Images of Old Hawaiʻi

  • Home
  • About
  • Archive
    • Ali’i / Chiefs / Governance
    • Buildings
    • Economy
    • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
    • General
    • Hawaiian Traditions
    • Military
    • Place Names
    • Prominent People
    • Schools
    • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
  • Contact
  • Subscribe

December 13, 2019 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Billy Weaver

December 13, 1958 – 8-months before Hawaiʻi became a state … it was described as a typical trade wind, Windward Oʻahu day; the sky was clear; the water was a little rough with whitecaps and there were good-sized waves.

Six friends, ages 9 to 15, were doing what kids do, then and now; they had paddled and rowed out to the Mokulua Islands to surf and play in the water.

Along with an 8-foot boat, they had three surfboards and three air mattresses.  The boys kept together; never was one more than 75 – 100-feet from the others.

Then, disaster struck.

Billy, 15-year old son of Spencecliff restaurants partner Clifton Weaver, was on an air mattress and missed catching a wave.  Then, the rest of the boys noticed he was clinging to the mat, apparently in difficulty.

They heard a cry for help.

Seeing blood in the water, they swam over and tried to rescue Billy – they saw he had lost a leg.

Then, one of the boys cried out ‘Shark,’ seeing it surface 30-feet away.

Fearing their small boat would swamp in the surf, they rowed to shore to get help.

About an hour-and-a-half after the attack, the Fire rescue squad was on the scene.  Other boats joined in the search.  Finally a helicopter crew from the Marine Base spotted the body on the reef.

A local resident dove down and recovered the body.  Efforts to revive him failed; Billy died from loss of blood, drowning, shock or a combination of the three.

The shark was estimated to be over 15-feet long; they believe it was a tiger shark.  It was seen still cruising in the area.

The next day, the Territory and local residents set out to capture the shark.  Bounties were offered.  Lines of hooks were set in the water where the attack occurred.  Overhead pilots spotted two schools of sharks in nearby Kailua Bay.

Over the next couple of days, more hooks were set and three tiger sharks and two sand sharks were caught.

In response to the fatal attack, the Billy Weaver Shark Research and Control Program was initiated.  Starting April 1, 1959, 595-sharks were caught off Oʻahu during the remainder of the year; 71 were tiger sharks.

Kenny Young, my father, was the fund drive chairman for the Billy Weaver Shark Control Fund (Hawaiʻi’s first shark control program.)  They accepted donations, and to raise additional money teeth from the hunted sharks were put on chains and sold as necklaces.

In the old days, folks used to catch and kill sharks.  The accepted attitude was, “the only good shark is a dead shark.”

In an attempt to relieve public fears and to reduce the risk of shark attack, the state government of Hawaiʻi spent over $300,000 on shark control programs between 1959 and 1976. Six control programs of various intensity resulted in the killing of 4,668-sharks.

Subsequent evaluation of the 1959-1976 efforts noted, “Shark control programs do not appear to have had measurable effects on the rate of shark attacks in Hawaiian waters.  Implementation of large-scale control programs in the future in Hawaiʻi may not be appropriate.”  (Wetherbee, 1994)

At the turn of the century, my grandfather and his brothers (Young Brothers) used to have various jobs in Honolulu Harbor; one was taking paying customers out to harpoon sharks off-shore.  My great-uncle, William, wrote books about his adventures shark hunting.

I remember Kohala shark “hunts” on the Big Island where a donated steer carcass was tied between points in a cove and “hunters,” on surrounding cliffs using high-powered rifles, shot at sharks feeding off the carcass.

Times have changed.

We have learned that tiger sharks (the ones most implicated in attacks on humans) don’t simply dwell in small coastal territories, but are instead extremely wide-ranging.

They are opportunistic predators and typically move on soon after arriving in an area, because the element of surprise is quickly lost and potential prey become wary and difficult to catch.

We know more now and recognize that sharks are an important part of the marine ecosystem.  Sharks are often the “apex” or top of the food chain predators in their ecosystems because they have few natural predators.

As top predators, sharks help to manage healthy ocean ecosystems.  Sharks feed on the animals below them in the food chain, helping to regulate and maintain the balance of marine ecosystems; limiting the populations of their prey, in turn affects the prey species of those animals, and so on.

To some, sharks are ʻaumakua (ancestral spirits that take possession of living creatures) that make appearances to express parental concern for the living, bringing warnings of impending danger, comfort in times of stress or sorrow or in other ways being helpful.  (Kane)

Sad and Tragic, yes – we continue to have shark attacks.  However, many believe it is typically mistaken identity – the sharks mistake surfers and floaters as turtles or seals.   (Remember, we are visitors to their realm in the ocean.)

I still vividly recall Halloween morning, 2003, when DLNR’s shark expert came to my office to brief me on the shark attack on Bethany Hamilton on Kaua‘i.  It was a somber day at DLNR.  Unlike the old days, there was no “hunt” called for.   Other incidents and attacks continue to occur.

“The number of shark attacks has nothing to do with how many sharks are in the water and everything to do with how many people are in the water,” said Kim Holland, University of Hawaiʻi shark researcher and Shark Task Force member. (Honolulu Advertiser, following the Hamilton attack)

John Naughton, a National Marine Fisheries Service biologist, said previous efforts to remove large predatory sharks saw the proliferation of smaller ones, which harassed fishermen and their catches.

“It’s an archaic way to manage the resource.  It’s like the turn of the century, when they shot wolves. It doesn’t make sense anymore.”  (Honolulu Advertiser, November, 2003)  (Lots of information here is from Tester and Wetherbee.)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Mokulua_Islands-SOEST
Mokulua_Islands-SOEST
Tiger Shark
Tiger Shark
Billy_Weaver_SharkFund-Mokuleia_Cub_Scouts-KMY
Billy_Weaver_SharkFund-Mokuleia_Cub_Scouts-KMY
TigerShark
TigerShark
Sharks hanging at Young Brothers
Sharks hanging at Young Brothers
MokuluaIslands-Lanikai-Kailua
MokuluaIslands-Lanikai-Kailua
Shark_Hedge-Whittle-Waimea
Shark_Hedge-Whittle-Waimea
Map of Kailua-Lanikai where sharks were spotted (Tester)
Map of Kailua-Lanikai where sharks were spotted (Tester)

Filed Under: General, Prominent People Tagged With: Billy Weaver, Cliff Weaver, Hawaii, Kailua, Kenny Young, Lanikai, Mokulua, Mokulua Islands, Oahu, Shark, Spencecliff, Young Brothers

December 1, 2019 by Peter T Young 4 Comments

Postcards, Sails, Sheets, Lights, Ads, Fires and Radio Signals

The attack on the US military installation at Pearl Harbor and other parts of Oʻahu by Japan’s Imperial military was one of the most successful surprise attacks in military history.

But an often-overlooked component of the successful attack is that the Japanese Empire had contracted with Bernard Otto Julius Kuehn, a German Nazi, to spy on the American military operations at Pearl Harbor from 1935 (an early ‘sleeper agent’ in espionage.)

The family had been contracted as agents of the Japanese government with the assistance of the Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels. The arrangement was promoted and negotiated by Goebbels as a byproduct of his relationship with Kuehn’s attractive 17-year old daughter, Susie Ruth.  (Washington Times)

The execution of the plan was reminiscent of “one, if by land, and two, if by sea,” the phrase coined by American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his poem, Paul Revere’s Ride.

It references the secret signal during Revere’s ride from Boston to Concord on the verge of American Revolutionary War alerting patriots about the route the British troops would take to Concord (two lanterns were shown, the British rowed over to Cambridge.)

The Kuehns arrived in Hawaiʻi in 1935; they started their spying then.  They blended in, and waited.

No one seriously suspected that Caucasians would carry on espionage for the Empire of Japan, so Kuehn, his wife Friedel, their daughter and son, Hans Joachim, were virtually inconspicuous as a white family on the windward side.

Kuehn had houses in Hawaiʻi, lots of money, but no real job. Investigations by the Bureau and the Army, though, never turned up definite proof of spying.  (FBI)

However, every member of the family contributed towards collecting and documenting military activities at Pearl Harbor from 1935 right up to the day the bombs fell from Japanese aircraft.

Paid for his services, in three years he banked more than $70,000; one payment was $14,000 in $100 bills. They had houses in Lanikai and Kailua; these later served as the means of their intricate, yet simple, signaling system.  (Pearl Harbor Board)

The Kuehn family took various means to gather information.

Kuehn would scout the ships at Pearl Harbor.  Daughter Susie Ruth set up a beauty parlor and used it to gather gossip and random information from wives and girlfriends of the military men stationed at Pearl Harbor.  Mother Friedel kept track of all the notes.

Ten-year-old Hans was dressed in a sailor suit and with his father would walk down near the docks.  Many of the sailors thought the little guy was quite cute and some gave him unofficial “tours” of their ships.

Coached by his father, he would ask specific questions and observe everything he saw. Later he would be systematically debriefed by his parents.

The Kuehn family was not working alone; they worked with other Japanese spies attached to the Japanese consulate.

If the Consulate wanted to contact Kuehn, they would send a postcard signed “Jimmie” to his Post Office Box 1476 in Honolulu.  (Pearl Harbor Board)

On December 2, days before the attack, he provided specific – and highly accurate – details on the fleet in writing. That same day, he gave the consulate the set of signals that could be picked up by nearby Japanese submarines.  (FBI)

The set of signals contained eight combinations, each signal represented a number and each number represented the status of the naval fleet at Pearl Harbor.

No. 1 – battle fleet prepared to leave
No. 2 – scouting force prepared to leave
No. 3 – battle fleet left 1 to 3 days ago
No. 4 – scouting fleet left 1 to 3 days ago
No. 5 – air craft carriers left 1 to 3 days ago
No. 6 – battle fleet left 4 to 6 days ago
No. 7 – scout force left 4 to 6 days ago
No. 8 – aircraft carriers left 4 to 6 days ago

Signals were given that represented these respective code numbers.  Part of how they did this was to shine lights out windows and hang sheets on the laundry line.  These were done from their homes in Lanikai and Kailua (using lights in a dormer window.)

One light shining from the window between 7 and 8 pm meant No. 1; one light from 8 to 9 pm meant No. 2 and so forth for Nos. 3 and 4.  Two lights shining from the window from 7 to 8 meant No. 5, etc.  Hanging sheets on the laundry line carried the similar code.

An alternative display of the code used different patterns in the sail of Kuehn’s boat off Lanikai; a sail with/without a star and numbers at different hours represented corresponding references back to the code.

They also arranged the signal through KGMB Want Ads – different advertised items represented different numbers (ie Chinese rug, chicken farm, beauty parlor operator wanted, etc.)

Two other signaling means included garbage fires on a friend’s property on the side of Haleakala on Maui between certain times, representing different code numbers.  Signals were also sent via shortwave radio.  (Pearl Harbor Board)

Following the fateful attack of December 7, 1941, Honolulu Special Agent in Charge Robert Shivers immediately began coordinating homeland security in Hawaiʻi and tasked local police with guarding the Japanese consulate. They found its officials trying to burn reams of paper. These documents – once decoded – included a set of signals for US fleet movements.  (FBI)

All fingers pointed at Kuehn. He had the dormer window, the sailboat and big bank accounts. Kuehn was arrested the next day and confessed, though he denied ever sending coded signals. (FBI)

On February 21, 1942, just 76 days after the tragic attack on Pearl Harbor, a military court in Honolulu found Bernard Otto Julius Kuehn guilty of spying and sentenced to be shot “by musketry” in Honolulu.  His sentence was later commuted to 50 years of hard labor.

He served time in Leavenworth Penitentiary from December 1, 1942 to June 6, 1946 (when his sentence was commuted in order to deport him.)  On December 3, 1948, he was deported to Buenos Aires, Argentina.  (FBI)

Kuehn was one of 91-people convicted of spying against the United States from 1938 to 1945.  (FBI)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

20040901-08 PRG SPY HOUSE There are two houses at 557 Kainalu in Kailua that are built very close to each other. This is the two story A fame house that is on the right side of the property. During the late 1930's it served as a den for a German spy who provided intelligence for the Japanese military leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The present owner, John Piper (225-3555) bought the houses in 1999. PHOTO BY DENNIS ODA. SEPT. 1, 2004. Nikon D2H Focal Length: 13mm White Balance: Direct sunlight Color Mode: Mode I (sRGB) 2004/09/01 12:35:19.1 Exposure Mode: Shutter Priority AF Mode: AF-C Hue Adjustment: 0¡ JPEG (8-bit) Fine Metering Mode: Multi-Pattern Tone Comp.: Auto Sharpening: Auto Image Size: Large (2464 x 1632) 1/250 sec - f/15 Flash Sync Mode: Not Attached Noise Reduction: OFF Exposure Comp.: 0 EV Lens: 12-24mm f/4 G Sensitivity: ISO 200 Image Comment: [#End of Shooting Data Section]
20040901-08 PRG SPY HOUSE There are two houses at 557 Kainalu in Kailua that are built very close to each other. This is the two story A fame house that is on the right side of the property. During the late 1930’s it served as a den for a German spy who provided intelligence for the Japanese military leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The present owner, John Piper (225-3555) bought the houses in 1999. PHOTO BY DENNIS ODA. SEPT. 1, 2004. Nikon D2H Focal Length: 13mm White Balance: Direct sunlight Color Mode: Mode I (sRGB) 2004/09/01 12:35:19.1 Exposure Mode: Shutter Priority AF Mode: AF-C Hue Adjustment: 0¡ JPEG (8-bit) Fine Metering Mode: Multi-Pattern Tone Comp.: Auto Sharpening: Auto Image Size: Large (2464 x 1632) 1/250 sec – f/15 Flash Sync Mode: Not Attached Noise Reduction: OFF Exposure Comp.: 0 EV Lens: 12-24mm f/4 G Sensitivity: ISO 200 Image Comment: [#End of Shooting Data Section]
Bernard_Julius_Otto_Kuehns_mug_shot_superimposed_over_USS_SHAW_exploding_-_1941
Bernard_Kuehn_mugshot_1941
Bernard_Kuehn-Friedel_Kuehn-(Gettysburg_Times)

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: Bernard Otto Julius Kuehn, Hawaii, Kailua, Lanikai, Oahu, Pearl Harbor, WWII

February 28, 2015 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Podmore Fire Control

“There are strong arguments in favor of putting the principal harbors of the country in a state of adequate defense, even at very considerable cost. But the work should be done according to a well digested plan, which will give reasonable security that it will answer its purpose.” (New York Times, July 1, 1884)

Harbor defenses had constituted the primary element of the means employed by the Army for seacoast defense. Harbor defenses consisted of permanently installed guns of various calibers, which could be supplemented in an emergency by mobile coast artillery guns and controlled mine fields.

The Artillery District of Honolulu was established April 24, 1909 and consisted of Forts Ruger, DeRussy, Kamehameha and Armstrong (the District was renamed Headquarters Coast Defenses of Oʻahu.)

Following World War I and until the end of World War II, additional coastal armaments were constructed. Then, the Army mission was “the defense of Pearl Harbor Naval Base against damage from naval or aerial bombardment or by enemy sympathizers and attack by enemy expeditionary force or forces, supported or unsupported by an enemy fleet or fleets”.

Batteries at Fort Kamehameha, Fort Weaver and Fort Barrette (the latter two constructed in 1924 & 1935) completed pre-World War II coastal defense network for Pearl Harbor.

Batteries at Fort DeRussy and Fort Ruger were responsible for the defense of the South coast and Honolulu Harbor. While none of the large caliber guns were ever fired except in practice, the secondary anti-aircraft guns of coastal artillery units at Fort Kamehameha were credited with shooting down a number of attacking aircraft on the morning of December 7, 1941.

Following the Pearl Harbor attack, as part of the growing Coast Defense network, numerous Batteries and their associated Fire Control Stations were set up around the Islands.

A Fire Control Station is an observation and command center used to direct fire from gun Batteries on the coast. Fire Control personnel spot and determine where the guns should aim (typically working with others using triangulation;) Batteries have the guns to fire at the targets.

In 1917, Waimanalo Military Reservation was created (later renamed to Bellows Field in 1933;) with the outbreak of WWII, Bellows was transformed almost overnight into an important facility where aircraft were prepared for their duty in the Pacific Theater.

Part of the defense of the facility was Battery Wailea, located at Wailea Point (at the dividing line between Waimanalo and Lanikai.)  Search lights were emplaced at the Battery. The Battery was operational from 1942 to 1945.

It was initially armed with two mobile 155-mm guns (about 6-inches, that could send 96-lb projectiles 17,400-yds,) later replaced with two 5-inch guns (58-lb projectile, 10,000-yd range) (later supplemented with two 3-inch guns (15-lb projectile, 11,100-yd range.))

Battery Wailea was supported by Fire Control Station Podmore. Podmore, completed February 28, 1943 – named for a nearby triangulation station, supported other armaments and was made up of two stations: a single story North structure (29A) and a double-tiered South station (29B & 29C.) (Bennett)

Pedestals in the bunkers were mounts for high-powered optical instruments for determining azimuth and range of ocean vessels.

An observer and recorder staffed each observation station. Data obtained from the observer’s optical instrument was telephoned by the recorder to the assigned gun battery by a local-battery operated telephone. (Bennett)

The troops manning the site slept and lived in tents in shifts on the slopes. Water and power lines were brought up from below to serve the bunkers and tent quarters from the Lanikai side of the Kaʻiwa Ridge.

The Podmore stations were located in the South Sector of Oʻahu’s two defense sectors, and tactically assigned to the Harbor Defenses of Kāneʻohe Bay located in a tunnel system dug into Ulupaʻu Crater on Mōkapu Peninsula.

The harbor defenses were set up to protect the vital Navy seaplane and landplane base at the Kāneʻohe Bay Naval Air Station built on the Mōkapu Peninsula. (Bennett)

After end of WWII, the parcel was declared surplus by the General Services Administration (GSA) and was offered for sale to the highest bidder. Both the State and the City & County did not offer to acquire the parcel and the property was sold to a private individual. (DLNR)

Today, a hiking trail takes you to the Fire Control Station.

Most folks call the Podmore Fire Control bunker the Lanikai Pillboxes; a misnomer. As noted, the bunkers were built as an observation and command center for Battery Wailea and observation for Bellows Field.

A pillbox is a reinforced guard post, normally equipped with openings through which to fire weapons. The Podmore Fire Control Station was for observation, not weaponry.

The trail is part of our Na Ala Hele Trails and Access System. It is Na Ala Hele’s only coastal trail on Oʻahu. DLNR has plans to overhaul the trail at some point, following a master plan and community involvement. (DLNR)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2015 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Lanikai Fire Control-(saito)
Lanikai Fire Control-(saito)
Waimanalo to Alala Pt-t4379_dd-1928-noting Podmoreequipment, not guns-punynari
Waimanalo to Alala Pt-t4379_dd-1928-noting Podmoreequipment, not guns-punynari
Trail to lanikai-bunkers-punynari
Trail to lanikai-bunkers-punynari
The 'Mokes' from Fire Control Station Podmore
The ‘Mokes’ from Fire Control Station Podmore
Start of the hike - lanikai-bunkers-punynari
Start of the hike – lanikai-bunkers-punynari
lanikai-bunkers-punynari
lanikai-bunkers-punynari
Ka'iwa-Lanikai-SOEST - Copy
Kailua and Fire Control Station Podmore
Kailua and Fire Control Station Podmore
Heading up the trail to lanikai-bunkers
Heading up the trail to lanikai-bunkers
Almost to the top of trail to lanikai-bunkers-punynari
Example of 155mm gun (not specifically at Battery Wailea)
Example of 155mm gun (not specifically at Battery Wailea)
Example of 155mm gun (not specifically at Battery Wailea)-1943
Example of 155mm gun (not specifically at Battery Wailea)-1943
Fire Control Station Podmore-(NotSoGreatHiking)
Fire Control Station Podmore
Fire Control Station Podmore
Fire Control Station Podmore-(NotSoGreatHiking)
Fire Control Station Podmore-(NotSoGreatHiking)
Fire Control Station Podmore_punynari
Fire Control Station Podmore_punynari
Fire Control Station Podmore-pedestals for viwing equipment, not guns-punynari
Fire Control Station Podmore-punynari
Fire Control Station Podmore-punynari

 

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: Hawaii, Kailua, Koolaupoko, Lanikai, Oahu, Podmore Fire Control

October 8, 2014 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Alāla

Alāla (lit., awakening) is a point at the south end of Kailua Beach that separates Kailua Beach and Kaʻōhao (an ʻili in the Kailua ahupuaʻa – the area is now more commonly called Lanikai) on Oʻahu.

The point takes its name from the fishing shrine, a natural stone formation, on the ridge above. Wailea, a companion fishing shrine (and point,) is located at the south end of Lanikai.  (Ulukau)

In 1920, a bridge was constructed across Kaʻelepulu Stream, giving better access to the area.

Shortly after, Harold Kainalu Long Castle sold land to developer Charles Russell Frazier (the head of Town and Country Homes, Ltd., which was the real estate division of the Trent Trust Co) to create what Frazier and Trent called Lanikai (a name they made up.)

They laid out the subdivision and the first permanent homes in the area were constructed in 1924. Development began at the northern end of the neighborhood and moved further south along the beach.

The area was initially considered a remote country location for weekend getaways or vacations at the beach for swimming, fishing, boating and hiking.

The construction of the Lanikai streets was completed by October 1925. Included in the deeds for the Lanikai subdivision were restrictions that remained in effect until 1950, against building within 18-feet of the property boundary line along the street or using the property for anything other than residences.

At about the same time, Frazier leased a couple-hundred acres of neighboring land from Bishop Estate.  He persuaded sixty-five men, many of whom were purchasing his lots and cottages at Lanikai, to commit to a country club project (Kailua Country Club; the name quickly changed to Mid-Pacific Country Club.)

In 1926, the development doubled in size and Frazier added the now-iconic monument at the entrance to the development.

It was designed by the famed local architect Hart Wood.  (Wood, known for residential and commercial structures (including Alexander & Baldwin Building and Honolulu Hale,) designed the also-iconic “Hawaiian” double-hipped roof pattern and “lanai” or broad roofed-in patio with open sides.)

The Lanikai Monument’s use of rough concrete and stone is in keeping with Wood’s experiments with natural stone indigenous to the structure’s site, an example of which is his Makiki Christian Science Church.

The Lanikai Monument is a simple pillar located on a narrow strip of land that is a high point next to the road; it’s there to mark the boundary and entry point of the subdivision and golf course. It is still in its original location and its original design remains almost intact.

The tapered concrete base structure is 40-feet in circumference and 56 inches high. The pillar is made of concrete and stone.

The 16 foot tall pillar has a gentle taper from its 5-foot-diameter lower portion to a slightly narrower and rounded concrete top that is capped with a conical concrete cap. Two curved metal plates near the top bear the name, “Lanikai.”  (NPS)

For decades, beach houses in Lanikai were mainly used as a retreat from Honolulu; however, in the 1950s, the area began to develop into a more suburban residential area.  (The Pali Highway and its tunnels opened in 1959; that helped spark the change.)

Lanikai Beach had a white sandy beach approximately one mile long (about half of this has disappeared over the years due to erosion and seawalls along the shore.)

During cleaning of the monument in 2001, it lost its pointed metal spear at the top, as well as the heavy chain that surrounded the monument and draped from four metal rings.

The image shows the Lanikai Monument in 1925.  (gokailuamagazine)  In addition, I have added other images to a folder of like name in the Photos section on my Facebook and Google+ pages.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook  

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn   

© 2014 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: General, Prominent People Tagged With: Alala, Harold Castle, Hart Wood, Hawaii, Kaelepulu, Kailua, Lanikai, Mid-Pacific Country Club, Oahu, Pali, Wailea

February 10, 2014 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kaʻōhao

Kaʻōhao (the tying) is an ʻili in the Kailua ahupuaʻa in the Koʻolaupoko Moku on windward Oʻahu.  Its name relates to when two women were tied together here with a loincloth after being beaten in a kōnane game.  (Ulukau)  The place where this act took place was given the name of Kaʻōhao and it so remains to this day.  (Fornander)

Hāuna, kahu to high chief Lonoikamakahiki of Hawai‘i Island, saw that two women were beating their husbands in a game of kōnane.  He offered to play the women and wagered a bet.  The women said to Hāuna: “We have nothing to offer on our side excepting ourselves. If you beat us in this present unfinished game you can take us as your property.”

Hāuna then said: “I have two double canoes filled with things that are valuable; the chief articles of value on the canoes, however, are a large number of feather cloaks. If you two beat me, you two shall have the goods in the canoes together with the men on board.” The women replied: “It is a bet.”

After the women were beaten at the game, he tied them together and led them to his canoes where he said to one of them:
“This canoe shall be yours with everything in it from stem to stem, including the men.  The men shall be your servants; they are not for you to sleep with. And as he had spoken to her, so in like manner he spoke to the second woman. He then left the women and proceeded to meet Lonoikamakahiki.  (Fornander)

The Hawaiians used the mountain tops between Alāla Point and Wailea Point to scan the sea for fish.  Some maps and other references note the area as Alaʻapapa and Mokulua.

In 1920, a bridge was constructed across Kaʻelepulu Stream, giving better access to the area.  Before this time, the Windward side was relatively remote.  However, in 1921, the Old Pali Road was widened and paved; this helped to initiate the suburban commute across the Koʻolau.

Shortly after (1924,) Harold Kainalu Long Castle sold land to developer Charles Russell Frazier (the head of Town and Country Homes, Ltd., which was the real estate division of the Trent Trust Co.)  Frazier (primarily a marketing man, but was also developer and chief promoter,) planned the place as a resort community of summer and vacation homes.

In the 1920s, reference to the area changed, when Frazier and Richard H Trent made up the name “Lanikai” as a marketing ploy to entice wealthy buyers looking for a vacation home at the development that was references as the “Crescent of Content”.

In naming it Lanikai they believed it translated ‘heavenly sea;’ however, they used the English word order.  In Hawaiian the qualifier commonly follows the noun, hence Lani-kai means ‘sea heaven,’ ‘marine heavenʻ.  (Ulukau)

They laid out the subdivision and the first permanent homes in the area were constructed in 1924. Development began at the northern end of the neighborhood and moved further south along the beach.

The original lots along Mokulua Drive were numbered #1 through #39, from north to south with lots approximately 75-feet in width by 250-feet in depth, and about 18,000-square feet in area.

Beachfront properties were originally sold at an extremely low price, 20-cents per square foot, because of the lack of a windbreak.

The area was initially considered a remote country location for weekend getaways or vacations at the beach for swimming, fishing, boating and hiking.

The company’s many newspaper advertisements, which encouraged Honolulu residents to escape from the city to enjoy the recreational opportunities offered by a beach home.

These ads promoted Lanikai as a tranquil place in the country, where a “beach, protected by a reef and favored by landward breezes, is always safe for bathing.” A full-page ad, titled “Lanikai Futuregraph,” placed by Trent Trust featured their vision of the future Lanikai.

There was a row of rectangular-shaped beach-front lots, bordered by the ocean on one end and the road on the other, with homes sited near the ocean and large lawns fronting the road. The first lots sold were those along the beach and the inland lots were sold later.

The construction of the Lanikai streets was completed by October 1925. Included in the deeds for the Lanikai subdivision were restrictions that remained in effect until 1950, against building within 18-feet of the property boundary line along the street or using the property for anything other than residences.

At about the same time, Frazier leased a couple-hundred acres of neighboring land from Bishop Estate.  He persuaded sixty-five men, many of whom were purchasing his lots and cottages at Lanikai, to commit to a country club project.

Before the golf course or clubhouse was even built, the Kailua Country Club (the name quickly changed to Mid-Pacific Country Club – MPCC) was heralded in the local newspaper as a “Mecca (for) tired businessmen who seek surcease from worldly cares in the surroundings of nature.” When MPCC was founded, only two eighteen-hole courses existed on the island of Oʻahu.  (mpcchi)

In 1926, the development doubled in size and Frazier added the now-iconic monument at the entrance to the development.

It was designed by the famed local architect Hart Wood.  (Wood, known for residential and commercial structures (including Alexander & Baldwin Building and Honolulu Hale,) designed the also-iconic “Hawaiian” double-hipped roof pattern and “lanai” or broad roofed-in patio with open sides.)

For decades, beach houses in Lanikai were mainly used as a retreat from Honolulu; however, in the 1950s, the area began to develop into a more suburban residential area. Many beach houses and beach retreats were replaced by houses more suited for daily living.  (The Pali Highway and its tunnels opened in 1959; that helped spark the change.)

Lanikai Beach had a white sandy beach approximately one mile long (about half of this has disappeared over the years due to erosion and seawalls along the shore.)

The image shows Kaʻōhao (Lanikai) in the early years.   In addition, I have added other related images in a folder of like name in the Photos section on my Facebook and Google+ pages.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook  

Follow Peter T Young on Google+  

© 2014 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Place Names Tagged With: Harold Castle, Hawaii, Kailua, Kaohao, Koolaupoko, Lanikai, Mid-Pacific Country Club, Mokulua, Oahu

  • 1
  • 2
  • Next Page »

Images of Old Hawaiʻi

People, places, and events in Hawaiʻi’s past come alive through text and media in “Images of Old Hawaiʻi.” These posts are informal historic summaries presented for personal, non-commercial, and educational purposes.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Connect with Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Pau …
  • Missionary Period
  • Transformation of Waimea, South Kohala, Hawaiʻi
  • St. Andrew’s Priory
  • Kewalo Basin
  • Kamehameha’s Haoles
  • Kolo Wharf

Categories

  • Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance
  • Buildings
  • Economy
  • General
  • Hawaiian Traditions
  • Military
  • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
  • Place Names
  • Prominent People
  • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
  • Schools
  • Voyage of the Thaddeus

Tags

American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions American Board of Commissioners of Foreign Missions American Protestant Missionaries Bernice Pauahi Bishop Captain Cook Downtown Honolulu Hawaii Hawaii Island Henry Opukahaia Hilo Hiram Bingham Hiram Bingham Honolulu Honolulu Harbor Iolani Palace Kaahumanu Kailua Kailua-Kona Kalakaua Kalanimoku Kamehameha Kamehameha Kamehameha III Kamehameha IV Kauai Kauikeaouli Keopuolani King Kalakaua Kona Lahaina Lahainaluna Lanai Liholiho Liliuokalani Maui Missionaries Oahu Pearl Harbor Punahou Queen Emma Queen Liliuokalani Sugar thevoyageofthethaddeus Volcano Waikiki

Hoʻokuleana LLC

Hoʻokuleana LLC is a Planning and Consulting firm assisting property owners with Land Use Planning efforts, including Environmental Review, Entitlement Process, Permitting, Community Outreach, etc. We are uniquely positioned to assist you in a variety of needs.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Never miss a post

Get future posts straight to your inbox by subscribing below.

Copyright © 2012-2016 Peter T Young, Hoʻokuleana LLC