Schools | Page 4 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

September 20, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Saint Louis School

On June 17, 1839, King Kamehameha III issued the Edict of Toleration permitting religious freedom for Catholics in the same way as it had been granted to the Protestants.

In 1841, Father Louis Maigret, the Vicar delegate, divided Oʻahu into missionary districts. Father Martial Jan was assigned to supervise the Koʻolau district. By the early 1850s, the windward coast of Oʻahu was dotted with chapels.

The Sacred Hearts Father’s College of Ahuimanu was founded on the Windward side of Oʻahu in 1846 by the Catholic Mission under the direction of the Fathers of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

One of its students, Damien (born as Jozef de Veuster,) arrived in Hawaiʻi on March 9, 1864, at the time a 24-year-old choirboy. Determined to become a priest, he had the remainder of his schooling the College of Ahuimanu.

On May 21, Damien was ordained a priest at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace in downtown Honolulu; he spent the rest of his life in Hawaiʻi. In 2009, Father Damien was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI.

The College of Ahuimanu flourished; as reported by the Bishop in 1865, “The college and the schools are doing well. But as the number of pupils is continually on the increase, it has become necessary to enlarge the college. First we have added a story and a top floor with an attic; then we have been obliged to construct a new building. And yet we are lacking room.”

In 1881, the school moved to its second location in former Rev. Richard Armstrong’s home, ”Stonehouse” (named after the residence of Admiral Richard Thomas in England,) on 91 Beretania Street adjoining Washington Place. At that time, the name “College of St. Louis” was given to the institution in honor of Bishop Louis Maigret’s patron Saint, Louis IX.

Pacific Commercial Advertiser noted that “The College of St. Louis, an Hawaiian Commercial and Business Academy, offering Classical, Scientific and Commercial courses,” also offered in its curriculum courses in Latin, Greek, French, Spanish, German, and Italian. An evening session offered adults “theoretical and, practical knowledge of commercial and business transactions.” (Soong)

Growing enrollment soon required the Mission Fathers to relocate the school, again; this time, they found a site on the banks of Nuʻuanu Stream. The College at Aʻala was placed under the direction of five pioneer Brothers of Mary who arrived from Dayton, Ohio in 1883.

St Louis continued to be affiliated with the Society of Mary, a religious order of brothers and priests called Marianists. The Society was founded by Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, a priest who survived the anti-clerical persecution during the French Revolution.

The Nuʻuanu Stream front campus was accessed via “College Walk” street; it’s now a linear mall/park fronting the stream (however, no school or college is there anymore.)

In the years following, it became evident that the elementary and high school departments were in need of still larger quarters. Encouraged by parents and alumni, the Marianists laid plans for a greater St. Louis College.

In 1923, they purchased 205 acres at Kalaepōhaku in Kaimuki; classes began there in 1928.

December 8, 1941 the US Government commandeered the campus for the use of the 147th General Hospital. Elementary students attended classes at Saint Patrick School and high school classes co-located at McKinley High School.

Sharing a campus by the high schools led to a fierce rivalry. To ease some of the tension, reportedly, Saint Louis football coach (later Honolulu Mayor) Neal Blaisdell created the “poi pounder trophy,” to go to the winner of the annual Saint Louis/McKinley football game (this continued from 1942 to 1969.)

After sixty-seven-years of providing education at grade levels one through twelve, the elementary and intermediate grades were withdrawn one-grade-a-year, beginning in 1950.

In 1955, the Marianists established Chaminade College on the east end of the Kalaepōhaku campus (it was initially named the Saint Louis Junior College; with it, Saint Louis College was renamed to Saint Louis High School.)

In 1957, Saint Louis Junior College became co-educational and a four-year college and the school was renamed to Chaminade College of Honolulu (named after the Society of Mary (Marianists) founder.)

St. Louis’ high school classes continued on campus until 1979, when the school’s Board of Trustees voted to re-incorporate intermediate grades seven and eight, beginning in fall, 1980. A sixth grade was added and the intermediate grades were then converted to a middle school beginning with the fall semester of 1990.

Today, Saint Louis is an all-boys private Catholic school, grades six through twelve; they note it is a school “Where Boys Who Want to Change the World Become the Men Who Do.”

September 4, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

MacDonald Hotel

“Broad spreading trees and wide lawns gave Punahou St an air of quiet and peace and dignity. And not the least dignified of the buildings which line the street is the MacDonald hotel, which for more than 50 years has stood as a landmark in the district.” (Star Bulletin, July 21, 1934)

“The MacDonald Hotel is a stately mansion surrounded by cottages amid sub-tropical foliage. It is located at 1402 Punahou Street in the great residence district of Honolulu.”

“There are tennis courts on the grounds, and the transient as well as the permanent resident has here all the comforts of home at the reasonable rates of $3 a day or $65 a month. The guests enjoy delicious home-cooked meals, which are also served to outsiders. This hotel is near Central Union Church and Oahu College. (Mid-Pacific Magazine, July 1927)

“Two prominent island families called this building ‘home’ before it was converted into a hotel. They were the families of Col and Mrs Charles H Judd and Judge and Mrs HA Widemann.” (Star Bulletin, July 21, 1934)

Charles Hastings Judd, born at Kawaiaha‘o on September 8, 1835 to missionaries Gerrit and Laura Judd, was Chamberlain to King Kalākaua from 1878 until 1886, and an official in various responsible capacities during the reigns of three rulers, Kamehameha V, Lunalilo and Kalākaua.

In 1860, Judd and his brother-in-law, SG Wilder, had purchased the lands of Kualoa and Ka‘a‘awa from Judd’s father and Jacob Fox and started diversified farming with tobacco, cotton and rice were planted and the possibility of vanilla beans was discussed.

He entered into a partnership with his father and Wilder in 1863 for the growing and grinding of sugar cane at Kualoa, and in 1864, the first on the Island of O‘ahu.

In 1866 the Charles and his family settled at “Rosebank,” Nu‘uanu Valley, which had been bought from the estate of Robert C Wyllie, famous in Hawaiian history as a minister of foreign affairs. During these years Judd was engaged in ranching with John Cummins at Waimanalo. Production of sugar at Kualoa having failed for various reasons, the enterprise was abandoned in 1871. (Nellist)

Hermann Adam Widemann was born in Hanover, Germany on December 24, 1822. “After he left school where he received an excellent training he was destined for the army. His ‘pull’ was not sufficient in those days for promotion when ‘birth’ was everything and he went to sea in a merchant vessel.”

“In 1843 he arrived in Honolulu and he liked the place well and made up his mind to return to the Islands. In 1846 he landed again in Honolulu and made his home here and became a leading citizen of this little place. During the ‘gold fever’ in 1848-9 he made a trip to California but struck no ‘ore’ there.”

He later made a great success, through his ambition energy and sterling qualities, he rose to the high position in the community. He served at one time Sheriff of Kauai, then Circuit Judge, Minister of the Interior, a Privy Councilor, a member of the Board of Health, Minister of Finance and a Noble.

“The main record of Mr Widemann will go down to posterity however as a leading and successful coffee and sugar planter. … Although Widemann was not a trained lawyer he was a natural born jurist and at the time of his death was the oldest member of the Hawaiian Bar and for a while he occupied the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.” (The Independent, Feb 7, 1899)

Back to the MacDonald Hotel property … “It was built in 1880 for Col Judd, then court chamberlain to King Kalakaua and long active in affairs of the monarchy. Beautlful walnut and other fine woods were used in its construction, and it stands today as substantial as it was 50 years ago. The handsome stairway is of walnut, and so are the five pairs of thick folding doors.”

“The Judd family moved in late in 1880, but Col Judd left his home on January 20, 1881, to accompany King Kalakaua on his famous trip around the world. Unable to go direct from here to Japan, the party went first to San Francisco, then directly across the Pacific and on around the world. Col Judd was away from his home most of the year.”

“In 1886, following his withdrawal from the service of the king, Col Judd moved to his Leilehua ranch home, although keeping his Punahou St home for occasions when he was in the city. …” Later the house was sold.

“The new owners of the house were Judge HA Widemann, also a prominent figure in governmental affairs, and Mrs Widemann. Here the Widemann family, with its household of children lived, and even after the marriage of the younger generatlon the house remained a center of their activities.

Following the death of Widemann … “the house became the property of his daughter, Mrs Henry Macfarlane. She sold it after a few years and it became a hotel, managed by Mrs M MacDonald for many years.”

“It came under the present ownership in 1928 when Mrs Polly Ward was appointed manager. At this time its name was temporarily changed to Kalaniloohia (The Beautiful Attainment), an early name for the district; but the name MacDonald hotel was so firmly ingrained on people’s consciousness that it stuck, and later the Hawaiian name was dropped.”

“Although improvements have been made in the interior of the building it still retains the atmosphere of the hospitable old home. The Manoa breeze sweeps through its high ceilinged rooms just as it did a half century ago.”

“The exterior remains without change, and so do most of the four and a half acres of spacious grounds. Five cottages are now in the yard, two of them dating back to the Widemann’s occupancy.”

“Another of these cottages known as ‘Little Arcadia’ has an interesting history of its own. It was built about 1893 or 1894 by Mr and Mrs. John G Rothwell and stood, not where it is now, but on the adjoining lot mauka, just a trifle makai and Waikiki of Arcadia, the present home of Judge and Mrs. Walter F Frear.” (It was moved to make room for the driveway to Arcadia.) (Star Bulletin, July 21, 1934)

Things changed again … “MacDonald Hotel Sold to Church for School Use .., The MacDonald hotel and property [about 3.6 acres] at 1402-1406 Punahou Street will be converted to use as an addition to the Maryknoll School.” (Star Bulletin, Dec 16, 1947)

Maryknoll was founded by a young priest and six Maryknoll Sisters. When it was blessed in 1927, there were only 93 boys and 77 girls who made up the student body. The school was a one-story, wooden-frame building containing four classrooms on Dole Street.

Within four years, the Sisters knew that expansion was necessary. In 1931, the first freshman class was enrolled and, in 1935, the first 13 graduates of the only Catholic co-educational high school in Hawaii received diplomas.

The high school division continued to operate at Dole Street until 1948, when it was moved to the former MacDonald Hotel on Punahou Street. In August 1953, the present high school facility was dedicated. Today, Maryknoll is Hawai‘i’s largest co-ed Catholic school serving grades K-12. Fifty percent of the students are non-Catholics. (Maryknoll)

August 29, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Sam Ka‘aekuahiwi

“From the lofty precipice on the south-east of Waipio, I had an enchanting view of a Hawaiian landscape of singular beauty and grandeur, embracing the varied scenery around, and the deep and charming valley below; the dwelling-place of twelve or fifteen hundred inhabitants …”

“With one hand clinging to little shrubs and strong grass, and with the other thrusting a sharpened staff into the earth to avoid sliding fatally down the steep, I attempted it. Friendly natives of the valley ascended part way to meet and assist me. Their ingenuity readily supplied a vehicle, by uniting bushes and branches of shrubs, and the ki plant for a drag.”

“Taking a seat at their order, on the top of it, I was gradually let down this wall on this basket, by six wakeful and sure-footed natives, two before, two behind, and one on each side.”

“With all their agility, one and another of them occasionally getting too much momentum, would suddenly slide forward a yard or two ahead of the others. We reached the bottom speedily and successfully.” (Bingham)

“Waipio Valley is a deep cleft six miles long reaching back into the rugged Kohala mountains. It is the largest valley in the Hawaiian Islands. It is almost one-half mile deep at the northern end and three-quarters of a mile deep at the [southern] end.” (Honolulu Advertiser, June 24, 1956).

“It had five stores, four restaurants, one hotel, a post office, a rice mill, nine poi factories, four pool halls, and five churches. Also two jails.” (Honolulu Advertiser, June 24, 1956). The majority of these establishments were located in Nāpō‘opo‘o.

Nāpō‘opo‘o (‘the holes’) is located near Hi‘ilawe Falls on the Kukuihaele side of Waipi‘o valley. When Ellis visited the valley in 1823, this area was well populated. In 1870, the Chinese started rice farming in areas which were previously cultivated in taro. (DURP, 2001)

The May 1920 Hawaii Educational Review notes, Waipio School “is not on government land. The land is owned by the Bishop Estate and leased to the Hamakua Ditch Company.”

Samuel ‘Sam’ Makanoenoe Ka’aekuahiwi Sr was Principal of Waipio School 1920-1945 (possibly earlier than 1920). (Waipio: Māno Wai, Appendices)

Samuel Makanoenoe Ka’aekuahiwi Sr was born on June 28, 1882, in Kukuihaele, the son of Peter Pika Ka‘aekuahiwi Sr and Puhene Kahiwa. He married Amoy Akeao Akana Leong on December 31, 1903. They were the parents of at least 5 sons and 10 daughters. (FamilySearch)

“When I was four years old, my mother died. So my sister was keeping me, my older sister and my other sisters. … My father, yeah, he remarried. or only stay together, or what. I don’t know if really he remarried (No, only together.)” (son, Ted Ka‘aekuahiwi; Waipio: Māno Wai)

Sam Ka‘aekuahiwi “came from, actually from Maui. And he went to Maui Boarding School and he came to Hawaii. In the first place, he’s a teacher. … He taught at Kawaihae. That’s his first place he taught. Let’s say, maybe about five years I think.”

“And then he came to Kapulena. He taught over there, I don’t know how many years, but. And then he came down to Waipio. And then he met my mother down at Waipio Valley. Married. Start teaching down Waipio Valley.” (Ted Ka‘aekuahiwi; Waipio: Māno Wai)

“The Waipi‘o School was a two room building, and at its peak may have had about one hundred students. Everything was taught in the English language, through four grades. I remember a succession of teachers, an Englishman with a red face and a moustache, then a Portuguese, then John Kealoha, Solomon Burke (a hapa haole), and Sam Ka‘aekuahiwi.”

“The kids were mostly Hawaiians, followed numerically by Hawaiian-Chinese, Hawaiian-Haole, and Chinese. We were supposed to speak only English on the school premises, but we actually used a pidgin of Hawaiian, English, and Chinese.”

“We used Baldwin Readers, first, second and third. We read about spring, summer, autumn, and winter without the slightest comprehension of the terms. We read of Jack Frost on the pumpkins, when outside were rose apple trees and the tradewinds brought the fragrance of wild ginger flowers into the classrooms.”

“We memorized the alphabet and the multiplication tables. We studied history and learned that George Washington was born in Westmoreland, Virginia – why that stuck in my head I’ll never know. All of us felt sorry for the American Indians and Negroes. We also learned something about Hawaiian history.”

“School hours were from nine to twelve and one to two. … The Chinese kids were the better students, especially in arithmetic, whereas the Hawaiian kids were good in music and singing. The teachers would write out the music in four parts and the kids sang it beautifully.”

“Every Friday afternoon for one hour we would have a work detail, repairing stone walls, dusting erasers—a general cleanup of the school.”

“The only times school was called off was when the valley was badly flooded. … At the high school [in Hilo] I met white kids for the first time.” (Herbert Mock “Akioka” Kāne; transcribed and edited by his son “Herb” Kawainui Kāne; Coffee Times)

In 1939, Waipio Valley had “a 3-room grammar school with one teacher, one principal (Sam Kaaekuahiwi), and 31 students; a Mormon church; two stores.”

“The school sponsors social affairs, dances and hula concerts. No mail delivery in the valley. Old Protestant church in ruins, Roman Catholic church falling apart. Non-Mormon services conducted in people’s homes. 4-H Club sponsors fairs. No electricity but they do have battery-run radios. Approximately 80 voters. Population of Waipio approximately 200.” (Waipio: Māno Wai, Appendices)

“I went to Waipio Valley School. My teacher was Samuel Kaaekuahiwi. He was the roughest teacher that I ever come across for the many years. But he was all right. … Well, when you don’t do your lessons right, you not interested, he pound you on the wall. That’s the kind of life we went through.” (Joseph Batalona, Waipio: Māno Wai)

“Sam Kaaekuahiwi, the last school teacher of Waipi‘o, told me that Kukuihaele Village got its name in ancient times when inhabitants of Waipi‘o could see travelers carrying lights on the pali trail. Kukui refers to kukui nut torches, and haele ‘to go.’” (Herbert Mock “Akioka” Kāne; transcribed and edited by his son “Herb” Kawainui Kāne; Coffee Times)

In 1949, “The 100 residents of Waipio valley, biggest wet-land taro producing area of the territory, still have hopes of getting a road into the valley.”

“But unlike residents of other areas, they have patience, knowing construction of a road from the pali nearly 1,000 feet to the floor of the valley, is preceded by many other proposed county projects with higher priority ratings.”

“Until then, however, they would like more attention shown their trails in the valley. They made their wishes known yesterday to County Chairman James Kealoha, who made a horseback trip around the valley.”

“Mrs Louisa Kanekoa told him the county neglected trimming brush which shoots up over the trails from the rich valley soil. She urged the hiring of Waipio women who, she said, are better workers than the men and would save money for the county.”

“Sam Kaaekuahiwi, former principal of the Waipio school … said the road was not only needed for transporting poi and taro to market but also to make it easier for students to attend school.”

“More than 10 children now must get up around 5 am to make the long hike up the steep incline to the Kukuihaele school, for some trip of more than three miles, he said.”

“On rainy mornings they reach the pali soaked to the skin and make a change in clothing before going to school. A few students live in Kukuihaele during the school year to avoid making the long walk.” (Hawaii Tribune Herald, Nov 5, 1949)

In 1951, Waipio had “a schoolhouse, but no teacher. … There is a phone line from the top to the bottom of the trail into Waipio. Before jeeps enter the trail they call down to see if a mule pack is coming up. Two mule trains go up each day, each with 7-9 mules.” (Waipio: Māno Wai, Appendices) Sam Ka‘aekuahiwi Sr died December 12, 1961.

August 9, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Arcadia

“As one enters the grounds the pure style of the white structure is more impressive. Simplicity, which always spells tase, reigns supreme, and the grassy terrace on one side of the broad walk advancing to meet one, is a quiet spot of beauty …”

“… as well as a sign of the hospitality which will always endear the Governor and his wife to the public and their intimate friends.” (Evening Bulletin, Jan 18, 1908)

In 1907, a new home was built “where their old cottage stood for so many years”. (Evening Bulletin, Jan 18, 1908) “Arcadia” was “known as a center of culture and refinement”. (Hawaiian Gazette, June 20, 1899)

Born October 29, 1863, in Grass Valley, California, Walter Francis Frear was the son of Walter and Fannie E (Foster) Frear. He descended on his father’s side from Hughes Frere, a French Huguenot who emigrated to New York from Flanders in 1676 and was one of the twelve founders of New Paltz, New York. On his mother’s side, he is a descendant of George Soule, who came to America with the Mayflower Pilgrims.

Arriving in the Islands with his parents at the age of seven, Mr. Frear first saw Hawaii on Christmas morning, 1870. He graduated from O‘ahu College in 1881 and received his AB degree at Yale University in 1885.

After serving as an instructor at O‘ahu College, Mr. Frear entered Yale Law School, receiving an LL.B. degree in 1890 and was awarded the Jewell prize for the best examination at graduation. In 1910 the honorary degree of LL.D. was conferred on him by Yale University.

Returning to Hawaii, he was appointed second judge, First Circuit Court, by Queen Liliu‘okalani on January 1, 1893, just before the revolution which ended the monarchy, and was appointed second associate justice of the Supreme Court by the Provisional Government, March 7, 1893.

Frear married Mary Emma Dillingham Frear on August 1, 1893. Mary was a daughter of Benjamin F Dillingham, one of the most prominent businessmen and entrepreneurs in Hawaiʻi, and Emma Louise Smith, daughter of missionaries Rev and Mrs Lowell Smith, who had come to Hawaiʻi from New England in 1833.

During the Republic of Hawai‘i, Mr. Frear was made first associate justice of the Supreme Court, January 6, 1896. In 1898, following annexation by the US, he was appointed by President McKinley a member of the commission to recommend to Congress legislation concerning Hawaii.

Frear was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court, Territory of Hawai‘i, June 14, 1900, serving until August 15, 1907. He was appointed Hawai‘i’s third Governor in 1907 by President Roosevelt; Frear remained in office until 1913.

The Frear home, known as “Arcadia,” was located at 1434 Punahou Street. (Punahou74) “There is a feeling of space and comfort all over the house. Nothing is over-done. … The bedrooms are all dainty and possess the same restful atmosphere.” (Evening Bulletin, Jan 18, 1908)

“Always interested in the Greek language, the Frears chose a name in it for their home. Horses, cats and other pets also were often given Greek names. Arcadia has been variously translated as peace, rest an beauty, of ‘the home of pastoral simplicity and happiness.’ The Frears had originally met when he was her Greek teacher.” (Star Bulletin, April 10, 1965)

“It is certainly a house of culture, of rest, and of peace. That atmosphere pervades everything, and on feels on intimate terms with the host and hostess from the moment of entering it portals.”

“It is also a home, a place to live in, and the sympathetic natures of the occupants are felt immediately. That Governor and Mrs Frear will be one with the public and its needs goes without saying, for they believe heart and soul in ding all in their power for the general good of mankind.”

Walter died January 22, 1948 in Honolulu. Mary died on January 17, 1951. “Arcadia. The stately home … at 1434 Punahou St, together with all the land [about 3-acres] and improvements [was] bequeathed to Punahou School under the terms of Mrs’ Frear’s will … [and she] requests her residence be known as the ‘Walter and Mary Frear Hall.’”. (Honolulu Advertiser, Feb 2, 1951)

Punahou considered such options as faculty housing but, by the fall of 1955, the facility had been remodeled to accommodate the kindergarten. Classes were held there until May 1962. (Punahou74)

Then, “The present home will be torn down to make way for the new Arcadia … The project will be built and owned by the Central Union Church.” (Honolulu Advertiser, April 15, 1965)

“Punahou had announced plans for the retirement home there last October but for tax reasons decided to lease it to the [Central Union] church instead.” (Star Bulleting, Feb 25, 1965)

“Ground was broken … for the $7.4 million Arcadia ‘retirement’ apartment building to be located on the site of the old Frear home at 1434 Punahou Street.”

“Instead of the customary shovel-full of dirt, the ground-breaking ceremony featured a hitching-post ‘transplanting’. A metal hitching post at the side of the home, which dates back to 1907, was moved to a special container, which will be given a permanent niche when the Arcadia project is completed.” (Honolulu Advertiser, April 15, 1965)

August 8, 2024 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kindergarten

“When the school introduces and trains each child of society into membership within such a little community, saturating him with the spirit of service, and providing him with the instruments of effective self-direction, we shall have the deepest and best guarantee of a larger society which is worthy, lovely and harmonious.”

“Passivity of attitude, mechanical massing of children, uniformity of curriculum and method are the typical points of the old education. It may be summed up by stating that the centre of gravity is outside the child.”

“Now the change which is coming into our education is the shifting of the centre of gravity. It is a change, a revolution, not unlike that introduced by Copernicus when the astronomical centre shifted from the earth to the sun. In this case the child becomes the sun about which the appliances of education revolve; he is the centre about which they are organized.” (Dewey; Wheeler)

Let’s look back …

The word kindergarten comes from the German language. Kinder means children and garten means garden. Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852) started the first kindergarten, Garden of Children, in 1840. “Children are like tiny flowers; they are varied and need care, but each is beautiful alone and glorious when seen in the community of peers.” (Watertown Historical Society))

The idea of kindergartens began in Germany with Friedrich Froebel (1782-1852.) Germans moving to the US brought the idea over when they settled there. In 1855, in Watertown, Wisconsin, Mrs Carl Schurz, a former student of Froebel, established America’s first kindergarten. (Castle)

In Hawaiʻi, the earliest mention of a kindergarten program is in 1892 in connection with Francis Williams Damon’s work with the Chinese. Damon was interested in Chinese boys, and opened a kindergarten in the Chinese Mission on Fort Street. Charles Reed Bishop provided some financial support.

In 1893, the Woman’s Board of Missions for the Pacific Islands opened four kindergartens specializing in several racial groups: Portuguese, Japanese, Hawaiian and one for children of all other races. (CharlesReedBishop-org)

In Hawaiʻi, free kindergartens began under private support. The Islands’ first kindergarten teacher might have been Miss Birch Fanning, who arrived in Honolulu August 3, 1889.

Although she announced her plans to start her own kindergarten, she ended up as a teacher for Punahou Preparatory School on Beretania Street in 1892. This experience was short-lived, and Punahou did not begin a permanent kindergarten program until 1900.

Because of the success, the Woman’s Board of Missions, founded in 1878, organized four kindergartens in 1893. Separated along racial lines, they were organized for Japanese, Portuguese, Hawaiians, and for a group classified as “other races.” (Castle)

Local training of teachers began two years later for “select young ladies” who “have worked hard and acquired great proficiency in the mysteries of Froebel’s admirable system of training infant minds.”

The programs proved extremely popular; and, the work was exceeding the capacity of the Woman’s Board of Missions. As a result, the Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association of the Hawaiian Islands was established in 1895. (Forbes)

Because of its newness, the Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association was soon in search of an educational methodology to implement its mission. Harriet Castle, the guiding spirit of the Association, would be responsible for shaping this direction through importing the academic views of John Dewey, a friend of the Castle family.

Dewey’s theory, which would help to shape education for the 20th-century, resulted from his rejection of the rigid and formal approach to education that dominated schools in the late 19th-century. The old approach was based upon a psychology in which the child was thought of as a passive creature upon whom information and ideas had to be imposed. (Castle)

Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association, one of Hawaiʻi’s first eleemosynary organizations, offered the first teacher training program and free kindergarten to all of Hawaiʻi’s children.

Some of the children were taught in the old Mission School House, “the great single room … on Kawaiahaʻo Street. Cool, spacious, dignified, generous in the proportions of its ample length and breadth, of its lofty ceiling, of its deeply recessed windows….” (The Friend, December 1, 1924)

The early Mission School House, built about 1833-35 was the regular meeting place of the annual missionary gathering, known as the “General Meeting.” This building stood south of Kawaiahaʻo Church, at the foot of a lane. (Lyons)

In 1899, the Henry and Dorothy Castle Memorial Kindergarten (1899-1941) was founded, funded and operated by the Castle Foundation. Mary Castle used a major substantial part of the proceeds of the trust to fund a memorial to her late son and granddaughter. (This program established the reputation and identity of the foundation.) (Castle)

Castle asked Dewey to create a kindergarten modeled upon his educational theories. The facility was built on the Castle family homestead on King Street, where Henry was born and Dorothy spent her early years. The school was later turned over to the University of Hawaiʻi (founded eight years later in 1907) to operate.

Eventually, the teacher training program was eventually moved to what became the University of Hawaiʻi, and the kindergartens were taken over by the Territorial Department of Education. (KCAA)

Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association also established the first public playground in Honolulu in 1911, Beretania Playground, at the corner of Beretania and Smith streets in the heart of Chinatown. It was intended for boys and girls under ten, and for older girls accompanying the very young, and the “play garden” was open seven days a week from 9 am to 5 pm.

“In recognition of the truth of Joseph Lee’s declaration, ‘A boy without a playground is father to the man without a job’, the Free Kindergarten and Children’s Aid Association is making a valiant effort … to secure a trained playground worker for Honolulu.” (The Friend, April 1912)

Just like the private founders forming and funding the Kindergarten program, initially, private groups, rather than public agencies, undertook efforts to build playgrounds.

A major objective of private playground organizers was to convince city officials that public recreation ought to be a municipal responsibility. As a result, by the opening decade of the twentieth century most large American cities had established playgrounds owned and operated by municipal governments.