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June 19, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hickam

The first successful air flight was in a hot air balloon in 1783; since heated air is lighter than cool air, the balloon would rise into the sky. The pilot would ride in a basket attached to the balloon and control the height by adding and subtracting more heat.

The problem with hot air balloons is that you cannot go the way you want. If the wind is blowing west, that means you would have to go west, too.

Flight took a new turn with the invention of the airplane in 1903; the military quickly became aware of its use in combat. “It can go faster and higher than horses,” said one Army aviator. The US War Department bought its first plane in 1909 and it was assigned to the new Army Air Corps.

It wasn’t until the National Security Act of 1947 became law on July 26, 1947 that a separate, independent Department of the Air Force was created, headed by a Secretary of the Air Force.

In Hawaiʻi, the US Army built Luke Field on Ford Island (constructed in 1917;) by 1928, they recognized the benefit of an expanded air presence, including in Hawaiʻi, and they began looking for a new site for modernizing the national defenses here.

Site selection narrowed to about 2,200-acres of land bordered by Pearl Harbor channel on the west, Pearl Harbor Naval Reservation on the north, John Rodgers airport on the east and Fort Kamehameha on the south.

The land was acquired from Bishop, Damon and Queen Emma Estates and on May 31, 1935 Hickam Air Field was dedicated (it was named in honor of Lt. Col. Horace Meek Hickam, a distinguished aviation pioneer who was killed in an aircraft accident on November 5, 1934, at Fort Crockett in Galveston, Texas).

In naming boulevards and avenues on Hickam Field, the War Department deemed it appropriate to remember those early aviation pioneers who were killed in the Hawaiian Islands as a result of airplane accidents: Fox Blvd. -1st Lt. Robert E. Fox, killed 1920; Cornet Ave. -Pvt. Harman J. Cornet, 1920; Boquet Blvd. -1st Lt. Ulric L Boquet, 1921; Manzelman Circle -1st Lt. Earle R Manzelman, 1921; Vickers Ave. -SSgt. Vernon Vickers, 1921; Owens St. -Sgt. Ross Owens, 1922; Julian Ave. -1st Lt. Rupert Julian, 1923; Monthan St. -1st Lt. Oscar Monthan, 1924; Moore St. -1st Lt. William G. Moore, 1924; Catlett St. -2nd Lt Carter Catlett, 1925; Porter Ave. -TSgt. Aaron A. Porter, 1925; Worthington Ave. -1st Lt. Robert S. Worthington, 1927; Signer Blvd. -Capt. John A Signer, 1927; Kuntz Ave. -1st Lt Clyde A. Kuntz, 1929; Atterbury Circle -2nd Lt. Ivan M. Atterbury, 1930; Mills Blvd. -SSgt. Ralph O. Mills, 1930; Scott Circle -2nd Lt William J. Scott, 1931; Baker St. -2nd Lt. George C. Baker, 1931; Wilson St. -Pfc Hicks G. Wilson, 1935 and Beard Ave. -1st Lt. William G. Beard, 1936.

Hickam Field, as it was then known, was completed and officially activated on September 15, 1938. It was the principal Army airfield in Hawaiʻi.

By the end of 1939, the Air Corps organization located at Hickam Field were, Headquarters, 18th Wing; 5th Bombardment Group; Headquarters Squadron, 5th Bombardment Group; 23rd Bombardment Squadron; 31st Bombardment Squadron; 72nd Bombardment Squadron; 4th Reconnaissance Squadron and 17th Air Base Commando (shortly after, the 11th Bombardment Group was included.

In connection with defense plans for the Pacific, aircraft were brought to Hawaii throughout 1941 to prepare for potential hostilities.  The only airfield large enough to accommodate the B-17 bomber (the Flying Fortress, at the time, the Air Corps’ most-modern airplane,) in May 1941, Hickam received the first mass flight of bombers (21 B-17s) from Hamilton Field, California.

When the Japanese attacked Oahu’s military installations on December 7, 1941, Hickam Field was an important objective; because the success of the Japanese attack was dependent on eliminating air opposition and precluding US planes from following their aircraft back to their carriers and bombing the task force.  Hickam suffered extensive damage, about half of its planes had been destroyed or severely damaged, and personnel casualties totaling 139 killed and 303 wounded.

During the war years, the base played a major role in pilot training and aircraft assembly work, in addition to serving as a supply center for both air and ground troops. Hickam served as the hub of the Pacific aerial network, supporting transient aircraft ferrying troops and supplies to, and evacuating wounded from, the forward areas.

On March 26, 1948, Hickam Field was renamed Hickam Air Force base.   After World War II, Hickam was the US primary mobility hub in the Pacific comprised of the Air Transport Command and its successor, the Military Air Transport Service, until July 1957 when Headquarters Far East Air Forces completed its move from Japan to Hawaiʻi and was redesignated the Pacific Air Forces.

Hickam Air Force Base supported the Apollo astronauts in the 1960s and 1970s; Operation Homecoming (return of prisoners of war from Vietnam) in 1973; Operation Babylift/New Life (movement of nearly 94,000 orphans, refugees and evacuees from Southeast Asia) in 1975; and NASA’s space shuttle flights during the 1980s and into the 1990s.

The 2005 Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC) Report to the President combined the once-independent Pearl Harbor Naval Station (Navy) and Hickam Air Force Base (Air Force) management functions with the establishment of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (effective October 1, 2010.)

Hickam now consists of 2,850 acres of land and facilities sharing its runways with the adjacent Honolulu International Airport as a single airport complex, operated under a joint-use agreement.

In October 1980, the Secretary of the Interior designated Hickam AFB as a National Historic Landmark, recognizing it as one of the nation’s most significant historic resources associated with World War II in the Pacific. A bronze plaque reflecting Hickam’s “national significance in commemorating the history of the United States of America” took its place among other memorials surrounding the base flagpole. (Lots of information here is from NPS and ‘Hickam’)

© 2022 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: Hawaii, Oahu, Pearl Harbor, Hickam, Joint-Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam

June 18, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Grand Tour of Oʻahu

In October 1875, Queen Emma (widow of King Kamehameha IV) decided to take a trek around the islands.  She asked John Adams Cummins (a member of the House of Representatives, the son of an English settler and a Hawaiian mother, and also one of Kamehameha V’s closest friends) to organize the trek and to accompany her.  (Kanahele)

Called the “Prince of Entertainers” and the “entertainer of princes,” Cummins was a prominent Waimanalo sugar planter known for his generous and lavish hospitality to royalty and commoner alike and for his knowledge and love of Hawaiian traditions.

Cummins made sure meticulous arrangements were in place as twenty men safeguarded the Queen around the clock.  The Queen had a head steward who had twenty men under him, ten of whom guarded by day and ten by night.

Then on November 5, 1875, the festivities began.  Leading a vibrant procession into Waimanalo were Cummins, Queen Emma and her mother.

“The streets of Honolulu were thronged with people to witness the grand sight, and it would appear that the whole city and many from the country had turned out to see the departure. We rode down Nuʻuanu street and along King and up into Beretania and thence out towards Kamōʻiliʻili.”  (Hawaiian Gazette)

A huge celebration took place at Mauna Loke (Cummins Waimanalo home,) the first stop of a two-week “Grand Tour of Oʻahu” by the Queen.  She stayed three days, by which time the number present – both invited and uninvited – was in the hundreds.

Cummins had built two large, thatched lanai that seated 200 people. The lūʻau and hula performances were followed by fireworks and rockets fired from the surrounding Koʻolau Mountains at Waimanalo.

Along their circle-island journey, preceding the procession, posters were placed at different parts of the island noting the respective dates of arrival so that local folks would be ready with food, entertainment and accommodations.

After breakfast, everybody went sea bathing or into the mountains to gather maile, ʻawapuhi, ʻohawai and palapalai for lei. Fishermen caught honu (turtle), ʻopihi, ʻokala, uhu, palani, heʻe, lole, ʻohua, manini and kumu.  (Krauss)

As the cavalcade moved from Lanikai and Makapuʻu to Kāneʻohe, then to Waikāne, Punaluʻu and beyond, the people continued to arrive with Hoʻokupu (gifts) of food stuffs for the Queen.  (Kanahele)

At Punaluʻu, the Queen agreed to ride with Cummins in a canoe; it was tied with hundreds of feet of rope to two horses who galloped parallel to the water for four miles on the beach.

“The Queen left her shoes and stockings and got into the canoe and sat down, holding firmly by the out-rigger. The beach was crowded with people to witness the great sight of a Queen taking a perilous ride in the surf.”  (Cummins; Commercial Advertiser)

“We got away for Kahuku … This is the land of the hala tree. We had four very large houses, and all the walks around and from house to house were covered with matting called ‘ue’. Every one took care of his own horse and all were welcome. … At night I had all the torches burning, which lighted up all Kahuku.”

“Our party by this time had increased to over three hundred, and the number of visitors and friends from the neighborhood was very large. At the midnight luau I sent word around among the people that there should be no one leaving here for Waimea or Waialua who had not a wreath of hala-fruit, and that we would leave after breakfast on the morrow.”

“The inhabitants of Waialua district were exceedingly kind to the Queen and her party. … Natives from distant Waiʻanae brought to Her Majesty quantities of their famous fine-flavored cocoanuts, called poka-i. …”

“Assuredly Waialua never saw such a sight before and never will again. Every surfboard in the vicinity was in use, and there were some rare actors amongst this mass of people, who hailed from all parts of the island.” (Cummins; Commercial Advertiser)

Oxcarts loaded with hoʻokupu  arrived from the countryside. Torch bearers renewed their stock of kerosene at every Chinese store on the route.  Waialua had never seen a procession of 400 women on horseback in bright-colored costumes wearing lei and maile, every face wreathed in smiles.  (Krauss)

“(A)fter another great breakfast, the cavalcade was formed for the ride towards Honolulu. It was one of the most beautiful sights ever seen, to look back on the procession from the uplands; and Her Majesty was continually looking back at the bright colored procession which followed us, four abreast.”  (Cummins; Commercial Advertiser)

The next day, parties from Honolulu joined the group for a grand lūʻau hosted by Princess Keʻelikōlani at Moanalua. “Here all the Hawaiian luxuries were ready for a final lūʻau on an exceedingly grand scale. I never saw such an abundance of leis made of lehua blossoms, and cannot imagine where they came from.”

“Just as the party were ready to partake of the viands a very heavy shower of rain, accompanied with thunder and lightning, fell, which drenched everyone to the skin. Still we determined to sit through it. I should state that we were here joined by about two hundred people on horseback from town.”

After the lūʻau, they resumed their march towards town.  “Her Majesty and the horse were covered with leis of lehua and pikaki, and every one of the seven or eight hundred were likewise bedecked with leis.”

“We led the procession, followed by the whole cavalcade, along King street, up Richards and along Beretania to Her Majesty’s house. All dismounted and bade Her Majesty farewell”.  (Cummins; Commercial Advertiser)

“It is unlikely that such (a Hawaiian holiday) could ever be repeated.”  (Cummins)

It lasted 15 days.

© 2022 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Prominent People Tagged With: Hawaii, Oahu, John Adams Cummins, Cummins, Queen Emma, Grand Tour of Oahu

June 17, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Ke Ana O Ke Kiʻi

The ancient Hawaiian religion, kapu, was an oppressive system of prohibitions. The law of kapu was extended to every act in life, and it even followed the believer beyond the grave.  (Bishop Museum)

Heiau (temples) were so numerous in the thickly settled country near the shore that from the walls of one the next was plainly to be seen. Ellis (1823) tells us that from Kailua to Kealakekua on Hawaiʻi there was at least one heiau to every half-mile along the trail.  (Brigham)

While Kū, Kāne, Lono and Kanaloa were the great gods, almost every man had his private deity, while his wives had others. There was Laka (hula dancers,) Kuʻula (fishermen,) Hina (the wives,) Laʻamaomao (the winds) and so on that were worshipped.

Anything connected with the gods and their worship was considered sacred, such as idols, heiau and priests.  Because chiefs were believed to be descendants of the gods, many kapu related to chiefs and their personal possessions.

The features of their religion were embodied in idols which were of every variety imaginable, from hideous and deformed sculptures of wood, to the utmost perfection of their art.  (Jarves)

Idols were made of different materials; some of the wooden idols were carved from the ʻōhia tree.  In cutting the haku ʻōhia, as the idol was first called, many prayers were uttered and tedious ceremonies lasted days or even weeks if the omens were unpropitious.

In the making of an idol, a suitable ʻōhia tree had previously been selected, one that had no decay about it, because a perfect tree was required for the making of the haku-ʻōhia idol; and when they had reached the woods, before they felled the tree, the kahuna haku ʻōhia approached the tree by one route, and the man who was to cut the tree by another; and thus they stood on opposite sides of the tree.  (Malo)

This intricate system that supported Hawai‘i’s social and political structure directed every activity of Hawaiian life, from birth through death, until its overthrow by King Kamehameha II (Liholiho).

Shortly after the death of Kamehameha I in 1819, King Kamehameha II (Liholiho) declared an end to the kapu system.  In a dramatic and highly symbolic event, Kamehameha II ate and drank with women, thereby breaking the important eating kapu.

When the meal was over, Liholiho issued orders to destroy the heiau and burn the idols, and this was done from one end of the kingdom to the other.  (Kuykendall)

This changed the course of the civilization and ended the kapu system, effectively weakened belief in the power of the gods and the inevitability of divine punishment for those who opposed them.

The end of the kapu system by Liholiho (Kamehameha II) happened before the arrival of the missionaries; it made way for the transformation to Christianity and westernization.

Later, in 1831, Kaʻahumanu visited all of the islands to encourage the people to learn to read and write; she also pronounced certain laws orally about which she wished to instruct the people, including “Worshiping of idols such as sticks, stones, sharks, dead bones, ancient gods, and all untrue gods is prohibited. There is one God alone, Jehovah. He is the God to worship.”  (Kamakau)

However, not all agreed.  There were a large number who refused to cast aside their old practices; and many idols, instead of being burned, were merely hidden from sight. Even among those who outwardly conformed to the new order were many who secretly clung to their idols; the old gods of Hawaiʻi had their devotees for a long time after 1819.  (Kuykendall)

In part, this was evidenced in 2005, when a North Kona lava tube containing more than 30 kiʻi (Hawaiian religious images) were discovered during the construction at what was then known as “The Shores of Kohanaiki.”  Some believe the cave served as storage or a hiding place. Some have also suggested that it might have been a secret place of worship.

The discovery is regarded as especially significant because there were no human remains found with the objects, leading many to believe that they were hidden away after the abolishment of the ‘ai kapu system in 1819.  (OHA)

An initial chamber about 12-feet high and 60-feet long leads to a second, smaller chamber containing the wooden images and stone uprights.  “(A)side from the initial puncture point in the ceiling, the cave interior appears to be structurally sound and does not present a threat of collapsing at this time.”

“About three-dozen of the wooden images are made from limbs of varying dimensions, carved with slits for eyes and a mouth. They were left in this natural state with no other carved or stylistic features.”

“They are all similar and may have been carved by the same person or personages who were schooled under the same priestly order. A few of the kiʻi retain the ‘Y’ shaped fork created by the outgrowth of two branches, with eyes and mouth carved below the split.”  (OHA)

This isn’t the first such find.

The Pacific Commercial Advertiser reported (September 23, 1876,) “Recently some of the employees of Dr Trousseau in North Kona Hawaiʻi discovered a lot of wooden idols of the olden time, in a cave on the mountain.  They were in a good state of preservation and had doubtless been undisturbed in their hiding place since the time when they were deposited there to escape the general destruction of idols by order of Kaahumanu”.

This earlier discovery on the side of Hualālai was the first reported discovery of such a large clutch of images, under circumstances suggesting either the survival of a secret cult, or a shrine predating the abrogation of the traditional religion.  (Rose)

All were carved from ʻōhia logs; the bark was removed and both ends were roughly hacked to blunt points.  Although some individuality was in each carving, several similarities stand out: wide grooves and shallow cuts to delineate circular eyes and mouths.

King Kalākaua acquired the great majority of the images from the Mt Hualālai cave; it is not clear whether he actually visited the cave.  Despite, or perhaps because of, their relative simplicity, they share some claim to be numbered among the most unusual of all Hawaiian carvings.  (Rose)  Of the total 26 or so post images taken from the Mt Hualālai cave, 12 are preserved in three museums in Europe and the US.

The two finds noted here, although both in North Kona, were in significantly different areas: Kohanaiki near the shoreline (that cave with all the kiʻi has been sealed in 2006) and the other is way up the side of Hualālai (all of the contents of that cave were removed by 1885.)  Some have labeled these caves as “Ke Ana O Ke Kiʻi” (The Cave of Images.)

© 2022 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Hawaiian Traditions, Prominent People Tagged With: Hawaii, Hawaii Island, Kii, Kapu, Kaahumanu, Liholiho, Cave of Images, Georges Trousseau, Ke Ana O Ke Kii

June 16, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Boaz Mahune – Declaration of Rights (1839)

Born in the early-1800s, Boaz Mahune was a member of the lesser strata of Hawaiian nobility, subordinate to the high chiefs or aliʻi.  He was a cousin of Paul Kanoa, who served as Governor of Kauai from 1846 to 1877.

He adopted the name “Boaz” after a figure in The Book of Ruth in the Bible, after his conversion to Christianity (it was sometimes spelled Boas.)

Boaz Mahune was a member of the first class at Lahainaluna Seminary, graduating in 1835 after four years there.  His classmates included historian David Malo and royal diplomat Timothy Haʻalilio.

He was considered one of the school’s most brilliant scholars and was one of the ten chosen to remain as monitors, teachers in the children’s school and assistants in translating.

Mahune (with others from Lahainaluna) drafted the 1839 Hawaiian Bill of Rights, also known as the 1839 Constitution of Hawaiʻi.  This document was an attempt by King Kamehameha III and his chiefs to guarantee that the Hawaiian people would not lose their tenured land, and provided the groundwork for a free enterprise system.

It laid down the inalienable rights of the people, the principles of equality of between the makaʻāinana (commoner) and the aliʻi (chiefs) and the role of the government and law in the kingdom.

Many refer to that document as Hawaiʻi’s Magna Charta (describing certain liberties, putting actions within a rule of law and served as the foundation for future laws.)  It served as a preamble to the subsequent Hawaiʻi Constitution (1840.)

It was a great and significant concession voluntarily granted by the king to his people. It defined and secured the rights of the people, but it did not furnish a plan or framework of the government.  (Kuykendall)

After several iterations of the document back and forth with the Council of Chiefs, it was approved and signed by Kamehameha III on June 7, 1839 – it was a significant departure from ancient ways.

As you can see in the following, the writing was influenced by Christian fundamentals, as well as rights noted in the US Declaration of Independence.

Ke Kumukānāwai No Ko Hawaiʻi Nei Pae ʻĀina 1839 (Declaration of Rights (1839)

“God hath made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on the earth, in unity and blessedness. God has also bestowed certain rights alike on all men and all chiefs, and all people of all lands.”

“These are some of the rights which He has given alike to every man and every chief of correct deportment; life, limb, liberty, freedom from oppression; the earnings of his hands and the productions of his mind.”

“God has also established governments and rule for the purpose of peace; but in making laws for the nation it is by no means proper to enact laws for the protection of the rulers only, without also providing protection for their subjects; neither is it proper to enact laws to enrich the chiefs only, without regard to enriching their subjects also, and hereafter there shall by no means be any laws enacted which are at variance with what is above expressed, neither shall any tax be assessed, nor any service or labor required of any man, in a manner which is at variance with the above sentiments.”

“These sentiments are hereby proclaimed for the purpose of protecting alike, both the people and the chiefs of all these islands, while they maintain a correct deportment; that no chief may be able to oppress any subject, but that chiefs and people may enjoy the same protection, under one and the same law.”

“Protection is hereby secured to the persons of all the people, together with their lands, their building lots, and all their property, while they conform to the laws of the kingdom, and nothing whatever shall be taken from any individual except by express provision of the laws.  Whatever chief shall act perseveringly in violation of this Constitution, shall no longer remain a chief of the Hawaiian Islands, and the same shall be true of the Governors, officers and all land agents.”

The Declaration of Rights of 1839 recognized three classes of persons having vested rights in the lands; 1st, the Government; 2nd, the Chiefs; and 3rd, the native Tenants. It declared protection of these rights to both the Chiefly and native Tenant classes.

Mahune is more specifically credited with nearly all the laws on taxation in the introduction to the English translation of the laws of 1840, not published until 1842.

Later he was Kamehameha III’s secretary and advisor.  When the king attempted to start a sugar cane plantation at Wailuku on Maui, Mahune was the manager. The project was not a success.

Mahune returned to Lāhainā, where he acted as a judge for a time.  About 1846 he went back to his home in Honolulu to work for the government. Mahune died in March 1847.

© 2022 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings, Prominent People Tagged With: Maui, Lahaina, Kauikeaouli, Kamehameha III, Lahainaluna, Timothy Haalilio, William Richards, Paul Kanoa, Declaration of Rights (1839), David Malo, Hawaii, Boaz Mahune

June 15, 2022 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Dreadnought

The most famous guitars in the world trace their origins to Hawai‘i. (Kealakai Center for Pacific Strings)

The Dreadnought guitar is a larger bodied acoustic guitar that was developed by the Martin Guitar Company in 1916.  Martin invented the Dreadnought shape and it has since become one of the most popular shapes for many guitar manufacturers.

It was named after a British Royal Navy battleship ‘Dreadnought’ launched in 1906 (the first of a new class of large battleships); the vessel was a turning point in naval history, bettering its rivals in terms of armament, speed, size and firepower.  The HMS Dreadnought famously sunk the German SM U-29 submarine in 1915.

Early Martin designs were based on smaller body sizes but, before amplification, as the demand for more volume and projection grew and musical styles and genres evolved, larger bodied guitars were introduced.  (Martin)

(Size matters; the larger the guitar, the more it can project its sound to the admiring audience.)

Over time the Dreadnought has become a signature design for the Martin guitar company and played by countess well-known musicians from Johnny Cash to Eric Clapton to Neil Young to Bob Dylan and many others.  (Bernstein)

It started with Mekia Kealaka‘i.

Kilin Reece contends that a Hawaiian musician should be credited with an active role in the evolution of the modern acoustic guitar – Mekia Kealaka‘i.

“Martin Guitar has been producing ukuleles for over 100 years, and the roots of the iconic Dreadnought guitar started in Hawaii, which may people do not know.” (Amani Duncan, Martin’s Vice President of Brand Marketing in Martin Journal of Acoustic Guitars, 2016)

It goes back to July of 1916, when Hawaiian music was all the rage following its introduction to a large portion of the American public at the Panama Pacific Exposition in Chicago the previous year.

“Following the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exhibition (which, with 18 million visitors, was a major turning point in the popularity of Hawaiian music), one of the most talked about performers from the event’s ‘Hawaiian Pavilion’ took his band on a tour of the United States.”

“Traveling to venues across the United States, Mekia ‘Major’ Kealakai’s Royal Hawaiian Sextette was a smash hit, with crowd thronging to witness the band’s exciting, steel-stringed sound.”

“Finding a guitar loud enough to reach these growing mainland audience soon became a problem for Major.  To solve it, Kealakai reached out to America’s prominent guitar manufacturer to talk about something different – and something bigger.”

“[T]he craftspeople at Martin Guitar devised a steel-string instrument large enough to suit the needs of the Royal Sextette’s sound – and the largest guitar Martin ever produced.”  (Walsh, Martin Journal of Acoustic Guitars, 2020)

“Mekia Kealakai was the first person to ask Martin to make a jumbo steel-string guitar.  He was one of only four people at that point that the Martin Guitar Company made a guitar for, and they called it the Kealakai model.”

“Those templates were used to make the first dreadnought guitar, the most imitated and widely used acoustic guitar in the world.” (Kilin Reece)

“CF Martin & Co. made its Kealakai model in 1916, one year after the exposition. The standard size for a guitar was smaller then, more suited to the parlor than the stage.”

“Kealakai, seeking a stronger projection when he played Hawaiian lap steel, asked for a bigger-bodied instrument.”

“The resulting design was repurposed in an order for Oliver Ditson and Company, which has long been understood, inaccurately, as the originators of the dreadnought guitar.” (Reece: Hanahou article by Nate Chinen)

“Mekia Kealakai is a crucial part of that legacy. Born into poverty, the son of a sergeant major in the Royal Guard (hence the name “Mekia,” which means “major”), he received rigorous musical training in reform school, where he’d been sent for truancy at age 12.”

“His teacher – Henry Berger, then the conductor of the Royal Hawaiian Band – trained him in the European concert tradition. Mekia entered the band in his teens as a trombonist and flutist.”  (Reece, Hanahou)

“[A]t age 15, [he] joined the Royal Hawaiian Band as Berger’s star protege, and within a short time was composing songs with Liliʻuokalani and Kalākaua, eventually leading the Royal Hawaiian Band in a tour across the United States in 1895.” (Reece, Ka Wai Ola)

“During a Mainland tour in 1895, Kealakai caught the ear of the composer and bandleader John Philip Sousa, who wanted to hire him.” (Reece, Hanahou)

“[He] toured the U.S. continent as a member of Ka Bana Lahui; at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo he demonstrated a “triple-tongue” technique so accomplished that John Philip Sousa called him the “greatest flutist” he had “ever heard.” (Kīkā Kila)

“But Kealakai turned him down and remained in Hawaiian string bands for the next ten years, playing up and down the West Coast from Portland to San Francisco before touring America and Europe and with his own act, Major Kealakai’s Royal Hawaiian Sextette.”

“He met his future wife, the noted hula dancer Mele Nawaaheihei, at the 1901 World’s Fair in Buffalo, New York.” (Reece, Hanahou)

He eventually returning home to take over the leadership of the Royal Hawaiian Band, complete with a glee club, largely, as he put it, “to help preserve Hawaiian music.”  (Kīkā Kila)

https://www.loc.gov/item/jukebox-15049/

© 2022 Ho‘okuleana LLC

Filed Under: General, Prominent People, Economy Tagged With: Dreadnought, Kealakai, Mekia Kealakai, Major Kealakai, Martin Guitars

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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.

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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.

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