Images of Old Hawaiʻi

by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Waiʻanapanapa

Popoalaea (ball of red clay,) a chiefess of rank in Hana district on Maui during the rule of Kamohoali‘i, is won as a reward of victory in strength-testing games by the chief Kakea (Kaakae, Makea) and he makes their home close to the crater above Kaupo at a place called Koae-kea because there the koae birds flock (or at the village of Hono-ka-lani.)

He is jealous, especially of her fondness for her younger brother. (Beckwith)

Kakae (also the name of their great-grandfather, but could have been a namesake) was more than twenty years older than Popoalaea and as time went on he grew more jealous and suspicious of her and threatened her constantly until she began to fear for her life.

Her brother, Piʻilaui, who was of a gentle nature, decided to move near her to keep her company and they would wander through the woods in search of plants and herbs for his house. They were happy in their affection for each other and forgot the jealousy of Kakae.

Then Kakae, angered by this affection of the brother and sister, threatened to kill Popoalaea.

Fearing for her life, she and her faithful companion, Manona … fled … traveling by the underground passage (for the great mountain (Haleakala) is honeycombed with caves and caverns, and lava tubes leading to the ocean.)

At last they reached the sea, the beach of Papaloa (?Pailoa.) There, where the waters have washed the rocks for centuries were to be found wild caves and deep places where only the sunbeams play and here the women thought to hide in safety.

In one of the caves they found refuge…. Kakae, searching for his wife, came to the village of Honokalaui where he heard strange tales from the fisher folk of spirits wandering on the shore at night. …

The wife hid in a cave, but the shadow of the kahili waved by the attendant betrayed their hiding place, and Kaʻakea killed them both. On the night of Ku, the water in the pool is said to run red. (Pukui)

From that day to this the caves in that region have been called Waiʻanapanapa (water flashing rainbow hues, glistening water) – for the death of Popoalaea it is said the place sparkled with rainbow stones which the gods in their pity sent … (Reportedly, as told by Emma Kalelookalani Omstead and printed in the Paradise of the Pacific.)

Today, on the night of Ku, god of justice, the water in the pool runs red. At some time each morning prismatic colors (anapa) such as are sacred to divine chiefs play over the waters of this pool as proof of her innocence.

The water of the pool makes even a dark skin look white when immersed in it. (Beckwith)

A State Park was established at Waiʻanapanapa, with campground and trails.

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Maliko Gulch Inverted Siphon

At the time of Haiku Sugar Company’s charter in 1858, there were only ten sugar companies in the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi.  Five of these sugar companies were located on the island of Maui:  East Maui Plantation at Kaluanui; Brewer Plantation at Haliʻimalie; LL Torbert and Captain James Makee’s plantation at Ulupalakua; Haiku Plantation; and Hana.

In 1869, Samuel Thomas Alexander and Henry Perrine Baldwin became business partners and bought 12-acres in Hāmākuapoko (an eastern Maui ahupuaʻa (land division.))  (They later formed Alexander & Baldwin, one of Hawai‘i’s ‘Big Five’ companies – and the only Big Five still in Hawai‘i.)

“The early years of the partnership of Alexander & Baldwin, represented a continual struggle against heavy odds. Haiku plantation had to have water.” (Men of Hawaii)

Then, the government granted Haiku Plantation the right to use the water flowing in streams down the broad slopes of Haleakala to the east of the plantation, and work was at once commenced on a ditch.

“The line, some seventeen miles in extent, with the exception of a few miles near the plantation, passes through the dense forest that covers the side of the mountain, and in running the levels for the work many large ravines and innumerable small valleys and gulches were encountered.”

“In the smaller of these the ditch winds its way, with here and there a flume striding the hollow, while through nine of the larger the water is carried in pipes twenty-six inches in diameter.”

“The digging of the ditch was a work of no small magnitude. A large gang of men, sometimes numbering two hundred, was employed in the work, and the providing of food, shelter, tools, etc, was equal to the care of a regiment of soldiers on the march.”

“As the grade of the ditch gradually carried the work high up into the woods, cart-roads had to be surveyed and cut from the main road to the shifting camps.”

“All the heavy timbers for flumes, etc., were painfully dragged up hill and down, and in and out of deep gulches, severely taxing the energies and strength of man and beast, while the ever-recurring question of a satisfactory food supply created a demand for everything eatable to be obtained from the natives within ten miles, besides large supplies drawn from Honolulu and abroad.”

“At the head of the work many difficult ledges of rock were encountered, and blasting and tunneling were resorted to, to reach the coveted water.” (FL Clarke, Thrum’s Annual, 1878)

Then came Maliko Gulch.

Maliko Gulch was too wide (and it was too expensive) to pipe the water via a bridge. They installed an inverted siphon in order to cross Maliko Gulch.  Maliko Gulch is a deeply incised stream valley with some sections of the valley floor more than 400 ft below the upland surface. (USGS)

“As the East Maui Irrigation Company report notes, Alexander planned to ‘pipe water across the gulch by means of a 1,110-foot-long inverted siphon.” (Witcher, Civil Engineering)

An inverted siphon uses a leakproof pipe that the ditch water flows into; the pipe is laid down, across and back up the Gulch ( and ends at a lower elevation than the where the ditch collects the water) – gravity pushes the water up the other side, into another ditch at the other side of the gulch.

“While work on the ditch was thus progressing, pipe makers from San Francisco were busied riveting together the broad sheets of iron to make the huge lengths of tube fitted to cross the deep ravines.” 

“These lengths had each to be immersed in a bath of pitch and tar which coated them inside and out, preserving the iron from rust, and effectually stopping all minute leaks.”

“The lengths thus prepared being placed in position in the bottom of the ravines, the upright lengths were fitted to each other (like lengths of stove-pipe) with the greatest care, and clamped firmly to the rocky sides of the cliffs.”

“Their perpendicular length varies from 90 feet to 450 feet; the greatest being the pipe that carries the water down into, across, and out of Maliko gulch to the Baldwin and Alexander Plantations.”

“At this point every one engaged on the work toiled at the risk of his life; for the sides of the ravines are almost perpendicular, and a ‘bed’ had to be constructed down these sides.”

“Then each length of pipe was lowered into the ravine and placed carefully in position; after which the perpendicular lengths were built up to the brink.”  (FL Clarke, Thrum’s Annual, 1878)

“When the ditch builders came to the last great obstacle, the deep gorge of Maliko, it became necessary in connection with the laying of the pipe down and up the sides of the precipices there encountered, for the workmen to lower themselves over the cliffs by rope, hand over hand.”

“This at first they absolutely refused to do. The crisis was serious.”

Just a few years before, “In 1876, while engaged in adjusting machinery at the sugar mill at the Pā‘ia plantation. Mr. Baldwin almost lost his life by being drawn between the rolls.”

“The engineer fortunately witnessed the accident and reversed the engine, but not before the right arm had been fearfully mangled almost up to the shoulder blade. The amputation was not followed by any serious results, but the handicap was a severe one to so energetic a worker as was Mr. Baldwin all his life.” (Mid Pacific, February 1912)

Back to the Maliko Gulch inverted siphon installation … while the workers initially refused, “[the one-armed] Baldwin met it by himself sliding down the rope, using his legs and his one arm, with which he alternately gripped and released the rope to take a fresh hold lower done.” (Arthur Baldwin)

“This was done before his injured arm had healed and with a straight fall of two hundred feet to the rocks below! The workmen were so shamed by this exhibition of courage on the part of their one armed manager, that they did not hesitate to follow him down the rope.”

“To keep the heart in them and to watch the progress of the work, Mr. Baldwin day after day went through this dangerous performance.” (Arthur Baldwin)

“Straining their financial resources almost to the breaking point, the young partners [Alexander and Baldwin] succeeded in bringing to completion the Hāmākua-Haiku ditch, the first important irrigation project in the islands.”

“The eventual enormous success of this enterprise made possible the great future of Alexander and Baldwin. Pā‘ia plantation was started and other extensive acreages were added to the partners’ holdings.” (Men of Hawaii)

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Youth Developmental Enterprises

“There have been good years and bad years for hiring summer help to work the sprawling pineapple fields on [Lanai].”

“This happens to be a good year.  In fact, the past few years have been good, because Castle & Cooke Inc which owns Lanai, finally found some good summer workers. Mormon boys from the Mainland.” (Hnl Adv-Jul 15, 1976)

During the first two years the Pineapple picking program was a joint venture between the LDS Church and the Boy Scouts of America. Then, it was decided to hand off the program to a newly created independent corporation. Ross Olsen was the founder and primary leader of the new corporation. Ross called this new corporation Youth Developmental Enterprises. (Alchetron)

Youth Developmental Enterprises was a program that ran from about 1971 to 1993. During the first two years the program was a joint venture between the LDS Church and the Boy Scouts of America; then Youth Developmental Enterprises (YDE) ran the program. (Alchetron)

The primary activity of YDE was taking men and slightly older supervisors to Hawaii to work in the pineapple fields of Lanai and Maui. YDE took around 18,000 young men to Hawaii to accomplish this work; the stated goal of the organization was not pineapple production, but rather building the character of young men. (Alchetron)

“Offered by Youth Developmental Enterprises of Salt Lake City, the program boasts 800 job openings for young men between the ages of 16 and 18 desiring work such as truck drivers, cafeteria workers and general field workers.” (The Newspaper, Park City, Utah, Dec 15, 1976)

Participants pay $1,300 in advance to cover round-trip air fare to Hawaii, accident insurance, equipment (a backpack and a T-shirt), and project development (maintenance on the buildings where they live, etc).

They work five days a week, eight hours a day and gross $6 an hour; $4.25/day is taken out of their wages for room and board. Transportation to various places on the island for leisure-time activities, where the boys go as a group, is provided. (Deseret News)

“Students can opt to work from March 10 through August 27, April 22 through September 31 or June 3 through August 27. According to Youth Development Enterprises, youths can expect to save between $1,300 and $2,000 during the five month programs and $300 to $700 during the June-August stay.” (The Newspaper, Park City, Utah, Dec 15, 1976)

“While working in Hawaii, the young men from the intermountain area agree to uphold the standards of the LDS Church. Youth Developmental Enterprises, however, is not an LDS program.” (American Fork Citizen, April 1, 1976)

“‘The program is not for every young man,’ said Ross Olsen, founder and president of YDE. ‘It’s very structured. The purpose is an opportunity to work in a structured environment free of alcohol, drugs and tobacco. These young men get a sense of belonging and that they’re of value. It builds self-esteem.’

“The youthful employees start out on equal footing. The youths board in groups of about 18, with a home leader and a team leader (the team leader is in charge at work). They do everything together, including planning leisure activities.”

“The leaders are at least 21 and have proven track records as decent, law-abiding men, Olsen said. Most of them are returned missionaries for the LDS Church. But religion is never an issue, although participants are required to attend a Sunday church service of their choice.”  (Deseret News, Lois M Collins)

The program also had a school program that was linked to the local high school. Correspondence courses were also accredited through Salt Lake City’s Granite High School.

One-fourth of participants come back for more than one session. More return for schooling than for the money, according to Olsen. The program participates in an individual, self-paced learning program. Tutors, who are under the direction of certified teachers, work with the students.

The tutors don’t grade assignments; that’s done by an individual who will “probably never even meet the students but will grade him on his own merits.” Students earn credits through the Hawaii Department of Education.  (Deseret News, Lois M Collins)

“The boys from the U.S. were flown to Hawaii on a chartered aircraft and will work for 11 weeks. During the last eight days of their stay they will be taken on a tour of three of the islands and then flown back to the mainland.” (Greeley Daily Tribune, July 28, 1976)

The teens arrived with who knows what on their mind about an experience in far away Hawaii, and found themselves on a remote island, living in dorms, and out in the fields doing hoe hana (weeding with a hoe), picking and all manner of work.

Team leaders with the Mormon youth crew kept the teens organized, rising for work in the early a.m., getting to the cafeteria for meals, to the labor yard for transportation to the work sites, and made sure that the youth got down to the island beaches and swimming spots.  (Lanai Culture & Heritage)

“For several years, Dole had depended mainly on Mainland boys for most of its summer labor on Lanai and the Mainlanders had performed well, compared with ‘not so good’ experience with local youths in the 1960s”. (Hnl Adv, Sep 17, 1981)

“The Isle teenagers accounted for 21 of the 28 non-Lanai ‘gangs,’ the rest coming from the Mainland. A gang has 17 pickers who move through the field behind a truck-mounted boom, picking the fruit,  breaking off the crowns and placing both on a conveyor belt.” (Hnl Adv, Sep 17, 1981)

“For the first time ever, Dole hired non-Lanai girls – 50 in all.  The girls ‘added something we never had – a sense of stability,’ says Sakamoto, a Big Island native.  ‘During off hours, it was like a big high school, with boys and girls sitting under coconut trees talking story’ he says. A bonus for the boys: ‘The girls would teach them how to w ash their clothes.” (Hnl Adv, Sep 17, 1981)

Maui Land & Pineapple also hired through YDE.  … “Until five years ago Maui Pine recruited 100 per cent of its labor from the island. With the rapid increase in hotels and the resulting decrease in local agricultural labor the company was forced into recruiting from the off islands and finally from the Mainland.” (Hnl Adv-Jun 14, 1973)

“At 5 a.m. dawn just begins to break over the peaks on West Maui. The tourists slumber soundly in their cozy nests from Lahaina to Napili. Only the birds and crowing roosters stir in the dim light.”

“Off the coast and up a narrow, red dirt road lined by tall Norfolk pines, the pastoral scene is shattered by the crash of heavy boots and the sleepy cries of, ‘I’m hungry.’  The season has started for the summer pickers at Maui Land & Pineapple’s Honolua Plantation just outside of Napili.”

“Tumbling out of dormitories wearing clothes of all descriptions, the seasonal workers come to breakfast before heading out to the fields for a long day of picking. Hours later the scene is repeated when the night shift comes to life.”

“Several of this year’s gang are returnees from Hawaii and the Mainland. But 60 of the 110 ‘imported’ workers are 16 to 18 year olds from Utah, the home state of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints.”  (Deseret News, Lois M Collins)

When Hawai‘i programs eventually ended, various negotiations were begun to work for the LDS Church Farms in Bradenton, Florida, picking tomatoes and oranges, some independent tomato and squash growers in Beaufort, South Carolina and a tree-planting effort in Mississippi. None of these programs really got off the ground and the entire YDE program ended. (Alchetron)

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Mokulau Landing

“Ethnobotanical surveys provide evidence of extensive alteration of coastal and lower montane ecological zones and indicate that the entire area of East Maui from Ke‘anae to Kaupo was densely steeled prior to European contact.”  (Cusick)

“[R]esearchers agree that Kipahulu and its neighbors, Hana to the northeast and Kaupo to the southwest were historically important relative to other districts in the Hawaiian Islands because of their abundant natural and human resources”. (Cusick)

“They were coveted lands, prized by the ali’i (nobility) for their abundance of foodstuffs and all the valued products of the land and sea. Plentiful food and resources made possible a large population, and many followers meant power of the chief controlling the land.” (Cusick)

The southeastern section of the island of Maui, comprising the districts of Hāna, Kīpahulu, Kaupo and Kahikinui, was at one time a Royal Center and central point of kingly and priestly power – Piʻilani ruled from here (he built Hale O Piʻilani – near Hāna.)  This section of the island was also prominent in the later reign of Kekaulike.

Royal Centers were where the aliʻi resided; aliʻi often moved between several residences throughout the year. The Royal Centers were selected for their abundance of resources and recreation opportunities, with good surfing and canoe-landing sites being favored.

Long before the first Europeans arrived on Maui, Kīpahulu was prized by the Hawaiian aliʻi for its fertile land and abundant ocean.  The first written description of the region was made by La Pérouse in 1786 while sailing along the southeast coast of Maui in search of a place to drop anchor:

“I coasted along its shore at a distance of a league (three miles) …. The aspect of the island of Mowee was delightful.  We beheld water falling in cascades from the mountains,  and running in streams to the sea,  after having watered the habitations of the natives …”

“…  which  are  so numerous  that a  space of  three or four leagues (9 – 12 miles, about the distance from Hāna to Kaupō) may be  taken for  a single village.” (La Pérouse, 1786; Bushnell)

“But all the huts are on the seacoast, and the mountains are so near, that the habitable part of the island appeared to be less than half a league in depth.  The trees which crowned the mountains, and the verdure of the banana plants that surrounded the habitations, produced inexpressible charms to our senses…”

“… but the sea beat upon the coast with the utmost violence, and kept us in the situation of Tantalus, desiring and devouring with our eyes what it was impossible for us to attain … After passing Kaupō no more waterfalls are seen, and villages are fewer.” (La Pérouse, 1786; Bushnell)

With the development of the whaling industry on the island in 1880s the southeastern Maui population started to decline as people moved to main whaling ports, such as Lāhainā.  In the early-1900s, one of the regular ports of call for the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company was at Kīpahulu. Steamships provided passenger service around Maui and between the islands.

“As long as Hawaii has been inhabited, there has been intercourse between the Islands. Before the white man came, and for some years after, the mode of travel was by outrigger canoe. Kamehameha I transported whole armies by this method while engaged in his campaign of conquest of the Islands.”

“The white man introduced the sailing schooner as a means of travel which continued in vogue until the middle of the eighteenth century, at which time the time the first steamship was placed in inter-island service.”

As the needs of transportation between the Islands grew, more steamships were brought over from the Mainland. By 1900 there were two fleets of ships in inter-island service: one operated by the Wilder Steamship Company and the other by the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company.

“When these, two companies amalgamated in 1904 as the Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company the combined fleet totaled 14 vessels”.  (Progress Report (1939) – Transportation)

“The Kaupo residents are delighted with the wharf and approach just completed at Mokulau.  The approach just built may be driven over by a light wagon while the old route was such that the landing could only be reached by footmen or by pack animals.” (Maui News, Dec 8, 1906)

Also known as Kaupo Landing, “the best landing place in the vicinity during trade-wind weather. The local steamer visits this place occasionally”. (Hawaiian Place Names)

“At 9:15 a.m., we arrived at Mokulau. It is a small place. There is only one building, a storehouse. The wharf is a tall rocky hill. The storehouse and around it were full of men and women. We met with friends and acquaintances.”

“At 9:50 a.m., the Kilauea anchored. When the cargo and lumber were unloaded, the passengers were called. We gave our final farewell to Joseph Marciel, Mrs. Marciel and friends and got on the final rowboat. The Kilauea left Mokulau at 12:30 p.m.” (KaupoMaui)

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Pre- and Early-teen Pineapple Workers

Child employment is regulated by both federal and Hawaii state laws. When the laws overlap, employers are required to follow the one that provides more protection. It’s also essential to know that the regulations vary significantly depending on the youth’s age.

Children under 14 are generally prohibited from working in non-agriculture operations, with some exceptions. Fourteen- and 15-year-olds are subject to limited types of work and limited working hours.

Teens ages 16 and 17 can generally work any number of hours in any job unless it’s considered hazardous, which we’ll touch on later. Once someone turns 18, they’re no longer subject to child labor laws.

Hawaiʻi law requires anyone under 18 to have a child labor certificate, or work permit, before their first day on the job. This is a way for the state to ensure the work isn’t hazardous and won’t interfere with a teenager’s schooling. (ALTRES)

It used to be different … “I worked when I was eleven …. Of course, I was already cleaning haole houses, so this work was steady income. You work, you carry your canvas bag, and your lunch, and your bottle of water. Gloves, everything you need.”

“When we had to go picking, you would climb through all the plants to get to the center of the field. You pick the pineapple, you throw it to the next line.”

“[I]f you caught a field with a lot of ripe pineapples, boy, you work fast, you can earn a lot of money because you get a bonus for the number of crates you crate up.”

“I was only eleven, and the other people were twelve. But then, I’m in the same grade they are; we’re in the sixth grade. I remember I was paid ten cents less, because I wasn’t twelve years old yet”. (Jane Lee Gabriel, UH Oral History, Lānai: Reflecting on the Past)

Another pre-teen worked in the fields, “I remember working in the pineapple fields when I was eleven years old. So, at eleven I would be a sixth-grader [in 1944].”

“The war is still going on, yes. We had to wear canvas pants, a long-sleeved denim jacket because we would get pierced by those long, pointed pineapple leaves. We also had to wear wire goggles to protect our eyes. Then a hat, because we would be out in the sun.”

“We had to do weeding and putting fertilizer into the pineapple plant, and picking the ripe pineapples from the plant. … My classmates, because they were already twelve, were getting sixty-seven cents.”

“I remember grumbling about it. I went to the luna, and said, ‘You know, my pay is not fair. How come they’re getting more money than me?’”

“‘We’re in the same grade at school, and I’m going to be twelve in November. But then, this is the summer, so I’m only eleven.’” (Jane Nakamura, UH Oral History, Lānai: Reflecting on the Past)

Another preteen worked in the fields … [I was] ”Twelve years old. My pay I believe was something like thirty-five cents an hour. The war was still going on and I went to get my physical. I was so proud. I’m going to work and they gave me a number, aluminum tag with my work number [bango].”

“[We did] Everything from picking pineapples to cutting grass. Especially in the summertime, it was never cutting grass, it was always picking pineapple.”

“When you’re twelve years old, you don’t weigh even one hundred pounds. I didn’t. We had these big bags we put the pineapples in. The weight of it would weigh—if I wasn’t set and leaning a certain way, I couldn’t put any pineapples in there without [Tipping over].” (Takeo Yamato, UH Oral History, Lānai: Reflecting on the Past)

Another Lanai youth noted, “When I was twelve, pineapple field were picking up kids up to – well when I was eleven, they picked up kids up to twelve years old to work in the pineapple field.”

“So I said next year, I can work in the pineapple field cause all the kids look forward to going to work into pineapple field cause that’s about all you had on the island besides playing sports or whatever.”

“So I said, well, next year, I’ll be able to work in the pineapple field. That year, they picked (kids) up till thirteen and they stopped. And I said, well, I will have to wait the following – following year, they stopped at fourteen.”

“When I got to be fourteen, they had this law, something about you had to go to the labor board and everything, so it stopped at fifteen.”

“When I was fifteen, they said up to sixteen, and that’s it. So by the time I worked in the pineapple field, I was sixteen years old. I worked about two years (in the pineapple fields). I graduated from school when I was eighteen and I left (Lānai) and (joined) the army (in summer of 1956) and that’s it.”

“But my sister, I think she started (working in the pineapple fields) when she was twelve or eleven. Every time I wanted to be the age so I can go and work (in the) pineapple field, they stopped at the age before me.” (Charlotte Richardson Holsomback; UH Oral History, Lānai Ranch)

Maui Land & Pineapple used to have similar success in recruited youthful workers …“In years past, we had to turn kids away. There wasn’t anything else to do. Now going to work for a plantation is the last thing they want to do.” (Hnl Adv-Jun 14, 1973)

”We put on a big campaign on Kauai and Hawaii for local boys. From the Big Island we wanted 30 boys and got six. We anticipated 20 boys from Kauai and got four.” (Shuji Seki, recruiting and personnel supervisor for Maui Pine)

Hawai‘i youth were not filling the needs … “Until five years ago Maui Pine recruited 100 per cent of its labor from the island. With the rapid increase in hotels and the resulting decrease in local agricultural labor the company was forced into recruiting from the off islands and finally from the Mainland.” (Hnl Adv-Jun 14, 1973)

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