Pali | Page 2 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

October 3, 2016 by Peter T Young 3 Comments

Dowsett Tract

Honolulu, by the end of the 19th century, was densely populated. Overcrowding and unsanitary living conditions were of great concern.

In part because of the 1900 plague and the Chinatown fire, residents began moving away from the city and into the surrounding valleys, wanting to escape from the overcrowded city into the quiet and serene rural areas.

With the introduction of the railway, trolley system, and the construction of new roads into the Honolulu area, transportation and accessibility into the city was made easier, thus affording residents with an easier commute.

There was a trolley that traveled from Waikiki into Manoa Valley along Oahu Avenue, and another that traveled along Nu‘uanu Avenue from town into the Nuuanu Valley. The introduction of automobiles, and construction of finished roadways also made travel easier.

Before the construction of the Pali Road, residents living on the windward side of Oahu would travel over the Ko‘olau Mountains by foot, along a treacherous path, to reach Honolulu.

In 1876, improvements were made to the trail to allow horses access to the trail as well. Regardless of these improvements, the trail was still quite dangerous, and took time to travel.

In 1897, plans for the construction of Pali Road were initiated. Engineered by Johnny Wilson and Lou Whitehouse, after its completion, it was considered one of Oahu’s major roadways.

Pali Road, connecting with Nuʻuanu Avenue (the present Pali Highway), officially connected the windward side of the island with downtown Honolulu. The development of this road allowed for greater accessibility into the valley.

In order to support the growing populations in dense areas in Honolulu, reservoirs and sophisticated systems were developed to collect and transport water to these areas.

By 1890, there were already two reservoirs in place in Nuʻuanu Valley, and a third one was under construction. Plans for a fourth reservoir was underway after the 1891 drought, and construction on this reservoir began in 1905.

With the area’s water system development, it supported the lifestyles of those living in the valley area. This area was one of the first on O‘ahu to be developed as a residential subdivision. It was called the Dowsett Tract.

The Dowsett Tract was named after the family that once owned the land. James Isaac Dowsett was born to Samuel James Dowsett (born in Rochester, Kent, England 1794 – lost at sea in 1834) and Mary Bishop Dowsett (Rochester, Kent, England; 1808 – 1860) in Honolulu, December 15, 1829.

Samuel and Mary married in Australia. A ship captain, Samuel did shipping business in Australia and was into whaling. Samuel first arrived in Hawaiʻi in 1822 when he was first officer of the “Mermaid,” accompanying the “Prince Regent,” a gift-ship from King George IV of England to King Kamehameha I, promised to the King by George Vancouver.

Samuel returned with his wife on July 17, 1828, arriving on the brig Wellington; they set up their home in Hawaiʻi at that time. Samuel and Mary had 4 children, James, Samuel Henry, Elizabeth Jane and Deborah Melville. James Isaac Dowsett was the first non-missionary white child to be born in Hawai‘i.

With his father’s disappearance, James Dowsett started working from the young age of twelve, and had a strong work ethic that would help him become a successful businessman.

He was active in the whaling and lumber industry, owned a fleet of boats that operated between the islands, and had extensive ranching investments. In his youth, Dowsett was a playmate of Kamehameha IV, Kamehameha V and Lunalilo.

Dowsett married Annie Green Ragsdale of Honolulu, and together they had thirteen children. “He was a quick thinker and an excellent reasoner and while not a talkative man was always willing to supply any information from his great storehouse that might be useful to another or that might interest an inquirer.”

“He knew the town, the people and the country. He never left the Islands but once in his whole life and then four days in San Francisco was enough of life in foreign parts. He was a perfect encyclopedia of history and biography not only of Honolulu and Oahu, but of the entire group.”

“The common suggestion to one in search of obscure historical data was to go to Mr. Dowsett and he never failed. He could always supply day and date and all required details.” (Hawaiian Gazette, June 17, 1898)

Dowsett took on Chung Kun Ai as his protégé, allowing Ai to use a portion of his warehouse, and Ai started importing cigars, tea, peanut oil, shoe nails and other items. Ai and others later started City Mill, a rice milling and lumber importing business in Chinatown, Honolulu. The City Mill building on Nimitz was dedicated to Dowsett.

“Dowsett saw the grass hut replaced by the stone business block and the taro patch filled up for mansion site. He saw the little paths become fine streets and the broad and barren plains thickly populated districts. He saw the life of a nation change. … Through all this he was a close observer and always on the side of what was right and just.” (Hawaiian Gazette, June 17, 1898)

Dowsett died on June 14, 1898; “news of the death of Mr. Dowsett had been sent all over the Island and the Hawaiians in large numbers joined the throng of haoles calling to pay respects and offer consolation.”

“The older Hawaiians could not restrain themselves at all and gave vent to floods of tears and to strange wailings. They were overpowered and overcome by the thought that no more would they have the friendly greeting, the certain and reliable advice or the material assistance of the one who had been their reliance at all times and upon all occasions for so many years.” (Hawaiian Gazette, June 17, 1898)

After his death in 1899, James Dowsett’s heirs formed The Dowsett Company, Ltd. to help manage his extensive Hawaii property, including Dowsett Tract.

The Dowsett Tract was 273 acres of land in Nuʻuanu Valley. On October 4, 1912, the Dowsett Company subdivided the property into two lots (A and B). In June of 1916 – September 1916, the property was subdivided into 57 lots.

The Niniko ʻauwai runs through the development, providing fresh drinking water for virtually every land parcel contained within the triangular portion of land bounded by Nuʻuanu Avenue, Dowsett Avenue and Alika Avenue. Dowsett Avenue and Ragsdale Place in Dowsett Tract and Highlands in Nuʻuanu are named after James and Annie.

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Oahu_Country_Club-from_Alewa-(GaryWild)-1919-Dowsett Tract

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Nuuanu Valley, Honolulu, Hawaii, circa 1900

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Nuuanu_Valley-Aviation Day formation over Oahu-(hawaii-gov)-December 17, 1934

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August 25, 2016 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Pali Training Camp

The undulating plains at the foot of Nuʻuanu Pali are known as Kekele (damp;) it was a place that was fragrant with hala (pandanus) blossoms and bountiful in hala fruit for lei-making.

It was referred to in songs and traditions as “the sweet land of fragrance and perfume” because the fragrance from the blossoms of these trees scented the whole region. (Cypher; Cultural Surveys)

English Captain George Vancouver introduced cattle and sheep to O‘ahu in 1793, and by the 1840s cattle had multiplied into a large herd.

A description from the Pali looking toward Kaneohe in 1854 revealed that there were “hundreds of cattle … feeding on the rich pasture with which these plains were covered.”

By the mid-1860s, livestock was altering the landscape. The undulating plains of the Kekele lands were described as “a rich land a while ago but now there are not many plants because animal are permitted there.” (Cultural Surveys)

In the 1860s, commercial sugar cane cultivation began in Kāne‘ohe. One of the earliest sugar plantations on O‘ahu was owned by Charles Coffin Harris, who came to Hawai‘i in 1850 with a plan to practice law. He established the Kaneohe Sugar Plantation Company (ca. 1865.)

In 1871, Harris bought Queen Kalama’s Ko‘olaupoko properties from her heir, Charles Kanaina, as well as some land in Honolulu for $22,448. The sale included “livestock, tool, fishponds, and fishing rights.”

Harris’s plantation shut down in 1891 because the sugar yield was not enough to support the operation. Harris’s daughter and heir, Mrs. David Rice, incorporated the lands as Kaneohe Ranch and converted them to ranching.

Harold KL Castle, the only child of James B. Castle, owned most of the ahupua‘a of Kāne‘ohe in the early 1900s, and in 1917 he purchased 9,500 acres of land from Harris’s daughter. (At its peak, Kaneohe Ranch extended from the ocean in Kailua to the Pali and included 12,000-acres and 2,000-head of cattle.)

By 1911, Libby, McNeill & Libby gained control of land in Kāneʻohe and built the first large-scale cannery with an annual capacity of 250,000 cans at Kahaluʻu, Koʻolaupoko on the Windward side of O‘ahu; growing and canning pineapples became a major industry in the area for a period of 15 years (to 1925.)

This sizable cannery, together with the surrounding old style plantation-type housing units, became known as “Libbyville” (St John’s by the Sea now occupies the site.)

During most of the period when this cannery was in operation, the canned pineapple was transported to Honolulu by sampan from a pier just off the end of the peninsula at Wailau.

At its peak, 2,500 acres were under pineapple cultivation on Windward O‘ahu, and of this a large percentage was in the Kāne‘ohe Bay region (below the Pali.)

“At last we reached the foot of the Pali … Joe and I looked over the surrounding hills, but looked in vain for the great areas of guava through which but a few months ago we had fought and cut our way. As far as the eye could reach pineapple plantations had taken the place of the forest of wild guava.” (Cultural Surveys)

Then, in 1943, the Army established a regimental combat team training center at the foot of the Pali, emphasizing the use of and familiarity with modern arms and field weapons. In addition, the camp provided rugged terrain for jungle and Ranger training.

The training area comprised of four non-contiguous parcels: Maunawili Valley Impact Area, covering approximately 3,450-acres; the Maunawili site (near St Stephens Seminary,) 400-acres; a 46-acre site on the northern ridge of Mount Olomana; and the 500-acre site called Ulumawao.

The Pali Training Camp was situated in what is now the municipal Pali Golf Course, privately owned Ko’olau Golf Course and Hawaii Pacific University.

Troops were housed in a sprawling tent city at the base of Nuʻuanu Pali capable of supporting 3,000 to 5,000-individuals. In addition to barracks, the encampments also contained latrines, showers, mess halls, administration buildings, and motor pools.

Additional barracks, an ice plant, a bakery, and gun pits were situated at Maunawili. A field hospital was erected at what is now Maunawili Park.

Camp training facilities consisted of 200 and 300-yard rifle ranges, a 1,000-inch range, four obstacle courses, an infiltration course, a combat in cities course, a close combat course, and a 400-yard long jungle firing course.

On October 8, 1945, Army Headquarters ordered the release of the Pali Training Camp and the encampment was abandoned by the end of 1945. By the end of 1946, military-erected structures were subsequently sold as surplus by bid sale.

The land reverted to its previous use of cattle ranching in 1946. Since being sold to the City and County of Honolulu in the early 1950s, much the property has been graded and developed into the Pali Golf Course.

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Pali Training Camp

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Pali-PP-60-2-005-00001-overlooking area of Pali Training Camp

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Pali-PP-60-2-046-00001-area below was Pali Training Camp

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Pali-PP-60-1-019-00001-overlooking area of Pali Training Camp

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May 20, 2016 by Peter T Young 1 Comment

Lady in Waiting

Captain Henry Blanchard, master of the brig Thaddeus (that brought the Pioneer Company of missionaries to the Islands in 1820,) married a Molokai chiefess named Koloa. They had a daughter, Harriet, born in 1831.

Harriet married an itinerant English actor, John Townsend, whose dramatic company performed in Honolulu. He gave up acting and invested in a sugar plantation (that went bankrupt.) Then he disappeared, leaving Harriet with their two children Eveline (Kittie) and George.

Eveline Melita Townsend joined Kawaiahaʻo Church, where she sang in the church choir, led by then-Princess (later-Queen) Liliʻuokalani. Liliʻuokalani must have been charmed by her exuberant and fatherless choir member, for Eveline became a protégé of the princess and later an intimate friend. (Krauss)

“(Kittie) professed a great fondness and love for me, and with two other young ladies, Lizzie Kapoli and Sophie Sheldon, had made my home theirs. Bright young girls, with happy hearts, and free from care and trouble, they made that part of my life a most delightful epoch to me.”

“It was then that Mr (Charles Burnett (CB)) Wilson first sought the hand of pretty little Kittie Townsend. Thus we had known Mr Wilson quite well as a young man when he was courting his wife.”

“My husband and myself had warmly favored his suit; and, with his wife, he naturally became a retainer of the household, and from time to time they took up their residence with us.” (Liliʻuokalani)

The Wilsons had a son, Johnny. CB Wilson was appointed Marshal of the Kingdom.

“One evening, shortly after Mr and Mrs Wilson had moved into the bungalow, he presented himself at the Blue Room of the palace, and then first mentioned the idea that a new constitution should be promulgated. … About two days’ after this suggestion I received a call from Mr. Samuel Nowlein, who alluded to the same matter.”

“On the sixteenth day of January. 1895. Deputy Marshal Arthur Brown and Captain Robert Waipa Parker were seen coming up the walk which leads from Beretania Street to my residence.”

“Mrs Wilson told me that they were approaching. I directed her to show them into the parlor, where I soon joined them. Mr. Brown informed me that he had come to serve a warrant for my arrest; he would not permit me to take the paper which he held, nor to examine its contents.”

“(W)e arrived at the gates of ʻIolani Palace, the residence of the Hawaiian sovereigns. We drove up to the front steps, and I remember noticing that troops of soldiers were scattered all over the yard.”

“(I)n conference it was agreed between us … that Mrs Wilson should remain as my attendant; that Mr. Wilson would be the person to inform the government of any request to be made by me, and that any business transactions might be made through him.” (Liliʻuokalani)

“During the imprisonment here of Liliuokalani in 1895 Mrs Wilson was chosen by the ex-Queen as best friend and the relations between them were of the closest and most confidential nature. In the old court days here Mrs. Wilson was prominent both on account of her own position as a lady in waiting and her husband’s official rank.” Hawaiian Gazette, May 24, 1898)

During her imprisonment, Queen Liliʻuokalani was denied any visitors other than one lady in waiting (Mrs. Eveline Wilson.) Johnny would bring newspapers hidden in flowers from the Queen’s garden; reportedly, Liliʻuokalani’s famous song Kuʻu Pua I Paoakalani (written while imprisoned,) was dedicated to him (it speaks of the flowers at her Waikiki home, Paoakalani.)

Paoakalani written by Liliuokalani, performed by Kuuipo Kumukahi:

In 1897, Johnny Wilson and fellow Stanford student Louis Whitehouse won the bid to expand and construct a ‘carriage road’ over the Pali. Ground was broken on May 26, 1897 and the road was opened for carriages on January 19, 1898.

(When the current Pali Highway and its tunnels opened (1959,) the original roadway up and over the Pali was closed and is now used by hikers.)

Then, “It was a painful thing for our hearts to hear that the uncompassionate hand of death reached out and took the precious breath of life from the body of Mrs Evalaina Willison (Wilson,) the wife of Mr CB Willison (Wilson,) in the early morning of this Saturday, after she began to waste away of sickness for just a few short days.”

“She was a well-known woman here in town, and elsewhere on the island, and she was the attendant of Queen Liliuokalani while she was on the throne until her overthrow.”

“There were many, many friends who visited to see her for the last time, and then dust returned to dust, for that is where it came from. She leaves behind a husband, child and family who grieve for her from this side of the grave. (Aloha Aina, May 28, 1898)

Later, her son Johnny Wilson got involved with politics and is credited as being the most important Democrat in the first half of 20th-century Hawaiʻi; his name is used with Jack Burns in the party movement. He was in a meeting on April 30, 1900 that organized the Democratic Party of Hawaiʻi and served as Honolulu Mayor.

Initially known as the ‘Kalihi Tunnel’ (and often called the Likelike Tunnels,) the Wilson Tunnels are named in honor of John H Wilson. (1998 brought the completion of H-3 (and the Tetsuo Harano Tunnels – named after a longtime state highways administrator.))

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Lyman C Newell, Queen’s lady-in-waiting, Queen Liliuokalani, Adam H Dickey & Mrs SK Kea-PP-98-13-007

November 28, 2015 by Peter T Young 9 Comments

The Pali

In the early nineteenth century there were three routes from Honolulu to Windward Oʻahu: around the island by canoe; through Kalihi Valley and over the pali by ropes and ladders; and over Nuʻuanu Pali, the easiest, quickest and most direct route.

The first foreigner to descend the Pali and record his trip was Hiram Bingham (my great-great-great grandfather.) His zeal for spreading the word of God led him to take a group of missionaries over the Pali to the Koʻolaupoko area in 1821.

The current Pali Highway is actually the third roadway to be built there. A large portion of the highway was built over the ancient Hawaiian foot paths that traversed the famous Pali pass.

In 1845 the first road was built over the Nuʻuanu Pali to connect Windward Oʻahu with Honolulu. It was jointly financed by the government and sugar planters who wanted easy access to the fertile lands on the windward side of Oʻahu. Kamehameha III and two of his attendants were the first to cross on horseback.

A legislative appropriation in 1857 facilitated road improvements that allowed the passage of carriages. The Rev. E. Corwin and Dr. G. P. Judd were the first to descend in this manner on September 12, 1861.

When the current Pali Highway and its tunnels opened (1959,) the original roadway up and over the Pali was closed and is now used by hikers.

I am old enough to have traveled (and young enough to still remember traveling) on the Old Pali Road over the Pali before the tunnels were built.

Living on the windward side and initially going to school and then in later years working in Honolulu, there was always a satisfaction of going through the tunnels and heading home, leaving the rest of the world behind you.

Folklore holds that you should never carry pork over Old Pali Highway, especially at night. Motorists reported that their cars mysteriously stopped and would not start until the pork was removed from the car.

The stories vary, but are rooted in the legendary relationship between fire goddess Pele and the demigod Kamapuaʻa (a half-man, half-pig.) The two agreed not to visit each other.

If one takes pork over the Pali, you are bringing a physical form of Kamapuaʻa into Pele’s territory and breaking their agreement. Some versions note a white dog appears when your car stalls.

The Pali was the site of the Battle of Nuʻuanu, one of the bloodiest battles in Hawaiian history, in which Kamehameha I conquered Kalanikupule of Oʻahu, bringing it under his rule.

In 1795 Kamehameha sailed from his home island of Hawaiʻi with an army of thousands of warriors, including a handful of non-Hawaiian foreigners.

The war apparently ends with some of Kalanikupule’s warriors pushed/jumping off the Pali. When the Pali Highway was being built, excavators counted approximately 800-skulls, believed to be the remains of the warriors who were defeated by Kamehameha.

If you’re driving up the Pali Highway from town you can see two notches cut in the narrow ridgeline. The notches are man-made. Many believe they were cannon emplacements, used especially during the Battle of Nuʻuanu between Oʻahu’s Kalanikupule and Hawaiʻi Island’s Kamehameha.

However, per Herb Kane, “Kalanikupule had some arms bigger than muskets, but they were probably just swivel guns. Besides, the Battle of Nu‘uanu Pali started as a skirmish by Diamond Head, and no one knew where the battle would end up. Kalanikupule could not have planned it that way.”

“Hawaiians, like everyone else, understood the value of high ground. These are certainly (pre-Cook) lookout stations, and that’s why you see them all over the islands – if you look out for them.”

Lili‘uokalani used to visit friends at their estate in Maunawili. She and her brother King David Kalākaua were regular guests and attended parties or simply came there to rest.

Guests, when leaving the home, would walk between two parallel rows of royal palms, farewells would be exchanged; then they would ride away on horseback or in their carriages.

On one trip, when leaving, Liliʻu witnessed a particularly affectionate farewell between a gentleman in her party and a lovely young girl from Maunawili.

As they rode up the Pali and into the swirling winds, she started to hum a melody weaving words into a romantic song. The Queen continued to hum and completed her song as they rode the winding trail down the valley back to Honolulu.

She put her words to music and as a result of that 1878 visit, she wrote “Aloha ‘Oe.”

The melody may have been derived from Croatian folk song (Subotika region) Sedi Mara Na Kamen Studencu (Girl On The Rock,) in 1857 published in Philadelphia by Charles Crozat Converse as The Rock Beside The Sea.

Aloha ʻOe was first introduced in America in 1883 by the Royal Hawaiian Band with Heinrich (Henry) Berger conducting.

(When Liliʻuokalani was imprisoned, Johnny Wilson’s mother Eveline (Townsend) Wilson was her lady in waiting. During her imprisonment, Queen Liliʻuokalani was denied any visitors – but Johnny would bring newspapers hidden in flowers from the Queen’s garden.)

(Reportedly, Liliʻuokalani’s famous song Kuʻu Pua I Paoakalani (written while imprisoned,) was dedicated to Wilson (it speaks of the flowers at her Waikiki home, Paoakalani.))

(The other early set of Koʻolau tunnels, first known as the Kalihi Tunnel (competed in 1960) were named in honor of Johnny Wilson. The H-3 tunnels are named after Tetsuo (Tets) Harano, a former DOT Highways administrator.)

Windward_Side_of_the_Pali-(HHS)-1899

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Horse Drawn Buggies at Pali Lookout

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Pali Road and cliffs, Honolulu, Hawaii ca. 1883-85. Photographer-Vandis Expedition-(BM)

Pali Road – 1900

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Cars, Pali Lookout, R. Wenkam-(HSA)-ca. 1945

Cars, Pali lookout-(HSA)-ca. 1920

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October 8, 2014 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Alāla

Alāla (lit., awakening) is a point at the south end of Kailua Beach that separates Kailua Beach and Kaʻōhao (an ʻili in the Kailua ahupuaʻa – the area is now more commonly called Lanikai) on Oʻahu.

The point takes its name from the fishing shrine, a natural stone formation, on the ridge above. Wailea, a companion fishing shrine (and point,) is located at the south end of Lanikai. (Ulukau)

In 1920, a bridge was constructed across Kaʻelepulu Stream, giving better access to the area.

Shortly after, Harold Kainalu Long Castle sold land to developer Charles Russell Frazier (the head of Town and Country Homes, Ltd., which was the real estate division of the Trent Trust Co) to create what Frazier and Trent called Lanikai (a name they made up.)

They laid out the subdivision and the first permanent homes in the area were constructed in 1924. Development began at the northern end of the neighborhood and moved further south along the beach.

The area was initially considered a remote country location for weekend getaways or vacations at the beach for swimming, fishing, boating and hiking.

The construction of the Lanikai streets was completed by October 1925. Included in the deeds for the Lanikai subdivision were restrictions that remained in effect until 1950, against building within 18-feet of the property boundary line along the street or using the property for anything other than residences.

At about the same time, Frazier leased a couple-hundred acres of neighboring land from Bishop Estate. He persuaded sixty-five men, many of whom were purchasing his lots and cottages at Lanikai, to commit to a country club project (Kailua Country Club; the name quickly changed to Mid-Pacific Country Club.)

In 1926, the development doubled in size and Frazier added the now-iconic monument at the entrance to the development.

It was designed by the famed local architect Hart Wood. (Wood, known for residential and commercial structures (including Alexander & Baldwin Building and Honolulu Hale,) designed the also-iconic “Hawaiian” double-hipped roof pattern and “lanai” or broad roofed-in patio with open sides.)

The Lanikai Monument’s use of rough concrete and stone is in keeping with Wood’s experiments with natural stone indigenous to the structure’s site, an example of which is his Makiki Christian Science Church.

The Lanikai Monument is a simple pillar located on a narrow strip of land that is a high point next to the road; it’s there to mark the boundary and entry point of the subdivision and golf course. It is still in its original location and its original design remains almost intact.

The tapered concrete base structure is 40-feet in circumference and 56 inches high. The pillar is made of concrete and stone.

The 16 foot tall pillar has a gentle taper from its 5-foot-diameter lower portion to a slightly narrower and rounded concrete top that is capped with a conical concrete cap. Two curved metal plates near the top bear the name, “Lanikai.” (NPS)

For decades, beach houses in Lanikai were mainly used as a retreat from Honolulu; however, in the 1950s, the area began to develop into a more suburban residential area. (The Pali Highway and its tunnels opened in 1959; that helped spark the change.)

Lanikai Beach had a white sandy beach approximately one mile long (about half of this has disappeared over the years due to erosion and seawalls along the shore.)

During cleaning of the monument in 2001, it lost its pointed metal spear at the top, as well as the heavy chain that surrounded the monument and draped from four metal rings.

The image shows the Lanikai Monument in 1925. (gokailuamagazine) In addition, I have added other images to a folder of like name in the Photos section on my Facebook and Google+ pages.

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