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October 30, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Halekiʻi and Pihana Heiau

The Wailuku area was a major gathering place and royal center of the Maui high chiefs and those of rank. The area from Waiheʻe to Wailuku was the largest continuous area of wet taro cultivation in the Hawaiian Islands.

Royal Centers were where the aliʻi resided; aliʻi often moved between several residences throughout the year. The Royal Centers were selected for their abundance of resources and recreation opportunities.

To the southeast of ʻIao Stream, below Pihana Heiau, was Kauahea where warriors lived and were trained in war skills. This was a boxing site in the time of Kahekili. (Naone)

The Wailuku spring was located below Pihana Heiau and the taro grown in this area was for the use of the aliʻi (nobility class) only. Much of the evidence for this agricultural system was destroyed by the 1916 flood and by historic cultivation for sugarcane and pineapple.
When Kekaulike, father of Kahekili and Kamehameha Nui, heard that Alapaʻi (the ruling chief of Hawaiʻi) was at Kohala on his way to war against Maui, he was afraid and fled to Wailuku in his double war canoe.

Others with him went by canoe and some overland; the chiefs prepared a litter for Kekaulike and bore him upland to Halekiʻi. There, in March 1736, Kekaulike died.

Fearing the arrival of Alapaʻi, bent on war, the chiefs cut the flesh from the bones of Kekaulike in order to lighten the load in carrying the body to ʻIao for burial. (Kamakau)

The body of Kamehameha Nui (an uncle of Kamehameha I,) who ruled Maui before his brother Kahekili succeeded him, was laid here before being taken to a final resting place on Molokai. Kahekili himself lived here at times (ca. 1765.)

It was at Pihana, in about 1778 or 1780, that Keōpūolani was born (daughter to Kiwalaʻo and Keku‘iapoiwa Liliha.) After Kamehameha defeated Kekaulike’s grandson, Kalanikupule, at ʻIao in 1790, he followed Keōpūolani and her grandmother, Kalola, to Molokai – later taking her as a wife.

In 1797, she gave birth to a son, Liholiho (later known as Kamehameha II,) was born in Hilo; Kauikeaouli, her second son (later Kamehameha III,) was born in Keauhou, North Kona.

Liholiho, after he had been established as heir to Kamehameha’s kingdom, recited the prayer rededicating Pihana Heiau to the gods of his father.

Halekiʻi and Pihana Heiau are the most accessible of the remaining pre-contact Hawaiian structures of religious and historical importance in the Wailuku-Kahului area.

Located about ¼-mile inland along the west side of ‘Iao Stream, they overlook ‘Iao Stream, Kahului Bay and the Wailuku Plain.

Traditional history credits the menehune with the construction of both heiau in a single night, using rock from Paukukalo Beach.

Other accounts credit Kihapiʻilani with building Halekiʻi, and Kiʻihewa with building Pihana during the time of Kakaʻe, the aliʻi of West Maui. Some say that they were built under the rule of Kahekili.

Halekiʻi or ‘house of images’ is thought to be a chiefly compound with thatched hale (houses) built atop the stone platform of the heiau and guarded by the kiʻi (images) placed on the terraces around the sides of the platform.

Pihana was the major heiau of the Wailuku area, historical references suggest, and it is reported to be a luakini, where human sacrifices were offered.

The full name of Pihana is Pihanakalani or ‘gathering place of the aliʻi.’ Others have recorded the name of the heiau as Piʻihana. (Naone)

The two heiau are constructed of stacked waterworn basalt boulders collected from ʻIao Stream. The sides of the heiau were stepped or terraced and an ili-ili (waterworn basalt pebbles) paved platform existed on the top of the heiau.

Constructed upon the terrace and platform surfaces were a number of features, including depressions, pits, walls, and small enclosures. Kenneth Emory of Bishop Museum was in charge of the reconstruction of portions of Halekiʻi in 1959.

The heiau were important for the ritual ceremonies prior to the battles that eventually resulted in the uniting of Maui with the other Hawaiian Islands under Kamehameha I

The site is also important for its association with Kahekili, a major figure in Maui’s history who is connected with Halekiʻi-Pihana from circa 1765-1790, and with Kamehameha I during his conquering of Maui (1792.) (Lots of information here is from NPS and Naone.)

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Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau_State_Monument
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau_State_Monument
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau-Kahului_Bay-(maui-mike)
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau-Kahului_Bay-(maui-mike)
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-West_Maui_Mountain-(maui-mike)
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-(maui-mike)
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau-Iao_Valley-(maui-mike)
Haleki'i-Pihana_Heiau_State_Monument-Sign
Haleki’i-Pihana_Heiau_State_Monument-Sign

Filed Under: Hawaiian Traditions Tagged With: Heiau, Wailuku, Halekii Heiau, Pihana Heiau, Hawaii, Maui

October 26, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Prince and Princess de Bourbon

King Kalākaua was the first ruling Monarch to tour of the world; in doing so, he made good on his motto, and motivation, proclaimed at his accession, ‘Hoʻoulu Lahui!’- (Increase the Nation!)

“Since the concert of the morning stars, or the appearance of man on the globe, sovereigns have done many great and many small things; but not one of them, even in these later days, has had the audacity or pluck to circumnavigate this little planet.” (Armstrong)

“A deep feeling of anxiety and interest pervaded the community on the eve of the departure of the King, and all classes and races strove to outvie each other in their expressions of good-will and affection, in bidding adieu to His Majesty.” (PCA)

“(T)he King goes but for the good of his people, to make the country richer by getting more capital and people to come this way. … So the King this time takes with him a Commissioner to enquire into and bring other people of brown skins here to re-people these isles.” (Kapena)

The King and others were concerned about the declining Hawaiian population in the Islands. “The King himself would be only so in name if he had no people to rule. The King will not rest until his hope of re-peopling these isles has been fulfilled.” (Kapena)

Leaving January 20, 1881 on the Oceanic and arriving back in the Islands October 29, 1881 (nine months and nine days later,) Kalākaua travelled to the US, Japan, China, Siam, Burma, India, Egypt, Italy, Belgium, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Spain, Portugal and the United Kingdom.

Kalākaua wanted to gain recognition for his kingdom and learn how other monarchs ruled. He believed the best way to conclude diplomatic relations with foreign countries was to understand their customs. He met with the officials of the Austrian Empire, in the absence of the Emperor.

For the most part, the King travelled incognito (his trip was claimed to have “no official significance.”) At times his unannounced arrivals caused some confusion (and missed opportunities to meet with leaders (who were out of town.))

However, he was greeted and handled with stately attendance. He was royally entertained and decorated with the highest orders; armies were paraded before him and banquets held in his honor.

A few years later, another royal party toured the world, with a short visit in the Islands, “Among the passengers on the steamer Australia, which arrived yesterday from Honolulu, were Count de Bardi, an Austrian prince of royal blood, and his wife, the Countess de Bardi. They are accompanied by the Baroness Hertling, Count Luchesi, Count Zileri and Baron Heydebrand, all of the Austrian nobility.”

“Prince Henry of Bourbon, or Count de Bardi, is thirty-six years of age and is a son of the Duke of Parma, and is closely related to the royal family of Austria. The Countess is a daughter of HRH Prince Miguel of Braganza.”

“The royal pair, accompanied, by their retinue, started about two years ago on a tour around the world and are now on their way home. Since leaving home they have traveled in Africa, India, Borneo, Java, China, Japan and other places.”

“The Count did considerable hunting, shooting ten or twelve wild bison in Borneo and five tigers in Java. The party spent some time in Japan, visiting the principal points of interest. Baron Heydebrand is the Count’s chamberlain, and has charge of the distinguished party during their travels.”

“They will remain in San Francisco at the Palace Hotel four or five days, and will then go to New York over the Burlington route via Niagara Falls.”

“While at Honolulu King Kalākaua save a grand ball at the royal palace in their honor. The palace was beautifully decorated with festoons of Chinese lanterns, so thickly that it appeared to be almost covered with them.” (Daily Alta California, November 2, 1889)

“There was a great crush of people in the throne room and main hall at the height of the reception, yet the procession past the royal dais flowed on in remarkably good order, the return stream of observed ones mingling with the throng of observers round the apartment. The band played throughout the ceremony.”

“Every approach to the palace presented a scene of gorgeous resplendence. The illumination of the building and grounds has never been surpassed in style or degree. From basement to battlements on every side the noble pile was profusely hung with rows of colored lanterns, festooned and straight but never departing from artistic symmetry.”

“These myriad lights were interspersed with the glittering rays from the permanent rose-shaped incandescent lamps on the outer walls, every door and window poured forth a welcoming glow from the electric crystal chandeliers richly bestowed within.”

“The paths in the grounds were lined, the trees and shrubbery decked, with hundreds of colored lanterns closely ranged in right lines and curves, all with such consummate art as to yield an effect of exquisite harmony to every point of vision.”

“Inside the palace the decorations were simple but in good taste. In the throne room on either side of the dais were potted palms, pyramids of roses were at the bases of the large mirrors, and a grand feather kahili stood at each side of the throne canopy.”

“An immense pyramid of plants with floral insets made a strikingly beautiful object opposite the grand staircase in the middle of the main hall. At the head of the stairs under a permanent mirror appeared the device of a shield rimmed with white flowers and bearing across the face in red flowers the greeting, ‘Aloha.’”

“This piece was universally admired. Bunches of ferns and flowers were disposed on the hallway walls between the statuary niches. The dining-room and the blue room, besides their usual adornments of curios and plate, were further beautified with bloom and foliage artistically composed and arranged.”

“The Prince and Princess de Bourbon and party were seemingly intensely gratified with the entertainment. Mingling freely with their fellow guests, many of whom were is privately presented to them, they chatted with animation to individuals and groups.”

“They wore respectively the decorations conferred on them by the King during the day. The amiable princess remarked to the Chamberlain her delight with the event, comparing the whole scene to ‘fairyland.’ His Majesty the King expressed his great pleasure, to a Bulletin reporter at the palace with the enthusiastic response made by resident society to the invitation to do honor to the distinguished visitors.” (Daily Bulletin, October 24, 1889)

“An unusually large number of people assembled at the Oceanic wharf on Friday to see the SS Australia leave for San Francisco. The whole Circus outfit and troupe, as well as the Katie Putnam theatrical troupe, left by this vessel.”

“The Prince and Princess de Bourbon and suite, and Princes Kawānanakoa and Kalanianaʻole were also passengers. The Hawaiian band played appropriate selections, and the steamship left the wharf a few minutes after 12 noon with a very full complement of passengers.” (Hawaiian Gazette, October 29, 1889) (The image shows ʻIolani Palace at about the time the Austrians visited in 1889.)

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Iolani Palace, circa 1889
Iolani Palace, circa 1889

Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Prominent People Tagged With: Hawaii, King Kalakaua, Prince Henry of Bourbon, Count de Bardi

October 25, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Churchill

“Among the many tales of shipwreck on the Pacific few are more thrilling than that of the rescue of the captain and crew of the schooner Churchill on French Frigate shoals”. (Star-bulletin, October 31, 1917)

Whoa … let’s look back.

In 1850, Captain Asa Meade Simpson, a Maine shipbuilder, came west, drawn by the California Gold Rush. In 1855, he arrived at the “north bend” of the Coos Bay estuary, Oregon. Recognizing the value of the region’s coal and timber, he set up a sawmill; the businesses expanded and turned out a variety of wood products, from fruit boxes to fancy doors.

He also established a shipyard (the first in Oregon) and hired master craftsmen to build ships that would carry lumber products worldwide. Simpson’s son, Louis Jerome (LJ) Simpson, arrived in North Bend in 1899. He purchased the adjacent undeveloped town site of Yarrow, which he merged with his father’s land in 1903 to create the City of North Bend.

From 1859 to 1903, at this location he would have 56 ‘world class’ tall ships built for the growing lumber empire. (Tall Ships SFO) Large wooden schooners were the economic mainstay of American shipping between the Civil War period and World War I. They were the sailing workhorses of the Pacific. (NOAA)

One of them was the Churchill.

Launched on March 4, 1900, the 178-foot, 600-ton four-masted schooner Churchill was built by the Simpson Lumber Co for their own account. Later, the Churchill was owned by Charles Nelson & Co of San Francisco.

Then, the fateful voyage.

“The Churchill left Port Angeles on May 27 with a cargo of lumber for Sydney. After discharging at Sydney the vessel proceeded to Tongata, where a cargo of about 800 tons of copra was placed aboard. Her destination from there was Seattle.”

(Copra is the dried meat of the coconut. Coconut oil is extracted from it and has made copra an important agricultural commodity. Also coconut cake is extracted mainly used as feed for livestock.)

On board the Churchill were Captain Charles Granzow, his two sons Carl (age 7) and Loftus (age 14,) and nine other crew members (Chief Officer: Henry Anderson, Second Officer: Fred Wilson, Carpenter John Wessick, Seamen: A. Anderson, William Miller, Daniel Pinzoin, Pedro Romos, Sterling Jones and Hugo Munch.)

“Capt. Granzow has been master of the schooner Churchill for the past three or four years. She has called at Honolulu on infrequent voyages, but been chiefly in the lumber trade between the Northwest and Australia.”

“The Churchill was 27 days out from Nukualofa, Tongata, when she drifted upon a reef of the French Frigate shoals. This was after winds had carried her westward from her course and following a calm of several days. ‘Currents after that was the only reason for the wreck,’ declared Mate Anderson”.

Fortunately for them, some folks from the Islands were nearby fishing from the Makaiwa.

“The power sampan Makaiwa left Honolulu on Monday, October 22. In the party were Harold W Rice; Lieutenant KE Ferris, USN, formerly captain of the Kestrel; Arthur Rice, HL Tucker and the captain and crew of the sampan, as follows: William Feuerpeil, crew captain; Johnny Vasconcellos, chief engineer; Manuel Deponte, second engineer; Levi Faunfata, a Samoan seaman.”

“Arthur Rice, who had intended only to fish as far as Kauai and leave the party there, carried out his plan, so he was not with the sampan when it turned westward from the Hawaiian group. The party had fished on the way to Kauai and also after starting for Bird Island.”

Rice and the rest of the party “were bound for the Western Islands on a fishing trip when they sighted the Churchill … slowly pounding to pieces.”

“Captain Granzow told the Honolulans that the night before, that is the night of October 25, the schooner had struck the big reef about 9 o’clock. The vessel seemed to come off after striking, but then went on again and pounded heavily all night.”

“The Churchill was sighted in acute distress on the morning of Friday, October 26, by the fishermen and the sampan immediately went to her rescue. … Had it not been for the timely arrival of the sampan at French Frigate shoals, Captain Granzow and his men believe they would surely have perished by fire, water or sharks.” (Star Bulletin, October 30, 1917)

“That he was true to all the traditions of the sea is the tale told of Capt Charles Granzow, master of the wrecked schooner Churchill, by the members of his crew.”

“Unable or unwilling to relate their own experiences these sailors of the destroyed schooner tell how Capt. Granzow elected to remain aboard the doomed vessel while the only remaining hope of surviving the wreck was made by five others in a small lifeboat.”

“But while Capt. Granzow with other volunteers remained aboard the vessel as the water rose about her hulk he ordered his two sons into the lifeboat which he placed in command of his first mate, Henry Anderson, while they attempted a landing on the only promontory not washed by the ocean’s waves.” (All were saved)

In October of 2005, the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center’s Coral Reef Ecosystem Division reported a potential shipwreck site to NOAA’s Maritime Heritage Program after spotting anchors and scattered rigging at French Frigate Shoals.

In 2007, a team of NOAA maritime archaeologists were able to begin to investigate the site. The 2007 survey uncovered clues that may help solve the mystery of the unidentified shipwreck. Diagnostic artifacts at the site, anchors, rigging, pumps and deck equipment, all correspond to the Churchill’s size and construction.

In August of 2008, a team of NOAA maritime archaeologists returned to the site to complete documentation and interpretation of the shipwreck site. (Lots of information here is from NOAA, Oregon Historical Society and Star Bulletin, October 30 and 31, 1917)

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Churchill-NOAA
Churchill-NOAA
North_Bend_Docks
North_Bend_Docks
North_Bend_Mill
North_Bend_Mill
Simpson-Loco-North-Bend
Simpson-Loco-North-Bend
Tug_Tows_Churchill_Loaded_with_Lumber for Australia-NorthBend
Tug_Tows_Churchill_Loaded_with_Lumber for Australia-NorthBend
Ship-wrecked_crew-Churchill-SB-Oct_31,_1917
Ship-wrecked_crew-Churchill-SB-Oct_31,_1917
Churchill_02_noaa_casserley
Churchill_02_noaa_casserley
Churchill_05_noaa_casserley
Churchill_05_noaa_casserley
Churchill_06_noaa
Churchill_06_noaa

Filed Under: Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks Tagged With: Shipwreck, Churchill, Hawaii, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, French Frigate Shoals

October 22, 2015 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

John Palmer

“Strictly speaking, there is no harbor at this island.”

“The anchorage is merely a roadstead, which is on the south side of it, and protects the shipping from the northerly gales, which are the most prevalent. In case of a sou’easter, however, ships must put to sea or be driven on the reef. We found about seventy sail at anchor, about sixty-five of them American whalemen.”

“The town of Lahaina is beautifully situated on the level land skirting the sea, and extends along the shore a distance of two miles. Back from the shore it reaches to the foot of the mountains, thus lying hemmed in, as it were, by the sea in front and the mountains in the rear.”

“The reef extends the whole length of the town, about forty rods from shore, and, but for a small opening or break in it, boats would be unable to land.”

“Seamen are obliged to be clear of the beach at drumbeat – eight o’clock in the evening. No person is allowed to remain on shore over night, unless furnished with a proper pass by the captain of the port …”

“… any one found on the beach, or in the town, with no pass, after the proper time, is marched to the calaboose, where he is kept in confinement till morning, and then muleted in a pretty round sum for breaking the laws. This is generally paid by the captain, and afterward, with pretty good interest, deducted from Jack’s pay.” (Jones, 1861)

Some didn’t like, nor follow, all of the rules …

“The main circumstances as related by eye-witnesses were as follows: The crew of the English whale ship John Palmer, Capt. Clark, enticed several base women on board.”

“Hoapili, the governor of the island, demanded of the captain that they should be delivered up to him according to the law of the nation. The Captain evaded and ridiculed the demand.”

“One day when the captain was on shore, the governor detained him and his boat, insisting that his demand should be complied with. The Captain sent orders, by the boats of other ships, to his men on board, to fire upon the town if he should not be released in an hour.”

“The excitement became very great and some foreigners who had formerly been favourable to the mission were gained over to take part in it.”

“He (Clark) soon, however, promised that if the Governor would release him, the women should be sent on shore.” (Dibble)

In October, 1827, an assault was made at Lahaina by the crew of the ‘John Palmer’ … the crew had opened fire on the village with a nine-pound gun, aiming five shots at Mr Richards’s house, which, however, did little damage.

Hoapili received the backing of Richards and other missionaries. As the guns of the whaler fired, the women took refuge in the cellar. No one was killed.

“The next morning, he sailed for Oahu, and as might be expected of such a man, without fulfilling his promise.” (Dibble)

A few days after this affair, December 8th, 1827, the first written laws were published against murder, theft, adultery, rum-selling, and gambling. (Alexander)

Likewise, the Lahaina Fort, originally built of mud and sand to protect the town from riotous sailors when Lahaina was used as an anchorage for the North Pacific whaling fleet, was reinforced and coral blocks added to the walls and canons, salvaged from foreign ships, were added to the armament.

“Immediately in front of the landing is a large fort, built of coral rock, yet not very formidable in its appearance. The black guns which peer over the dingy walls are of small calibre, and not capable of doing much execution. The site is a most excellent one, as the whole shipping lies within its range.” (Jones)

The old fort was demolished in 1854 and the coral blocks used in other construction projects in Lahaina. After the fort was demolished, a courthouse was built on the site. A portion of the old Lahaina Fort was reconstructed in 1964.

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Two cannon balls fired at the home of Rev. William Richards in Lahaina-HSA-PP-37-2-007
Two cannon balls fired at the home of Rev. William Richards in Lahaina-HSA-PP-37-2-007
Richards_House-Plaque
Richards_House-Plaque
Richards_House-Site
Richards_House-Site
Lahaina_from_the_Anchorage_by_Lossing-Barritt-1854 or older
Lahaina_from_the_Anchorage_by_Lossing-Barritt-1854 or older
Lahaina_illustration_by_Nordhoff
Lahaina_illustration_by_Nordhoff
Lahaina-1848-1854
Lahaina-1848-1854
Lahaina as seen from Lahainaluna
Lahaina as seen from Lahainaluna
Lahaina_Fort-(WC)
Lahaina_Fort-(WC)
Lahaina_Town-Map-Bishop-Reg1262 (1884)-portion
Lahaina_Town-Map-Bishop-Reg1262 (1884)-portion
Lahaina_Fort
Lahaina_Fort
Outer wall, Old Prison (Hale Paʻahao), Lahaina Historic District, Lahaina, Hawaii, built 1830s.
Outer wall, Old Prison (Hale Paʻahao), Lahaina Historic District, Lahaina, Hawaii, built 1830s.
Old Lahaina Fort plaque
Old Lahaina Fort plaque

Filed Under: Economy, Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings, Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks Tagged With: William Richards, Lahaina Roadstead, Lahaina, John Palmer, Hawaii, Maui

October 19, 2015 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Waiāhole Water Company

Oʻahu Sugar Company constructed the Waiāhole Ditch System to transport, by gravity, water from the northeastern side of the Koʻolau Range. The Waiāhole Ditch collection and delivery system was constructed during 1913-1916.

The general plan or scheme of development adopted for the Waiāhole Water Co. was that recommended by Mr. J. B. Lippincott, C. E., who made an exhaustive study of the project, going fully into the past history and study already made by Mr. J. Jorgensen and other parties, and reported to the Board of Directors of the Oahu Sugar Co., Ltd., under date of August 19, 1911.

The general plan provided for collecting the water from the many streams and gulches on the windward side of Oahu by means of tunnels through the ridges or spurs, and conveying the water, after collecting, through the mountain in the main tunnel to the leeward side of the island, thence by tunnels, ditches and pipes, to the upper levels of Oahu Sugar Plantation.

The tunnels connect up the various streams on the North side, and take in the water at the adits in the gulches. There are 27 of these tunnels on the North side, varying in length from 280 feet to 2,332 feet, the aggregate length of the North side tunnels being 24,621 feet, or 4.66 miles, being in reality one continuous tunnel.

The maximum elevation at which water is taken into the tunnel is 790 feet above sea level, and the grade or slope of the North side tunnels is 1.3 feet per thousand. The length of the main tunnel through the Koʻolau Ridge is 14,567 feet, or 2.76 miles, the grade or slope being 2.0 feet per thousand.

The elevation of the North portal of the main tunnel is 752 feet above sea level, and at the South portal 724 feet. The size of tunnel section is approximately 7 feet wide and 7 feet high, but in many places the section is larger, due to the uneven cleavage of the rock, and the fact that certain portions are unlined.

From the tunnel, the water is then conveyed by means of cement-lined open ditches, elevated concrete ditches, four steel pipes, and three redwood pipes. It is delivered to the upper boundary of Oahu plantation at an elevation of 650 feet through several distributaries, and by the main ditch, which reaches this elevation at the boundary of Honouliuli.

The water is also delivered into numerous reservoirs, especially at night, when irrigating the cane fields is inconvenient. One of the larger reservoirs, on the line of the Waikakalaua storm water ditch, has long been in use. It is called Five Finger Reservoir. Its elevation was a determining factor in establishing the grade elevation of the Waiāhole conduit.

When the work was undertaken, the time of completion was considered an important element, and Mr. Bishop’s organization was planned to secure the most expeditious execution of the project. The General Superintendent of Construction, Mr. Albert Andrew Wilson, who was in direct charge of all the constructing work.

At the beginning of the tunnel work, three shifts of eight hours each were kept going. This was continued until the large amount of water coming into the tunnel, at North heading, became troublesome, and on account of the hardship on the men, working for eight hours in the cold water, it became necessary to cut the shifts down to six hours each, so that four shifts per day were employed for this heading.

The temperature of the water in the tunnel was approximately 66° F., or about 8° colder than the artesian water in Honolulu, or, roughly, about 1° for each 100 feet of elevation.

Camps were established and sanitary conveniences were built to comply with the requirements of the Board of Health. No serious sickness, such as typhoid fever, gave any trouble.

Special tribute should be paid to the Japanese tunnel men, without whom the excellent progress made on the tunnel would have been impossible.

These “professional” tunnel men, as they call themselves, prefer this work to any other, and they apparently take delight in the hardships incident to the work, the exposure to the cold water, and the risk in handling explosives.

They were on the job all the time and never failed to deliver the goods in situations in which white men or native Hawaiians would have been physically impossible. Most of the drilling and mucking was done by these tunnel men as subcontractors – a bonus being given for rapid work, which sharpened their interest and never failed to give results.

While it was suspected at the outset that considerable water might be encountered in the main bore through the mountain, it was not anticipated at the beginning that enough water would be developed to materially interfere with the progress of the excavation.

This hope was not realized, however, for the main bore had proceeded only about 200 feet from the North portal when water to the extent of two million gallons daily was developed—this on breaking through the first dyke.

These dykes are hard, impervious strata of rock lying approximately at an angle of 45° to the tunnel axis, and nearly vertical, and they occur at intervals of varying length. Between the dykes was the porous water-bearing rock, thoroughly saturated, and with the water pent up between the dykes often under considerable pressure.

When a dyke was penetrated, the water would spout out from the drill holes and would gush forth from the openings blasted in the headings. As the work progressed, the water increased in quantity and the difficulty of the work was enormously greater on account of the water.

The texture and hardness of the rock varied considerably— some of it being particularly soft and porous and much of it hard and flinty—particularly at the dykes. The dykes varied in thickness from 14 feet down to about 4 feet, all composed of very hard, close-grained rock which was apparently waterproof.

From the South portal the progress was rapid, often as high as 630 feet per month, or about 21 feet per day on an average, notwithstanding the long haul, which at the last was over two miles.

Eighty-percent of the length of the main tunnel was driven from the South portal, and 20% of the length was driven from the North portal, the difference in these proportions from the two headings being due to the presence of water at a much earlier stage in the North heading. Had there been no water to contend with, the length driven from each heading would have been approximately the same.

This system of tunnels is essentially a closed-conduit system, that is, the flow is entirely through closed tunnels, not subject to interruption by freshets or washouts or from rubbish or wash from the mountain streams, the intakes being so built as to admit only water as free from rubbish as practicable.

Only at three points in the tunnel system—and these are on the South side, one of which is a gaging station—does the water flow in open channels for an aggregate length of 160 feet.

It is intended to use the reservoirs so far as possible to take care of the water flowing at night, so as to utilize the conduit to its fullest capacity.

The Waiāhole Water Co. has taken over from the Oahu Sugar Co. The water delivered by the Waiāhole System is chiefly used on newly planted cane on land above the lift of the pumps. During construction the water developed in the main tunnel near the South portal was at times utilized for irrigation.

On May 27, 1916, with Mr. H. Olstad as Superintendent, continuous operation of the project was begun. (This post is from portions of a paper read by Chas H Kluegel before the Hawaiian Engineering Association, published in Thrum, 1916)

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Waiahole_Tunnel-(SugarWater)
Waiahole_Tunnel-(SugarWater)
Waiahole-Tunnel-(SugarWater)
Waiahole-Tunnel-(SugarWater)
Drilling_Waiahole_Tunnel
Drilling_Waiahole_Tunnel
Waterfall at one of the water sources of Waiāhole Stream, windward O‘ahu, Hawai‘i-(USGS)
Waterfall at one of the water sources of Waiāhole Stream, windward O‘ahu, Hawai‘i-(USGS)
Byron Alcos, superintendent of the Waiahole Irrigation Co., shines a light pon the source of the Waiahole water-(star-bulletin)
Byron Alcos, superintendent of the Waiahole Irrigation Co., shines a light pon the source of the Waiahole water-(star-bulletin)
Waikane_Valley-Loi_Kalo-Bishop_Museum-photo-1940
Waikane_Valley-Loi_Kalo-Bishop_Museum-photo-1940
Monument at the Waiahole Ditch announces the completion date and names of contractor Mizuno, his surveyor, stonemason, and workers-(hawaii-gov)
Monument at the Waiahole Ditch announces the completion date and names of contractor Mizuno, his surveyor, stonemason, and workers-(hawaii-gov)
Waiahole_Ditch-(oceanit)
Waiahole_Ditch-(oceanit)
Waiahole_Ditch-System-map
Waiahole_Ditch-System-map
Waiahole Ditch-Land-use and land cover-(USGS)
Waiahole Ditch-Land-use and land cover-(USGS)
Waiahole Ditch-generalized geology-(USGS)
Waiahole Ditch-generalized geology-(USGS)

Filed Under: General, Economy Tagged With: Hawaii, Oahu, Waiahole Ditch

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