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June 20, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

The Apology & the Supreme Court

On March 31, 2009, the Supreme Court of the United States reversed the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court and rendered a decision on a case between the State of Hawaiʻi and OHA relating to the transfer of ceded lands.

In that decision, the US Supreme Court discusses the 1993 ‘Apology’ Resolution, as well as makes references to Hawaiian Sovereignty. The following are quotes from the US Supreme Court decision:

“In 1893, ‘[a] so-called Committee of Safety, a group of professionals and businessmen, with the active assistance of John Stevens, the United States Minister to Hawai‘i, acting with the United States Armed Forces, replaced the [Hawaiian] monarchy with a provisional government.’ ‘That government sought annexation by the United States’ (Newlands Resolution).”

“Pursuant to the Newlands Resolution, the Republic of Hawai‘i ‘cede[d] absolutely and without reserve to the United States of America all rights of sovereignty of whatsoever kind’ and further ‘cede[d] and transfer[red] to the United States the absolute fee and ownership of all public, Government, or Crown lands, public buildings or edifices, ports, harbors, military equipment, and all other public property of every kind and description belonging to the Government of the Hawaiian Islands, together with every right and appurtenance thereunto appertaining’ (hereinafter ceded lands).”

“The Newlands Resolution further provided that all ‘property and rights’ in the ceded lands ‘are vested in the United States of America.’” “Two years later, Congress established a government for the Territory of Hawai‘i. … The Organic Act reiterated the Newlands Resolution and made clear that the new Territory consisted of the land that the United States acquired in ‘absolute fee’ under that resolution.”

“In 1959, Congress admitted Hawai‘i to the Union (hereinafter Admission Act). Under the Admission Act, with exceptions not relevant here, ‘the United States grant[ed] to the State of Hawai‘i, effective upon its admission into the Union, the United States’ title to all the public lands and other public property within the boundaries of the State of Hawai‘i, title to which is held by the United States immediately prior to its admission into the Union.’”

“Hawai‘i state law also authorizes the State to use or sell the ceded lands, provided the proceeds are held in trust for Hawaiian citizens. In 1993, Congress’ joint Apology Resolution “apologize[d]” for this country’s role in overthrowing the Hawaiian monarchy, and declared that nothing in the resolution was ‘intended to serve as a settlement of any claims against the United States.’”

“In 1993, Congress enacted a joint resolution ‘to acknowledge the historic significance of the illegal overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, to express its deep regret to the Native Hawaiian people, and to support the reconciliation efforts of the State of Hawai‘i and the United Church of Christ with Native Hawaiians.’ Joint Resolution to Acknowledge the 100th Anniversary of the January 17, 1893 Overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai‘i, … (hereinafter Apology Resolution).”

“Turning to the merits, we must decide whether the Apology Resolution ‘strips Hawai‘i of its sovereign authority to sell, exchange, or transfer’ the lands that the United States held in “absolute fee” and “grant[ed] to the State of Hawai‘i, effective upon its admission into the Union”. We conclude that the Apology Resolution has no such effect.”

“The Apology Resolution did not strip Hawai‘i of its sovereign authority to alienate the lands the United States held in absolute fee and granted to the State upon its admission to the Union.”

“The resolution’s first substantive provision uses six verbs, all of which are conciliatory or precatory. Specifically, Congress ‘acknowledge[d] the historical significance’ of the monarchy’s over-throw, ‘recognize[d] and commend[ed] efforts of reconciliation’ with native Hawaiians, ‘apologize[d] to [n]ative Hawaiians’ for the overthrow, ‘expresse[d] [Congress’s] commitment to acknowledge the ramifications of the overthrow,’ and ‘urge[d] the President … to also acknowledge [those]ramifications’.”

“Such terms are not the kind that Congress uses to create substantive rights – especially those that are enforceable against the cosovereign States.”

“The Apology Resolution’s second and final substantive provision is a disclaimer, which provides: ‘Nothing in this Joint Resolution is intended to serve as a settlement of any claims against the United States.’ By its terms, speaks only to those who may or may not have ‘claims against the United States.’”

“The State Supreme Court, however, read [this] as a congressional recognition – and preservation – of claims against Hawai‘i. There is no justification for turning an express disclaimer of claims against one sovereign into an affirmative recognition of claims against another.”

The US Supreme Court concluded, “First, ‘whereas’ clauses like those in the Apology Resolution cannot bear the weight that the lower court placed on them. As we recently explained in a different context, ‘where the text of a clause itself indicates that it does not have operative effect, such as ‘whereas’ clauses in federal legislation …, a court has no license to make it do what it was not designed to do.’”

“Second, even if the ‘whereas’ clauses had some legal effect, they did not ‘chang[e] the legal landscape and restructur[e] the rights and obligations of the State.’”

“The Apology Resolution reveals no indication – much less a ‘clear and manifest’ one – that Congress intended to amend or repeal the State’s rights and obligations under Admission Act (or any other federal law); nor does the Apology Resolution reveal any evidence that Congress intended sub silentio to ‘cloud’ the title that the United States held in ‘absolute fee’” and transferred to the State in 1959.”

“Third, the Apology Resolution would raise grave constitutional concerns if it purported to ‘cloud’ Hawaii’s title to its sovereign lands more than three decades after the State’s admission to the Union. We have emphasized that ‘Congress cannot, after statehood, reserve or convey submerged lands that have already been bestowed upon a State.’”

A later Hawaiʻi Supreme Court case noted (in 2014,) “The US Supreme Court reversed this court, holding that the Apology Resolution did not confer substantive rights or have a substantive legal effect. Thus, the Apology Bill cannot serve to support a fundamental right to nation-building”. (SCWC-29794)

It’s interesting to note the Supreme Court’s repeated references to the Republic of Hawai‘i, Annexation, Territory, Newlands Resolution, Admission Act, State, etc.

© 2026 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance Tagged With: Hawaii, Sovereignty, Apology Resolution

June 19, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Hawai‘i Seven

“The Alien Registration Act of 1940, better known as the ‘Smith Act,’ was initially designed to monitor immigrants and prosecute those suspected of collaborating with fascist enemy powers.”

“But after World War II, as relations with the US and Soviet Union changed from reluctant allies to avowed enemies, the Justice Department turned the Smith Act into a weapon against the left, manipulating the law to target American citizens alleged to be leaders of the Communist Party.”  (DeLauder, University of Washington)

“The Alien Registration Act was introduced by Virginia Congressman Howard Smith, passed by Congress, and signed by President Roosevelt on June 28, 1940, World War II was raging in Europe and Asia and Congress, worried about espionage, passed the law to keep track of immigrant noncitizens.”

“It required adult noncitizens to register with the federal government and be fingerprinted.  (DeLauder, University of Washington)

Then, in the Islands, seven were arrested at or near their homes in the morning of August 28, 1951 and were charged with “conspiring with each other”. “According to the complaint, the alleged conspiracy has continued since April 1, 1945.” (Star Bulletin, August 29, 1951)

The “Hawaii Seven” were Jack Wayne Hall, John Ernest Reinecke, Jack Denishi Kimoto, Koji Ariyoshi, Dwight James Freeman, Charles Kazuyuki Fujimoto and Eileen Toshiko Fujimoto. (State Bulletin)

“The arrests came when sugar negotiations were in progress and on the day of the arrest, the ILWU sugar negotiating committee came to the Federal building to hold a conference with Hall, who was held in custody there. The arrests came when 750 ILWU pine workers were on strike on Lanai.” (Honolulu Record)

“Six defendants spent a week in jail while $15,000 bail was being raised for each. For travel outside of Oahu, an additional $10,000 was required.” (Star Bulletin)

“The longest and hardest fought case in the Territory’s history lasted seven and a half months from late 1952 to the summer of 1953 in the whipped up atmosphere of cold-war McCarthyism.” (Honolulu Record)

“Hawaii’s seven top Communists, including Longshore Boss Jack W Hall, were convicted of conspiracy to overthrow the Government today [June 19, 1953] and stevedores immediately halted work on all island docks, possibly foreruning a general protest strike.”

“Within two hours after the verdict was announced Hall’s International Longshoremen’s and Warehousemen’s Union suspended negotiations on a new contract and longshoremen began walking off the job at Castle and Cook Pier 32.”

“Conviction of the ‘Hawaii seven’ brings to 51 the number of United States Red leaders convicted since the Nation’s 11 top Communists were found guilty in New York in 1949.”  (The Tribune, Pennsylvania, June 20, 1953)

They appealed … “The US Court of Appeals, acting in line with the Supreme Court’s California Reds ruling of last June, Monday reversed the Smith Act convictions of seven persons in Hawaii and four in the State of Washington.” (Subcommittee on Territories and Insular Affairs)

(The “US  Supreme Court established a distinction between advocacy of a political doctrine and advocacy of action.” (Advertiser))

The Hawaii Seven were contacted after the Ninth Circuit reversal and provided the following comments to the Honolulu Record:

Jack W. Hall. “This period has certainly been a time when we as a union found out who our friends are. I found out as an individual, too Prom the beginning, I have had confidence that our union program and my part in it would be vindicated.”

Jack D. Kimoto. “The acquittal of the Hawaii Seven means a resounding defeat for reactionary elements who used the Smith Act as a vehicle in their conspiracy to smash militant trade unionism and progressive political movement in Hawaii The vehicle, itself, is on the way to the ash heap of History I congratulate everyone who did his share to defeat this abominable conspiracy.”

Charles K. Fujimoto. “I am happy that the courts have finally handed down a decision in our favor. It is a victory not only for the Seven, but for all Americans in the preservation of their civil liberties.”

Eileen Fujimoto. “I want to thank all the ILWU members, our attorneys and friends and all those who had the intellectual integrity and courage to support us in our fight for those basic civil rights guaranteed all Americans.”

Dr. John Reinecke. “My strongest impressions after more than six years of the Smith Act case and 10 years as one of the targets of local witch-hunting are of the kindliness of the average person, but also of a very general lack of civic courage.”

Koji Ariyoshi. “The reversal of the Smith Act conviction shows once again that laws are not always right, that government, or that part of government that enforces the laws, is not always right The Bill of Rights which protects all Americans finally passed after a long struggle by democratic minded Americans The Smith Act must be repealed.”

Dwight James Freeman. “I’m happy about the reversal of course, but it seems an awful shame that so much time and money and energy should have been required to fight charges that should never have been made and a case that should never have been in court.”

© 2026 Ho‘okuleana LLC

Filed Under: General, Ali'i / Chiefs / Governance, Economy Tagged With: Koji Ariyoshi, Charles Kazuyuki Fujimoto, Eileen Toshiko Fujimoto, Hawaii, Alien Registration Act, Smith Act, Communism, Hawaii Seven, Jack Denishi Kimoto, John Ernest Reinecke, Dwight James Freeman, Jack Wayne Hall

June 18, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Bull Pen

Betty Jean O’Hara was “born in Chicago, Illinois in 1913, the year preceding the 1st World War. The early years of (her) life were happy and normal. Being the only child of a physician, (she) was given the best schooling in preparation for a career.”

“(Her) parents were Catholic, and were strict in the regimentation of (her) life. (She) was permitted however to attend parties and movies with other children (her) age.”

At about the age of 16, she met a girl and her boyfriend at a party. The girl was covered in fine jewelry and nice clothes. Young, and easily led, she “agreed to their sordid plans and went into the business of the ‘oldest profession.’” A month later, she left home and headed to San Francisco. (O’Hara)

“Jean O’Hara was a pretty girl who became a handsome woman. She was ‘black Irish,’ fair-skinned with a clear complexion which set off her dark eyes, raven hair, and even her features. She stood about 5’4” and at 120 pounds was slender by that era’s standards. Her good looks and classy bearing would serve her well.” (Bailey & Farber)

“(O’Hara) got used to the fast money.”

“(She) started working in one of the better class houses, and (she) became definitely committed to the practice of prostitution. (Her) father and mother tried every means available to frighten (her) into going home …”

“… but being headstrong, and enticed by the seemingly fabulous earnings (she) resisted their every attempt. Although (she) actually loathed the life, (her) sense of shame and sin aroused in (her) a perverse independence.” (O’Hara)

In mid-1938, O’Hara arrived in Honolulu from San Francisco.

There was an unofficial system of regulated prostitution in the Islands, with the also unofficial sanction of the military. Army military police and the Navy shore patrol helped monitor it.

All girls had to live in the houses where they worked; no white girls were allowed on the other side of River Street. The Army, Navy, and civilian police picketed any house violating the rules, and no man could enter it. According to the agreement, the civil police regulated prostitution “with full cooperation by the Army and Navy.” (Greer)

“The business of procuring girls to work in the brothels, or “factories”, before the war (WWII,) was usually handled by the same … “procurer.” He handled nothing but the transportation of the girls. … The fee for procuring a girl from the mainland rage(d) from $500 to $1,000 depending on the looks and the capability of the girl.” (O’Hara)

A detective would meet the ships coming in and the girls were taken to the ‘receiving station.’ (In O’Hara’s case, that was the Blaisdell Hotel on Fort Street.) The girls were explained the rules – in no uncertain terms, the girls were told that any violation of the rules meant banishment from the Territory.

All of the girls have a Territorial tax book and a Territorial license (they were licensed as ‘entertainers,’) which cost each $1 per year. In addition, every month the Vice Squad would collect an unofficial tax of $30 per girl from the brothels.

The girls paid Federal income taxes, as well as state taxes. “It has been said that (the) girls and Madames are the heaviest tax payers in Honolulu. … Each girl in Honolulu can average from $4,000 per month to $5,000 per month. … Taxes are collected by the Madame of the house, who also files the returns for them.” (O’Hara)

Before WWII, the girls usually started to work around 1 pm, and ended around 5 am. The ‘blackout’ during the war meant they worked from 8 am to noon.

“Very few girls made under a $100 a day, some of these double that and some of them made over $300 a day. It all depends upon the girl. She can make as much as she wants.”

“The price charged is $3.00 per date. Of this, the Madame gets one dollar. Out of the remaining two dollars, the girl must pay the Madame for her room and board and laundry.” (O’Hara)

The Madames were women from the mainland. Although prostitution was not legal, they needed permission from the local Police before operating.

When WWII broke out, and martial law was in effect, the military called the shots (1941-1943.) A “substantial number” of prostitutes were brought to Honolulu from the mainland under military priorities – a common rumor – and that under military government prostitution “flourished.” (Greer)

Most brothels required girls to see at least 100 men a day and to work at least 20 days per month.

To speed things along, O’Hara is credited with inventing the ‘bull pen’ system where a single prostitute would work three rooms in rotation (including maid service.)

In one room a man would be undressing, in a second room the prostitute would be having sex, and in the third room the man would be dressing. (The guy had three minutes to achieve release, after which she said ‘aloha’ and was off to the next room while he washed up and got dressed.) (McNeill)

After a few months’ work in a Hotel Street brothel, she had amassed a sizable bankroll. She leased a house near Waikiki Beach with a friend.

“The life of a prostitute is not an easy one, and the stringent rules of the Honolulu Police Department, headed by Chief of Police Gabrielson, left her no more freedom that a prisoner.”

O’Hara broke the rules (often) and ended up getting the regular attention of the Police, including Gabrielson. She was fined, imprisoned and beat black and blue, with two broken ribs.

O’Hara filed a $100,000 lawsuit in 1941 against the Police department for her two broken ribs and black eyes. The lawsuit was dropped, but conflicts with the Police continued.

O’Hara later married a ‘local boy’ and quit the business. She was a prostitute for 13-years, and temporarily was a Madame. She had homes in Waikiki and Pacific Heights.

After leaving the brothels, “(her) only desire (was) to live a useful family life, and help others to live and let live, as one resurrected from the sordid flesh mines of humanity.”

In 1944, she wrote a booklet, ‘My Life as a Honolulu Prostitute.’ She died in 1973. (Lots of information here is from that booklet.)

© 2026 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Economy, General, Military Tagged With: Prostitution, Betty Jean Ohara, Hawaii

June 15, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

50-Star US Flag

At the time of the Declaration of Independence in July 1776, there were no flags with any stars on them. The 13 Star Flag became the first official US Flag; it was adopted though an act of Congress on June 14, 1777. 

Since 1818, a star for each new state has been added to the flag on the 4th of July the year immediately following each state’s admission.  The blue background on the top left, where the stars are placed, represents vigilance, perseverance, and justice; the red stripes symbolize valor whereas the white means purity and innocence.

in the 1950s, it was assumed Alaska would be admitted to the Union; President Eisenhower signed the official proclamation on January 3, 1959. Upon learning this, designers began retooling the American flag to add a 49th star to the existing 48. Many expected that Hawai‘i would be added as the 50th state and 1953 was the earliest submission of a 50-star flag design.

The current design of the U.S. flag is its 27th.  It was designed by Robert (Bob) Galen Heft.  In the spring of 1958 while a 17-year-old junior at Lancaster High School, Ohio. Heft and his fellow classmates were given an assignment by US History teacher Stanley Pratt to prepare a history project of choice and report on it in class.

Heft was born on January 19, 1942, in Saginaw, Michigan to Maynard G. Heft and Viola C. Weaver; his parents separated when he was about one and Heft was raised by his grandparents Sheldon and Gladys Schromme in Lancaster (he referred to them as his parents). (Yuma Sun, Jun 14, 1995)

Heft had an interest in the Betsy Ross story and learned respect for the flag through his service in Boy Scouts. A flag project – an honorable and innocent task by most standards – seemed to be a natural choice for him. The idea of making a flag came to Heft at the time after seeing the flag flying at city hall. (Wakeman Funeral Home)

“I’d watch my mom sew, but I had never sewn … and since making the flag of our country, I’ve never sewn again,” said Heft. (West Point AOG)

Heft cut into the family flag with scissors, and with an additional $2.87 of new cloth and iron-on material he purchased from Wiseman’s Department Store, he then spent 12-½ hours over the course of the entire weekend at the family’s dining table constructing a new 50-star version of ‘Old Glory’ using a pattern of five rows of six stars with four alternating rows of five stars.

Pratt asked him, “What’s this on my desk?” Heft replied that it was a flag.  Pratt pointed out to Heft that he had too many stars on the flag. “You don’t even know how many states we have,” Heft recollected Pratt’s response.

Pratt gave the young flag designer a grade of B-minus. Despite receiving a ‘decent grade,’ as Heft would later describe in speeches, he remained upset as he felt his grade did not match the effort he put into it – considering Tim and his level of effort.

Pratt then presented young Bob with a challenge to have his flag submitted to Congress and if they accept his 50-star flag design he would consider changing the grade. (Wakeman Funeral Home)

Ultimately, Executive Order 10834 notes, “Section 1. The flag of the United States shall have thirteen horizontal stripes, alternate red and white, and a union consisting of white stars on a field of blue.”

“Sec. 2. The positions of the stars in the union of the flag and in the union jack shall be as indicated on the attachment to this order, which is hereby made a part of this order. Sec. 3. The dimensions of the constituent parts of the flag shall conform to the proportions set forth in the attachment referred to in section 2 of this order.” (EO 10834, Signed: August 21, 1959 Published: August 25, 1959)

Heft would make contact with the new Congressman of Ohio’s 10th District, Representative Walter H. Moeller, to inform him of his 50-star design. He eventually sent the flag to Representative Moeller with a note that in the event both Alaska and Hawaii become states that the Congressman submit the 50-star design on his behalf.

Over time, Heft would make numerous phone calls to Representative Moeller’s office, as well as 21 letters and 18 phone calls to the White House to check on the status of his flag submission. (Wakeman Funeral Home)

Eventually, Congress approved and the states ratified, Alaska, which officially became a state on January 3, 1959, and was acknowledged on a new 49-star flag at a flag-raising ceremony at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, MD on July 4, 1959.

The 49-star flag, however, would be short-lived – the shortest in U.S. history at only one year. While Hawaii also earned statehood in 1959, it did not occur until later in the year, August 21, after the 49-star flag had already been adopted. (Wakeman Funeral Home)

Following statehood of Hawaiʻi, the new flag of the United States of America (Heft’s design containing a union of 50 stars) flew for the first time at 12:01 am, July 4, 1960, when it was raised at the Fort McHenry National Monument in Baltimore, Maryland.

Heft traveled the world extensively telling countless people of his unique story. He retired after 30 years as a high school and college history teacher. He was a seven-term Mayor of Napoleon, Ohio and past state president of the Ohio Mayor’s Association. He died on December 12, 2009 in Saginaw, Michigan at the age of 67. (Wakeman Funeral Home)

© 2026 Ho‘okuleana LLC

Filed Under: General, Prominent People, American Revolution Tagged With: Hawaii, Flag, Bob Heft

June 13, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Kaname Yonamine

A shy young man, he was Nisei (second generation) born on June 24, 1925, in Olowalu, Maui, where his father Matsusai, an Okinawan, had moved to find work in the sugar cane fields and met his mother Kikue, whose family was from Hiroshima. He is considered one of the greatest athletes to come out of Hawaii. (Weber)

He starred at Lahainaluna before he attracted the attention of Honolulu’s football coaches and transferred to Farrington, starring on the baseball and football teams – and led the Governors to their first football championship in 1944.

It was there when Kaname Yonamine changed his first name to Wallace – he was then known as Wally.

Yonamine graduated from Farrington in 1945 and was drafted into the US Army the next morning. Stationed at Schofield Barracks, he was supposed to be shipped to Europe to support the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. However, within two months, World War II was over. (Hawai‘i Tribune Herald)

He never went to college, though he turned down at least one football scholarship, to Ohio State. In the period after the war, Yonamine remained at Schofield, where he joined the Lei-Alumns, a football team comprised of former Leilehua High School players.

During a fateful game against Portland University, he scored several touchdowns and caught the eye of a San Francisco 49ers scout, who was there to evaluate Portland’s quarterback.

In 1947, Yonamine signed with the San Francisco 49ers of the All-America Football Conference, a post-World War II rival to the National Football League. This was the 49ers’ second season, three years before the team joined the NFL. Yonamine inked a two-year deal worth $14,000. (AP)

He was the first Asian-American to play professional football. This was at a time in San Francisco when emotions were still raw as thousands of Japanese – most of them American citizens – who had been rounded up and forced from their homes and businesses in The City’s thriving Japantown returned from desolate internment camps. (Chapman)

Therefore, Yonamine’s signing with the 49ers took on special significance in the Asian American community. In 12 games (three starts), he rushed for 74 yards on 19 carries, caught three passes for 40 yards and recorded one interception for a 20-yard return. (49ers)

Yonamine’s football career was cut short after fracturing his wrist playing baseball in 1948. He then turned his sole focus to baseball. (49ers)

His baseball talents were immediately noticed by the legendary Lefty O’Doul, a former National League batting champion, who had been instrumental in promoting the professional game in Japan. He signed Yonamine and sent him to the Salt Lake City Bees, where Wally did well.

One of O’Doul’s contacts was Matsutaro Shoriki, owner of the Yomiuri Giants, the premier professional franchise in Japan. A deal was worked out, and, in 1951, Wally Yonamine found himself the starting center fielder of the Giants (or, “Kyojin,” as they are called in Japan.) (Gillespie)

In 1951, he arrived in Japan as the first American to play baseball after World War II. At first he was met with much adversity for being American, but also for his hard hitting style of baseball. This proved to be the introduction of a new style of baseball in Japan. (Fitts)

In his debut for the Giants, he bunted for a hit in his first at-bat, a show of daredevilry that became his trademark. To the orderly and respectful game as the Japanese played it, Yonamine brought what was considered bad behavior: beating out a sacrifice bunt, sliding hard to take out the pivot man on a double play, expressing outrage at the umpire. (Weber)

Without speaking the language, he helped introduce a hustling style of base running, shaking up the game for both Japanese players and fans. Along the way, Yonamine endured insults, dodged rocks thrown by fans, initiated riots, and was threatened by yakuza (the Japanese mafia). (Fitts)

Yonamine was a gifted athlete. He was a great left-handed contact hitter and was a Gold Glove-level defender, and a very aggressive base runner. In fact, Yonamine changed Japanese pro baseball forever, when he started thrilling crowds by stealing third base and home.

Before Wally, this was not a part of the Japanese style of play. Yonamine stole home 11 times in his career, a record for Japan’s major leagues. (Gillespie)

He also won batting titles, was named the 1957 MVP, coached and managed for twenty-five years, and was honored by the emperor of Japan. Overcoming bigotry and hardship on and off the field, Yonamine became a true national hero and a member of Japan’s Baseball Hall of Fame. (Fitts)

In 1957 he received the MVP award and led the Tokyo Giants to the Japan World Series title. Today, he still holds the highest batting average ever for a Giant.

Wally went on to play for and manage the Chunichi Dragons, and succeeded as the first foreign manager to win the Central League title (beating the Giants.) (Yonamine Pearls)

Yonamine went on to coach or manage various professional teams in Japan for 26 years. He was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994.

In 2002, the San Francisco 49ers honored Yonamine’s football legacy during an exhibition game on August 3 at Japan’s Osaka Dome. Serving as an honorary team captain, Yonamine was greeted with a standing ovation. (49ers) Wally Yonamine died February 28, 2011.

Here’s a short video on Wally Yonamine:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lp5j1upTWw

© 2026 Hoʻokuleana LLC

Filed Under: Prominent People Tagged With: Kaname Yonamine, Hawaii, Lahainaluna, Wally Yonamine, San Francisco 49ers, Yomiuri Giants, Farrington High School

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