Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hardy House

Frederic W Hardy was born of early New England ancestry on January 23, 1859, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the son of George Dana Boardman and Olive (Andrews) Hardy. Mr. Hardy came to the Islands in 1882 on account of health, (he had a severe attack of malaria-typhoid fever.) In September, 1883, he was appointed vice-principal of the Wailuku school and was the first teacher to bear such a title in the kingdom. Hardy became principal of the Makawao school in September, 1888. He was the first teacher and principal of the Makawao School.

In 1897, Hardy added to an existing house to create what is now known as the ‘Hardy House,’ one of the oldest wood frame houses in Makawao. It was built onto an existing one room house (that was then about 10-15 years old.) The new house had a double pitch (Hawaiian) roof; it is reminiscent of those by Charles W Dickey (Hardy was friend of Charles H Dickey, the architect’s son.) Very few wooden houses of that age have survived the termites, harsh tropical climate and temptation to tear down the old to build new.

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Craigielea

The first facility at the National Park was built in 1894 near the summit of Haleakala, a rest house at Kalahaku. The building was constructed by the Maui Chamber of Commerce to give tourists a rough shelter from the unpredictable climate. CW Dickey, acting upon the inspiration of his late father, circulated a subscription list on Maui, and secured $850 for the construction of a rest house on the crater rim. Prior to its construction, visitors were staying in the caves known as “Little Flea” and “Big Flea” caves.

The rest house was called “Craigielea” after a place in Scotland, which the builders knew. “It is constructed of stone, the walls being twenty inches thick, and is covered with an iron roof. The principal entrance is at the west end, with a deep fireplace at the other end.” With the increasing number of visitors to the crater, the rest house became inadequate and, at the Territorial Civic Convention of 1914, which was held on Maui, a new subscription list was started for a new rest house.

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Hawaiʻi Youth Correctional Facility

American and English heritage found those members of society who either cannot care for themselves or who do not fit societal expectations have been the subject of ‘parens patriae’ (parent of the nation,) whereby the state acts as the parent of any child or individual who is in need of protection (i.e., destitute widows, orphans, […]

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William G Irwin

William G Irwin was born in England in 1843; he was the son of James and Mary Irwin.  His father, a paymaster in the ordnance department of the British army, sailed with his family for California with a cargo of merchandise immediately after the discovery of gold in 1849. The family then came to Hawaiʻi. […]

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Immigration Station

By the middle of the 19th century the Hawaiian population had declined drastically through the impacts of disease and epidemics and  the  dispersal  of  the young men of  the  Kingdom on whaling  ships  and  seeking their  fortunes  in  the California gold  fields. In 1850, the Hawaiian population was down to 46,500.  At the same time […]