Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

James Magee

A “convivial, noble-hearted Irishman,” James Magee was born in 1750 and appears to have emigrated shortly before the American Revolution.  Boston town records for 1768 note the arrival of a James Magee with a group of Irish fishermen from Newfoundland (it’s not clear that that’s the same person).

Captain James Magee, of Boston, rose to eminence in maritime pursuits; he helped establish the first American commercial house in China; and he was one of the first in the East-India trade.

During the American Revolution, Magee commanded the privateer (privately owned armed vessel commissioned to attack enemy ships, usually vessels of commerce) Independence, which captured and brought into Boston harbor the British ship Countess.

From 1779 to 1783 Magee was master of at least three vessels: Amsterdam, Hermione and Gustavus.  With the war over, he married Margaret Elliot of Boston in October 1783, the youngest daughter of Simon Elliot, a well-known tobacco and snuff dealer.

Post-war Yankee ships expanded their reach and found their way into the ports of the Baltic, the Mediterranean and even around the Cape of Good Hope to the Indies.

In 1784, as part of this probing operation, Major Samuel Shaw sent the Empress of China to Canton with a cargo of ginseng. The Empress of China arrived at Macao on August 23, 1784, six months out from New York.

Later, after receiving the honorary title of American consul at Canton, Shaw, Isaac Sears and other New York merchants arranged for the ship Hope to both Batavia (Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, Indonesia) and Canton (Guangzhou, China).

Sears chose James Magee to Captain the voyage, and on February 4, 1786 Hope sailed from New York carrying both Sears and Shaw as passengers and established the first American commercial house in China

By summer, Magee was back in Boston, and in September a portion of Hope’s cargo was offered for sale at the store of his nephew, Simon Elliot.

“As the first Boston captain to visit either Batavia or Canton, Magee must have been a source of keen interest among the town’s merchants and his voyage an important stimulant to those mulling the prospects of Oriental trade.”

Although America was outstripping every other nation in China trade, save Britain, she could not long compete with Britain without a suitable medium. The Canton market accepted little but specie (a silver coin, as distinguished from bullion or paper money) and eastern products.

Ginseng, the typical exchange, could be procured and sold only in limited quantities.  The ship Columbia was fitted out by a group of Boston merchants who believed the solution of the problem lay in the furs of the Northwest Coast.

The first association of Boston with the Northwest Coast was in 1787, when Joseph Barrell and his co-adventurers sent out the Columbia and the Washington.  (Howay)  John Kendrick commanded both the expedition and the ship Columbia.

The Columbia left Boston on September 30, 1787; that voyage began the Northwest fur trade, which enabled the merchant adventurers of Boston to tap the vast reservoir of wealth in China.

In the summer of 1789, before a full cargo of skins had been obtained, provisions began to run low. Captain Kendrick therefore remained behind, but sent Gray in the Columbia to Canton, where he exchanged his cargo of pelts for tea, and returned to Boston around the world. Her rivals were quick to follow.

Following this, Lieutenant Thomas Lamb and his brother James, merchants, joined Captain Magee in building the ship Margaret, one hundred fifty tons, which was commanded by Magee on December 24, 1791, “bound on a voyage of observation and enterprise to the North-Western Coast of this Continent.”

The Margaret was under command of Captain James Magee, one of her owners; David Lamb, first mate; Otis Liscombe, second mate; Stephen Hills, third mate, and John Howell, historian.

The Margaret was, says Haswell, “as fine a vessel as ever I saw of her size, and appeared exceeding well fitted for the voyage and I believe there was no expense spared.”

The captain, Magee, was Irish; Mr. Howel was English; there were two Swedes and one Dutchman before the mast; but all the remainder of her officers and crew were American. Including the boys, the total number on board was twenty-five.

About July 19, 1792, the Margaret sailed to the Columbia River in search of furs. On her return she reported little success. Magee got sick, and on August 12, Lamb, the first mate, took command of the Margaret and had sailed in company with the Hope.

Magee got sick to such a degree that he was intensely anxious to put foot on shore, in the hope that change of scene and the land air might prove beneficial. The men were set to work to build a house for his temporary residence.

When Vancouver anchored there on August 28, 1792, he found Captain Magee living on shore with his surgeon and John Howel. 

Captain Magee appears to have steadily improved in health after leaving the coast.  On November 8, while off Hawai‘i, where the Margaret was busy buying supplies, Captain Barkley of the Halcyon went on board.

Captain Magee received his visitor in a friendly manner and they soon agreed to go in company to Waikiki Bay, Oahu, to procure water. The three vessels, Halcyon, Margaret, and Hope anchored at Waikiki about a mile and a half off shore. The water was so clear that lying in ten fathoms they could plainly see the bottom.

The next night, fearing that the natives had some scheme to capture them, they set sail and, on the morning of 11th, arrived at Kauai. Late that afternoon they anchored in Waimea Bay. On the 13th the Halcyon sailed for China. The Margaret followed her ten days later, and reached Macao January 3, 1793.

Returning to the Islands, Magee wrote the following on behalf of one of his crew who was to stay in Hawai‘i: “Ship Margaret at Anchur, Whahoo, Oct’r 6th 1793. This may certify that the bearer, Oliver Holmes, having ever behaved himself with great propriety, as an honest and active man, towards his duty while on board the Margaret, under my command, and was discharged, by his own desire, to tarry on shore at the Island. James Magee.”

(Holmes became one of the first dozen foreigners (and one of the first Americans) to live in Hawaiʻi (he lived on the island of Oʻahu.)  Holmes married Mahi i, daughter of a high chief of Koʻolau who was killed in the battle of the Nuʻuanu Pali. Holmes made his living managing his land holdings on Oʻahu and Molokai, providing provisions to visiting ships. (Oliver Wendell Holmes was born August 29, 1809 in Cambridge, Massachusetts – Oliver Holmes was in Hawai‘i at the time.))

By this time, the trade route Boston – Northwest Coast – Canton – Boston was fairly established. Not only the merchantmen of Massachusetts, but the whalers balked of their accustomed traffic by European exclusiveness, were swarming around the Horn in search of new markets and sources of supply.

To obtain fresh provisions and prevent scurvy, the Northwest traders broke their voyage at least twice; at the Cape Verde Islands, the Falklands, sometimes Galapagos for a giant tortoise, and invariably Hawai‘i (which proved an ideal spot to replenish supplies).

The Northwest trade, the Hawaiian trade, and the fur seal fisheries were only a means to an end – the procuring of Chinese teas and textiles – to sell again at home and abroad. China was the only market for sea otter, and Canton the only Chinese port where foreigners were allowed to exchange it. Magee was part of the origins of the China trade.

© 2023 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Holoua

In historical times, two tsunamis occurred during the first week of April. The first of these occurred on April 2, 1868; it resulted from the great earthquake that took place that day near Pahala.

Based on the extent and type of damage, the 1868 earthquake is estimated to have had a magnitude of about 8.0. Reports indicate that 46 people were killed and several entire Hawaiian villages were destroyed by the tsunami generated from the earthquake. (USGS)

Destruction caused by the 1868 great Ka‘ū earthquake included the Wai‘ōhinu in the Ka‘ū District of Hawai‘i Island. With a magnitude estimated at 7.9, the earthquake is the largest in Hawai‘i’s recorded history. (USGS)

“There were twelve shocks counted during the night. -most of them easy, one however rocked the bed considerably At four oclock that afternoon there was such an awful rocking and heaving of the earth as we never felt before.”

“Indeed there was a series of shocks following each other in quick succession the third of which drove us from the house.”

“After a cessation of only one or two minutes the fourth came. in which violent undulations, rotary, and all most all other motions were combined or followed each other in quick succession. “

“At one moment the surface of the earth seemed to move like the surface of the ocean and the large trees to sway hither and thither like ships masts in a storm. The few stone buildings in the place were ruined.”

“The chimneys of cook and dwelling houses were thrown down. Clocks, mirrors and crockery, not firmly secured, were generally thrown down and broken. Cellar walls and underpinning were much damaged.”

“Stone walls were generally prostrated, even the foundation stones being generally removed from their original position. and it was not easy to tell in which direction from the wall the larger portion of the stones had fallen.”

“The best chimney stacks of the Hilo Sugar Mills were thrown down while some of the old cracked chimneys supposed all most ready to fall were little affected. The shocks were considerably more severe here than they were at the crater of Kilauea thirty miles from here, but less severe than they were in Kau from Kapapala to Kahuku.”

“Then slight jars were felt almost constantly for a few minutes after which the earth commenced rocking again fearfully. This continued but a short time and was followed by a tidal wave.”  (Sarah Lyman; USGS)

A letter “by the School Inspector-General [Abraham Fornander] gives a detailed account of the volcanic phenomenon on Hawaii” in the April 29, 1868 issue of the Hawaiian Gazette.

Fornander notes, “I have just been told an incident that occurred in Ninole, during the inundation of that place.  At the time of the shock on Thursday, a man named Holoua, and his wife, ran out of the house and started for the hills above, but remembering the money he had in the house, the man left his wife and returned to bring it away.”

“Just as he had entered the bouse the sea broke on the shore, and, enveloping the building, first washed it several yards inland, and then, as the wave receded, swept It off to sea, with him in it.”

“Being a powerful man, and one of the most expert swimmers in that region, he succeeded in wrenching off a board or a rafter, and with this as a papa hee-nalu, (surf board), be boldly struck out for the shore, and landed safely with the return wave.”

“When we consider the prodigious height of the breaker on which he rode to the shore, (50, perhaps 60, feet), the feat seems almost Incredible, were it not that be is now alive to attest it, as well as the people on the hillside who saw him.” (Fornander in Hawaiian Gazette, April 29, 1868)

Artist William CP Cathcart of Honolulu made a painting of the event and calls what Holoua did, ”the greatest aquatic feat of its kind in the history of the world”.

“Not many would quarrel with him that [Holoua], is the granddaddy of all surfriders.  [Holoua] happens to be riding the crest of a 50 to 60 foot tidal wave, using a house rafter for a surfboard.”

“Says Artist Cathcart: ‘[Holoua] prevailed, the undefeated super-champion of surfers …’ Mr Cathcart suggests the [Holoua’s] deed should be commemorated with a large bronze statue, suitably placed.  The deed itself, he says, merits ‘a tribute that would immortalize the prestige of Hawaii through centuries.’”

“Just to show what the water was like that day, the old Commercial Advertiser reported that four villages and 100 persons perished in the waves.” (Honolulu Advertiser, March 10, 1957)

An obituary for Holoua’s grandson, Joseph Kanuu Holoua, notes that the story “has been passed from generation to generation of Holouas. Aa Holoua used a house rafter for a surfboard and safely [rode] a 50 to 60-foot tidal wave to shore.” (Honolulu Advertiser, March 12, 1961)

The April 2 great Ka‘ū earthquake was part of a larger volcanic crisis that unfolded over 16 days. On March 27, an eruption quietly began in Moku‘āweoweo, the caldera at the summit of Mauna Loa.

Seismic activity increased through the day, and by the afternoon of March 28, a magnitude-7.0 earthquake occurred in Ka‘ū, which caused extensive damage from its own very strong to violent shaking.

During the following four days, nearly continuous ground shaking was reported in Ka‘ū and South Kona. Earthquakes continued at rates of 50 to 300 per day, including a magnitude-6.0 each day, leading up to April 2.

Then, the great Ka‘ū earthquake, 15 times stronger than the magnitude-7.0 foreshock, occurred at 4 pm. A severe aftershock occurred on April 4, and aftershocks of decreasing magnitudes continued for decades.

The great Ka‘ū earthquake unlocked Mauna Loa’s Southwest Rift Zone, and on April 7, 1868, an eruptive fissure opened low on the mountain, just above today’s Highway 11 and east of Hawaiian Ocean View Estates. (USGS) (The other April tsunami was April 1, 1946.)

© 2023 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

King of Handcuffs

Erik Weisz was born on March 24, 1874 in Budapest, Hungary. His family soon emigrated to the United States. His name was altered to Ehrich Weiss after his family emigrated from Hungary to Wisconsin when he was 4 years old.

He had several brothers and a sister. When he was only five or six years old he started doing card tricks and in his teens was performing magic for money.  He called himself Ehrich the Prince of Air when he was nine years old.

When he was 13, Weisz moved with his father to New York City, taking on odd jobs and living in a boarding house before the rest of the family joined them.

He won several competitive medals as a member of the Pastime Athletic Club track team in New York. Weiss worked hard to build up his physical stamina.

In 1894, Ehrich decided to start his career as a magician and changed his name to Harry Houdini.  The name pays homage to Jean Eugene Robert-Houdin, the French performer widely considered the father of modern magic.

Adding the “i” followed tradition as well, as this was a common way that magicians invoked the name of the famous 18th century Italian conjurer Pinetti. “Harry,” on the other hand, was merely a pleasantly American twist on “Ehrie,” his boyhood nickname. (PBS)

He married Wilhelmina Beatrice “Bess” Rahner in 1894, and she became his constant companion, ardent supporter and talented co-star in many of his acts. (Pacific Coast Air Museum)

Ferenc Dezső Weisz, Houdini’s younger brother, had performed with his sibling earlier in his career. As the “King of Handcuffs” gained fame, he and his brother, then known as Hardeen, continued to work on illusions, maintaining the belief that the pair were vicious rivals to keep the interest in both of their acts.

As Hardeen once stated, “We made no secret of the fact that we were brothers… but we did keep secret not only the fact that we were good friends but that Harry had set me up in business!” (Ripley’s)

He made a name for himself escaping from handcuffs, securely chained boxes thrown into rivers, straight jackets (while suspended by his ankles), and any number of other incredible situations.

Some may not be aware that another of the passions of Houdini’s life was aviation.  He asked Orville and Wilbur Wright and Glenn Curtiss to sell him a plane but they wouldn’t.

Later in 1909 Houdini went to an air show in Berlin and approached the winner of one of the races. He offered to buy the plane and pay the pilot to teach him to fly. (Pacific Coast Air Museum)

Houdini’s airplane was a Voisin, named after its French designer/builder. It looked more like a box kite than a modern airplane and with good reason. Its design was based on principles worked out years before by an Australian named Lawrence Hargrave who had built the first controllable box kite. Houdini’s Voisin had a pusher engine and performed quite well for its time.

In 1910 the Australians made Houdini an offer he couldn’t refuse: they would pay him generously if he would spend six weeks there flying in public shows. He, his wife, and his ground crew packed up the Voisin, boarded an ocean liner, and set up operations at a place called Digger’s Rest, Victoria, near Melbourne.

Houdini went on the record books as the first person ever to fly an airplane in Australia … powered and sustained and controlled.  Houdini was presented with a trophy for his achievement and was lauded in the press. (Pacific Coast Air Museum)

Houdini flying over Australia:

It was on his way back from Australia that Houdini made a connection to Hawai‘i.  “Houdini, the handcuff king, was a through passenger on the steamship Manuka, fresh from Australia.”

“He was asked by local theatrical managers if he would stop off here, and he relied he would be glad to a series of entertainments – at $1500 per week.”

“The managers gasped and fell dead, metaphorically.  Mr Houdini, it is needless to say, passed on and will give exhibitions in Canada.” (Advertiser, May 26, 1910)

Fortunately John Cox of WildAboutHoudini-com was able to acquire an unpublished image of Houdini and Bess with lei, noted as “Honolulu 1910”.

© 2023 Ho‘okuleana LLC

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hui Panalāʻau

Part of the equatorial “Line Islands” and “Pacific Remote Islands,” Baker, Howland and Jarvis Islands were first formed as fringing reefs around islands formed by volcanoes (approximately 120-75 million years ago). As the volcanoes subsided, the coral reefs grew upward forming low coral islands.

Howland Island lies 1,650 sea miles to the southwest of Honolulu, and 48 miles north of the equator. It and Baker Island, which lies about 35 miles to the south and a little east, are located northwest of the Phoenix group, and are 1,000 miles west of Jarvis.

There is evidence to suggest that Howland Island was the site of prehistoric settlement, probably in the form of a single community utilizing several adjacent islands. Archaeological sites have been discovered on Manra and Orona, which suggest two distinct groups of settlers, one from eastern Polynesia and one from Micronesia.

US whaling ships first sighted the islands in 1822.  The islands are habitat for birds.  Alfred G Benson and Charles H Judd took formal possession of the islands (as well as Jarvis Island) in 1857 in the name of the American Guano Company of New York (consistent with the Guano Act of August 18, 1856.)

The Guano Act stated that “when any citizen of the United States discovers a guano deposit on any island, rock, or key, not within the lawful jurisdiction of any other government, and takes peaceable possession thereof, and occupies the same island, rock, or key, it appertains to the United States.”

“The Peruvian Government has monopolized the supply of Guano throughout the United States … on account of said monopoly, the Farmers of this country have hithertofore been obliged to pay for said article about $50 a ton … it is the duty of the American Government to assert its sovereignty over any and all barren and uninhabitable guano islands of the ocean which have been or hereafter may be discovered by citizens of the United States …” (American Guano Company Prospectus, 1856)

“This Company own(s) an island in the Pacific Ocean, covered with a deposit of more than two hundred million tons of ammoniated guano and have dispatched a ship, agent, and men, to maintain possession thereof.” (American Guano Company Prospectus, 1856)

Rich guano deposits were mined throughout the later part of the 19th century, however, the guano business gradually disappeared, just before the turn of the century.  Thoughts of and activities on the islands disappeared.

Then, in mid-1930s, the US Bureau of Air Commerce (later known as Department of Commerce) was looking for sites along the air route between Australia and California to support trans-Pacific flight operations (non-stop, trans-Pacific flying was not yet possible, so islands were looked to as potential sites for the construction of intermediate landing areas.)

The United States reasserted its claim to the islands in 1935 (followed by President Franklin D Roosevelt issuing Executive Order 7368 to clarify American sovereignty and jurisdiction over the islands, on May 13, 1936.)

To affirm a claim, international law required non-military occupation of all neutral islands for at least one year.  An American colony was established.

The US Bureau of Air Commerce believed that native Hawaiian men would be best suited for the role as colonizers and they turned to Kamehameha Schools graduates to fill the role.

“They looked for someone that had some Hawaiian background. And that’s why they came to Kamehameha Schools to see if they can get someone from the school to participate because of our descendance as part-Hawaiians, that we would be used to the South Pacific or wherever.”  (James Carroll, colonist)

School administration selected the participants based on various academic, citizenship and ROTC-related criteria, as well as their meeting specified requirements for the job: “The boys have to be grown-up, know how to fish in the native manner, swim excellently and handle a boat, that they be disciplined, friendly, and unattached, that they could stand the rigors of a South Seas existence.”

On March 30, 1935, the United States Coast Guard Cutter Itasca departed in secrecy from Honolulu Harbor with 6 young Hawaiians aboard (all recent graduates of Kamehameha Schools) and 12 furloughed army personnel, whose purpose was to occupy the barren islands of Baker, Howland and Jarvis for 3-months.

“Once you get there, you wish you never got there. You know, you’re on this island just all by yourself and it’s, you know, nothing there at all. Just birds, birds, millions and millions of birds. And you just don’t know what to do with yourself, you know. It takes you a while to adjust to that, but once you adjust to it, it’s fine.”  (Elvin Mattson, colonist)

The American colonists were landed from the Itasca, April 3, 1935. They have built a lighthouse, substantial dwellings and attempt to grow various plants.

Cruises by Coast Guard cutters made provisioning trips approximately every three months to refit and rotate the colonists stationed on each island. Soon plans were put into place to build airfields on the islands and permanent structures were built.

In addition to their basic duties of collecting meteorological data for the government, the colonists kept busy by building and improving their camps, clearing land, growing vegetables, attempting reforestation and collecting scientific data for the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum.

In their free time, they would fish, dive, swim, surf/bodysurf, lift weights, box, play football, hunt rats, experiment with bird recipes, play music, sing and find other ways of occupying themselves.

Tragedy struck twice: Carl Kahalewai, a graduate of McKinley High School, died of appendicitis while he was being rushed home for an emergency operation; and on December 8, 1941, when the islands of Howland and Baker were bombed and shelled by the Japanese, Joseph Keliʻihananui and Richard “Dickie” Whaley were killed.

Howland Island played a role in the tragic disappearance of Amelia Earhart and Fred J Noonan during their around-the-world flight in 1937. They left Lae, New Guinea and headed for Howland Island; the Itasca was at Howland Island to guide Earhart to the island once she arrived in the vicinity – they didn’t arrive and were never seen again.  A lighthouse (later a day beacon) was built on Howland Island in Earhart’s honor.

The colonists were removed, following Japanese attacks on the islands in 1942. US military personnel occupied the islands during World War II. The islands have remained unoccupied since that time, but they are visited annually by US Fish and Wildlife personnel because the islands are a National Wildlife Refuge and later part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.

During the 7 years of colonization (1936-1942,) more than 130 young men participated in the project, the majority of whom were Hawaiian; none of the islands were ever used for commercial aviation, but the islands eventually served military purposes.  (Pan American Airways used Canton (Kanton) Island for its trans-Pacific flight flying boat operations.)

As early as 1939, members of previous trips formed a club to “perpetuate the fellowship of Hawaiian youths who have served as colonists on American equatorial islands.” Initially they were called the “Hui Kupu ʻĀina,” which suggests the idea of sprouting, growing and increasing land.

By 1946 the group’s name had changed to “Hui Panalāʻau,” which has been variously translated as “club of settlers of the southern islands,” “holders of the land society” and “society of colonists.” (Lots of information and images here are from Bishop Museum.)  

© 2023 Hoʻokuleana LLC

by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Arakawas

Established over 100 years ago, “old” Waipahu was once a vibrant, multi-ethnic sugar plantation town whose key corporate element was the Oʻahu Sugar Company.  For over 85 years, Waipahu served as a major commercial center outside of Honolulu.    (Waipahu Community Association)

“In the early days of Waipahu, the parking lot behind Bank of Hawaiʻi was a wetland next to Kapakahi stream.  People who lived near the stream grew rice and watercress and had truck gardens.  All of us kids used to swim in the stream and fish for dojo, funa and goby.”  (Goro Arakawa, Clark)

Another Waipahu institution (unfortunately, now gone) was Arakawas.

Zempan Arakawa, patriarch of the Arakawa (born on August 7, 1885,) came to Hawaiʻi from Okinawa in 1905.  First working at the Oʻahu Sugar Plantation, “Arakawa got to know all the workers and what they needed. He ran errands for them. This understanding proved useful when he went into retail a few years later. He knew his customers.” (Purcell; Sigall)

The real legacy of the Arakawa family began in 1909, when Zempan and Tsuru (Ruth) Arakawa, opened their first store, Arakawa Shoten on Waipahu Street. (Okinawa Association)

In 1912 he moved the store to Depot Road, where it was in the location later taken over by Big Way market.   (Then, in 1955, he opened the 1 1/2-level store.)  (Star-Bulletin)

From humble beginnings of selling kau-kau bags and sewn tabis to Waipahu plantation workers, they expanded their business and turned Arakawas into Hawaiʻi’s best known “everything” store. If you needed to find something – you would find it at Arakawas. (Okinawa Association)

Learning from his experience working on the plantation, where Zempan took orders for sewing and mending work that he did at night, he soon recognized that the sugar workers needed functional and sturdy work clothing, at a price they could afford.  (Kawakami)

By the 1920s, palaka (typically a white plaid pattern over a dark blue background) became very popular.  The Arakawa store specialized in selling palaka fabrics to plantation workers.  They referred to palaka as gobanji, the Japanese term for a plaid or check design.  Apparently, the early immigrants used palaka only as work jackets; they did not wear palaka shirts.  (Kawakami)

When Zempan retired in 1955 his children; sons Kazuo, Takemi, Shigemi and Goro; daughters Leatrice and Joan and their husbands (Sei Kaneshiro and Horace Taba) took over the running of the store.  (In 1959, Zempan Arakawa was recognized as Father of the Year by the Honolulu Chamber of Commerce.  (Sigall))

From the 1920s to the 1960s, Arakawas was the only clothing supply and general merchandise (including food, household goods, etc) store in the area, serving the general population and Waipahu Sugar Mill workforce.  (Environet)

Eighth child, daughter Joan (who attended Wolfe Fashion Design School,) was Arakawas’ Manager of apparel and accessories. She is known for the use of palaka material and apparel that became symbolic of Arakawa.

Fourth son, Shigemi, started out as the Manager/Buyer of the Import and Gift section of Arakawas, Shigemi was often described as a “creative merchandising genius” by his siblings and wholesalers and manufacturers throughout the Pacific Rim.   (Star Advertiser)

He developed the planned chaos concept of retailing that gave the store its special ambiance and was reflected in every Arakawas’ Sunday newspaper ad.  (Star Advertiser)

Every nook and cranny was crammed with merchandise, from clothing and jewelry to hardware, food and even sporting goods.  (Star-Bulletin)

Goro Arakawa, the youngest son of Zempan and Ruth, received a marketing degree from New York University and returned home to work in the family store.  There, he wrote advertising copy that incorporated the sights and sounds of Waipahu (such as the rooster crowing radio commercials.)  (Filipino Chronicle)

Ads ended with, “Arakawa’s – located on historic Depot Road, just below the Sugar mill.”    Goro also came up with catchy slogans like “If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you’ll find it at Arakawa’s” and “Don’t say you can’t find it until you shop at Arakawa’s.”  (Filipino Chronicle)

The 1 1/2-level store was actually the third incarnation of the small plantation store first opened by Zempan. In fact, the reason for the 1 1/2 levels was the one-half level upstairs occupied by the sporting goods. Going to Arakawa’s was like stepping back in time, back to the old sugar plantation days when life in Hawaiʻi seemed simpler and more relaxed.  (Star-Bulletin)

On buying trips around the world, he displayed an uncanny eye for finding things that would catch people’s fancy and sold goods as varied as sculptor Noguchi lamps, tapa-themed dinnerware, mosquito coils, and plastic orchid leis.  (Star Advertiser)

With the gradual decline of the sugar industry, the community’s economic and social vitality slowly began to deteriorate.  The historic town core centered on Waipahu Depot Road was devastated by the closures of the sugar mill and Bigway Market in 1999.  (Waipahu Community Association)

Through the generosity to the communities they served – Arakawas became the symbol of an era in Hawaiʻi’s history that represented hard work, sincerity, honesty and generosity of spirit. (Okinawa Association)

It was a sad day when Arakawas in Waipahu (operating from 1909 to 1995) closed its doors.  Gone was the assortment of colors and sizes of palaka wear, as well as the myriad needs filled by the diversity and depth of the merchandise in the store.

© 2023 Hoʻokuleana LLC