Tamarind Tree | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

He kapu ka Lāʻau Wī
Kanu kūikawā ia no ka ‘iewe

Ka Tamarind Tree, kapa ia Lāʻau Wī
Ka Lāʻau Wī, he Tamarind Tree
Noho ilalo ka ʻiewe
Ka ‘iewe o ka lani

He mana nui kēia lāʻau haole
Ka Lāʻau Wī kau ma wahi Kou

Ua hoʻolako ka malu
No ka Lani me kona mau poʻe

Aloha na poʻe i kēia lāʻau
A like me ko lākou aloha i ke aliʻi

Haʻina mai ana kapuana
O ka Lāʻau kaulana ma Kou

Kapu was the Tamarind Tree
Planted for the storing of the umbilical cord

Tamarind Tree called the Lāʻau Wī
The Lāʻau Wī is the Tamarind Tree
Below is the cord
The cord of Pauahi

Much power in the tree
The Tamarind Tree plant at Kou

The tree provided much shade
For the sacred one and her people

Her people loved the tree
Like they loved their chiefess

Thus is the Tamarind Tree story
Of the famous tree at Kou

(Ka Lāʻau Wī, Keliʻi Tauʻā & David Kauahikaua

“On the mauka Waikiki corner of King street and Fort were some native buildings which afterwards gave place to a wooden building … The next premises were the large property, well walled in, of the high chiefs, Paki and Konia, parents of Mrs. Pauahi Bishop.”

“There was a fine large straw house with wide veranda, ample grounds, and a long row of servant’s house. One of the beautiful ornaments of the place was a fine large tamarind tree …” (Streets of Honolulu in the Early Forties, Gilman)

“When Pauahi was born, her father, Abner Paki planted a Tamarind tree in the yard, but placed Pauahi’s ʻiewe (afterbirth) in the ground first to supply nourishment to that tree. This was located in the center of downtown Honolulu at (what is now) the corner of King St. and Bishop St.”

“This is where the family home was located, and when the city wanted to build the road into downtown, they asked Mr. Bishop for part of his yard, and named the street after them – Bishop St.”

“Across the street is Tamarind Park (all the trees in the park) and across the street is First Hawaiian Bank, the bank that Charles Reed Bishop founded.” (KSBE)

Born to Paki and Konia, “Bernice lived with Kīna‘u until she was eight years old, when she was sent to the Royal School. Paki and Konia were very desirous of retaining her as their own.”

“After the death of Kīna‘u, Governor Kekūanāoʻa yielded reluctantly to this wish, for he and the other chiefs had become very proud of the promising child.”

“At the urgent request of Konia and Paki, regular, official, and legal papers were made out, and, much to their satisfaction, the child was restored to them.”

“I doubt if she ever made any lengthened stay with her parents; probably nothing more than a call, and then with her old kahu [attendant] returning at once to the school.” (Gilman; Krout)

“At the birth of the much desired daughter, Victoria, who was born November 1, 1838, Bernice Pauahi was returned to her parents.”

“She was then eight years of age, and was one of the first pupils to enter the Family School for Young Chiefs, or the Royal School as it was more commonly known. It is not believed by those who knew Paki well, that he ever meant to surrender Bernice permanently to her foster mother.” (Krout)

“(in school, she) loved music, painting, gardening, horseback riding, reading, history and was an excellent writer, too. On Sundays they would attend Kawaiahaʻo church, which eventually became the home church of Princess Pauahi.”

“Not only did she sing in the choir, she also led it for a while. She was not only a student in the Sunday School, but she was a teacher as well. … She was a true servant of God.”

“The Will of Princess Pauahi is very important to the school. It gives us our marching orders and gives us direction. Pauahi actually named the school as printed in the Will, ‘to erect and maintain in the Hawaiian Islands two schools, each for boarding and day scholars, one for boys and one for girls, to be known as, and called the Kamehameha Schools.’”

“‘I desire my trustees to provide first and chiefly a good education in the common English branches, and also instruction in morals and in such useful knowledge as may tend to make good and industrious men and women; and I desire instruction in the higher branches to be subsidiary to the foregoing objects.’”

“‘I also direct that the teachers of said schools shall forever be persons of the Protestant religion, but I do not intend that the choice should be restricted to persons of any particular sect of Protestants.’”

“The first headmaster of the Schools was an ordained minister, the Reverend William B. Oleson (he had previously run the Hilo Boarding School – Protestant mission feeder school to Lahainaluna.)” (KSBE)

“I was always interested to see her out under a large tamarind tree surrounded by her people, many of whom had come in from the country to advise with her. She would sit for hours with the utmost patience listening to them.” (Krout)

The tamarind tree grew to ‘noble proportions,’ but was finally cut down to make way for modern buildings.” (Krout) A remnant of the tree is in the Kamehameha Schools Bishop Memorial Chapel. Today is ‘Founder’s Day’, birthday (December 19, 1831) of Pauahi.

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger

Tamarind Tree Trunk-Pauahi-KSBE

Tamarind-Tree-Trunk-Pauahi-BoiseState.jpg

Tamarind Park

Bernice Pauahi’s residence at Haleʻākala build by her father Abner Paki. The building itself is called Aikupika-1855

“The school was opened at Punahou, July 11th, 1842, with fifteen scholars in attendance that day. During the first year there were thirty-four pupils, of whom fifteen were boarders, their ages varying from seven to twelve.”

“It was in that year (1842) that some of the pupils planted the old tamarind tree, which still stands in front of the ‘Rice Building.’” (Punahou Jubilee, 1891)

At the time of planting the tree was a seedling, about a year old. It descended from trees first brought to Hawai‘i in 1797 that were planted by Don Francisco de Paula Marin in Pauoa Valley. The species quickly became a favorite of early settlers and was planted on many old homesteads. (Punahou)

The tamarind tree is the oldest living object on the Punahou School campus. In those days, morning and evening student work supplied the school with corn and vegetables for the table. (Punahou)

“In the old time there was hardly less sunshine in the life at Punahou than at present. Nor was moral culture given in those times to the neglect of physical training.”

“The pupils were taught to labor; and their work brought good returns. Sometimes the labor was irksome; and boylike some of them would exclaim of the institution ‘Punahou-hoe-hoe.’”

“Sometimes the fruit produced was too carefully kept; and the refrain was ‘Bananas rot, which I have not.’ While the mission were obliged to practice strict economy, and were hardly able to bear the expense of starting the school, there were not the means to teach the manual arts, as there are hardly now the requisite means for such a purpose.” (Punahou Jubilee, 1891)

In 1941, Punahou prepared for its first centennial celebration; a Centennial Committee was formed. Great Great Granddaughter of Hiram and Sybil Bingham, Lydia Sutherland (my mother,) a graduate of the 1941 centennial class, served as the Student Chairman of the Centennial Committee.

“One hundred years ago a hot and tired woman, Sybil Bingham, bent under an unrelenting sun to pick up stones and pile them on a wall. She was doing her share of the work on a school for her children and the children of her fellow missionaries to the Sandwich Islands.”

“The whole story of the past century carries with it a message which we can take to heart. Faith attended the beginning of Punahou, faith that through knowledge might come understanding and from understanding a finer life. That same faith has led Punahou through the years, guiding its development, expansion and activity.” (The Friend, June 1, 1941)

“The occasion demands, however, a double vision. One looks backward over the past and gathers up the history of what has happened. To this man responds by honoring those who have labored so meritoriously and by giving heed to the lessons of success and failure experience teaches.”

“The other vision looks forward. It peers into the dark and unknown future, building into it a pathway upon which human beings may tread. Quite wisely have Punahou’s leaders looked both ways.” (The Friend, June 1, 1941)

“One Hundred Years, the Story of an Era, as this centennial pageant has been named, will be presented on a massive stage 175 feet long and 50 feet deep, which will he built on Alexander Field at Punahou School.” (The Friend, June 1, 1941)

One centennial event was in memory (and recognition of) the school’s tamarind tree – the Tamarind Derby, a centennial event that paid homage to the tamarind tree.

The Tamarind Derby was a gardening contest. It featured seedlings from the great tree that were distributed to Centennial attendees. Planted throughout O‘ahu, the seedlings were to be later measured to see who had grown the largest tree in one year’s time. (Punahou74)

The elementary children then brought out the year-old tamarind seedlings and placed them on the former Bingham Hall (1883 – 1959) lanai for sale while tamarind punch was served. (Punahou)

Those who bought the trees also bought the opportunity to compete in the “Tamarind Derby Race.” Entry was guaranteed for each registered seedling planted on the island of Oahu before July 31.

Annual tree inspections would be held for five years and prizes awarded to both the purchaser and the school’s Living Endowment fund for the best trees. A final inspection would be held in 1951 with $2,500 paid to Living Endowment in the name of the owner the winning tree.

But no derby winners would ever be named. With the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 more pressing matters came to occupy the minds of Hawai‘i’s people. (Punahou)

The derby was called off. On September 1, 1942 Dr. Shepard wrote to all derby entrants: “At the Centennial Celebration you kindly purchased a tamarind tree which was registered for the Tamarind Derby.”

“One of the conditions of the competition was that a written report be filed at the Punahou School office between May 1 and June 30, 1942, stating that the tree was ready for inspection. Since no one filed such report and since war conditions hinder or interfere so much with inspections, it has been decided to call off the race.”

“While we regret this necessity, we are pleased to announce that the Steward of the Race (Walter F. Dillingham) is contributing funds in addition to the $265.00 realized from the sale of trees to purchase $1,500.00 in War Bonds to be credited to the Scholarship Fund of Punahou School. We hope that this provision will be satisfactory to all who entered the Race.” (Punahou)

Punahou was quickly converted to wartime service. Immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor, because a follow-on air attack was considered possible, Army Corps of Engineers Honolulu district engineer Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Wyman Jr moved his office from the Alexander Young Hotel to a preselected, less conspicuous location: the Tuna Packer’s Cannery at Kewalo Basin.

Realizing the vulnerability of the cannery, the district engineer sought a new headquarters location away from the coast. Faced
with the district’s increased construction work load, he needed a facility where he could immediately resume engineering operations.

The commanding general of the U.S. Army assumed the role of military governor. Shortly after midnight, only 18 hours after the Pearl Harbor attack, Wyman moved his headquarters to Punahou School.

A library room became the district engineer’s office; the reading room, the administrative office; the cleared book area was converted to sleeping spaces; and the basement became a temporary officers’ mess. The remaining district officers were set up in other buildings on campus. (Fitzgerald; HJH)

About two weeks after the attack, the small Pleasanton Hotel, across Punahou Street from the school, was rented to provide a larger mess and accommodations for military families prior to their evacuation to the Mainland. (Fitzgerald; HJH)

The tamarind tree still stands on the Punahou Campus, between Alexander Hall and Mamiya Science Center. (Punahou)

Follow Peter T Young on Facebook

Follow Peter T Young on Google+

Follow Peter T Young on LinkedIn

Follow Peter T Young on Blogger