Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Waimea-Kona Belt Road

It probably started as a foot path, then progressively improved. The 39-mile roadway was first constructed between 1916 and 1922. Using prison labor, they built the road setting rocks, rolling with a steam roller, and pouring tar heated in a pot. A camp for the prisoners who built the road was located on the down slope side of the Saddle Road intersection, where a grove of eucalyptus trees stands today.

Then, the Waimea-Kona road was rebuilt and straightened. “The formal opening of the new belt road on the island of Hawaii, July 22, 1933, was an important occasion, attended by the Governor and his party from Honolulu and many excursionists.” “The proposal has been made that the new road be named ‘Mamalahoe,’ commemorating the famous edict by King Kamehameha I, “the Law of the Splintered Paddle” making Hawaii’s highways safe for the traveler.”

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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.

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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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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.