Volcano | Page 8 | Images of Old Hawaiʻi

October 10, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Peter Lee Road

“The wonderful volcano of Kīlauea, on the island of Hawaii, is the great attractive of visitors. It is the only crater in the world that is constantly in action, and that can be safely approached at all times to the very edge of the precipice which encloses the boiling lava.”

“To reach Kīlauea necessitates a passage of thirty hours from Honolulu in a fine steamer to Hilo or Punalu‘u, then a ride of thirty miles in coaches takes visitors to a fine hotel, which overlooks the molten lava lake. It is a sight that will repay the effort and expense incurred ten times over, and one that will never be forgotten.” (Whitney)

“The Interisland steamer W G Hall, 380 tons burthen, leaves Honolulu alternate Tuesdays and Fridays, at 10 A. M. She is one of the best sea boats plying in our waters, and tourists will find her accomodations and table equal to any, while her officers and stewards are ever on the alert to supply all their wants.”

“(T)he steamer at once proceeds to Punalu‘u, the terminus of the sea route. This is usually reached about 6 P. M. The passengers are landed in boats and will proceed to the Punalu‘u hotel, where they will find themselves comfortably taken care of.” (Whitney)

Lee set upon this venture with the idea of popularizing the Punalu‘u-Pahala route to Kilauea. In 1891, Peter Lee, an enterprising pioneer with an eye to the future, built a 24-mile wagon road from Pahala to Kilauea, following by seven years the construction of a hotel at Punalu‘u, which then became a third takeoff point. (NPS)

“The hotel is clean, the table good, and the proprietor will be found very obliging and ready to afford any information required.” (Whitney)

“Early in the morning the start for the Volcano is made. The first five miles are done by rail to Pahala, where the Hawaiian Agricultural Company have a large plantation and a fine mill. The fields extend far up the hillside and the constant moving of wagons, riders and gangs of men makes a busy scene.” (Whitney)

“At Pahala a coach will be found ready to convey the tourists to the Volcano. The road passes through a pleasant grassy country with the tree-clad slopes of Mauna Loa lying to the left, while to the right glimpses of the sea and the lower land are occasionally caught.” Whitney)

“The Half-way House is reached in about three hours. Here a lunch is prepared for the travelers, and a short rest is given to the animals. The air becomes cooler as the coach advances, and a pleasant ride of seven hours through a country abounding in pretty scenery brings the party to the vicinity of the Volcano House.”

“The smoke which forever overhangs this wonder of nature will have been pointed out by the guide, long before the crater is reached. About a mile from the Volcano House, a first view into the crater is obtained. By daylight the sight is by no means so striking as at night, but enough can be seen to excite wonder in the beholder.” (Whitney)

“For a number of years the Government road from Pahala in Kā‘u, to the Volcano has been practically abandoned, and a private road built and owned by Mr. Lee has been generally traveled.” (Minister of the Interior Report, 1894)

The best estimate for the date of completion of Peter Lee’s Road comes from a Volcano House register entry dated October 1888 by a guest who claimed to be the first visitor to travel by means of a wheeled conveyance the entire way from an ocean port to the volcano.

It is possible that the road was finished earlier, or that the segment that finally connected the two roads was completed before the entire road was fit for travel. (NPS)

In correspondence from Lee to Thurston, Lee notes, “I am just now making a carriage road to the Volcano on the Kā‘u side, which road will be completed in a few weeks, Several competent people have overlooked this road and are highly recommending it.”

“As I have been employed for several years in road building in Peru and California, I am thoroughly familiar with this kind of work, and am confident that I can make this road as good and cheap, and in as short a time as anybody in the country.” (Lee to Thurston, September 22, 1888; Maly)

However, the construction of the Volcano Road from Hilo had begun. With the completion of the Hilo to Volcano Road in 1894, four-horse stagecoaches came into the picture, reducing the travel time from Hilo from two days to six and one-half hours, and Hilo became the principal departure point for Kilauea. (NPS)

Back to Peter Lee’s road … “The Legislature of 1892 passed an appropriation for the purchase of this road, and practically it was turned over to the Government in December, 1892; but the formal transfer was only completed in January, 1894. The purchase price being $4,500.” (Minister of the Interior Report, 1894)

“This is the main road for travel between the districts of Hilo and Kau, and until last October was the only road by which carriages could go to the Volcano.”

“Nothing has been done on the road by way of repairs for a long time, and it is now a very uncomfortable carriage road. The Kau Road Board should be instructed to put it in order, and in addition, certain portions crossing the lava flows should be regraded and reconstructed, and finished with the traction engine now in use on the Volcano road.” (Minister of the Interior Report, 1894)

Peter Lee sold the Punalu‘u Hotel to the new buyers of the Volcano House; he managed both hotels for them.

From the early 1900s, prisoners at Namakanipaio worked on rebuilding the “Peter Lee Road” into Kaʻū, and on roads and trails around the Kilauea, and towards Puna. The prison site was closed shortly after 1915. (Maly)

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Fern Forest Road to the volcano from Punaluu, Hawaii Island-PP-28-13-008

Punaluu-S00084-1880

Suspected Peter Lee Road Marker noting completion-Aug 1887-NPS

KilaueaCrater_USGS_Quadrangle-KilaueaCrater-1922-portion-Peter Lee Road

August 11, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Ford Tough

“When this earth was created, Nature, it seems, was more concerned with things other than road making, as witness the (attached) illustration.”

“The pictures shown herewith were taken during one of Professor T. A. Jaggar’s daily trips along one of the stretches which Nature forgot to pave with crushed stone and asphalt.”

“Professor Jaggar, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a noted volcano specialist, and most of his work is done around the craters of the smouldering mountains he studies.”

“As director of the Hawaii Volcano Observatory, he has devoted nearly all of his attention to the famous Mauna Loa and Kilauea craters, living right at the scene of his activities and experiments for the past twelve years.”

“Although hazardous, Professor Jaggar makes it his business to get as close as possible to the scenes of eruption and volcanic action in order to obtain first-hand photographs, lava samples, temperature readings, and other valuable scientific data.”

“In this field of work one needs a ‘business car’ just as much as in any other calling, and so the scientist got himself a car that would be not only easy of operation but would stand the terrible strain of volcano climbing as well.”

“The professor bought a Ford and made a few alterations to suit his particular needs, with the result that the machine became more efficient than beautiful.”

“If you will refer to the picture, you will note that the fenders and doors are stripped, and that dual wheels are installed on the rear axle, which enable the car to travel over boulders 10 and 12 inches high with little difficulty, and also to go through deep sand and “aa,” which is the Hawaiian for clinker lava.”

“After having seen about half a dozen years of the most strenuous service imaginable, the car is still ‘going strong.’”

“Mauna Loa is the largest, although not the highest, volcano in the world, being 13,760 feet above sea level ; Kilauea crater is an immense cavity three miles long by two miles wide on the east slope of Mauna Loa.”

“These immense caldrons are reached by means of a very steep, rough trail, which more than proves the marvelous durability of the only car that has ascended it.”

“At the present time nothing but a pack trail leads to the summit of Mauna Loa, and so the Ford cannot be driven to the top, but it has plenty to do in the vicinity of Kilauea and also on the vast flanks of Mauna Loa, where various eruptions have taken place.”

“About a mile distant from Kilauea is a smaller, extinct crater known as ‘Little Kilauea.’ While it is no longer a sea of molten lava, like its near-by active brothers, nevertheless its surface is hot enough in places to be detrimental to the rubber tires on Professor Jaggar’s Ford, and uncomfortable for the feet of his dog.”

“The machine is often ‘cruised’ over freshly flowed lava that is not yet cool in order to make scientific investigations.”

“Professor Jaggar has set up a drilling rig here for the purpose of getting down into the hot lava bed directly beneath the surface to determine the subterranean temperatures and to take samples of gases.”

“The Ford car has been of indispensable assistance in transporting the equipment to and across the terribly rough crater floor; also in carrying the large quantity of water needed when drilling into the hot lava.”

“Heavy photographic equipment is easily taken care of by the car, and specimens are often gathered which have to be taken back to the observatory for study.”

“Because of these and numerous other services rendered by the car, no limit can be placed upon its value to the expedition.”

“At times, the lava in the crater rises rapidly and overflows, spreading destruction on its path. Occurrences like this have been the occasion for several intensive and hazardous expeditions by Professor Jaggar and his party.”

“Professor Jaggar has discovered many facts of scientific importance, and is working on plans for utilizing the heat of the volcano for commercial purposes. He believes that ways can be found to generate a large amount of electricity.”

“First, he hopes that a near-by hotel can be supplied with all the current needed; and eventually, if practical ways are found for harnessing the energy, the entire island will get its power from the volcano.” (This entire post is from Ford News, July 22, 1923.)

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Jaggar-Ford Tough-FordNews-July 22, 1923

February 16, 2017 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Whitney Laboratory of Seismology

When a hotel on the rim of Kilauea caldera became a permanent facility in 1866, its series of guest registers became a repository of reports and observations by the guests, an almost daily record (by observers who varied from the scientist to the joker) of earthquakes felt and unfelt and of volcanism seen and unseen on Kilauea and Mauna Loa.

In the hope that science could close the gaps in geological knowledge and learn to predict earthquakes and eruptions, some New Englanders were willing for humanitarian reasons to finance foreign trips and support work abroad for scientists.

For instance, the Springfield (Massachusetts) Volcanic Research Society supported, at least in part, the travels and studies of Frank A. Perret, an electrical engineer and inventor turned volcanologist who became well known for his studies at Vesuvius, Etna, and Stromboli. The Springfield society also helped support Perret’s 1911 work at Kilauea.

It was in this climate of opinion that the trustees of the estates of Edward and Caroline Whitney gave to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) the sum of $25,000 for a memorial fund; the principal and interest were to be expended at MIT’s discretion for research or teaching in geophysics, especially seismology.

Investigations in Hawaii were recommended. The Whitney fund was deeded to MIT by the trustees on July 1, 1909, and three years later a group of twelve other New Englanders supplied MIT with supplemental funds for geophysical research in Hawaii.

MIT gave Thomas A Jaggar a leave of absence in December 1911 and directed him to Kilauea to continue the investigations made in the summer of 1909. Jaggar arrived at Kilauea on January 17, 1912.

Work then started on what would be the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (Observatory.) A cellar excavation on the north rim of Kilauea caldera started on February 16, 1912, marking the beginning of permanent facilities for the Observatory.

The Observatory was largely the creation of Jaggar (1871-1953), then a MIT professor, who recognized the advantages, for the study of volcanism, of onsite facilities at an active volcano.

Wooden stakes marked the corners of a rectangle about 24-feet long by 22-feet wide only about 20-feet from the cliff-like rim of Kilauea caldera on the Island of Hawaii.

A hole was to be dug by hand. The diggers were prisoners of the Territory of Hawaii, sentenced to a term of hard labor. The prisoners dug through almost six feet of volcanic ash and pumice to a layer of thick pahoehoe lava – a firm base for the concrete piers on which seismometers would be anchored.

Jaggar had contracted with Hackfeld for the forms and concrete work for the seismometer vault, and for the wooden structures that were to stand over and adjacent to the vault – the rim-side facilities of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.

The result was “a basement room, eighteen feet square, with piers and floor of concrete, reposing upon the upper surface of the basalt, and high walls of concrete (and became known as) the Whitney Laboratory of Seismology.” A building was built above.

“A constant emanation of hot steam from cracks in contact with the concrete walls keeps this room at a fairly uniform temperature and thus improves it for the purposes of seismology.” (Apple)

“Concrete tables on the floor of the cellar held the pair of east-west and north-south horizontal pendulums, recording with delicate pens on smoked paper, stretched over a chronograph drum.”

“These paper records, removed every day and fixed with shellac varnish, became the seismograms of the permanent files. Long belts of wavy lines on each paper exhibited seconds, minutes, and hours; and when a sharp zigzag in one of the lines occurred, it was evidence of either a local or a distant earthquake.” (Jaggar)

However, the “oppressive warmth caused by the natural steam heat” added challenges to the scientists’ daily lives. Scientists through the active life of the vault bundled up in wooly sweaters, scarfs, and raincoats to walk to the vault through the chilling rains and fog at 4,000-foot altitude and then peeled clown to undershirts when they entered the vault to attend the instruments.

Being a basement vault with a building above also created problems. Even in calm weather, movements of the building were recorded by the seismometers in the vault below.

Winter Kona storms swept high winds from the south across Kilauea caldera, hitting with full force against the north rim and causing such rocking and trembling of the building above as to mask the records on the seismograms.

In the winter of 1915-16, gale-force winds stripped the sheets of corrugated iron from the roof of the building. Rain water in the offices above poured into the vault to wash away the seismograms on their drums, flood the floor, and soak the instruments. Repairs took weeks.

On December 19, 1921, the nearby Volcano House began to run a generator for the first electric lights at Kilauea. Variations in the engine speed as well as the exact times of starting and stopping were duly recorded by seismometers in the Whitney vault.

On February 11, 1940, the main Volcano House burned to the ground, and this led to the relocating of the Observatory facilities. (The present Volcano House was opened for business in November 1941.)

That year, the building above the observatory was dismantled, and a reinforced-concrete slab was poured by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) to become the vault’s new roof. The slab was covered with 18-inches of topsoil (the vault mound is on the crater side of the Volcano House.)

On December 28, 1947, the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory was transferred within the Department of the Interior from the National Park Service to the United States Geological Survey.

In 1948, the Observatory was moved to a building at the top of Uwekahuna Bluff on the northwest rim of Kilauea caldera; a new and larger building there was completed in 1986. (The bulk of the information here comes from Russell Apple’s (retired National Park Service historian) history of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.)

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USGS_Jaggar-KauNews

Whitney Seismograph Vault Stairs and Door-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault Mound-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vaultand First HVO Building-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-behind the Volcano House-NPS

Whitney Seismograph Vault-inside-NPS

Inside the Whitney Vault, Thomas Jaggar, aka Dick Hershberger-Ron Johnson-KauNews

November 17, 2016 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

19th Hole

A standard round of golf has only eighteen holes. The 19th hole is a code term typically for a pub, bar or restaurant on or near the golf course, very often the clubhouse itself. Golfer will say they are at the ‘19th hole,’ meaning they are getting a drink after the round.

The Volcano House was advertising golf at “the sporty nine-hole golf course nearby with earthquake cracks for hazards.” (Thrum 1925)

“A golf course has been constructed near the rim of the crater of the vulcano Kilauea on Hawaii Island (in 1921,) which is comparatively flat on top. The course is claimed to be an ideal one and although there are lava holes here and there, these have been wired over so that balls will not be lost.”

“Now and then a golfer will be standing near one of these vents when a lot of lazy steam will come up through it, but Kilauea volcano is well tamed and golfers need not worry …”

“… unless they happen to be of the strong arm variety and shoot the ball to the 19th hole, which is the crater of Halemaʻumaʻu itself. Then it’s flowers for that particular ball and scores will not count.” (Golfers Magazine, December 1922)

“The nineteenth hole of Kilauea golf course at Hilo, Hawai‘i, provides the worst golfer in the world a chance to record his hole-in-one. It is the Halemaʻumaʻu fire-pit of Kilauea volcano and is half a mile wide and 1200 feet deep.” (Bismarck Tribune, February 27, 1931)

The Hawai‘i National Park was created by Act of Congress in 1916, and was formally received and dedicated as such in July, 1921. (NPS)

“It is the Halemaʻumaʻu firepit of the Kilauea crater in the Hawai‘i National Park on this (the largest) island in the Hawaiian archipelago. “Mammoth golf was played from the brink of the huge firepit long before the advent of the baby courses (miniature golf.)”

“Golfer, good, bad or indifferent, who play on this course are assured of making a hole in one, as the giant 19th offers a target that cannot be missed.”

“Tourist guides and chauffeurs act as caddies, supplying a golf stick and ball. Certificates are issued to travelers who make the shot, attesting that they have made ‘world’s greatest hole in one.”

“Because it can be played the year round, golf is a popular sport in Hawaii. There are twenty courses on the four principal islands. This Island (Hawai‘i) has seven courses; on Maui there are four; Kauai island has two; and on Oahu (the island on which Honolulu is located) there are seven courses.” (Prescott Evening Courier, November 27, 1930)

“The Secretary of the Interior, Hubert Work, Director Mather, and Governor Wallace R Farrington, who took a keen interest in the park, all took part in the dedication of the first park museum.”

“After dedicating the building, the Secretary exploded the charge of powder that initiated work on the triangle portal of the Chain of Craters Road. And after that, he became the first unofficial member of the “World’s Greatest Hole-in-One Club” by driving a golf ball into Halemaʻumaʻu.”

Hui O Pele (Society of Pele) was organized in 1923 at the suggestion of Charles C Moore, President of the San Francisco Pan Pacific International Exposition.

“Moore visited the Land of Pele the year before and was so impressed by the volcanic phenomena, the Pele legends and other features (in the area.”

“He suggested the formation of an organization that would perpetuate the name and tradition of the volcano goddess through the grant of membership certificates to persons who visited Pele’s fiery home.”

“Moore contributed $100 to begin the organization, and through the interest of various Honolulans it was formed the next year.”

“All of the organization’s funds are derived through the sale of one dollar membership certificates and subscribed to the park for the improvement of visitors’ facilities.” “(I)ts first donation for park improvements in 1927, and the existing shelter at the beginning of the trail into the Thurston Lava Tube was constructed with it the same year.” (Hawaii Nature Notes, November 1953)

Hitting golf balls into the crater was a popular stunt for park visitors. After the first tee collapsed into the Caldera, (Hui O Pele member LW) de Vis Norton strongly opposed the re-establishment of a new site. He pointed out the sacredness of the area to the Native Hawaiian people when he wrote:

“Most of the Hawaiians have a sincere reverence for Halemaʻumaʻu. To them the place is sacred – and they regard the stunt of pluggin golf balls into Pele’s abode much as you would view a game of craps played on the grave of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington.”

“To me, it is sacrilege of the worst kind and I sympathize sincerely with their inner feeling that white men should at least respect their age-old beliefs.”

“You can do a lot of good by saying a good word for the Hawaiians now and again. After all, it was their country until we grabbed it, and while they parforce, must accept the situation – they are very ready to appreciate a friendly feeling among those who now rule over them, and respond with real affection to any evidence of love for their race.” (Nakamura)

The fad continued for a number of years, but later stopped. Today, Hawai‘i has Hawaii has 108 golf courses to choose from (including the now 18-hole course at Volcano.) (golflink) (Lots of information here is from NPS and Nakamura.)

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Kilauea-Halemaumau 19th Hole

Kilauea-Halemaumau 19th Hole-sign

Kilauea-19th Hole

Kilauea Golf-Halemaumau 19th Hole

Kilauea 19th-Hole

Kilauea 19th Hole

19th Hole

Hawaii Volcano National Park-general map-1926

Volcano Golf Course-1926

October 14, 2016 by Peter T Young Leave a Comment

Charlie Chaplin

“You wish to write my impressions of Hilo. Very good. Here it is. I saw the volcano.” (Charlie Chaplin, Los Angeles; Volcano House Register, NPS)

“There are many charms in Hilo other than the Volcano. A maidenly diffidence forbids me suggesting the possessor of them.” (Edna Purviance, Los Angeles; Volcano House Register, NOS)

“Charlie in his honest-to-goodness self and personality today walked up the main street of Honolulu. So thousands of movie fans who have laughed themselves hoarse the antics and swagger of the jovial Charlie on the screen will have an opportunity for the next few week of occasionally bumping into that worthy the streets.”

“Charlie arrived on the Matsonia. In the Chaplin party also were Miss Eda Purviance, another well known screen star; Tom Harrington and Bob Wagner of the Saturday Evening Post staff.”

“Wagner is accompanying Charlie on his trip just for the sake of being with him and to record the personal side of the vacation.
Charlie is here primarily for rest and to see the sights of the islands.”

“His trip, at least at present, has nothing to do with the possibility of staging comic scenario the islands, though Charlie is not averse to picking up few hints that may serve him well in his business of making humanity laugh away dull care.”

“Charlie and his party were the life of the boat coming over and made things gay for the passengers, aided and abetted by R. J. Buchly of the First National bank, who as terpischore expert taught Charlie and Miss Purviance a few steps. The dancing lessons were the occasion for more merriment aboard the Matsonia.”

“Charlie visited the Young hotel this morning and called on Mr Van Loan, the movie photographer. This gave rise to the rumor that Chaplin was down here in Honolulu to take some films.”

“‘No sire!’ he replied emphatically. ‘You don’t catch me doing any work while I’m down here. I’m on vacation, and I’m going to rest.’”

“Charlie was asked what he thought of Honolulu. ‘Great,’ he exclaimed, enthusiastically: ‘I love every minute of it. I wish I could stay here longer. I’m tickled to death with the place. I was going to New York instead but, say, this has got anything I’ve seen beaten by a mile.’”

“Although the film star is minus his dinky moustache and cane, derby hat and huge shoes, he is still the same old Charlie, and could hardly get by in a crowd without being discovered. He is going to get out on a surfboard and be a regular kamaaina, he says.” (Star Bulletin, October 10, 1917)

“Charley Chaplin managed to see a good deal of Hawaii in the short week he stayed in the Islands, one reason being that while here he outfitted himself with new glasses. Pleased with his new outlook on things Hawaiian, Chaplin had his co-star Miss Purviance, also fitted with new glasses.”

“As a final result, Dr. RA Thompson has added a much prized letter of appreciation from Chaplin to the collection of other testimonials to his optician skill, letters written by former President Roosevelt, Former President Tuft, William Jennings Bryan, Elbert Hubbard, Billy Sunday and other celebrities.”

“The autographed letter from Charley Chaplin is a highly complimentary one and highly prized by its recipient. Doctor Thompson has definitely decided to make his home in Honolulu, opening an office here for the practice of his profession.” (Hawaiian Gazette, October 19, 1917)

“The famous Charlie Chaplin arrived in Honolulu October 10, and while he intended to come for a rest between custard pie throwing contests, he was kept extremely busy sightseeing.”

“Photographers camped on his trail and snapped him riding the surfboards on the beach at Waikiki, eating two-fingered poi, dancing with the hula girls and even flirting with Pele, the Goddess of Fire, on the edge of the volcano at Kilauea.”

“Charlie likes Hawaii’s style and he fain would stay a while, loafing on the sun-kissed sand, eating poi with either hand; listening to the ukulele played by Waikiki Bill Bailey; eating dog in guise of pig; practicing the hula jig.”

“But he’s got to get back home and with us may no more roam – back to make a nation smile in rare Charlie Chaplin’s way.” (Logan Republican, November 15, 1917)

Charlie & Edna Purviance in Hawaii, 1917. Charlie met Edna in a cafe in San Francisco in 1914. He said later that she was ‘more than pretty, she was beautiful’. She went on to appear in 34 films with Chaplin from 1915-1923. She is my favorite of his leading ladies.

They had a certain sweetness onscreen that Charlie didn’t have with any of his other leading ladies-in my opinion anyway. Charlie & Edna cared deeply about each other long after their romantic relationship ended and Charlie kept Edna on his payroll until her death in 1958.

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