Hoapili | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

July 14, 2026 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Entourage

On November 27, 1823, L’Aigle, an English whaling ship under the command of Captain Valentine Starbuck, on which Kamehameha II (Liholiho), Kamāmalu, and their entourage traveled to England to gain firsthand experience in European ways.

The king and his chiefs agreed that Liholiho needed a competent interpreter to travel with him, and they asked Starbuck to permit the Englishman William Ellis and his family to join the royal suite. Starbuck adamantly and persistently refused. Frenchman John Rives went as interpreter.

Liholiho’s chosen party were Governor Boki and his wife, Liliha, Kapihe, Chief Kekuanaoa, steward Manuia, Naukana (Noukana), Kauluhaimalama, servant Na‘aiweuweu, and James Kanehoa Young. (Corley)

Boki was the son of Kekuamanoha, a chief of Maui (but it was rumored that he was the son of Kahekili II.) His original name was Kamaʻuleʻule; his nickname came from a variation on Boss, the name of the favorite dog of Kamehameha I.

His older brother, Kalanimōkū, was prime minister and formerly Kamehameha’s most influential advisor. His aunt was the powerful Kaʻahumanu, queen regent and Kamehameha’s favorite wife.

King Kamehameha II appointed Boki as governor of Oʻahu and chief of the Waiʻanae district. John Dominis Holt III said Boki was “a man of great charisma who left his mark everywhere he went.”

Boki married Chiefess Kuini Liliha; Liliha was the daughter of Kalaniulumoku II (some say Koakanu was her father) and Loeau, who were themselves full blooded brother and sister (children of Kalaniulumoku I and his own mother the venerable kapu chiefess Kalanikuiokikilo.)

This makes Liliha a niaupio child, a chiefess of the highest possible princely rank in the system of Hawaiian chiefs. She was hānai (adopted) daughter of Ulumāheihei (Hoapili). (Kekoolani)

Ulumāheihei’s father, High Chief Kameʻeiamoku, was one of the “royal twins” who helped Kamehameha I come to power – the twins are on the Islands’ coat of arms – Kameʻeiamoku is on the right (bearing a kahili,) his brother, Kamanawa is on the left, holding a spear.

Kapihe (Naihekukui) “was very intelligent, had an excellent memory, and spoke English tolerably. He was remarkably skillful in the game of draughts (Kōnane,) which he played with uniform success.” (Byron)

He was son of the chief Hanakāhi and also known as Jack the Pilot or Captain Jack. He had been the pilot for the Russian explorer Golovnin in 1818 and piloted Freycinet from Kailua Bay to Kawaihae in August 1819. (Birkett) Lord Byron referred to him as ‘Admiral.’

Kekūanāoʻa’s name (literally, the standing projections) is said to refer to ships’ masts seen in the harbor when Kekūanāoʻa was born. (Pukui) (Some claim Kekūanāoʻa to be the son of Ki‘ilaweau, the grandson of Alapaʻi, King of Hawai‘i, and the Chiefess Kaho‘owaha of Moana. (Kapi‘ikauinamoku))

“As a young man he was a favorite and attendant of the declining years of Kamehameha I. With Liholiho he was a punahele, or intimate attendant and friend, and in that capacity accompanied the Royal party to England”.

Kekūanāoʻa married Pauahi, formerly a wife of Liholiho. They had a daughter, Princess Ruth Keʻelikōlani. In 1827, Kīnaʻu, daughter of Kamehameha, became Kekūanāoʻa’s wife. Kīnaʻu and Kekūanāoʻa had five children: Prince David Kamehameha (who died as a child;) Prince Moses Kekūāiwa (who died in 1848;) Prince Lot Kapuāiwa (Kamehameha V); Prince Alexander Liholiho (Kamehamhea IV) and Princess Victoria Kamāmalu.

Boki’s younger cousin, Manuia, was in command of Fort Kekuanohu, of the fortified hill of Punchbowl and the harbor of Kou, and Boki made him Chief Marshall with power over life and death. He an Boki later set up grog shops at Honolulu.

Naukana (Noukana) was son of Kamanawa (one of the twins on the Islands’ coat of arms – and one of Kamehameha’s four Kona Uncles who helped him rise to control all of the Islands.)

Kauluhaimalama was son of Kekūhaupiʻo. Hawai‘i Island ruling chief Kalaniʻōpuʻu instructed Kekūhaupiʻo to teach Kamehameha the ancient martial arts of the land. Kekūhaupiʻo was determined to give all his knowledge to his chiefly pupil, and he indeed did so. This brought about the firm bond between Kekūhaupiʻo and the young Kamehameha.

Kekūhaupiʻo is arguably the one man most closely connected to Kamehameha I during Kamehameha’s formative years, while he developed his skills as a warrior, and through the early period of Kamehameha’s conquests.

“Kanehoa Young, the second son of John Young, was about the same age as Liholiho, had traveled widely throughout the world, and spoke English.” (Corley)

John Young, a boatswain on the British fur trading vessel, Eleanora, was stranded on the Island of Hawai‘i in 1790. Kamehameha brought Young to Kawaihae, where he was building the massive temple, Pu’ukoholā Heiau.

For the next several years, John Young, and another British sailor, Isaac Davis, went on to assist Kamehameha in his unification of the Hawaiian Islands.

Because of his knowledge of European warfare, Young is said to have trained Kamehameha and his men in the use of muskets and cannons. In addition, both Young and Davis fought alongside Kamehameha in his many battles.

With these powerful new weapons and associated war strategy, Kamehameha eventually brought all of the Hawaiian Islands under his rule.

In London, Liholiho and Kamāmalu became ill. It is believed they probably contracted the measles on their visit to the Royal Military Asylum (now the Duke of York’s Royal Military School.) Virtually the entire royal party developed measles within weeks of arrival, 7 to 10 days after visiting the Royal Military Asylum housing hundreds of soldiers’ children.

Kamāmalu (aged 22) died on July 8, 1824. The grief-stricken Kamehameha II (age 27) died six days later, on July 14, 1824. Prior to his death he asked to return and be buried in Hawai‘i.

Kapihe was the only one of the followers who had suffered from the disorder in a degree at all equal to the king and queen. Boki and Kekūanāoʻa rapidly recovered; and Kapihe soon grew better.

Shortly thereafter, the British Government dispatched HMS Blonde to convey the bodies of Liholiho and Kamāmalu back to Hawaii, along with the entourage. The Captain of the Blonde, a newly commissioned 46-gun frigate, was Lord Byron (a cousin of the poet.) The Blonde arrived back in Honolulu on May 6, 1825.

Their_Majesties_King_Rheo_Rhio,_Queen_Tamehamalu,_Madame_Poke

December 11, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Lot Kapuāiwa

December 11, 1830, Lot Kapuāiwa was born. His mother was Kīnaʻu, the daughter of Kamehameha I (she became the Kuhina nui, in 1832.) His father was Mataio Kekūanāoʻa, a descendent of the Chiefs of the Island of Oʻahu (he was governor of Oʻahu, as well as a member of the House of Nobles and the Privy Council.)

Lot Kapuāiwa was hānai to Chief Hoapili of Lāhainā and Princess Nāhiʻenaʻena. (Kapuāiwa means mysterious kapu (taboo) or sacred one protected by supernatural powers.)

He was 9-years-old when he entered the Chiefs’ Children’s School. The aliʻi wanted their children trained in Western, as well as Hawaiian traditions and Kamehameha III asked missionaries Amos and Juliette Cooke to teach the young royals.

In 1849, Lot and Alexander Liholiho (his brother) began their year-long trip to the United States and Europe. When he returned he was appointed a member of the House of Nobles and began government service.

He ascended to the throne as Kamehameha V on November 30, 1863, on the death of his brother. “He was a master in the beginning, & at the middle, & to the end. The Parliament was the “figure-head,” & it never was much else in his time. … He hated Parliaments, as being a rasping & useless incumbrance upon a king, but he allowed them to exist because as an obstruction they were more ornamental than rival.” (Twain)

“He surrounded himself with an obsequious royal Cabinet of American & other foreigners, & he dictated his measures to them &, through them, to his Parliament; & the latter institution opposed them respectfully, not to say apologetically, & passed them.” (Twain)

Kamehameha V modeled his leadership after that of his grandfather, Kamehameha I, believing that it was the right and duty of the chiefs to lead the common people. He refused to support the Constitution of 1852. By supporting the controversial Constitution of 1864, he expected to regain some of the powers lost by previous kings. (ksbe)

“He was not a fool. He was a wise sovereign; he had seen something of the world; he was educated & accomplished, & he tried hard to do well for his people, & succeeded. There was no rival nonsense about him; he dressed plainly, poked about Honolulu, night or day, on his old horse, unattended; he was popular, greatly respected, & even beloved.” (Twain)

In 1865, a bill to repeal the law making it a penal offense to sell or give intoxicating liquor to native Hawaiians was brought before the legislature. Strongly supported by some, Kamehameha surprised the supporters saying, “I will never sign the death warrant of my people.” The measure was defeated in the second reading. (Alexander)

Kamehameha V founded the Royal Order of Kamehameha on April 11, 1865 in commemoration of his grandfather, Kamehameha I. The stated purpose of the order was “to cultivate and develop, among our subjects, the feelings of honour and loyalty to our dynasty and its institutions and … to confer honorary distinctions upon such of our subjects and foreigners as have rendered, or may hereafter render to our dynasty and people, important services.” (Royal Order)

Hansen’s Disease was rapidly spreading on Oʻahu. In response, the legislature passed “An Act to Prevent the Spread of Leprosy” in 1865, which King Kamehameha V approved. This law provided for setting apart land for an establishment for the isolation and seclusion of leprous persons who were thought capable of spreading the disease. The first shipment of lepers landed at Kalaupapa January 6, 1866, the beginning of segregation and banishment of lepers to the leper settlement.

By 1866, the need for a new courthouse government building in the Hawaiian Kingdom was apparent. The legislature appropriated funds towards a new palace and a new government building. Delays ensued. Plans for a new palace were postponed, but the new courthouse moved forward. On February 19, 1872, Kamehameha V laid the cornerstone for Aliʻiolani Hale (now home to the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court.)

King Kamehameha V encouraged the revival of native practices. On Maui, a group of eight Hawaiians founded the ʻAhahui Laʻau Lapaʻau. In 1868, the Legislature established a Hawaiian Board of Health to license kahuna laʻau lapaʻau. Kahuna practices including lomilomi massage and laʻau kahea healing remained legal for the next twenty years. (princeton-edu)

Later, his summer home in Moanalua Gardens became the home of the annual Prince Lot Hula Festival, the largest non-competitive hula event in Hawai‘i. It honors Lot Kapuāiwa who helped to revive hula by staging pāʻina (parties) at his summer home. (Save the date, July 19, 2014, for the 37th annual event at Moanalua Gardens.)

The Kamehameha V Post Office (built in 1871, one of the oldest remaining public buildings in Hawaiʻi, and so named because it was built at the direction of Kamehameha V) was the first post office building in Hawaiʻi. For many years, it also housed the publishing and printing office of the Hawaiian Gazette and other small companies and organizations needing office space. (NPS)

December 11, Lot Kapuāiwa celebrated the first Kamehameha Day in 1871 as a day to honor his grandfather; the first celebration fell on Lot’s birthday. Because the weather was better in the summer, the decision was made to move the Kamehameha I celebration six months from the King Kamehameha V’s birthday (so it was moved to June 11 – the date has no direct significance to Kamehameha I.) The 1896 legislature declared it a national holiday. (Kamehameha Day continues to be celebrated on June 11.)

He had a law passed by the Legislative Assembly in 1872 that funded and authorized the acquisition of the hotel on the corner of Hotel Street and Richards Street by the Hawaiian government, which he named the Royal Hawaiian Hotel. (The “Pink Palace” in Waikīkī was a different/subsequent Royal Hawaiian, built in 1927.)

Bernice Pauahi was betrothed to Lot Kapuāiwa; but when Mr Charles R Bishop pressed his suit, Pauahi “smiled on him, and they were married. It was a happy marriage.” (Liliʻuokalani) Lot Kapuāiwa never married.

“On the 10th (of December, 1872,) (Liliʻuokalani and her husband) were summoned to the palace to attend the dying monarch; one by one other chiefs of the Hawaiian people, with a few of their trusted retainers, also arrived to be present at the final scene; we spent that night watching in silence near the king’s bedside. The disease was pronounced by the medical men to be dropsy on the chest (hydrothorax, accumulation of fluid in the chest.”) (Liliʻuokalani)

“Although nearing the end, the mind of the king was still clear; and his thoughts, like our own, were evidently on the selection of a future ruler for the island kingdom, for, turning to Mrs. Bishop, he asked her to assume the reins of government and become queen at his death.” She declined. “… he relapsed into unconsciousness, and passed away without having named his successor to the throne.” (Liliʻuokalani) (Lunalilo was shortly after elected King of Hawaiʻi.)

December 11, 1872, Lot Kapuāiwa died; it was his 42 birthday.

July 21, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Pahikaua – Rebellion of 1831

On August 21, 1831, Nat Turner (a slave on the Travis farm) and six of his men met in the woods to make their plans. At 2 am, they set out to the Travis household, where they killed the entire family as they slept.

They continued on, from house to house, killing all of the white people they encountered. Turner’s force eventually consisted of more than 40 slaves, most on horseback.

By mid-day the next day, word of the rebellion had gotten out to the whites; confronted by a group of militia, the rebels scattered and Turner’s force became disorganized. (PBS)

Several of the rebels were captured. The remaining force then met the state and federal troops in final skirmish, in which one slave was killed and many escaped, including Turner. In the end, the rebels had stabbed, shot and clubbed at least 55 white people to death.

Nat Turner hid in several different places near the Travis farm, but on October 30 was discovered and captured. His “Confession,” dictated to physician Thomas R. Gray, was taken while he was imprisoned in the County Jail.

On November 5, Nat Turner was tried in the Southampton County Court and sentenced to execution. He was hanged, and then skinned, on November 11. In total, the state executed 55 people, banished many more, and acquitted a few. (PBS)

But that is not the 1831 rebellion this summary is about – this is about an 1831 rebellion in the Islands.

From 1825 until her death in 1832, Kaʻahumanu was one of the staunchest friends of the missionaries and one of the foremost supporters of their cause.

Kaʻahumanu was missionizing throughout the islands, proclaiming the new taboos against murder, adultery, Hawaiian religious practices, hula, chant, ʻawa and distilleries. (Silva)

In 1824, Boki and Liliha, along with some other aliʻi actively opposed Kaʻahumanu and the missionaries. (Silva)

From 1816 to 1829 Boki was Governor of O‘ahu and was in charge of Liholiho’s (Kamehameha II) and then Kauikeaouli’s (Kamehameha III) O‘ahu lands.

Boki participated in establishing a sugar plantation in the upper part of Mānoa valley. Untimely rains raised the stream and destroyed a dam under construction at the mill site. (Kuykendall) His partners constructed a still and began to make rum from molasses. (Daws)

Boki’s trade in entertaining the visiting ships and distilling liquor ran him afoul of the missionaries and Kaʻahumanu. Kaʻahumanu had him fined in 1827 for misconduct, intemperance, fornication and adultery, apparently in connection with his brothels and grog-shops. (Nogelmeier)

Kaʻahumanu ordered the sugar cane on his Manoa plantation to be torn up when she found it was to be used for rum. When Boki could no longer provide the cane for distilling and Kaʻahumanu had the sugar crop destroyed, Boki turned to distilling ti-root. (Nogelmeier)

Then, in 1829, Boki, in debt, attempted to recover his financial situation by assembling a group of followers and set out for a newly discovered island with sandalwood in the New Hebrides; he never returned. Boki’s wife, Liliha, succeeded him in the office of Governor of O‘ahu.

During Boki and Liliha’s tenure (ca. 1830) Chief Abner Paki was appointed konohiki (land agent/overseer) of some of the lands under their control – Paki is Liliha’s cousin.

Kaʻahumanu was concerned about Liliha’s lifestyle (indulging in drinking and other worldly pleasures) and asked her father, Hoapili, to go to Oʻahu and teach his daughter “to let liquor alone and abandon drunkenness, loose living, and wastefulness.” (Kamakau)

Concerned about Kaʻahumanu’s control, in 1831, Paki joined with Liliha in an attempt to take over Oʻahu.

Pahikaua (literally war knife or sword) was the name given to the attempt made by followers of Liliha to retaliate against Kaʻahumanu for the threat made by (her) against Liliha if she continued to live in her independent fashion. (Silva)

However, the Pahikaua rebellion failed.

As a result, Liliha was removed from power and lost official control of most of Kamehameha III’s lands. However, Liliha maintained some of her lands and “continued to play a governess role in Pali Ko‘olau (Ko‘olaupoko) into the mid-1830s.”(Cultural Surveys)

At a national council held April 1, 1831, Kuakini (Governor Adams,) brother of Kaʻahumanu, was appointed governor of Oʻahu, and Naihe governor of Hawaiʻi.

Kuakini proceeded to vigorously enforce the laws of 1829, which had been allowed to become a dead letter under Boki and Liliha. (Alexander)

About a year later, June 5, 1832, Kaʻahumanu died, after an illness of about 3-weeks. She was buried at Pohukaina at ʻIolani Place and later transferred to Mauna ‘Ala, the Royal Mausoleum in Nuʻuanu Valley.

On August 25, 1839, Liliha died unexpectedly in Honolulu, at the age of 37 and was buried at Waineʻe (Waiola) Church cemetery.

Na_Poki._and_his_wife_Liliha-1824

Kaahumanu,_retouched_image_by_J._J._Williams_after_Louis_Choris

Kaahumanu-(HerbKane)

Abner Pākī (c. 1808–1855) was a member of Hawaiian nobility. He was a legislator and judge, and the father of Bernice Pauahi Bishop-1855

Confessions_of_Nat-Turner

Nat_Turner_Rebellion

May 28, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Keōpūolani Sails to Lāhainā

On the arrival of the American missionaries in April 1820, all the chiefs were consulted respecting the expediency of their establishment in the islands. Some of the chiefs seemed to doubt; but Keōpūolani without hesitation approved their proposals. (Keōpūolani Memoir)

Keōpūolani welcomed them. As the highest ranking ali‘i of her time, her embracing of Christianity set a crucial seal of approval on the missionaries and their god. (Langlas & Lyon)

Keōpūolani was the daughter of Kīwalaʻo. Kīwalaʻo was the son of Kalaniʻōpuʻu by Kalola (sister of Kahekili.) Her mother was Kekuiapoiwa Liliha, Kīwalaʻo sister. She was aliʻi kapu of nī‘aupi‘o (high-born – offspring of the marriage of a high-born brother and sister or half-brother and half-sister.)

Her ancestors on her mother’s side were ruling chiefs of Maui; her ancestors on her father’s side were the ruling chiefs of the island of Hawai‘i. Keōpūolani’s genealogy traced back to Ulu, who descended from Hulihonua and Keakahulilani, the first man and woman created by the gods.

In the year 1822, while at Honolulu, she was very ill, and her attention seems to have been then first drawn to the instructions of the missionaries. (Anderson)

On April 27, 1823, the Second Company (First Reinforcements) arrived in the Islands. On board were missionaries Reverend Artemas Bishop and Mrs. Bishop, Dr. Abraham Blatchley and Mrs. Blatchley, Mr. Levi Chamberlain, Mr. James Ely and Mrs. Ely, Mr. Joseph Goodrich and Mrs. Goodrich, The Reverend William Richards and Mrs. Richards, The Reverend Charles S. Stewart and Mrs. Stewart, and Miss Betsey Stockton.

In May 1823, Keōpūolani and her husband Hoapili expressed a desire to have an instructor connected with them. They selected Taua, a native teacher sent by the church at Huaheine, in company with the Rev.William Ellis, to instruct them and their people in the first principles of the Gospel, and teach them to read and write. (Memoir)

Keōpūolani requested, as did the king and chiefs, that missionaries might accompany her. As Lāhainā had been previously selected for a missionary station, the missionaries were happy to commence their labors there under such auspices. (Keōpūolani Memoir)

Liholiho (King Kamehameha II) was the son of Kamehameha and Keōpūolani. Like his father, Liholiho had loved foreign ships; over time he had collected a sizable ﬂeet of Western vessels, which, with guns and training by the foreigners, were a major asset in unifying and maintaining his kingdom across the islands.

Liholiho purchased Cleopatra’s Barge and her cargo for 1.07-million pounds of sandalwood, worth $80,000 at the time. On January 4, 1821, King Liholiho took formal possession of Cleopatra’s Barge, appointing his personal secretary, Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Rives, as temporary captain. That ship was to take Keōpūolani to Lāhainā.

“On the 26th of May [1823] we heard that the barge was about to sail for Lahaina, with the old queen and princes; and that the queen was desirous to have missionaries to accompany her; and that if missionaries would consent to go, the barge should wait two days for them.”

“A meeting was called to consult whether it was expedient to establish a mission at Lahaina. The mission was determined on, and Mr. [Stewart] was appointed to go: he chose Mr. [Richards] for his companion, who was also appointed the next day. On the 28th we embarked on the mighty ocean again, which we had left so lately.” (Betsey Stockton)

As noted in Rev Stewart’s book of his time in Hawaii “The Cleopatra’s Barge, at sea, May 30, 1823. On Wednesday, the 28th, Mr and Mrs Richards, [Harriet Stewart] and myself, [Betsey Stockton] and [Stewarts’ son Charles – born at sea on the way to the Islands], with William Kamahoula, and Mr. [Elisha] Loomis, who makes the voyage to see us established at our station, embarked with the queen Keopuolani for Maui.”

“Our designation was so unexpected, and departure so sudden, that we had scarce leisure to turn a thought on the separation about to take place from our fellow laborers, or to cast a glance of anticipation at the possible trials that might await us, in a distant and solitary district of the islands.”

“The topsails of the barge had long been unfurled as a signal for sailing, before we had completed our preparations, and the last package was scarcely secured, before the farewell hymn and benedictions of our friends were sounding in our ears, and we hurried to the open bosom of the Pacific.”

“Left to the deliberate contemplation of our position, we almost trembled at the responsibility resting upon us, and at the arduous duties in prospect. Every thought was exquisitely awake to the life on which we had now actually entered.”

“Months indeed had passed since we bade adieu to our country, home, and friends; but during a voyage of 18,000 miles, we had still been surrounded by those we loved; and for the last few weeks, though on heathen shores, we had been calmly reposing in the bosom of a band of intelligent and affectionate Christians, without a participation of their labors and their cares. …”

“We were fully alive to the contrast; and, in the anticipation of the privations and trials, by which we believe the work in which we are engaged must be accomplished, we could scarce refrain exclaiming, ‘Farewell ease – farewell comfort – farewell every wordly joy.’”

“But with these feelings there was no mingling of despondency. No, in the kind providence of God, every circumstance attending our situation is too auspicious to admit the indulgence of any unbelieving fear of the ultimate success of our enterprise.

“We had been on board scarce an hour, before the polite and kind attention of those under whose immediate and express patronage we had embarked, made us almost forget that we were not still in the bosom of beloved friends. …”

“[I]n the evening, while a splendid moon gave a softened beauty to the receding promontories of Oahu, and brought to light the distant shores of Molokai and Lanai, overtopped by the loftier heights of Maui …”

“Previous to our embarcation, we had but little opportunity to judge, from personal intercourse, of the degree of civilization to which the chiefs have attained in minor points, and were somewhat surprised at the ceremonious attentions paid us.”

“Immediately on reaching the vessel, we were informed that the after-cabin was appropriated exclusively to-our use; though there were not less than two hundred persons on board, many of them high chiefs, with their particular friends; …”

“… and we had hardly cleared the harbor, when the steward waited on us, to know what we would order for dinner, and at what hour it should be served.

“Mr [Anthony] Allen had sent us a fine ready-dressed kid, with some melons, for our passage; and Mrs [Hiram] Bingham had kindly prepared coffee and other refreshments; but our table has been so regularly and comfortably spread, that our basket of cold provisions remains untouched.”

“This attention is the more noticeable, because the trouble is entirely on our account, all the natives eating their favorite dishes on their mats on deck. Kalaimoku [Kalanimōku], from courtesy, very politely took his seat with us the first time we sat down. to, meal, but excused himself from partaking of the dinner, by saying that he had eaten above.”

“There was something also in the attentions of the king to his mother, when leaving Honolulu, that had a pleasing effect on our minds. This venerable old lady was the last person that came on board.”

“After we had reached the quarter-deck of the barge, she appeared on the beach, surrounded by an immense crowd, and supported by Liholiho in a tender and respectful manner.”

“He would let no one assist her into the long-boat but himself; and seemed to think of nothing but her ease and safety, till she was seated on her couch, beneath an awning over the main hatch.”

“The king continued to manifest the utmost affection and respect for her till we got under way; and, apparently from the same filial feelings, accompanied us fifteen miles to sea, and left the brig in a pilot-boat, in time barely to reach the harbor before dark.” (Charles Stewart)

“On their passage [Keōpūolani] told [the missionaries] she would be their mother; and indeed she acted the part of a mother ever afterwards. On the evening of Saturday, the clay of their arrival, she sent them as much food, already cooked, as was necessary for their comfort at the time, and also for the next day, which was the Sabbath.”

“In the morning of the 31st, we all came on deck, and were in sight of land. In the middle of the day we came to anchor; the gentlemen left the vessel to see if they could obtain a house, or any accommodations for us. They returned in a few hours with Mr. Butler, an American resident, who had kindly offered us a house.” (Betsey Stockton)

“Immediately on their arrival, [Keōpūolani] requested [the missionaries] to commence teaching, and said, also, ‘It is very proper that my sons (meaning the missionaries) be present with me at morning and evening prayers.’”

“They were always present, sung a hymn in the native language, and when nothing special prevented, addressed through an interpreter the people who were present, when Taua, or the interpreter, concluded the service with prayer.” (Keōpūolani Memoir)

“In the afternoon our things were landed, and we took up our residence in Lahaina. We had not seen a tree that looked green and beautiful since we left home, until we came here.” (Betsey Stockton)

On April 24, 1873, while serving as Sheriff on Maui, William Owen Smith (a son of missionary Lowell Smith) planted Lāhainā’s Indian Banyan to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of the first Protestant mission in Lāhainā.

March 28, 2025 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Maui Alaloa

The canoe was a principal means of travel in ancient Hawaiʻi.

Canoes were used for inter-village coastal and interisland travel, while trails within the ahupuaʻa provided access between the uplands and the coast.

Most permanent villages initially were near the sea and sheltered beaches, which provided access to good fishing grounds as well as facilitating canoe travel between settlements.

At about the same time of Christopher Columbus crossing the Atlantic to America (he was looking for an alternate trade route to the East Indies,) Piʻilani was ruler of Maui.

According to oral tradition, Piʻilani unified the entire island of Maui and ruled in peace and prosperity, bringing together, under one rule, the formerly-competing eastern (Hāna) and western (Wailuku) multi-district kingdoms of the Island.

Piʻilani’s prosperity was exemplified by a boom in agriculture and construction of heiau, fishponds, trails and irrigation systems. Famed for his energy and intelligence, Piʻilani constructed the West Maui phase of the noted Alaloa, or long trail (also known as the King’s Highway.)

Ancient trails facilitated trading between upland and coastal villages and communications between ahupuaʻa and extended families. These trails were usually narrow, following the topography of the land. Sometimes, over ʻaʻā lava, they were paved with waterworn stones (ʻalā or paʻalā).

Pi‘ilani died at Lāhainā and the kingdom of Maui passed to his son, Lono-a-Piʻilani (Lono.) Pi‘ilani had directed that the kingdom go to Lono, and that Kiha-a-Piʻilani (Kiha – Lono’s brother) serve under him in peace.

In the early years of Lono’s reign all was well … that changed.

Lono became angry, because he felt Kiha was trying to seize the kingdom for himself. Lono sought to kill Kiha; so Kiha fled in secret to Molokaʻi and later to Lānaʻi. When Kiha, with chiefs, warriors and a fleet of war canoes, made their way to attack Lono; Lono trembled with fear of death, and died. (Kamakau)

Kiha assumed power over Maui. Like his father, the reign of Kiha was, “eminently peaceful and prosperous, and his name has been reverently and affectionately handed down to posterity”. (Fornander)

Kiha resumed what his father had started in West Maui. Kiha laid the East Maui section and connected the island. This trail was the only ancient pathway to encircle any Hawaiian island (not only along the coast, but also up the Kaupō Gap and through the summit area and crater of Haleakalā.)

Kiha connected the entire island with a network of trails to aide his people in their travels which gave him quick access to all parts of his kingdom.

Four to six-feet wide and 138-miles long, this rock-paved path facilitated both peace and war. It simplified local and regional travel and communication, and allowed the chief’s messengers to quickly get from one part of the island to another. The trail was used for the annual harvest festival of Makahiki and to collect taxes, promote production, enforce order and move armies.

Missionaries Richards, Andrews and Green noted in 1828, “a pavement said to have been built by Kihapiʻilani, a king … afforded us no inconsiderable assistance in traveling as we ascended and descended a great number of steep and difficult paries (pali.)” (Missionary Herald)

By the middle-1820s, significant changes in the Hawaiian Kingdom were underway. The missionaries, who arrived in April 1820, selected key stations generally coinciding with the traditional Royal Centers, which by this time, were also developing as trade points with foreign vessels.

The development of trails to western-style roadways was initiated to facilitate access to mission stations, landings, and key areas of resource collection.

Until the 1840s, overland travel was predominantly by foot and followed the traditional trails. By the 1840s, the use of introduced horses, mules and bullocks for transportation was increasing, and many traditional trails – the ala loa and mauka-makai trails within ahupuaʻa – were modified by removing the smooth stepping stones that caused the animals to slip.

Eventually, wider, straighter trails were constructed to accommodate horse drawn carts. Unlike the earlier trails, these later trails could not conform to the natural, sometimes steep, terrain. They often by-passed the traditional trails as more remote coastal villages became depopulated due to introduced diseases and the changing economic and social systems.

Sometimes, the new corridors were constructed over the alignments of the ancient trails, or totally realigned, thus abandoning – for larger public purposes – the older ala loa. In addition to these modifications in trail location and type due to changing uses, trails were also relocated as a result of natural events such as lava flows, tsunami, and other occurrences. The Hawaiian trail system was and will remain dynamic.

Hoapili is credited with improving the King’s Highway (in early 1800s – portions were called Hoapili Trail, initially built during the reign of Pi‘ilani.) Hoapili commissioned road gangs for the work. The Rev. Henry Cheever noted that these road gangs were largely composed of prisoners who had been convicted of adultery; Cheever called it “the road that sin built.” (Samson)

By the early 1850s, specific criteria were developed for realigning trails and roadways, including the straightening of alignments and development of causeways and bridges. This system of roadwork, supervised by district overseers, and funded through government appropriations – with labor by prisoners and individuals unable to pay taxes in another way – evolved over the next 40 years.

With the passing of time, emphasis was given to areas of substantial populations. Because of the on-going decline of the Hawaiian population, and the near abandonment of isolated communities formerly accessed by the ala loa and earlier alanui aupuni, segments were abandoned.

In the later years of the Hawaiian monarchy, the need to define and protect Hawaiian trails and roadways was recognized, particularly in support of native tenants living in remote locations. Often these native tenants` lands were surrounded by tracts of land held by single, large landowners who challenged rights of access.

In 1892, Queen Liliʻuokalani and the Legislature of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi signed into law an “Act Defining Highways, and Defining and Establishing Certain Routes and Duties in Connection Therewith,” to be known as The Highways Act, 1892.

“All roads, alleys, streets, ways, lanes, courts, places, trails and bridges in the Hawaiian Islands, whether now or hereafter opened, laid out or built by the Government, or by private parties, and dedicated or abandoned to the public as a highway, are hereby declared to be public highways.”