Images of Old Hawaiʻi

  • Home
  • About
  • Categories
    • Ali’i / Chiefs / Governance
    • American Protestant Mission
    • Buildings
    • Collections
    • Economy
    • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
    • General
    • Hawaiian Traditions
    • Other Summaries
    • Mayflower Summaries
    • Mayflower Full Summaries
    • Military
    • Place Names
    • Prominent People
    • Schools
    • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
    • Voyage of the Thaddeus
  • Collections
  • Contact
  • Follow

December 8, 2019 by Peter T Young 4 Comments

After December 7, 1941 – Submarines Continue Attack on Hawaiʻi

Most are very aware of the December 7, 1941 attacks by the Japanese on military installations on Oʻahu.

Their targets were Pearl Harbor; Hickam, Wheeler and Bellows airfields; Ewa Marine Corps Air Station; Kaneohe Bay Naval Air Station and Schofield Barracks.

However, the attacks by the Japanese on Hawaiʻi did not end on December 7th.

A group of about nine Japanese submarines were kept in the vicinity of Hawaiʻi until mid-January – they were stationed there to find out just how much damage had been done to the American military.

In addition, they tried to do what damage they could, as well as stir up concern in the civilian population about the war.

Before December was over, the Japanese submarines brought war home to the neighbor islands.  Not by air attacks, but with periodic shelling from their submarines.

Over the next few weeks, on several occasions, they shelled more targets in Hawaiʻi – and, those attacks were not isolated to military targets; later in the month, civilian facilities were the intended targets.

Just before dusk on December 15th, a submarine lobbed about ten shells into the harbor area of Kahului on Maui, and three that hit a pineapple cannery caused limited damage.

Over a 2½-hour period during the night of December 30 – 31, submarines engaged in similar and nearly simultaneous shellings of Nawiliwili on Kauaʻi, again on Kahului, Maui and Hilo on the Big Island.

Damage at all three points was slight, and no one was hurt. The principal result of these shellings was to stir up the war consciousness of all the Hawaiian Islands.

A report of the Kauaʻi shelling states, “At around 1:30 a.m. on the moonlit night of December 30, 1941, an enemy Japanese submarine estimated to be about 4 miles offshore shelled Nawiliwili Harbor with least 15 three-inch shells in what was the only attack on Kauai during WWII.”  (kalapakibeach-org)

“The shrapnel from one shell riddled every room in the home of CL Shannon, which was located over the Kauaʻi Marine & Machine Works, Shannon’s business, then situated along the stretch of harbor between what are today the Matson and Young Brothers terminals.”

On the bluff above the harbor, where the bulk sugar storage warehouse stands today, a shell started a small cane fire.  Most of the shells were duds. One punctured a gasoline storage tank, others created water plumes in the bay.

Merchant Marine William S. Chambers, on a cargo ship docked in Kahului, noted. “We were shelled by a Japanese submarine in Kahului Harbor on December 30th, 1941, shortly before we left for San Francisco.”  No damage was reported at Kahului.

Ten rounds were fired at ships docked at Kahului piers.  Two shells fell harmlessly into the harbor. Four rounds hit the Maui Pineapple Company cannery, doing some damage to the roof and smokestack. One fell on the driveway of the Maui Vocational School, another in a waste lumber pile on Pier I, and one broke a few windows at the Pacific Guano and Fertilizer building. Army guns unsuccessfully returned fire.

The second attack on Kahului, on December 31, took place after General Order No. 14 established wartime censorship in Hawai’i and therefore received limited coverage.

The News did, however, mention in its first edition of 1942 that Maui police, navy and marine forces, as well as “HC & S Co. cowboys,” were patrolling on horseback to prevent looting. The death toll from the attacks: one unfortunate chicken.

None of the damage was considered major. Some frightened Kahului residents started to flee, but police and Boy Scouts persuaded them to return home.

In Hilo, residents were roused when a submarine surfaced about three miles offshore and open fired on Hilo Bay.  Ten rounds, with high explosive shells hit a seaplane tender, the pier and started a small fire in the vicinity of Hilo Airport.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

I-171
Japanese_submarine_I-1
Hilo_Harbor-1940s
Hilo-Map-1946
Kahului-Airfield-Harbor-1945
Kahului-Airfield-Harbor-1946
Lihue-Nawiliwili-Map-1946
Nawiliwili-kalapakibeach-org-1941

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: Hawaii, Hilo, Pearl Harbor, Submarine, Nawiliwili, Kahului

December 7, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

NAS Kāneʻohe Bay

Dec. 7, 1941 will always be remembered as a “Day of Infamy,” after the devastation of Pearl Harbor.  However, some may not be aware of the events that occurred that fateful morning on the other side of the Koʻolau Mountains.

Ten months after being commissioned, US Naval Air Station – Kāneʻohe Bay was one of the first locations on Oʻahu to be attacked by Japanese forces.

Minutes prior to its attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Navy bombed NAS Kāneʻohe Bay.

The attack on Kāneʻohe was designed to disable the military’s long-range reconnaissance capabilities by knocking out the PBY Catalina seaplanes stationed there.

Navy Lieutenant Fusata Iida was the flight leader of carrier Soryu’s squadron of 12 Japanese dive-bombers who came off the seaward side of the peninsula during a 10-minute strike on the base.

Of the 36 PBY Catalina “flying boat” seaplanes, including those moored in Kāneʻohe Bay, 27 were destroyed and six others were damaged.

Only the three Catalinas that were out on patrol escaped attack. However, departing Japanese Zero aircraft attacked those three; one returned with 81 bullet holes in it.

The first Japanese aircraft destroyed in action during the December 7 attack were shot down at Kāneʻohe.

During the attack, Lt. Iida’s plane had been hit and was leaking fuel, when he apparently used it to make a suicide attack. (Before taking off, he had told his men that if his plane was badly damaged he would crash it into a “worthy enemy target.”)

He signaled that the rest of the planes should return to the ship and pointed to the ground, indicating that he would attempt to crash his plane into a suitable target.

Missing valuable targets, Iida’s plane crashed into the side of a hill on the base.

Navy Lt. John W. Finn, aviation chief ordnanceman, is credited for shooting down the Japanese Zero.  During the attack, Finn left his quarters to man a .50 caliber machine gun mounted in a parking ramp.  While doing so, he sustained multiple wounds.  His actions earned him the Medal of Honor.

A second wave of bomber planes came approximately 20 minutes later and dropped more bombs.  One of the hangars (now Hangar 102) received a direct hit during this attack and exploded.

The second attack is credited for most of the casualties (due to bomb fragments.)  The Kāneʻohe raid killed 18 U.S. sailors and one civilian; 65 were injured.

Iida was buried at the Heleloa burial area, near the mass burial site of the 18 Sailors.  (The remains of each were later disinterred and returned to their respective homes in the US and Japan.)

A stone and cement marker with bronze plaque, located along Reed Road, marks the approximate crash site.  The Iida marker may be the only marker on a US military installation dedicated to an enemy soldier.

Representatives of several Japanese organizations regularly gather to remember Iida with a solemn ceremony and to honor the 19 who died there.

Of the artifacts surviving from pilot’s crash site, a helmet believed to be Iida’s was returned to his relatives at a ceremony at MCB Hawaiʻi in 1999.

There were a total of nine Zero pilots and aircraft lost during the attacks on December 7, 1941.

Three pilots were lost during the first wave attack, Takashi Hirano, from the carrier Akagi along with Kaga-based pilots Seinoshin Sano and Toru Haneda, did not return.

Six Zero fighter pilots were lost in the second wave attack, including Lt. Fusata Iida, Shun-Ichi Atsumi and Saburo Ishii, all members of the same element from the carrier Soryu.

In addition, Shigenori Nishikaichi, from the carrier Hiryu, crash-landed and was killed on the island of Niʻihau.  Ippei Goto, along with his companion from the carrier Kaga, Tomio Inenaga, went missing in action.  Information and photos summarized here are primarily from Marine and other military sources.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

John Finn defending Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay on Dec. 7, 1941, entitled 'The Warriors of Kaneohe'
John_William_Finn-wearing_Medal_of_Honor
Lt Fusata Iida
Cars that were strafed by Japanese aircraft pictured at Naval Air Station (NAS) Kaneohe, Hawaii
Catalina Flying Boat Destroyed
Catalina Flying Boats
Hangar_102_on_fire
Kaneohe Naval Air Station after Attacks
Lt Fusata Iida Plaque MCBH
Lt Iida enroute from the factory to deliver his A6M2 model 11 to China in early 1941 flying past Mount Fuji
PBY Catalina seaplane
Sailors at Naval Air Station (NAS) Kaneohe, Hawaii, attempt to salvage a burning PBY Catalina
Saving Catalina seaplane
NAS Kaneohe after Japanese Raid
Japanese_Zero
The Japanese officer, Lt. Iida, shot down in the attack, is buried with military honors near Kanehohe bay
Burial Ceremony for 18 Sailors Killed in Attack
Unabarakai_Association,_Japanese_Aircraft_Impact_Site-Commemoration
Lt Fusata Iida Memorial MCBH
Lt Fusata Iida Plaque-MCBH
Lt Fusata Iida-plaque

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: Pearl Harbor, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Hawaii, Kaneohe Bay, Kaneohe

December 5, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Waiʻanae

The Waianae Coast received its name from the mullet that was once farmed here. Wai means water, and ʻanae means large mullet (perhaps from mullet in the muliwai, or brackish-water pools, that were once common in the backshore on many Waiʻanae beaches.) These fish were once produced in large amounts.

A legend describes the origins of niu (coconut) in the Hawaiian Islands, as well as the naming of Pōkaʻī Bay. Pōkaʻī was a voyaging chief of Kahiki (Tahiti) who is said to have brought coconut palms to Hawai‘i. A huge grove of coconuts once lined the shore of Pōka‘ī Bay.

The trees provided shelter and useful materials for the ancient Hawaiian village. This grove, known as “Ka Uluniu o Pokai,” was not just a legend as it was noted by western sailors in the 1700s.

Waiʻanae Ahupuaʻa within the Waiʻanae District was its Royal Center in the late-1600s to the 1700s. The ahupuaʻa had numerous important heiau and the largest population of the district at European contact.

Prior to contact with the Hawaiian Islands by Captain James Cook in 1778, the population of Waiʻanae was approximately 4,000 to 6,000 people.

In 1793, Vancouver described Waiʻanae as desolate and barren: “From the commencement of the high land to the westward of Opooroah [Puʻuloa] was … one barren rocky waste, nearly destitute of verdure, cultivation or inhabitants, with little variation all to the west point of the island. …”

“Nearly in the middle of this side of the Island is the only village we had seen westward of Opooroah. … The shore here forms a small sandy bay. On its southern side, between the two high rocky precipices, in a grove of cocoanut and other trees, is situated the village. …”

“The few inhabitants that visited us from the village, earnestly entreated out anchoring and told us, that if we would stay until morning, their chief would be on board with a number of hogs, and a great quantity of vegetables. … The face of the country did not, however, promise an abundant supply.” (Vancouver)

A Waiʻanae kahuna (priest) prophesied the coming of a “big fish” who “would eat all the little fish.” The following year (1795,) Kamehameha invaded and conquered Oʻahu. Following Kamehameha’s succession as ruling chief, “the despoiled people in large numbers fled to Waiʻanae and settled there. This part of Oahu being hot, arid, isolated, with little water, was not coveted by the invaders”. (City P&R)

In direct contrast was an inland description of Waiʻanae recorded by Handy in 1940: In ancient times Waiʻanae Valley had extensive systems of terraces along its various streams, in what is now forest and water reserve, and well down into the broad area not covered by sugar cane.

Names were obtained for 14 district terrace sections, watered by Olahua Stream, extending as far down as the site of the present power house. The section named Honua, including the group of terraces farthest inland, belonged to the aliʻi of the valley. (City P&R)

In the 1800s, missionary Levi Chamberlain traveled to Waiʻanae, describing it as: “… a very beautiful place, opening an extensive valley … having a view of the sea from those points …”

“… on the left is a grove of coconuts on low ground through the midst of which runs a beautiful stream of clear water from the mountains. Houses are scattered here and there in the grove and clumps of sugar cane and rows of bananas are see interspersed.” (Chamberlain)

The census in 1835 listed 1,654 residents on the Waiʻanae coast. In 1855, JW Makalena, the Waiʻanae tax collector, listed these figures for taxpayers: Waiʻanae Kai – 62, Kamaile – 44, Mākaha – 38, Makua – 21, Maile – 9, Nanakuli – 8. These were generally adult males. Assuming each adult male had a family of four, estimates of population are: Waiʻanae Kai – 250, Kamaile – 175, Makaha – 150, Makua – 85, Maili – 35, and Nanakuli – 30.

Christian missionaries were quick to establish missions throughout Oʻahu following their arrival in 1820. Ordained in 1850, Stephen Waimalu became the first Hawaiian minister of Waiʻanae.

In the mid-1800s, Paul Manini (son of Don Francisco de Paula Marin) had a lease over Waiʻanae Valley; he raised cattle on the land. By the late-1870s most of Waiʻanae Ahupuaʻa was in ranching. JM Dowsett had acquired Waiʻanae Uka by 1870 and by 1880 was running a grazing ranch on 17,200 acres of the Waiʻanae Valley. (City P&R)

Prior to the 1880s, the Waiʻanae coastline may not have undergone much alteration. The old coastal trail probably followed the natural contours of the local topography. With the introduction of horses, cattle and wagons in the nineteenth century, many of the coastal trails were widened and graded.

However, sugar was to be the economic future of Hawaiʻi and with the passing of the treaty of reciprocity in 1876, allowing sugar into the United States duty free, the profits became enormous.

In 1879 Judge Hermann A Wideman, GN Wilcox and AS Wilcox started the Waiʻanae Company to grow sugar in the Mākaha, Waiʻanae and Lualualei valleys.

With the addition of a railroad for hauling cane, Waiʻanae Company carried the distinction of being the most modern and efficient in all of Hawai`i.

As the success of sugar cultivation grew, so did Waiʻanae Village. By the 1890s, there was a resident postmaster, two mail deliveries a week, a steamer arrival every Friday and the plantation manager’s office boasted a telephone (McGrath).

Eventually as the sugar lands increased, squabbles arose between the plantation and the taro farmers over the precious and limited water resources. Wells dug by the McCandless brothers solved the crises for the plantation for a while. At its peak, the plantation produced 13.79 tons of sugar per acre in 1935.

John Papa ‘Ī‘ī describes a network of Leeward O‘ahu trails, which in early historic times crossed the Waiʻanae Range, allowing passage from Central O‘ahu through Pōhākea Pass and Kolekole Pass. The Pu‘u Kapolei trail gave access to the Waiʻanae district from Central O‘ahu, which evolved into the present day Farrington Highway.

In 1888, Benjamin F Dillingham secured a franchise from King Kalākaua to build a railroad that eventually extended from Honolulu, along the Waiʻanae coast, around Kaʻena Point, to Waialua and Kahuku. With easy access to the Waiʻanae coast by train came limited development

The arrival of WW II changed the character and land use of Waiʻanae. Some of the best sugar lands were taken over by the military, which was the beginning of the end for the Waiʻanae Plantation, that closed in 1947. Lots of information here from McGerty and Spear in City P&R.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Waianae_Sunset
Waianae
Waianae_Coast
Kaena_Pt_from_Kaneana-(WC)
Waianae Train Station
Waianae-(Kuahiwi)
Farrington_Highway-Makaha_Beach-(CulturalSurveys)-1947
Makua Cave
Farrington_Highway-(Cultural_Surveys)-late-1940s
Old_Waianae_Road-(Cultural_Surveys)
Waianae_Sugar
Suydam Cutting, NY explorer & writer; Jouett Todd, Louisville attorney; Walter Dillingham; W. Averell Harriman, chmn Board; Sloan Colt, pres NY Banker's Trust Co; Hugh Chrisholm, Portland MO.
Suydam Cutting, NY explorer & writer; Jouett Todd, Louisville attorney; Walter Dillingham; W. Averell Harriman, chmn Board; Sloan Colt, pres NY Banker’s Trust Co; Hugh Chrisholm, Portland MO.
Landings_at_Waianae-1949
Marines_Training-Miki-h70244-1949
Marines_Training-h70244-1949
Plantation manager's home, Waianae, Oahu-(HSA)-PPWD-18-2-012-1885
Waianae_Coast_Beach-1910
Waianae Beach, Poka'i Bay-(vic&becky)-1953
waianae-boat-harbor-usace
kuilioloa-heiau-at-pokai-bay-craig-wood
Waianae - Outdoor Theater
Waianae District

Filed Under: Place Names Tagged With: Waianae, Nanakuli, Makaha, Kaena, Chamberlain, Hawaii, Oahu, Oahu Railway and Land Company, Kaala

December 4, 2019 by Peter T Young 2 Comments

Waiʻalae Country Club

In 1887, Daniel Paul Rice Isenberg (Paulo Liʻiliʻi) (son of the Paul Isenberg, one of the founders of H. Hackfeld & Co. (Amfac) and one of the organizers of the Līhuʻe Sugar plantation) invested a large part of his inheritance in the development of a 3,000-acre ranch at Waiʻalae, Oʻahu.

He obtained the major part of Kaimuki from the Lunalilo and Bishop estates, and used this land for cattle, alfalfa and race horses.

He was the first ranchman in the islands to demonstrate the growth and uses of alfalfa, a valuable stock feed, but he couldn’t realize much of a profit because sugar and rice were top priority, then.

His birthday was on June 11, Kamehameha Day, the day for horse races at Kapiʻolani, and “rarely did it pass without a luau at Waiʻalae Ranch.” King Kalākaua frequently visited Isenberg at his ranch for the evening, for both of them enjoyed the same things, festivities, luaus and singing.

In 1919, after Isenberg’s death, the ranch’s lease was sold to accommodate a dairy by 1924; it was the largest dairy in Honolulu.

Then, in 1927, the Territorial Hotel Co., as part of a promotional program to develop luxury travel trade to Hawaiʻi on the mother company’s Matson Navigation Co. cruise ships, built the Royal Hawaiian Hotel … and with it the Waiʻalae Golf Course.

The hotel and golf course lands were leased from the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Estate. The Golf Course was opened for play on February 1, 1927. In July 1927, the Isenberg ranch home near the mouth of Wai‘alae stream became the club house for the Wai‘alae Golf Course.

Local players were able to use the course, and by payment of annual fees for play became “privilege card holders” in the Territorial Hotel Company’s Waiʻalae Golf Club.

In 1930, a group of these Waiʻalae players formed a private club within the Waiʻalae Golf Club which they called Waiʻalae Country Club. It enlarged a small service building close to the main clubhouse, installed showers and had its own clubhouse where the swimming pool is now located.

The great depression of the 1930s severely reduced travel and resulted in bankruptcy of the Territorial Hotel Co. Matson took over the obligations and interests of the Territorial Hotel Co. which included the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, the Moana Hotel and Waiʻalae Golf Club.

By the 1930s, the beachfront along Kahala Avenue was being developed with homes, while farming continued in other areas. In 1938, more than 50 pig farms were operating in the vicinity of Farmers Road and Kahala Avenues. Residents of the area, citing an increase in rats and mice at Kahala, petitioned the territorial board of health to remove the pig farms (Honolulu Advertiser, December 20, 1938).

During these years, play on the course was mainly by local privilege card holders, most of whom were members of Waiʻalae Country Club.

In August of 1941, fire destroyed the Waiʻalae Pavilion which was used by Waiʻalae Golf Club for dining and dancing, and Matson decided to turn the golf course and remaining buildings over to Waiʻalae Country Club.

Before this plan was consummated, the US had entered World War II, the military had requisitioned the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, and numerous military defenses had been installed along Oʻahu’s coastline including the golf course at Waiʻalae.

Waiʻalae Country Club was incorporated on September 30, 1942 and became lessee of the golf course acreage and a small section of land owned by Matson on which the old Isenberg home (later The Pavilion) had been located. The military built a replacement for the Pavilion because of the heavy use of the course by military personnel during the war.

The old Waiʻalae Country Club clubhouse was destroyed by fire in 1952, but through the conversion of the military structure into kitchen and dining facilities, and the building of new locker rooms, Waiʻalae was again in full operation within twenty-four months after the fire.

In the 1953 filming of “From Here to Eternity,” Private Prewitt is shot near the bunker on the first hole at Waiʻalae.

No major physical changes were made in the golf course layout until 1954 when the 15th hole was lengthened from 320 yards to 435 yards. (However, in the early-1960s major reconstruction on the front nine was necessitated in order to provide beachfront areas for the Kahala Hilton Hotel and the Kahala Beach Apartments.)

Tennis courts, swimming pool and added parking units were completed in 1958 and Waiʻalae became a Country Club in fact, as well as, name.

Hawaiian Opens (under various sponsorships) have been held at Waiʻalae since 1928. The First PGA Tour Hawaiian Open Golf Tournament was held in the fall of 1965. Today, Waiʻalae is home to the Sony Open in Hawaiʻi. (Lots of images and information here is from the waialaecc-org.)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Barrenness_of_Kahala-seen_from_Kaimuki-in_distance_is_Isenberg's_Waialae_Ranch-(later_Golf_Cource)-1889
The new golf course at Waialae-(waialaecc-org)-1929.
Ground Breaking for new clubhouse building-(waialaecc-org)-1971
The original home of Waialae Country Club, the former Paul Isenberg garage and servants' quarters-(waialaecc-org)
Clubhouse,-The section on the left was the old Army theater building-(waialaecc-org)-1955
Waialae_Country_Club-The Pavilion-interior-(waialaecc-org)-1927
Waialae_Country_Club-The Pavilion-(waialaecc-org)-1927
In the 1953 filming of 'From Here to Eternity,' -(waialaecc-org)
Waialae-W
waialae-country-club-palm-tree-w
IMG_3522
Black_Point-Wailupe-(USGS-UH_Manoa)-4485-1965
Kahala-Aina_Haina-(USGS-UH_Manoa)-2449-1952
Waialae-GoogleEarth-IslandBreath

Filed Under: General, Place Names, Economy Tagged With: Hawaii, Matson, Isenberg, Royal Hawaiian Hotel, Waialae Contry Club, Waialae

December 3, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kulaokahu‘a

On January 9, 1847, the Polynesian reported there were 1,386 buildings in Honolulu, 1,337 of these were residences: 875 made of grass; 345 adobe; 49 coral; 49 wood and 29 stone/coral below, wood above.

Washington Place was built that year by future-Queen Liliʻuokalani’s father-in-law.

Excluding visiting sailors, foreigners made up only some 6 per cent of Honolulu’s approximately 10,000-residents.

Following a road realignment program directed by Kuhina Nui Kīnaʻu (Kaʻahumanu II) to straighten out the streets, Honolulu was linked by four “big paths” or alanui: Beretania and Queen bordered it in the north and south and Alakea and Nuʻuanu defined its eastern and western limits.

Nearly two-decades before (about 1830,) Queen Ka‘ahumanu ordered that a wall be built in the Makiki area to keep cattle from the inland residential areas. The stone wall also marked a path across Makiki which was first called Stonewall Street; this former path is now covered by Wilder Avenue.

The government decreed that after May 4, 1850 no horses, cattle, or other animals could run at large there; more than 30 years later agents were being appointed to take up strays. (Greer)

Beyond Honolulu’s limits there were few residences other than the grass houses of Hawaiians. The population was growing toward and up Nuʻuanu, but Honolulu was hemmed on the Diamond Head end by the barren plains called Kulaokahuʻa.

Kulaokahu‘a translates as “the plain of the boundary.”

Kulaokahu‘a was the comparatively level ground below Makiki Valley (between the mauka fertile valleys and the makai wetlands.) This included areas such as Kaka‘ako, Kewalo, Makiki, Pawaʻa and Mōʻiliʻili.

“It was so empty that after Punahou School opened in July 1842, mothers upstairs in the mission house could see children leave that institution and begin their trek across the barren waste. Trees shunned the place; only straggling livestock inhabited it.” (Greer)

This flat plain would be a favorable place to play maika, a Hawaiian sport which uses a disc-shaped stone, called an ‘ulu maika, for a bowling type of game.

Pukui states that the name makiki comes from the type of stone used to make octopus lures. This is the same type of stone that was used to make ‘ulu maika, and some have speculated that the name of the ahupua‘a (Makiki) may have originated from its association with the maika sport rather than, or addition to, the making of octopus lures.

There were several horse paths criss-crossing the Kulaokahu‘a Plains. In the 1840s, it was described as “nothing but a most exceedingly dreary parcel of land with here and there a horse trail as path-way.” (Gilman) The flat plains were also perfect for horse racing, and the area between present-day Piʻikoi and Makiki Streets was a race track.

The Plains were described as dry and dusty, without a shrub to relieve its barrenness. There was enough water around Makiki Stream to grow taro in lo‘i (irrigated fields,) and there was at least one major ʻauwai, or irrigation ditch.

From 1840 to 1875, only a few unpaved roads were in the area, generally along the present course of King, Young, Beretania and Punahou Streets. These roads or horse paths “ran a straggling course which changed as often as the dust piled up deep”. (Clark)

“As early as 1847 a number of sales took place of lots in Honolulu, Kulaokahuʻa plain, Manoa and Makawao.” (Interior Department, Surveyor’s Report, 1882)

In the Great Mahele, the Kulaokahu‘a Plains were awarded to the Crown. On July 11, 1851, an Act was passed confirming certain resolutions of the Privy Council of the previous year, which ordered “that a certain portion of the Government lands on each island should be placed in the hands of special agents to be disposed of in lots of from one to fifty acres in fee simple, to residents only, at a minimum price of fifty cents per acre.” (Interior Department, Surveyor’s Report, 1882)

Between the years 1850 and 1860, nearly all the desirable Government land was sold, generally to Hawaiians. The portions sold were surveyed at the expense of the purchaser. (Interior Department, Surveyor’s Report, 1882) Most of the Kulaokahuʻa lands were not included.

Clark noted that “the settling of the Plains did not come until the 1880s, after water was brought from Makiki Valley.” Kulaokahu‘a became more hospitable when water became available from springs and artesian wells, and would gradually be transformed into an attractive residential district in the 1880s.

A notation concerning an 1878 article in the Pacific Commercial Advertiser notes a new 400,000-gallon Makiki reservoir (to be completed June 1879) to supply the Kulaokahuʻa plains and Waikikī, and eventually Kapiʻolani Park. (Krauss)

In marketing material advertised in the Pacific Commercial in 1881, the area is described as, Beretania, King, Young, Victoria, Lunalilo and Kinau Streets, no taro patches, good roads, plenty of water, best of soil, beautiful scenery and pure air. (Krauss)

The Daily Bulletin on July 13, 1882 noted, “Mr. Philip Milton has some fine grape vines growing at his residence on King street, Kulaokahuʻa Plains. They are now bearing. A specimen of the grapes may be seen in the show window at Messrs. JW Robertson & Co.’s store. Those fond of eating this delicious fruit may have an opportunity of purchasing the article from AW Bush on Fort Street, who will have a small lot for sale.”

When looking at renaming the place in 1883, names suggested were Artesia, because of wells sunk there, also Bore-dumville, and Algarroba (kiawe) because the area was then covered with trees, thickly shaded. (Krauss)

Never-the-less, in 1892, Thrum noted that to get to Mānoa “for nearly a mile the road leads by or along pasture fields with no visage of tree or shrub other than the lantana pest … and passes along Round Top of Ualakaʻa”.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook 

Follow Peter T Young on Google+ 

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn  

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

© 2019 Hoʻokuleana LLC

No._2._View_of_Honolulu._From_the_Catholic_church._(c._1854)-Honolulu_to_Waikiki
Kulaokahua_GoogleEarth
Paul_Emmert_-_'Diamond_Head_from_Aliapaakai_(Salt_Lake)',_c._1853-59
No._2._View_of_Honolulu._From_the_Catholic_church._(c._1854)-Honolulu_to_Waikiki-Detail
McKinley_School_Grounds-1905
Kakaako-From the cupola of Old Plantation, looking across the fish pond to the Ward’s beachfront lands, Kukuluae‘o-(avisionforward)
Edward_Clifford_(1844-1907)_-_'Diamond_Head,_Honolulu',_watercolor_painting,_1888
George_Henry_Burgess_-_'Queen_Street,_Honolulu',_watercolor_over_graphite_painting,_1856
Looking_makai_out_of_Manoa_Valley1900
Kawaiahao Church in 1885-Look towards Diamond Head
Kulaokahua_Lots-Lawa-Reg1100-1885
Kulaokahua-Plains-Reg1253
Honolulu_Harbor_to_Diamond_Head-Wall-Reg1690 (1893)-(portion_development_in_Kulaokahu‘a-and-wetlands_below_in_Kewalo)
Trails from Punchbowl Street to Waialae as described by 'I'i

Filed Under: Place Names Tagged With: Kulaokahua, Hawaii, Oahu, Punahou, Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives, Makiki

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 253
  • 254
  • 255
  • 256
  • 257
  • …
  • 563
  • Next Page »

Images of Old Hawaiʻi

People, places, and events in Hawaiʻi’s past come alive through text and media in “Images of Old Hawaiʻi.” These posts are informal historic summaries presented for personal, non-commercial, and educational purposes.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Connect with Us

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Wī
  • Anthony Lee Ahlo
  • Women Warriors
  • Rainbow Plan
  • “Pele’s Grandson”
  • Bahá’í
  • Carriage to Horseless Carriage

Categories

  • General
  • Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance
  • Buildings
  • Missionaries / Churches / Religious Buildings
  • Hawaiian Traditions
  • Military
  • Place Names
  • Prominent People
  • Schools
  • Sailing, Shipping & Shipwrecks
  • Economy
  • Voyage of the Thaddeus
  • Mayflower Summaries
  • American Revolution

Tags

Albatross Al Capone Ane Keohokalole Archibald Campbell Bernice Pauahi Bishop Charles Reed Bishop Downtown Honolulu Eruption Founder's Day George Patton Great Wall of Kuakini Green Sea Turtle Hawaii Hawaii Island Hermes Hilo Holoikauaua Honolulu Isaac Davis James Robinson Kamae Kamaeokalani Kamanawa Kameeiamoku Kamehameha Schools Lalani Village Lava Flow Lelia Byrd Liliuokalani Mao Math Mauna Loa Midway Monk Seal Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Oahu Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument Pearl Pualani Mossman Queen Liliuokalani Thomas Jaggar Volcano Waikiki Wake Wisdom

Hoʻokuleana LLC

Hoʻokuleana LLC is a Planning and Consulting firm assisting property owners with Land Use Planning efforts, including Environmental Review, Entitlement Process, Permitting, Community Outreach, etc. We are uniquely positioned to assist you in a variety of needs.

Info@Hookuleana.com

Copyright © 2012-2024 Peter T Young, Hoʻokuleana LLC

 

Loading Comments...