala, and began a career that made him one of the big island’s most famous and colorful paniolo.” (Hawaii Cattlemen’s Hall of Fame) Unfortunately, he lost a portion of his left arm while roping.

Back to the sponge cake hill … “finally he found a Hawaiian who knew how to go across the lava flows there. I don’t know if he went on a mule or on a horse. But this man took him with him and they one day got across all that long lava flow by a trail and got to Puuwaawaa Ranch – Puuwaawaa Hill.” (Lucas; Watumull)

Then, he and Robert Robson Hind finally got a chance to take control of it … they picked up the Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a lease (General Lease No. 186; March 1, 1894) covering 40,000 acres for 25 years, and established a ranch. (Marion Kelly)

“(I)t was just a wilderness and lava and really rough country and they had to begin from scratch. But my father loved it. He just loved every minute of it. … What food was available in the rocks there up in that mountainside was very rich, evidently, very nutritious, because the cattle that came up to that ranch were always very fat.”

“Then they finally decided to split up after nine years because they couldn’t work together and my father didn’t have enough money to buy out Mr. Hind (his brother-in-law, Robbie married Low’s sister, Hannah.) But they finally split up and my father came to Honolulu from Pu‘uwa‘awa‘a. “ (Lucas; Watumull)

Eben was instrumental in bringing the talent of the Hawaiian paniolo to the national scene when he sent Archie Ka’au’a, Jack Low and Ikua Purdy to the Frontier Days World Championship Roping Competition in Cheyenne Wyoming in 1908.

Mid-westerners watched the Hawaiians compete. Purdy won the World’s Steer Roping Championship – roping, throwing, and tying the steer in 56 seconds flat. Ka‘aua and Low took third and sixth place.

“His confidence and pride in them were expressed by his own words, “’one cannot imagine the noise of the applause our boys received from those 30,000 watchers . . . The kanakas had won!’” (Hawaii Cattlemen’s Association)

“(B)efore my father died he asked his nephew, Archie Ka‘aua, to take care of his ashes when he died . Archie’s family lived in Kamuela and his family still own property right in the village there at Kamuela, forty acres out in the homestead section there.”

“Archie at that time was a young man and seemingly very well. Archie promised to take his ashes and scatter them up at Mauna Kea. But Archie had a funny feeling that he wasn’t going to outlive my father and he went to Willie Kaniho, who was the head cowboy of Parker Ranch.”

“So Willie Kaniho was given the assignment by Archie. … So sure enough, Archie Ka‘aua did die before my father died. But when my father passed away, Willie Kaniho was ready to do this.”

“There was no way of getting up there unless you got up on horseback. So Anna Lindsey [Perry- Fiske] who is, of course, one of my father’s pets too, came forth … Well, the family went up. … and Reverend Akaka–Abraham Akaka–went with us.”

“We got to the very top of that mountain – the very top – Reverend Akaka said a prayer and read a little bit from Scriptures and then Kaniho and Reverend Akaka scattered the ashes right at the top of the mountainside. It was really very impressive.” (Lucas; Watumull)

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March 9, 2018 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Top Gun

Edward Henry “Butch” O’Hare became the first US Navy flying ace in World War II and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the South Pacific, February 20, 1942. (National WWII Museum)

James Henry “Jimmy” Flatley Jr was awarded the Navy Cross for “fearlessly engag(ing) enemy fighters, destroying one and assisting in the destruction of another with no loss to his escort group. That evening, he led a division on combat air patrol in a fierce attack and resultant dispersal of a formation of enemy scouting planes, assisting in the destruction of two of them.” (Navy Cross Commendation)

John Smith “Jimmy” Thach, while commanding Fighting Squadron Three, developed the fighter combat technique that came to be known as the ‘Thach Weave’, a tactic that enabled the generally mediocre performing US fighters of the day to hold their own against the Japanese ‘Zero’.

In 1943, Naval Air Station Pu‘unēnē was established as a “Top Gun” school for fighter-aircraft tactics, based on the Navy’s use of highly-decorated veteran fighter pilots, including O’Hare, Flatley and Thach.

They and other instructors relayed the latest intelligence from the front lines to new pilots rotating into combat. (Cultural Surveys)

“Maui Group Local Naval Defense Forces”, based at NAS Pu’unēnē, controlled the training airspace over the Kaho‘olawe aerial bombing ranges, and administered the training schedule.

Aircraft carriers were modified for combat in the Pacific Ocean at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, while their air groups were flown to one of nine Navy airfields in Hawaii for advanced training – NAS Pu‘unēnē being the premiere airfield. (Cultural Surveys)

Before the war (and before Kahului Airport), Governor’s Executive Order No. 804 set aside about 300-acres of land at Pulehunui for the new Maui Airport to be under the control and management of the Superintendent of Public Works.

The Department of Public Works started construction on the new airport shortly after July 1, 1938. ‘Maui Airport’ was opened on June 30, 1939 (the new Maui Airport replaced a smaller airfield at Māʻalaea.)

Inter-Island Airways, Ltd (to be later known as Hawaiian Air) constructed a depot; a taxiway and turn-around were completed and graveled to serve the depot and in 1940 Inter-Island Airways funded airport station improvements.

During the time between June 30, 1939 and December 7, 1941, the civil air field was gradually enlarged and improved with some areas being paved. A small Naval Air Facility was established at the airport by the US Navy. Maui Airport became one of the three most important airports to the Territorial Airport System.

Immediately after December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor attack, the military took control of all air fields in the Territory and began the expansion of Maui Airport at Puʻunēnē.

“On December 11, 1941 Commander John L. Murphy, USN, Commander Utility Wing Base Force came to Maui under verbal orders of the Commander Task Force Nine to prepare for the basing on Maui of personnel and equipment of one Naval Aircraft Carrier Group and one Army Air Corps Heavy Bombardment Group.” (Pu‘unēnē Unit History)

Army forces eventually concentrated on Oʻahu, leaving the Navy as the primary user of the field. An expansion lengthened and widened the runways. Under Navy control, the facility was renamed Naval Air Station Puʻunēnē, the airport served as a principal carrier plane training base.

By the end of the war, Puʻunēnē had a total complement of over 3,300-personnel and 271-aircraft. The total number of structures built numbered over 300. A total of 106-squadrons and carrier air groups passed through during WW II.

The demands of the war were such that the Navy found Puʻunēnē inadequate for the aircraft carrier training requirement and it was necessary to establish another large air station on Maui.

Accordingly, a site was chosen near the town of Kahului and, after the purchase of 1,341-acres of cane land, construction was started in 1942 on what was to become Naval Air Station, Kahului (NASKA.)

NASKA became operational in late 1943. Air crews were trained at both Puʻunēnē and NASKA. The NASKA facility later became known as Kahului Airport, under the jurisdiction of the Hawaii Aeronautics Commission.

By 1949, the land of NAS Pu‘unēnē was transferred back to the Territory of Hawaii and the structures that once stood to serve the 565 officers and 2798 enlisted men were demolished. The Kahului airport now serves as the major hub for commercial aircraft. (Cultural Surveys)

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