Place Names | Page 143 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

November 2, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Palaʻau

Palaʻau is Molokai’s only state park; DLNR has a license to use the land as a park from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.

In 1921, when the Hawaiian Homes Act of 1920 went into effect, title to the approximate 230-acres of Palaʻau 3 (Palaʻau) was transferred to the Hawaiian Homes Commission (the actual transfer and DHHL use happened in 1923, after fences were finished.)

The area had been part of lands previously used as cattle pasture, first by Kamehameha V Lot Kapuāiwa, then by Molokai Ranch (formed in 1897.) The area was leased by Molokai Ranch until it expired in 1918.

Then, on July 19, 1928, the Hawaiian Homes Commission passed a motion to dedicate Palaʻau 3 for the purpose of reforestation by the Board of Agriculture and Forestry. (A 1928 Attorney General opinion noted the lands must first be returned to control of the Commissioner of Public Lands before it could be set aside as a forest reserve.)

The next year, the Hawaiian Homes Commission officially returned Palaʻau 3 to the Commissioner of Public Lands of the Territory of Hawai’i, to again be managed as part of the Moloka’i Forest Reserve. (At the time, the lands were not being leased to native Hawaiians as authorized under the provisions of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act.)

On March 25, 1930, by proclamation of the Governor of the Territory of Hawai’i, Palaʻau was added to the Molokai Forest Reserve.

Between 1931 and 1933, Palaʻau was fenced off and the Board of Commissioners began reforestation of the land with trees as follows: about 3,500 in 1931, 8,400 in 1932 and over 5,100 in 1933.

In 1936, a nursery was started as part of the Emergency Conservation Work project, or the Civilian Conservation Corps and trees were grown for outplanting at Palaʻau. Within the next 5-year nearly 200,000 additional trees were planted.

The government and DHHL recognized “forest growth is a well-recognized aid to the protection and conservation of water which is one of the prime necessities in the case of persons who will secure leases of Hawaiian home lands.” (Letter of Territorial Forester to Board of Commissioners of Agriculture and Forestry, May 18, 1936)

Besides its watershed benefits, folks also saw the benefit of using the property for park purposes, as well as a lookout over Kalaupapa. On June 29, 1955, Palaʻau was established as Palaʻau Park under the Territorial Parks system.

In addition to a small campground and passive recreation area, one of the primary purposes of the Palaʻau Park is the Kalaupapa overlook. (Nearby Parking and a short walk take people to the north shore cliffs and overlook of the peninsula.)

In addition there are several cultural features within the site, primarily the Nanahoa complex. These four sites include two phallic stones.

The six foot high male stone is called ‘Kauleonanahoa’ (the penis of Nanahoa – ‘one of the finest examples of phallic stones found throughout the Hawaiian Islands.’)

“The rock was believed to make barren women fertile and as a precaution newly-wedded women would sit on it one night.”

The female stone has several names, including Kawahuna,’ ‘Nawaʻakaluli’ and ‘Waihuʻehuʻe’ (‘it appears to be in its natural state with a large groove down the center.’)

The more than 24-petroglyphs are located on four boulders and consists of human stick figures and a series of grooves located near the base of the rocks which may have been used to sharpen the tools employed to carve the petroglyphs. A holua slide has been destroyed since it was reported in 1909.

In 1984, Palaʻau Park was returned, together with various other parcels, to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands; however, the State entered into a license agreement with DHHL for the continued use of the public park, campground and lookout.

The Kalaupapa overlook in Palaʻau State Park is a major visitor attraction. The lookout is located at the northern end of the main road. Access to the lookout is via a footpath from the paved parking lot. A series of informational exhibit panels provide a history of the Kalaupapa Peninsula and Hansen’s disease.

Ke Aupuni Lokahi Inc has been working with the state and National Park on their Ala Palaʻau project to restore native forest habitat and rare species in the area, improve views of Kalaupapa peninsula and the cliffs of the northern coast of Molokai, and provide interpretation and education of these unique natural and cultural resources.

The vision of the project is to provide a place-based learning experience where local schools, community members, and interested visitors can come to learn about Molokai’s rich biological and cultural heritage.

It is intended as a hands-on educational experience that encourages pride in Palaʻau State Park’s resources and highlights the importance of preserving Molokai’s native species and ecosystems while teaching about the role they play in Hawaiian culture. (Lots of information here is from McGregor.)

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Palaau State-Park

Walkway to Kalaupapa lookout

Palaau State Park

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Palaau State Park-Kalaupapa

Kalaupapa Lookout-Interpretive Signs

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Kauleonanahoa or Phallic Rock at Pala’au State Park; Molokai

Kawahuna-by_MolokaiPhotography

Kawahuna

Palaau and Kalaupapa-GoogelEarth

October 16, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Laniākea Cave

Reverend Asa and Lucy Thurston were in the Pioneer Company of American Christian Missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands, arriving in Kailua-Kona on the Thaddeus in 1820.

“After an accurate investigation of the places adjacent, in which they thought it might be found, they chose a valley, about half a mile from the residence of the governor, and near the entrance of Raniakea, as the spot where they were most likely to meet with success.” (Ellis)

They made their home in Kailua Village, in a home the Hawaiians named Laniākea. Thurston received Laniākea, a 5.26 acre homestead parcel as a gift from Governor Kuakini.

As noted by Rev. Sereno Edwards Bishop, in his book “Reminiscences Of Old Hawaii” (1916:) “In the early (1830s,) Kailua was a large native village, of about 4,000 inhabitants rather closely packed along one hundred rods of shore, and averaging twenty rods inland.”

“It had been the chief residence of King Kamehameha, who in 1819 died there in a rudely built stone house whose walls are probably still standing on the west shore of the little bay. Nearby stood a better stone house occupied by the doughty Governor Kuakini.”

“All other buildings in Kailua were thatched, until Rev. Artemas Bishop built his two-story stone dwelling in 1831 and Rev. Asa Thurston in 1833 built his wooden two-story house at Laniākea, a quarter of a mile inland.”

“Most of the native huts were thatched with the stiff pili grass. The better ones were thatched with lau-hala (pandanus leaf) or with la-i.” (Bishop)

“Five acres were enclosed with a stone wall three feet wide and six feet high, with simply the front gate for entrance. A large thatched house was erected. Space was allowed for a yard twenty-five feet in breadth.” (Lucy Thurston)

“Thatched houses are not durable, therefore, in the course of years, we had a succession of dwellings, but this was the general arrangement. In the 12th year of the Mission, a two-storied wooden house was erected in the children’s yard, and the wall for their special enclosure removed, as the times no longer required such an accommodation.” (Lucy Thurston)

In 1823, English protestant missionary William Ellis joined forces with American protestant missionary Asa Thurston and a party of explorers to circumnavigate the island of Hawaii.

“In the course of the forenoon, two of our number visited the ruins of an old military fortification, formerly belonging to the makaʻāinana, (common people.)”

“All that at present remains, is a part of the wall, about twelve feet high, and fourteen feet thick at the bottom, built of lava, and apparently entire.”

“In the upper part of the wall are apertures resembling embrasures; but they could not have been designed for cannon, that being an engine of war, with which the natives have but recently become acquainted.”

“The part of the wall now standing, is near the mouth of Raniakea (Laniākea,) the spacious cavern … which formed a valuable appendage to the fort.” Ellis)

“The whole face of the country marked decisively its volcanic origin; and in the course of their excursion they entered several hollows in the lava, formed by its having cooled and hardened on the surface, while, in a liquid state underneath, it had continued to flow towards the sea, leaving a crust in the shape of a tunnel, or arched vault, of varied thickness and extent.

“After entering it by a small aperture, they passed on in a direction nearly parallel with the surface; sometimes along a spacious arched way, not less than twenty-five feet high and twenty wide…”

“… At other times, by a passage so narrow, that they could with difficulty press through, till they had proceeded about 1,200 feet; here their progress was arrested by a pool of water, wide, deep, and as salt as that found in the hollows of the lava within a few yards of the sea.” (Ellis)

“One may walk along it for about fifteen minutes, through a passage which often reaches a considerable height. … The cave runs into a deep subterranean pool of very cold water, and further progress can be made only by swimming through an aperture in the makai end, when one may enter an inner cave, which is said to lead to the sea.” (Kinney, 1913)

“More than thirty natives, most of them carrying torches, accompanied (Ellis’ group) in their descent; and on arriving at the water, simultaneously plunged in, extending their torches with one hand, and swimming about with the other.”

“The partially illuminated heads of the natives, splashing about in this subterranean lake; the reflection of the torch-light on its agitated surface; the frowning sides and lofty arch of the black vault, hung with lava, that had cooled in every imaginable shape …”

“… the deep gloom of the cavern beyond the water; the hollow sound of their footsteps; and the varied reverberations of their voices, produced a singular effect; and it would have required but little aid from the fancy, to have imagined a resemblance between this scene and the fabled Stygian lake of the poets.”

“The mouth of the cave is about half a mile from the sea, and the perpendicular depth to the water probably Not less than fifty or sixty feet.”

“The pool is occasionally visited by the natives, for the purpose of bathing, as its water is cool and refreshing. From its ebbing and flowing with the tide, it has probably a direct communication with the sea.” (Ellis)

When war threatened the early inhabitants of Kona, and it was not uncommon, those who could not fight took refuge in the cave, and while the battles raged overhead, the refugees sent forays up the mountain and to the sea, via the cave, to gather food and water. (laniakea)

“In this cavern, children and aged persons were placed for security during an assault or sally from the fort, and sometimes the wives of the warriors also, when they did not accompany their husbands to the battle.”

“The fortification was probably extensive, as traces of the ancient walls are discoverable in several places; but what were its original dimensions, the natives who were with us could not tell. They asserted, however, that the cavern, if not the fort also, was formerly surrounded by a strong palisade.” (Ellis)

When the Thurstons retired to Honolulu, the house and land became the property of Mokuʻaikaua Church.

In 1980, sections of the cave had collapsed and the entrance was choked with debris and the entrance near the Thurston House was disturbed by squatters.

Waste products and debris have been dumped into the cave, causing an accumulation of sediment and muck within the cave. The western entrance to the cave near Hale Halawai is blocked. Large concrete pillars within the cave apparently were place to support improvements above. (Rasmussen)

The Laniākea house fell into disrepair, and in the 1990s the Laniākea Foundation was formed to save the ruins of the cave and home site from development. (laniakea)

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October 14, 2015 by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Wahiawā Hotel

“An instance of community enterprise truly admirable is being exhibited by the Wahiawā Settlement Association in the erection of a hotel in that Salubrious village.”

“As shown in the list of building permits in this paper the other day, the building is estimated to cost $3,650, and the plans have been prepared by Emory & Webb, architects. Its location is 300 feet from the railway station.” (Star Bulletin, January 21, 1913)

Let’s look back …

In 1897, Californian, Byron Clark, became the Hawaiian Republic’s commissioner of agriculture. In looking for land for him to settle on, he learned of the availability of land at Wahiawā.

Clark organized a group of other Californians (as well as others) to join him in settling the whole tract of thirteen hundred acres — which became known as the Wahiawā Colony Tract. Having formed an agricultural cooperative called the Hawaiian Fruit and Plant Company, the homesteaders began formalizing and refining the physical organization of their Wahiawā settlement.

Initially each settler lived in a house on his five-acre parcel in the town site and farmed his other land in the surrounding area. It was soon discovered, however, that each settler preferred to reside on his own farmstead, holding his town lot in reserve. The homesteaders abandoned the village plan and agreed that one man, Thomas Holloway, would live on their 145-acre central lot site.

On August 27, 1902 a trust deed, referred to as the Holloway Trust, formally set aside the central town lots for the use and benefit of the Settlement Association of Wahiawā resident landowners.

Within a few years, Wahiawā Town was underway. Some of the town’s streets would be named for the early homesteaders – including Clark, Kellogg, Thomas and Eames streets (initial mapping shows California Avenue as the first, and main, road.)

Back to the hotel … “This hotel scheme was taken up by the association as the best way to expend a snug balance in the settlement funds, as well as to utilize the hall that had been erected for community gatherings.”

“Originally the structure was used for a schoolhouse, but ultimately the government provided a school building for itself. Besides erecting the hotel, the association is going to provide Uncle Sam with a post office building.”

“There are two buildings in the establishment as planned, the main building to be an auxiliary cottage the old assembly hall reconstructed. In the main building there will be six bedrooms, a parlor and a dining room, the last being utilizable also as a living room.”

“The remodelled cottage will have four bedrooms. A veranda ten feet wide will extend along the four sides of the main building. The bedrooms are of good size, the four on the ground floor of the main building being 12 by 13 feet. There is a gable outlook on every side of the house, each commanding beautiful scenery.”

“Each house is equipped with all needed conveniences, including linen closets. Guests will have pure water from the clouds, a large tank for rain water being provided. This is exclusively for drinking purposes as for other uses the hotel will be connected with the piped mountain water system of the settlement.” (Star Bulletin, January 21, 1913)

At the corner of Lehua Street and California Avenue stood the old Wahiawā Hotel. The “cottages,” as the hotel was referred to, was operated by Mary Johnson until World War II, when it was formally taken over by the Army for nurses’ quarters.

The start of World War II further helped to accelerate developments within Wahiawā to accommodate the needs of the growing military population. Wahiawā Elementary School on Lehua Street soon closed their doors in the 1940s to become the new Wahiawa General Hospital.

The Office of Civil Defense established a 42-bed wartime medical facility in the wood frame buildings formerly housing Wahiawā Elementary School.

At the end of World War II, the facility continued to remain in operation under the leaders of the Wahiawā Hospital Association. The 72-bed acute care facility was dedicated in 1958, under the official name, Wahiawā General Hospital. (Cultural Surveys)

Post World War II, the old Wahiawā Hotel had been used as living quarters for area school teachers. By the 1960s, Wahiawa teachers, who had been quartered at the teachers’ cottages (as they referred to them), were forced to relocate as plans for the new Wahiawa Branch Library were in the making. (Cultural Surveys)

Wahiawā Hotel was demolished in the 1960s to accommodate construction for the new Wahiawā Library. The library opened its doors on July 19, 1965. The library continues to remain in operation today. (Cultural Surveys)

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October 10, 2015 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Land Divisions

In discussing ancient land divisions, we typically hear of Mokupuni (island,) Moku (district,) Ahupuaʻa (generally watershed units) and ʻIli (strips of land.) Kalana and ʻOkana are often less-heard-of land divisions.

“In very ancient times, the lands were not divided and an island was left without divisions such as kalana, ʻokana, ahupuaʻa, and ʻili, but in the time when the lands became filled with people, the lands were divided, with the proper names for this place and that place so that they could be known.” (Kamakau)

Each of the larger divisions of this group, like Hawaiʻi, Maui and the others, is called a mokupuni (moku, cut off, and puni, surrounded.)

Six districts on the islands of O‘ahu and Hawai‘i, and the system of developing smaller manageable units of land became formalized by the early 1600s, in the reigns of ʻUmi-a-Līloa and Māʻilikūkahi. (Maly)

“The island (moku that is surrounded by water) is the main division, like, Hawai’i, Maui and the rest of the island chain. (Islands) were divided up into sections inside of the island, called moku o loko, like such places as Kona on Hawai’i island, and Hana on Mäui island, and such divisions on these islands.” (Malo)

Over the centuries, as the ancient Hawaiian population grew, land use and resource management also evolved. The moku puni or islands were subdivided into land units of varying sizes.

Each island was divided into several Moku ʻĀina (moku-o-loko (district – literally: interior island)) (Moku) or Districts. The Moku and Kalana (similar to the Moku) were divided into ʻokana (divisions within a Moku or Kalana) and Ahupuaʻa.

There sections were further divided into subdivision called ʻokana, or kalana. On the intermediate level, some kalana/moku were subdivided into ʻokana, some ʻokana were apparently independent of any moku/kalana, and moku and kalana were not always synonymous but appear in some cases to have been units nested within each other. (Beamer)

“(A) poko is a subdivision of a ʻokana. These sections were further divided into smaller divisions called Ahupua’a, and sections smaller than an Ahupua’a were called ‘ili ‘āina.” (Malo)

There is a district called Kona on the lee side, and one called Koʻolau on the windward side of almost every island. On Maui there are some sub-districts called ʻokana, of which there are five in the Hana district, while Lahaina is termed a Kalana. (Alexander)

Despite the diversity and complexity of the system, it appears that the ahupua’a became the most important division in the resource administration of the Hawaiian Kingdom, both as a unit and as a reference for the location of smaller properties. (Beamer)

Ahupuaʻa are subdivisions of land that were usually marked by an altar with an image or representation of a pig placed upon it (thus the name ahu-puaʻa or pig altar.)

In their configuration, the ahupua‘a may be compared to wedge-shaped pieces of land that radiate out from the center of the island, extending to the ocean fisheries fronting the land unit.

Their boundaries are generally defined by topography and geological features such as pu‘u (hills), ridges, gullies, valleys, craters, or areas of a particular vegetation growth.

The ahupua‘a, like the larger districts they belonged to, were also divided into smaller manageable parcels. Among the smaller land units that were identified by the ancient Hawaiians were the: ‘ili lele and ‘ili kupono. (Maly)

A peculiarity of the ‘Ili, on Oʻahu at least, is that it often consists of several distinct sections of land in different parts of the Ahupua’a, which are called lele, i.e. ‘jumps.’

Thus many lands in Waikiki have their corresponding patches of taro land and forest in Waikiki and Manoa valleys. The taro lands of Wailupe are found in Palolo valley. In Kalihi, and also in the district of ʻEwa, are ʻili which consist of eight or ten scattered lele apiece, included under one title. (Alexander)

ʻIli were detached parcels with resources in various environmental zones; kihāpai, both lo‘i (pond fields) and dry gardens; māla, dryland agricultural systems; and kōʻele, agricultural parcels worked by commoners for the chiefs.

These smaller parcels were inhabited and managed by the makaʻāinana (people of the land) and their extended families. In each ahupua‘a—from mountain slopes to the ocean—the common people were generally allowed access to all of the various natural resources within a given ahupua‘a. (Maly)

Land Divisions include, generally:

• Mokupuni – The island groups (such as our current county system)
• Moku – The major districts of each individual island
• Kalana – The significant divisions within each Moku
• ʻOkana – Division of the Moku or Kalana
• Ahupua‘a – Individual watershed regions within each Kalana
• ʻIli – functional subdivisions of an Ahupua‘a

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October 5, 2015 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Kukuionapeha Heiau

Kaimuki, before man, was a site of rocky land, red soil high in iron and largely covered by lava.

Where Kaimuki got its name is not known. However, there are many stories and legends which tell what the name means. One is from a legend that menehune (legendary little people of Hawaiʻi) chose the place to build their ti ovens. Breaking the word down, ‘Ka’ means the, ‘imu’ – roasting-pit or ti-oven, and ‘ki’ – ti. (Kapio)

William Lunalilo ended up with most of the area known as Kaimuki through the Great Māhele (1848.) Lunalilo was born on January 31, 1835 to High Chiefess Miriam ‘Auhea Kekauluohi (Kuhina Nui, or Premier of the Hawaiian Kingdom and niece of Kamehameha I) and High Chief Charles Kanaʻina.

When Kamehameha V died on December 11, 1872 he had not named a successor to the throne. The Islands’ first election to determine who would be King was held – Lunalilo defeated Prince David Kalākaua (the Legislature met, as required by law, in the Courthouse to cast their official ballots of election of the next King. Lunalilo received all thirty-seven votes.)

Lunalilo was the first of the large landholding aliʻi to create a charitable trust for the benefit of his people. He was to reign for one year and twenty-five days, succumbing to pulmonary tuberculosis on February 3, 1874.

His estate included large landholdings on the five major islands, consisting of 33-ahupuaʻa, nine ʻili and more than a dozen home lots. His will, written in 1871, established a perpetual trust under the administration of three trustees to be appointed by the justices of the Hawaiian Supreme Court.

His will instructed his trustees to build a home to accommodate the poor, destitute and infirm people of Hawaiian (aboriginal) blood or extraction, with preference given to older people. The will instructed the Trustees to sell all of the estate’s land to build and maintain the home. (Supreme Court Records)

In 1884, the Kaimuki land was auctioned off. The rocky terrain held little value to its new owner, Dr. Trousseau, who was a “physician to the court of King Kalākaua”. Trousseau ended up giving his land to Senator Paul Isenberg. Theodore Lansing and AV Gear later bought the Kaimuki land (in 1898.) (Lee)

In 1898, Kaimuki was still the barren, rocky and red-dirt land filled with panini, kiawe, and lantana. However, Lansing, a real estate agent, thought it was a great place to build a high class residential district. Initially, sales were slow.

But in 1900, the Chinatown fire forced folks to find places for new homes and businesses – many came to Kaimuki. This eventually led to the construction of the Lēʻahi Hospital (1901.)

Lēʻahi Hospital was once called Honolulu Hospital for the Incurables. The patients were there to die. Most died of tuberculosis which spread to hundreds. The hospital was nicknamed ‘Make house,’ or the house for the dead. (Kapio)

This and other activity in the area destroyed and/or displaced the landscape.

A heiau, Kukuionapeha Heiau (Napeha’s light or beacon) was in the vicinity.

It was in an “Area seaward of 8th and 9th avenues, Ka-imu-ki, Honolulu, that was once a heap of rocks.” (Ulukau) “Kaimuki, at the town side of old signal station. All destroyed.” (Thrum.)

The image shows what is believed to be Kukuionapeha Heiau in Kaimuki (Hawaiʻi State Archives.)

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