Prominent People | Page 140 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

February 21, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Timeline Tuesday … 1870s

Today’s ‘Timeline Tuesday’ takes us through the 1870s –first Kamehameha Day, Reciprocity Agreement, Lili‘uokalani writes Aloha ‘Oe and Iolani Palace is started. We look at what was happening in Hawai‘i during this time period and what else was happening around the rest of the world.

A Comparative Timeline illustrates the events with images and short phrases. This helps us to get a better context on what was happening in Hawai‘i versus the rest of the world. I prepared these a few years ago for a planning project. (Ultimately, they never got used for the project, but I thought they might be on interest to others.)

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February 16, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Whitney Laboratory of Seismology

When a hotel on the rim of Kilauea caldera became a permanent facility in 1866, its series of guest registers became a repository of reports and observations by the guests, an almost daily record (by observers who varied from the scientist to the joker) of earthquakes felt and unfelt and of volcanism seen and unseen on Kilauea and Mauna Loa.

In the hope that science could close the gaps in geological knowledge and learn to predict earthquakes and eruptions, some New Englanders were willing for humanitarian reasons to finance foreign trips and support work abroad for scientists.

For instance, the Springfield (Massachusetts) Volcanic Research Society supported, at least in part, the travels and studies of Frank A. Perret, an electrical engineer and inventor turned volcanologist who became well known for his studies at Vesuvius, Etna, and Stromboli. The Springfield society also helped support Perret’s 1911 work at Kilauea.

It was in this climate of opinion that the trustees of the estates of Edward and Caroline Whitney gave to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) the sum of $25,000 for a memorial fund; the principal and interest were to be expended at MIT’s discretion for research or teaching in geophysics, especially seismology.

Investigations in Hawaii were recommended. The Whitney fund was deeded to MIT by the trustees on July 1, 1909, and three years later a group of twelve other New Englanders supplied MIT with supplemental funds for geophysical research in Hawaii.

MIT gave Thomas A Jaggar a leave of absence in December 1911 and directed him to Kilauea to continue the investigations made in the summer of 1909. Jaggar arrived at Kilauea on January 17, 1912.

Work then started on what would be the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (Observatory.) A cellar excavation on the north rim of Kilauea caldera started on February 16, 1912, marking the beginning of permanent facilities for the Observatory.

The Observatory was largely the creation of Jaggar (1871-1953), then a MIT professor, who recognized the advantages, for the study of volcanism, of onsite facilities at an active volcano.

Wooden stakes marked the corners of a rectangle about 24-feet long by 22-feet wide only about 20-feet from the cliff-like rim of Kilauea caldera on the Island of Hawaii.

A hole was to be dug by hand. The diggers were prisoners of the Territory of Hawaii, sentenced to a term of hard labor. The prisoners dug through almost six feet of volcanic ash and pumice to a layer of thick pahoehoe lava – a firm base for the concrete piers on which seismometers would be anchored.

Jaggar had contracted with Hackfeld for the forms and concrete work for the seismometer vault, and for the wooden structures that were to stand over and adjacent to the vault – the rim-side facilities of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

The result was “a basement room, eighteen feet square, with piers and floor of concrete, reposing upon the upper surface of the basalt, and high walls of concrete (and became known as) the Whitney Laboratory of Seismology.” A building was built above.

“A constant emanation of hot steam from cracks in contact with the concrete walls keeps this room at a fairly uniform temperature and thus improves it for the purposes of seismology.” (Apple)

“Concrete tables on the floor of the cellar held the pair of east-west and north-south horizontal pendulums, recording with delicate pens on smoked paper, stretched over a chronograph drum.”

“These paper records, removed every day and fixed with shellac varnish, became the seismograms of the permanent files. Long belts of wavy lines on each paper exhibited seconds, minutes, and hours; and when a sharp zigzag in one of the lines occurred, it was evidence of either a local or a distant earthquake.” (Jaggar)

However, the “oppressive warmth caused by the natural steam heat” added challenges to the scientists’ daily lives. Scientists through the active life of the vault bundled up in wooly sweaters, scarfs, and raincoats to walk to the vault through the chilling rains and fog at 4,000-foot altitude and then peeled clown to undershirts when they entered the vault to attend the instruments.

Being a basement vault with a building above also created problems. Even in calm weather, movements of the building were recorded by the seismometers in the vault below.

Winter Kona storms swept high winds from the south across Kilauea caldera, hitting with full force against the north rim and causing such rocking and trembling of the building above as to mask the records on the seismograms.

In the winter of 1915-16, gale-force winds stripped the sheets of corrugated iron from the roof of the building. Rain water in the offices above poured into the vault to wash away the seismograms on their drums, flood the floor, and soak the instruments. Repairs took weeks.

On December 19, 1921, the nearby Volcano House began to run a generator for the first electric lights at Kilauea. Variations in the engine speed as well as the exact times of starting and stopping were duly recorded by seismometers in the Whitney vault.

On February 11, 1940, the main Volcano House burned to the ground, and this led to the relocating of the Observatory facilities. (The present Volcano House was opened for business in November 1941.)

That year, the building above the observatory was dismantled, and a reinforced-concrete slab was poured by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to become the vault’s new roof. The slab was covered with 18-inches of topsoil (the vault mound is on the crater side of the Volcano House.)

On December 28, 1947, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory was transferred within the Department of the Interior from the National Park Service to the United States Geological Survey.

In 1948, the Observatory was moved to a building at the top of Uwekahuna Bluff on the northwest rim of Kilauea caldera; a new and larger building there was completed in 1986. (The bulk of the information here comes from Russell Apple’s (retired National Park Service historian) history of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.)

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USGS_Jaggar-KauNews

Whitney Seismograph Vault Stairs and Door-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault Mound-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vaultand First HVO Building-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-behind the Volcano House-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-inside-NPS

Inside the Whitney Vault, Thomas Jaggar, aka Dick Hershberger-Ron Johnson-KauNews

February 15, 2017 by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Cook’s Heart

“Thus fell our great and excellent Commander!”

“After a life of so much distinguished and successful enterprise, his death, as far as regards himself, can be reckoned premature; since he lived to finish the great work for which he seems to have been designed; and was rather removed from the enjoyment, than cut off from the acquisition of glory.”

About eight o’clock, it being very dark, a canoe was heard paddling toward the ship; and as soon as it was seen, both the sentinels on deck fired into it. … Luckily neither of them was hurt”.

“After lamenting, with abundance of tears, the loss of Orono, he told us that he had brought us a part of his body. He then presented to us a small bundle, wrapped up in cloth, which he brought under his arm …”

“… and it is impossible to describe the horror which seized us, on finding in it a piece of human flesh, about nine or ten pounds weight. This, he said, was all that remained of the body; that the rest was cut to pieces and burnt but that the head and all the bones, except what belonged to the trunk, were in the possession of Terreeoboo (Kalaniʻōpuʻu.”)

“This afforded an opportunity of informing ourselves, whether they were cannibals ; and we did not neglect it. We first tried, by many indirect questions, put to each of them apart, to learn in what manner the rest of the bodies had been disposed of …”

“… and finding them very constant in one story, that, after the flesh had been cut off, it was all burnt ; we at last put the direct question. Whether they had not ate some of it?”

“They immediately showed as much horror at the idea, as any European would have done and asked, very naturally, if that was the custom amongst us?” (Cook’s Journal)

“The bodies of Captain Cook and the four men who died with him were carried to Kalaniʻōpuʻu at Maunaloia, and the chief sorrowed over the death of the captain.”

“He dedicated the body of Captain Cook, that is, he offered it as sacrifice to the god with a prayer to grant life to the chief (himself) and to his dominion.”

“Then they stripped the flesh from the bones of Lono. The palms of the hands and the intestines were kept; the remains (pela) were consumed with fire.”

“The bones Kalaniʻōpuʻu was kind enough to give to the strangers on board the ship, but some were saved by the kahunas and worshiped.” (Kamakau)

“The bones were preserved in a small basket of wicker-work, completely covered over with red feathers; which in those days were considered to be the most valuable articles the natives possessed, as being sacred, and a necessary appendage to every idol, and almost every object of religious homage throughout the islands of the Pacific.” (Ellis)

“We learned from this person, that the flesh of all the bodies of our people, together with the bones of the trunks, had been burnt ; that the limb bones of the marines had been divided amongst the inferior chiefs …”

“… and that those of Captain Cook had been disposed of in the following manner the head to a great chief, called Kahoo-opeon ; the hair to Maia-maia ; and the legs, thighs, and arms to Terreeoboo.” (Cook’s Journa)

There are stories about Cook’s heart …

“The body of Captain Cook was carried into the interior of the island, the bones secured according to their custom, and the flesh burnt in the fire.”

“The heart, liver, &c., of Captain Cook, were stolen and eaten by some hungry children, who mistook them in the night for the inwards of a dog. The names of the children were Kupa, Moho‘ole, and Kaiwikoko‘ole.”

“These men are now all dead. The last of the number died two years since at the station of Lahaina. Some of the bones of Captain Cook were sent on board his ship, in compliance with the urgent demands of the officers; and some were kept by the priests as objects of worship.” (Dibble)

Another notes, “Kealakekua is an historical spot. l write this in sight of the very rock where the celebrated Captain Cook was killed, and l have seen the man who ate his heart.”

“He stole it from a tree, supposing it to be a swine’s heart hung there to dry, and was horrified when he discovered the truth.” (Judd)

“Eight days after the death of Captain Cook, friendly relations were resumed with those on board the ship.”

“On Monday, February 23 (1779,) the ship sailed and it anchored at Kauai on the 29th of that month to get water and food supplies, then sailed to Ni‘ihau and got a supply of yams, potatoes, and hogs.”

“On March 15, the ship sailed into the blue and disappeared. This was the end of Captain Cook’s voyages of exploration among these islands ….” (Kamakau)

“For several years after this melancholy event no ship visited the islands after Captain Cook.” (Dibble)

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Death of Cook

February 9, 2017 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Hardy House

Frederic W Hardy was born of early New England ancestry on January 23, 1859, in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the son of George Dana Boardman and Olive (Andrews) Hardy.

He was educated in the grammar and high schools of Malden Mass and in 1881 received the degree of Bachelor of Arts cum laude from Harvard.

Mr. Hardy came to the Islands in 1882 on account of health, (he had a severe attack of malaria-typhoid fever.) He sailed from New York to San Francisco, via the Isthmus of Panama, by the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, and then by the schooner ‘Consuelo’ to Kahului, Maui, arriving in April, 1883.

In September, 1883, he was appointed vice-principal of the Wailuku school and was the first teacher to bear such a title in the kingdom. The late DD Baldwin was at that time inspector-general of schools and CR Bishop, president of the board of education.

From 1884-1888 he was instructor at Lahainaluna Seminary of which HR Hitchcock was principal. He taught universal history, algebra, geometry, etc.

In December 1896 he married Lillian Hitchcock Aiken, daughter of Dr PJ Aiken, at Paia, Maui. (Dr Aiken was the first doctor of the first hospital of Maui Agricultural Company , then known as the Paia Plantation.) They had a son, Hollis Aiken Hardy.

Hardy became principal of the Makawao school in September, 1888. He was the first teacher and principal of the Makawao School.

As school funds and equipment were very limited in those early days, his wife donated both time and material to teach the girls sewing, crocheting and embroidery, in which she was very skilled.

In 1897, Hardy added to an existing house to create what is now known as the ‘Hardy House,’ one of the oldest wood frame houses in Makawao. It was built onto an existing one room house (that was then about 10-15 years old.)

The new house had a double pitch (Hawaiian) roof; it is reminiscent of those by Charles W Dickey (Hardy was friend of Charles H Dickey, the architect’s son.)

Though not documented, some have concluded that from the circumstantial evidence that CW Dickey played a part in the design of the house (Dickey had started practicing in Hawai‘i in 1895.)

The house once stood on about 20-acres of land; the site is now about ½- acre. The house was originally ‘T’ shaped as viewed from the top. The removal of the lanai makes the house resemble a modified ‘L.’

The house has two stories in the bedroom portion and one story in the living room, downstairs bath, utility area , kitchen , and dining room section.

The Victorian architectural style was popular in the Eastern United States; San Francisco, California; etc. but a rarity in Hawaii. The wealthier early families who moved to Hawaii fashioned their homes and lives according to customs on the mainland.

Lumber, square nails, windows, fixtures , furniture, etc. came from around the Horn and from California. Lumber was floated from ship to shore.

Supplies were hauled in bullock drawn carts over muddy roads to the construction site. It took two days for a Bullock team to make the 26 mile trip. The Hardy house had such an eventful beginning.

The down stairs veranda is fifty feet long and almost seven feet wide. It provides access to the house through four doors (two to the living room and one to each of the two downstairs bedrooms.)

The double wood paneled bottom half of these doors is molded. The veranda has wooden floors and seven supporting columns . The tops of these columns are decorated with gingerbread scroll brackets.

The veranda continues for fifteen feet at right angles to the fifty foot length around a corner to provide private entrance to each of the two downstairs bedrooms. The windows and doors are flanked with original louvered shutters.

Very few wooden houses of that age have survived the termites, harsh tropical climate and temptation to tear down the old to build new. The Hardy House is on the National Register of Historic Places; it is also known as the Rezents House. (Lots of information here is from NPS and Maui News, April 9, 1920.)

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February 8, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

John Leavitt Stevens

“That I yield to the superior force of the United States of America, whose minister plenipotentiary, His Excellency John L Stevens, has caused United States troops to be landed at Honolulu, and declared that he would support the said provisional government.” (Lili‘uokalani, January 17, 1893)

In 1893, “[a] so-called Committee of Safety, a group of professionals and businessmen, with the active assistance of John Stevens, the United States Minister to Hawai‘i, acting with the United States Armed Forces, replaced the [Hawaiian] monarchy with a provisional government.” (US Supreme Court; Hawaii v OHA, 2008)

John Leavitt Stevens, journalist, author and diplomat, was born in Mount Vernon, Maine, August 1, 1820. By his own efforts he was educated at the Maine Wesleyan Seminary and the Waterville Liberal Institute for the Universalist ministry.

After ten years in the service of this denomination, he was attracted by the intensely interesting condition of national affairs, of which he was always a keen observer, into newspaper work, entering into partnership in 1855 with the late James G. Blaine in conducting The Kennebec Journal.

There he remained for nearly fourteen years, and it was during this period that he obtained that influence in the political world that was afterward recognized by his foreign appointments from the Government. He was repeatedly sent to the State Legislature and Senate, and was one of the chief movers in the formation of the Republican Party in Maine.

In 1870, Stevens accepted the position of United States Minister to Uruguay and Paraguay under President Grant. He resigned after remaining in Montevideo about three years.

He took a very active part in the Presidential campaign of 1876, acting as Chairman of the Republican State Committee of his native State,

He was rewarded with an appointment as Minister to Sweden and Norway in 1877, which position he held until 1883. In June, 1889, Stevens was appointed Minister to the Hawaiian Islands, his title soon after being changed to Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary. (NY Times, February 9, 1895)

“Although Stevens exaggerated the threatening situation in Hawai‘i, there was indeed some cause for American uneasiness. After the constitutional reforms of 1887, the split between foreigners and native nationalists had widened”

“British capitalists, stimulated by the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway, sought new investments; a rumor circulated that Britain would welcome a protectorate.” (Pletcher)

“When the long-expected revolution finally began in January 1893, it was brought about by two interacting and partly indistinguishable groups, one wanting an independent Hawaiian republic and another seeking annexation to the US.”

“The immediate cause lay in two actions by Queen Liliuokalani. First she replaced a pro-American cabinet with a group of ill-qualified timeservers on whom she could rely.”

“Then, and more important, she revealed her determination to proclaim a new constitution, increasing the royal power and requiring all voters to be naturalized and take an oath of loyalty to her.”

“The course of the revolution was considerably simpler than its causes; it lasted two days and was almost entirely bloodless. (With) the queen’s announcement that the new constitution would be introduced …”

“… the Annexation Club carried out plans already discussed with Stevens and Captain GC Wiltse of the American Cruiser Boston, then in port. Wiltse landed 154 marines to restore order”. (Pletcher)

Stevens supported annexation by the US and in December 1893, he wrote ‘A Plea for Annexation’ in The North American Review where he concluded, “To say that we do not need the Hawaiian Islands as a security to our immense future interests is but the babble of children or of incompetent men.”

“It is blindly and recklessly to ignore the logic of irresistible circumstances, and to scoff at the plainest teachings of history. No! America cannot get rid of her future responsibilities if she would, and all attempts to do so will be at the cost of her future generations.”

“In the light of these inexorable truths, in the name of what is most sacred in Christian civilization, in behalf of a noble American colony, holding the advanced post of America’s progress …”

“… I cherish the faith that the American people, the American statesmen, and the American government, thoughtful of America’s great future, will settle the Hawaiian question wisely and well will see to it that the flag of the United States floats unmolested over the Hawaiian Islands.” (Stevens, The North American Review, December 1893)

“President Cleveland, directly after his inauguration, sent a message to the Senate withdrawing the question of annexation from further consideration; and a Commissioner, Mr. Blount, was sent to report on the situation. He ordered the protectorate withdrawn as unnecessary.”

“Mr. Stevens immediately resigned and returned home. He then devoted himself, in the public prints and on the platform, to a denunciation of the Administration’s Hawaiian policy.” Stevens died February 8, 1895 at his home in Augusta Maine. (NY Times, February 9, 1895)

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John Leavitt Stevens