Hawaii | Page 294 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

May 12, 2019 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Pā‘aiea Pond

It is said there once was a very large fishpond extending from Ka‘elehuluhulu, adjoining the region of Mahai‘ula (now part of Ke Kahakai State Park,) running south past Ka-Lae-O-Keāhole to as far south as Wawaloli on the boundary of ‘O‘oma (the beach park within the Natural Energy Laboratory,) in North Kona on the Big Island.

This is the present area of Kona International Airport.

This fishpond, known as Pā‘aiea, was reportedly three-miles long and a mile-and- a-half wide; it was the large fishpond of Kamehameha.

The pond was so large that fishermen going to Kailua and further South, often took a short cut by taking their canoes into the pond and going across, thus saving time against the strong sea breeze and current from Keāhole.

There was a famous saying about this fishpond: O na hoku o ka lani, o Pā‘aiea ko lalo – The stars are above, Pā‘aiea below.

The reason for this saying was because of its exceptionally large size. Within the wide waters of this pond were numerous little islets that were compared to the stars in the heavens.

“Pā‘aiea was a great pond almost like the ponds of Wainanalii and Kiholo. In the olden days, when the great ruling chiefs were living, and when these fish ponds were full of the riches of Awa, Anae, and Ahole, along with all sorts of fish which swam within.”

“During that time, Konohiki were stationed, and he was the guard of the pond that watched over the pond and all things, as here we are talking about Pā‘aiea Pond which was destroyed by lava and became pahoehoe lava which remains today”.

“In the correct and trues story of this pond, its boundaries began from Kaelehuluhulu on the north and on the south was at the place called Wawaloli, and the distance from one end to the other was 3 miles or more, and that was the length of this pond …”

“… and today within these boundaries, there are a number of pools [lua wai loko] remaining during this time that the writer is speaking before the readers of the Hoku.”

“The great Overseer [Konohiki] who cared for this pond was Kepaalani, and everything fell under him: the storehouses [hale papaa] where poi and fish were stored, the halau for the fishing canoes, the nets and all thing, and from him the fishermen and the retainers of the court would obtain their sustenance.”

“And at this time when the pond was destroyed by lava, Kamehameha was residing in Hilo for the purpose of waging war, and this war was called Kaipalaoa …”

“… during this war, Namakehaikalani died and was offered atop the Heiau of Piihonua in Hilo; and this was Kamehameha’s final war, and his enemies lived quietly without uprising once again. “

“This was the time between 1798 until 1801, and it is said that this is when lava destroyed this pond that was full of riches, and turned it into a land of pahoehoe lava which remains to this day.” (Hoku o Hawaii, 2/5/1914)

Pā‘aiea Pond was reportedly destroyed by the 1801 eruption and lava flow from Hualālai. Two parts to a story relate to the cause of its destruction.

The first suggests that one day an old woman appeared at the large canoe shed of Kepa‘alani (the konohiki or overseer of the pond.)

Another man, Kapulau, asked: “Malahini?” (newcomer)

She replied “I am a Kama‘āina, not exactly a total stranger, but I do not often come down here to the seashore. Living in the restful uplands, and hearing that there was plenty of fish down at the beach, I hastened down to see if the fishermen would give me a bit of palu.”

The konohiki replied, “”No! You cannot have fish, palu, shrimps or anything. It all belongs to the Chief, and only the Chief can give them to you.”

“Well! That is all. I now return to the uplands without even a grain of salt.” The old woman stood up and turned around to go.

When she came to Kapulau’s house, she was urged to remain and have something to eat. She consented and sat down. When she had finished her meal, Kapulau gave her a fish.

The old woman stood up, and before starting to go, she gave these instructions to her host: “Tonight, you and your wife put up a lepa (kapa cloth on end of a stick, as used to mark a taboo area) back of your house and here on your fence.” They followed her instructions.

In the second part of the story, this same old woman soon afterwards appears at a village called Manuahi which was on the Western slope of Hualālai, and where two girls who figure in this story, lived; they were roasting bread-fruit.

The name of one of these girls was Pahinahina and the name of the other was Kolomu‘o. As soon as the old woman saw then she inquired: “For whom are you roasting your bread-fruit?”

Kolomu‘o answered: “I am roasting my bread-fruit for La‘i. That is my God and the God of my parents.”

Then the old woman turned and asked Pahinahina, the other girl, “and for whom, pray, are you roasting your breadfruit?” “For Pele,” Pahinahina replies.

Then they ate the breadfruit.

Then the old woman asked Pahinahina: “Where is your house?” Pahinahina told her they shared a house, but the families lived on respective end of it. The old women then told her, “When your parents come home, you tell them to put up a lepa on the end of your part of the house.” They complied.

That night, the people living at the beach saw an eruption on Mountain of Hualālai and as they saw the lava flow they realized that the old woman whose request for fish, palu and shrimps had been refused, could have been no other than the Goddess Pele.

The lava came and destroyed the great fishpond of Pā‘aiea, dried its water and filled and covered it with black rocks.

However, two places were spared.

There remained only that very small portion of the fishpond, close to Ho‘ona (within the Natural Energy Laboratory property at Keāhole Point.)

Also, the area where Pahinahina and her family lived was left untouched, and this open space bears the name of Pahinahina to this day (it is below the old headquarters at Hu‘ehu‘e Ranch).

It is said that because of this event that the lands of Manuahi came to be called Ka-ulu-pulehu (the roasted breadfruit (‘ū is short for ‘ulu,)) and this has been shortened to Ka‘ūpūlehu.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Paaiea-Akahipuu-Keahole-Point-Map-Emerson-Reg1449-1888-

May 11, 2019 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

“The Queen’s Retreat” (Waikīkī)

“In 1868, the year of her 30th birthday and the sixth anniversary of her marriage to John (Dominis), Lili‘uokalani inherited valuable property in Waikiki”. (Star Bulletin)

“The Queen’s Retreat” was in the district of Hamohamo (“rub gently,”) it consisted of two homes – one, called Paoakalani (“the royal perfume,”) was her principal home in Waikīkī.

The other was Ke‘alohilani (“the royal brightness,”) located opposite Kūhiō Beach, which she referred to in her memoirs as “my pretty seaside cottage.”

“In contrast to stately Washington Place, the one-story Ke‘alohilani was open on two sides with a large and inviting living room ‘filled with all things Hawaiian,’ where Lili‘uokalani and her ohana could gather in joy and hospitality”.

“Next to a satin pillow, embroidered in heavy thread proclaiming ‘There Is No Place Like Home,’ stood feathered kahilis. … A feather cape, a knitted afghan, a dog’s tooth necklace, a gold-plated bracelet …”

“… all intermingled in the home Lili‘uokalani came to love so dearly. ‘I danced around the rooms. It was my own!’” (Lili‘uokalani; Hawaii Bar Assn)

Here, she retreated to relax and informally entertain family, friends and on occasion, visiting royalty. She also spent much of her time composing her songs and translating Hawaiian stories into English.

Her home served as a comforting getaway from the pressures of business at ʻIolani Palace, several miles away.

“Hamohamo is justly considered to be the most life-giving and healthy district in the whole extent of the island of Oʻahu; there is something unexplainable and peculiar in the atmosphere of that place, which seldom fails to bring back the glow of health to the patient, no matter from what disease suffering.”

The Queen “derived much amusement, as well as pleasure: for as the sun shines on the evil and the good, and the rain falls on the just and the unjust, I have not felt called upon to limit the enjoyment of my beach and shade-trees to any party in politics …”

“While in exile it has ever been a pleasant thought to me that my people, in spite of differences of opinions, are enjoying together the free use of my seashore home.” (Lili‘uokalani)

In setting up the Lili‘uokalani trust, “Assisted by her attorneys, Lili‘uokalani conveyed all her real property to three trustees (brother-in-law Archibald S Cleghorn, business agent Curtis P Iaukea, and attorney William O Smith) on December 2, 1909. She retained the right to use Washington Place and Ke‘alohilani as her residences”. (Hawaii Bar Assn)

After the Queen’s death, Ke‘alohilani, as well as the pier and beach fronting the area (including the fisheries,) was transferred to Prince Kūhiō.

The Prince and his wife, Princess Elizabeth Kahanu, temporarily lived in Queen Lili‘uokalani’s Waikīkī cottage, Ke‘alohilani, for about a year.

They razed it and constructed a new home, which they called Pualeilani (“heavenly flower lei” or “flower from wreath of heaven.”)

After Prince Kūhiō died at Pualeilani on Jan. 7, 1922, the property was given to the city; by 1938 the name of the pier, as well as the beach area fronting it, became known as Kūhiō Beach.

The surf break in front of this is still known as Queen’s, because this was facing the Queen’s home.

Kuekaunahi stream used to run through the property; this small stream paralleled Kapahulu Avenue and crossed Waikīkī Beach at the intersection of Kalākaua and Kapahulu Avenue.

The stream was eventually enclosed in a culvert and at the shore its waters were channeled into the ocean through the Kapahulu Groin.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Waikiki-Queen’s_Pier-Private_Beach_Houses

Queen_Liliuokalani-1891

Waikiki-Queen_Liliuokalani’s_Pier

Paoakalani_Hamohamo_c.1880

Home believed to be one of Liliuokalani’s residences

Hamohamo-now the corner of Liliuokalani Street and Kuhio Avenue

‘Diamond_Head_from_Waikiki’,_oil_on_canvas_painting_by_Enoch_Wood_Perry,_Jr.,_c._1865

Alohilani location map-Beall

May 10, 2019 by Peter T Young 8 Comments

Maunaʻolu Seminary

Back in the beginning of the 19th-century, it was believed that women should be educated to understand domestic economy, because they were to play the major role in educating the young, primarily in their homes, and later as school teachers (as the school population grew and there was a shortage of teachers).

Gender segregated schools were established. The seminary’s primary task was professional preparation: the male seminary prepared men for the ministry; the female seminary took as its earnest job the training of women for teaching and motherhood. (Horowitz, Beyer)

Although schools for upper-class women were in existence prior to the 19th-century, the female seminary for middle-class women became the prevailing type of institution from 1820 until after the Civil War.

The most prominent female seminaries on the continent were Troy Seminary (1821,) Hartford Seminary (1823,) Ipswich Seminary (1828,) Mount Holyoke Seminary (1837) and Oxford Seminary (1839.)

In the Islands, the first female seminary students were adult Hawaiian women. Patricia Grimshaw states: “… that (s)oon after their arrival in Hawai’i in 1820, and over the next three decades, New England missionary women embarked on an ambitious plan to transform Hawaiian girls and women to notions of femininity upheld by their culture.”

“The plan and design of the Female Seminary is to take a class of young females into a boarding school—away in a measure from the contaminating influence of heathen society, to train them to habits of industry, neatness, and order …”

“… to instruct them in employments suited to their sex, to cultivate the minds, to improve their manners and to instill the principles of our holy religion – to fit them to be suitable companions for the scholars of the Mission Seminary and examples of propriety among the females of the Sandwich Islands.” (Dibble)

In 1835, at the general meeting of the Mission, a resolution was passed to promote boarding schools for Hawaiians; several male boarding schools and two female boarding schools were begun (Wailuku Female Seminary on the island of Maui and the Hilo Girls Boarding School on the island of Hawai’I; others followed.)

The last of the female seminaries that was begun by the missionaries was initially called the Makawao Family School. Reverend Claudius B. Andrews and his wife, Anne Seward Gilson Andrews, began it in 1861 in a location above Makawao Village on the island of Maui.

Maunaʻolu Seminary is an out-growth of the “East Maui Female Seminary.” It first sprang into existence, through the earnest desire of the Andrews for a school for Hawaiian girls, where they might he educated in the atmosphere of a Christian home, and so be equipped for their future life work.

Mr. Andrews purchased a piece of land called “Maluhia,” selecting a site about 2,000-feet on the slopes of Haleakalā.

It was here that Mr. and Mrs. Andrews with their family first conceived the idea of a “Home School” for Hawaiian girls, as Mr. Andrews said, “Where the girls are to be taught as my own daughters”.

It was not so much the idea of book knowledge as that in the early years of the child-life they would be given the essential elements of true character building, looking to future development of Hawaiian womanhood.

A year after the school began, Mrs. Andrews died.

Throughout the next seven years, Reverend Andrews received help from a variety of people, and attendance grew to 70 students. But then, in 1869, the school building burned; the school was temporarily closed, but reopened in 1871.

Reverend Andrews, along with his second wife, Samantha Andrews, were in charge of operating the school. (The second Mrs. Andrews was a sister of his first wife.)

Miss Helen E. Carpenter was engaged as an assistant teacher. Both Samantha Andrews and Helen Carpenter were graduates of Mount Holyoke Seminary. In 1874, the latter was appointed principal.

Throughout the following years, the curriculum included the usual academic courses in reading, mathematics, literature, history, language (all instruction was in English), geography, spelling, civics and the Bible. The industrial departments included sewing, domestic arts and culinary.

During the last two decades of the 19th century, the school was nicknamed the Mount Holyoke Seminary of the Hawaiian Islands due to the connection of its instructors with that American seminary and the large number of Hawaiian Islands ministers’ daughters in attendance.

Additions to the buildings and aid from both the Government and the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) led to the enrollment climbing to 100 students.

At the end of the century, all the female seminaries in Hawai‘i began to lose students to the newly-founded Kamehameha School for Girls.

This latter school was established in 1894; it was not technically a seminary or founded by missionaries, but all the girls enrolled were Hawaiian, and its curriculum was very similar to what was used at the missionary-sponsored seminaries.

After a second fire in 1898, Maunaʻolu Seminary moved into temporary quarters in the buildings of the old Haleakala government boy’s school, also above Makawao.

In 1900 Maunaʻolu was rebuilt in a place closer to Pā‘ia on land known as Pu‘u Makani (windy hill). This was brought about by the generosity of the honored trustee, Mr. Henry P. Baldwin.

Maunaʻolu Seminary continued to exist through the 1920s, offering a high school diploma to their graduates. Its last commencement was in June 1942.

The school was used for the military hospital during World War II. Reopened in 1950 as a coeducational junior college run by the Hawaiian Evangelical Association of Congregational Christian Churches, Maunaʻolu Community College offered the last two years of high school and the first two years of college.

A four-year college curriculum was developed in 1969, but the college had difficulty attracting students.

In 1971, Maunaʻolu College was acquired by United States International University, and later by the County of Maui. The college is no longer in existence.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Edward_Bailey_painting_of_East_Maui_Female_Seminary,_or_Maunaʻolu_Seminary

CB_Andrews-Maunaolu_Seminary-HMCS-The_Friend

Maunaolu_Seminary-HMCS-The_Friend-1929

Maunaolu_Seminary-HMCS-The_Friend-1884

Makawao_Union_Church_1909

Maunaolu_Seminary-Approximate_Location

May 9, 2019 by Peter T Young 4 Comments

“Russian Fort”

It’s time to set the record straight. I join the long list of folks who have misunderstood and unknowingly have repeated the wrong information about a fort at Waimea, Kauai.

When I was DLNR Chair, and to today, the State Park is called “Russian Fort Elizabeth State Historical Park”. The State has it wrong.

The National Park Service notes, “Russian Fort, located in Fort Elizabeth State Historical Park, in Waimea on the Island of Kauai, was built by the Russian American Company (RAC) in 1817.”

“The purpose of the fort was to establish a foothold for Russia in Hawaii by creating a fueling station in the Pacific Ocean and establishing a stable trading location for the shipping company.”

“The fort is a reminder of the short Russian venture into Hawaii between 1815 and 1817.” The feds have it wrong.

Yes, there was a Russian Fort on Kauai, but it was Fort Alexander at what is now known as Princeville on Kauai’s north shore.

Thanks to Peter Mills (Professor of Anthropology at the University of Hawaii at Hilo who has studied the fort extensively) we learn the true story of the “Russian Fort”.

Mills notes that what we call “Russian Fort” was actually built by Hawaiians for Hawaiians … not the Russians; “it was just a part of Kaumualiʻi’s own residential compound.”

“The construction was largely under Kaumualiʻi’s direction, and the labor force involved in constructing it was overwhelmingly Native Hawaiian (there is no record that Russians lifted a single stone to build it), with some designs supplied by Schaffer.”

“The Hawaiian name for the fort (pāpū) was Pāʻulaʻula and can be seen in Native Testimony provided by one of the Hawaiian commandants who was stationed there (Paele 6589 NT).”

“It was not completed while the Russians were there, and there is no evidence that Russians ever garrisoned it, while Hawaiians kept a garrison there for over 40 years.”

“If Hawaiians built it, and Hawaiians garrisoned it, then why on earth do people continue to say it is a ‘Russian Fort’ built by Russians? It was a Hawaiian Fort.” (Peter Mills)

The fort, originally with walls 20 feet high and built in an irregular octagon shape (in the shape of a star,) was fortified with several cannons.

“When Russian Fort Elisabeth became a state park in 1970, it was in a state of disrepair. The state outfit the site with some minimal signage, but the historical interpretation reflected on those signs was based on false history perpetuated by a troublesome 1885 map.” (Brittany Lyte)

“Drawn up by a Hawaiian government surveyor, the fort on the map includes dubious features, such as redwood buildings, glass-paned windows and a trading house. These labels amount to little more than fanciful guesswork, according to Mills.” (Brittany Lyte)

“The surveyor drew the fort as he imagined it looked at the time the Russians were there, which, of course, is an event that never happened,” said Mills, whose book “Hawaii’s Russian Adventure: A New Look at Old History” is an editor’s note to history misinterpreted. (Lyte)

The story about Russians on Kauai begins when the Russian ship ‘Bering’ became stranded on the shores of Kauai’s Waimea Bay on January 31, 1815. The ship’s cargo and the sailors’ possessions were confiscated by Kauai’s ruler, Kaumuali‘i.

The Russian-American Company (the owner of the ship and its cargo) sent Bavarian Georg Anton Schäffer to the Hawaiian Islands to retrieve the cargo or seek appropriate payment.

Later that year, Schäffer arrived in Honolulu. There, Kamehameha granted him permission to build a storehouse near Honolulu Harbor.

But, instead, Schäffer began building a fort and raised the Russian flag – that was in Honolulu. When Kamehameha discovered this, he sent several of his men to remove the Russians from O‘ahu, by force, if necessary. The Russians judiciously chose to sail for Kauai, instead of risking bloodshed.

Once on Kauai, Schäffer gained the confidence of King Kaumuali‘i, when he promised the king that the Russian Tsar would help him to break free of Kamehameha’s rule.

Although Kaumuali‘i had ceded Kauai to Kamehameha in 1810, he generally maintained de facto independence and control of the island, following his agreement with Kamehameha.

It is believed that Kaumuali‘i considered it possible for him to claim rule over Kauai, Ni‘ihau, O`ahu, Maui, Molokai and Lāna‘i, if he had Russian support. The Russians meanwhile were searching compensation for lost trade goods, as well as expanded trading opportunities.

Kaumuali‘i and Schäffer had several agreements to bring Kauai under the protection of Russia, as well as weapons and ammunition from Schäffer, in exchange for trade in sandalwood.

On May 21, 1816, and without the knowledge or approval of Czar Alexander Pavlovich, Kaumuali‘i signed a document that put Kauai under the protection of the Russian Empire.

In return, Schäffer promised Kaumuali‘i protection and an armed Russian warship to lead an attack on Kamehameha’s forces. (Baranoff later informed Schäffer that he was not authorized to make such agreements.)

On July 1, 1816, Schäffer and Kaumuali‘i entered into a secret agreement to use Schäffer’s purported Russian authority to reclaim Kauai from King Kamehameha I, and also to launch expeditions against other islands that Kaumuali‘i felt he had a hereditary right to rule.

Kaumuali‘i had thoughts of conquering Maui, Lānaʻi, Molokai and O‘ahu, which he felt to be his right based on lineage.

Subsequently, Kaumuali‘i gave Schäffer Hanalei valley and two or three other valuable pieces of land. Schaffer went to Hanalei on September 30 and renamed the valley Schäffertal (Schäffer’s Valley.)

In 1817, however, it was discovered that Schäffer did not have the support of the Russian Tsar. He was forced to leave Hawaii, and Captain Alexander Adams, a Scotsman who served in the navy of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, raised the Kingdom of Hawai‘i flag over the fort in October 1817.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Fort_Elizabeth visualization Molodin

Fort_Elizabeth_Location_Map

Russian_Forts_on_Kauai

May 7, 2019 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Kapihaʻā Village Interpretive Trail

He Wahi Pana O Lānaʻi – A Storied Place of Lānaʻi – the Kapihaʻā Interpretive Trail is an approximate one-mile round trip. The Kapihaʻā preservation area contains at least fifteen distinct sites, made up of more than 60 features, by which we may see how Hawaiians lived, worked and worshiped on Lānaʻi.

Interpretive signs found along the trail identify several different types of sites, including agricultural fields, residences, ceremonial sites and lithic (stone) workshops.

Sign 1 – ”Wahi Pana” are storied and sacred places on the Hawaiian landscape.
Walking the trail from this point, you will step back in time, and glimpse life on Lānaʻi prior to the arrival of westerners in 1778.

Sign 2- Kapihaʻā: Life Along The Leeward Shore Of Lānaʻi
Close to 800 years ago, native Hawaiians settled along sheltered areas of the coast line on Lānaʻi, and then extended inland where extensive dry land agricultural fields were developed.

Because water resources were limited even then, most agricultural pursuits were in the form of dry land crops planted upon the kula (plains) and under the canopy of now reduced forests that collected fog drip.

Along the trail there is evidence of permanent and temporary dwellings, agricultural plots, lithic (stone) workshops and ceremonial sites, and the ancient setting of Kapihaʻā Village.

Sign 3 – Puʻupehe Islet
Native lore describes the platform with an upright stone in it as either a burial place for a woman who bore the name of Puʻupehe, or as a shrine dedicated to the god of bird catchers.

In traditional times, sea birds were an important part of the Hawaiian diet, and koʻa (shrines) were placed on “bird islands to sustain the land with plenty of birds.”

Sign 4 – Heiau (Temple) of Kapihaʻā Village
This heiau is a significant architectural feature on the cultural landscape of Kapihaʻā. There are five features associated with the heiau, which include a walled platform, terraces and an ʻahu (altar or cairn).

The prominence of this site, and the fact that it commands an imposing view of the ocean and surrounding lands, suggests that it was a temple associated with prayers and offerings to promote the abundance of the fisheries, or perhaps to pray for rains and sustainable growth of crops on land.

Sign 5 – Dry Land Agricultural Terraces
Because of the arid nature of Lānaʻi, most of the crops grown here were adapted to the kula (open flat lands), and planted in kīhāpai, and moʻo (walled fields or shallow terraces). Passing showers born by the nāulu (southerly) breezes and the early morning kēhau (dew born upon mountain breezes) provided enough water for the plants to grow.

Both natural terraces, some of which were modified, and formal terraces, in which mulch was developed to support plant growth, may be found in this area. Crops such as ʻuala (sweet potatoes), uhi (yams), hue (gourds), lau ki (ti plants) and clumps of kō (sugarcane) could be grown here.

Sign 6 – Kauhale and Hale Pāpaʻi House Sites, Temporary Habitation Sites and Shelters
On the leeward side of Lānaʻi, Kapihaʻā and neighboring villages of the Hulopoʻe-Mānele vicinity supported a population of at least several hundred people at any given time.

The small house sites were basically shelters from bad weather, with most activities – such as making fishing gear, working on stone tools, and food preparation – occurring outside.

Poles of wood, gathered from the uplands, would have been placed upon the stone foundations of these house sites and shelters as support posts, beams and purloins. Thatching of native pili grass, leaves of loulu (pritchardia) palms, niu (coconut fronds), and leafy branches from shrubs would then be lashed to the poles on narrow cross pieces, thus providing protection from rain, cold and heat.

The house foundation has multiple terraces and separate leveled areas, each of which would have served a special use in domestic life. Generally the highest area on the upslope side was reserved for special functions associated with family worship.

Sign 7 – Koʻa, a Fisherman’s Shrine and Triangulation Station
A significant wealth of this part of Lana’i lay in its fisheries, as marine resources supplied protein for the native Hawaiian diet. In addition to fish, various pūpū (shellfish), papaʻi (crabs), and several varieties of limu (seaweeds) were also collected along the shore and from the sea. These fishery resources, together with crops from the uplands sustained the residents of Kapihaʻā over many generations.

A significant Hawaiian ceremonial site, a koʻa or fishing shrine, lies to the west of this trail, perched on a promontory overlooking the ocean and the fisherman’s trail. Portions of the koʻa have collapsed, but the large mound of coral set upon the stone foundation is symbolic of the god Kūʻula and makes this koʻa one of the most unique sites of its kind anywhere in Hawai’i.

Fishermen sought protection during fishing trips and continued abundance of the fisheries through offerings of fish, urchins, and shell fish to the gods and ʻaumakua (guardians). Offerings would again be made upon return from fishing expeditions to thank the gods for their successful catch and safe return.

Sign 8 – The Kapihaʻā Preservation Area and Interpretive Trail (Coastal Section)
Sections of the Fisherman’s Trail along this coast follow a traditional ala hele (trail) traveled by ancient Hawaiian residents of Lānaʻi for generations.

The ala hele linked coastal communities together, and provided residents with access to various resources. The ala hele that turns mauka (upland) at this point enters the ancient village site known as Kapihaʻā. (Information on the Kapihaʻā interpretive trail is from Lānaʻi Culture & Heritage Center, prepared by Kepā Maly, Kumu Pono Associates LLC.)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger