Kona Historical Society - Upcoming Events

     

The Culture of the Canoe:  He `Inoa No Lili`uokalani ~ In the Name of Lili`uokalani Wednesday, August 29 West Hawai`i Civic Center, 5:30-7:00 p.m. Free Hannah Springer, kama`aina of the ahupua`a of Kaupulehu and daughter of Hu`e Hu`e Ranch, will lead this talk, along with local canoe club coaches, about the largest, long distance canoe race in the world. If you're a paddler or would like to hear about the history of the Queen Lili`uokalani Canoe Race through the eyes of people who have paddled it then you don't want to miss this lecture. This is the August portion of the Hanohano `O Kona Lecture Series which spotlights local and state speakers on a wide variety of cultural and historical subjects. Presented by Kona Historical Society, in cooperation with the County of Hawai`i, this community lecture series is a gift from the Society to the community that has supported it for so long. Free of charge, it is open to all, residents and visitors alike. Upcoming Hanohano `O Kona Lectures Rebirth in the Heart of a Cemetery:  West Hawai`i Veterans Cemetery and Restoration of Kona's Forests Dr. Richard Stevens, Coordinator of Veterans Cemetery Reforestation Project September 26, West Hawai`i Civic Center, 5:30--7:00 p.m. The Onouli Crossroads: Notable Residents of Christ Church and Central Kona Union Cemeteries Maile Melrose, Cemetery Tour Leader and local historian October 31, West Hawai`i Civic Center, 5:30--7:00 p.m. Voices from Our Past: Diversity and Independence in Kona's Oral Histories Ann Kern and students of UH Center-West Hawai`i November 14, West Hawai`i Civic Center, 5:30--7:00 p.m. Celebrate Museums Month! Kona Historical Society members may receive free admission to eleven other Hawai`i Island museums throughout the month of September! This September marks the sixth year Hawai`i Island museums are collaborating to open their doors to other museums' members.  "Celebrating Museums Month" is a month-long program to cross-promote twelve of the Island's major informal education resources. During the month, each will provide free admission to the members of other participating organizations when a current museum membership card and proper I.D. are shown. For the listing of participating museums, please click here.

Kona Historical Society Kona Coffee Living History Farm Monday-Thursday 10am-2pm H.N. Greenwell Store Thursday 10am-2pm Portugese Stone Oven Bread Baking Program Thursday, 10am-1pm Bread Sales: 12:30-3pm KHS Office Monday-Thursday 10am-2pm (808) 323-3222

Hale-Building Workshops Begin September 1st in Kapa'au

Hale-Building Workshops

Where: Historic Bond Homestead 53-496 'Iole Rd. Kapa'au, HI, 96755 When: Workshops will be held  every other Saturday,  from 7:00am-2:30pm: September  1st, 15th & 29th  October  13th & 27th  November  10th

Aloha,  Please join us for a series of 6 Saturday workshops, led by local hale-building expert Walter Wong. Workshop participants will learn to perform traditional spiritual protocol & to value laulima (working together), as we construct a traditional style hale wa'a (canoe house) & hone skills such as lashing and pohaku dry stacking. Dedicated participants will have the opportunity to earn skill certifications. Arrive at 'Iole's Historic Bond Homestead at 7:00am. Lunch will be provided!  Bring friends, family, & kupuna. Help spread the word!  For more details, call 889-5151 or visit iolehawaii.com Register now for the September 1st Workshop! Mahalo for your support, which makes programs like this one possible.  Sincerely, Kerry Balaam 'Iole kerry@iolehawaii.com 808-889-5151

Be a “Preservation” Traveler: Take World Monuments Fund Sustainable Tourism Pledge

TAKE THE PLEDGE

Unmanaged tourism can damage cultural sites. Visitors can make a difference. Travel responsibly with these ten simple guidelines  (courtesy of the World Monuments Fund).

 

1.  Know the History

Before you travel, read up on the history and culture of your destination. Use the internet to get leads on local specialties and off-the-beaten-path sites from locals and other travelers. Learn a few basic phrases in your destination’s local language.

2.    Reduce Your (Carbon) Footprint

Walking, biking, and trekking or exploring one place in-depth is a good way to reduce your carbon footprint. At urban destinations, walk or take public transit whenever possible. You’ll see more and avoid getting stuck in rush-hour traffic!

3.     Be Eco-Friendly

Conservation should always be on a traveler’s mind: whatever helps the environment, such as recycling or staying in an eco-friendly hotel, also protects heritage.

4.    Respect the Local Culture

Show respect for and interest in the local culture. At sacred sites, dress modestly, speak softly, and be mindful of people who are there to worship. Seek out local celebrations and festivals – they can provide a unique glimpse into local culture and are a fun way to meet locals, sample traditional foods, and learn about your destination’s heritage.

5.     Go Off the Beaten Path

Visit lesser-known places—they may be far more rewarding (not to mention less crowded) than tourist hot spots. The Taj Mahal may be a must-see, but India has more than 25 other spectacular World Heritage Sites.

6.    Be Gentle in Your Travel

Be mindful of visitor wear and tear. Visiting crowded sites at off-peak hours or popular destinations in the off-season will reduce your impact. Stick to marked paths. Wear comfortable footwear such as sneakers; heels can damage fragile sites. Don’t climb on monuments or touch rock carvings, as it can damage them.        

7.    Don’t Be Flashy with Photos  

Take only photographs, and make sure that a flash is permitted because a flash can damage centuries-old artwork. Be aware of local traditions when photographing people and when in doubt, ask permission before snapping a picture. Never remove anything from a site: you may think one stone won’t be missed, but if every one of Pompeii’s two million annual visitors took something home, soon there’d be nothing left.

8.    Buy Local

Support the local economy by buying crafts from local artisans as souvenirs. Be wary of “antiquities” as these could be looted or forgeries. Patronize smaller hotels and local restaurants—that way the money you spend boosts the local economy and helps preserve heritage.                 

                                                                 

9.    Join the Cause

Help threatened sites, either through donations to organizations (here in Hawai’i:  Historic Hawai'i Foundation;  Hawai'i Ecotourism Association; Daughters of Hawai'i; Hawaiian Historical Society  &  other local groups) or by volunteering—either in your community or on a “voluntourism” trip. There are many opportunities to combine travel and volunteerism, and ways to help range from building houses to participating in archaeological digs.

10.   Educate

Tell friends and family about responsible heritage tourism. Raise awareness by sharing your experiences on social media sites like Facebook and Flickr, or your own travel blog. Start a global conservation conversation!

Go to Historic Hawai’i Foundation Facebook page to take the pledge.
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Kaua‘i Historical Society Presents the Fourth Annual Victorian Tea

Date and Time: 09/07/2012 at 1:00PM - 5:00PM       

Location: Kaua'i Ranch at Kealia

Description: The Fourth Annual Victorian Tea Party will be held at the fabulous KAUA'I RANCH. The McCloskey Family has generously donated the use of their incredible home with the fabulous views for the annual tea party. Tony Gaspar, our butler will see to the every need of our ladies in attendance. Sweets, savories and tea are just part of the party; joining a chorus around the piano, playing croquet on the lawn or just relaxing and enjoying the views hold the promise a lovely afternoon! All you need is a hat! Costumes are optional but WOW... wait until you see some of the outfits! Adult ladies only!

Price: $50 Time Travel Ticket

Contact Info: Phone 808.245.3373
E-mail kauaihs@hawaiiiantel.net

Kaua'i Historical Society



Kaua'i Ranch



Win a Free Copy of Hawai'i Modern

Our Hawai‘i Modern booklet is out!  

Like us on Facebook and we’ll enter you in our monthly drawing to win a Free Copy from now through December, 2012*.  

HELP SPREAD THE WORD... 

We’re proud of Hawai‘i Modern--a concise 24 page overview of mid-century building and landscape design expertly crafted by author Don Hibbard, researcher Tonia Moy, and graphic artist Viki Nasu showcasing a small but significant portion of the built environment from mid-20th century in Hawaii.  Find your Modern favorites as you peruse through illustrated pages of homes, commercial buildings, resorts, public facilities, sacred sites, and landscapes significant to this era. (*Drawings held on the 20th of each month--winners chosen from those residing in the U.S. and limited to one book per contestant.)

Additional copies of Hawai‘i Modern are available for purchase in our online Gift Store

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The Boys of Waialee

An historical profile of Waiale‘e’s most curious piece of architecture

by Donovan Kuhio Colleps | Aug 1, 2012      HONOLULU WEEKLY

Between Kahuku and Waialua, the rubble of a looming territorial-age building leans exhaustedly on the property where Crawford’s Convalescent Home now resides. Trade winds spill into what’s left of its four concrete walls, and the mountain ridgeline travels through each open hole, making landscape paintings out of rows of rectangular voids.

Hand-painted on wood and nailed to what used to be an entrance, a trio of signs greet us: No Parking; No Drink; Keep Out. Our photographer is already outside, respecting the imaginary boundary lines, taking pictures of what looks like the cubistic ribcage of some long-forgotten monster; a 2002 fire destroyed all but the concrete walls left standing now.

Although the building has long been vacant, one can’t help thinking about the boys who lived here from 1903 to around 1950: the boys of Waialee. According to Myron B. Thompson who wrote a Masterʻs thesis on the place, reasons for their confinement ranged from truancy, to larceny, assault and disobedience, but they shared one thing in common: a collective vitiation from society.

For the ‘Helpless and Neglected’

Hawaiʻi’s first reformatory school moved from Kapalama to Waialee in 1903, where it was named the Waialeʻe Industrial School For Boys. In 1865 the Pacific Commercial Advertiser reported that in the previous year, Kamehameha V, under the recommendations of the Board of Education, approved an act authorizing the BOE to “establish an industrial and reformatory school for the care and education of helpless and neglected children, and also for the reformation of juvenile offenders.”

The last section of the Act states that six thousand dollars were to be appropriated from the public treasury to help establish the school, “and with a surplus of funds accruing from the labor of children . . . may enlarge the school and establish branch schools on the other islands.”

Six thousand dollars in 1864 is roughly equal to $82,674 today, and bought the school an ahupuaa that included about 700 acres from the mountains to the sea.

Dark Cells

The school appears ghastly in a photograph in a 1919 Star-Bulletin article with the caption, “Dormitory.” The article reports, “[m]embers of the education committee of the house of representatives are of the opinion that the so-called dark cells or dungeons are improper and should be abolished.” The basement still exists today, hiding behind the overgrowth. One can’t help but wonder if this was where the “dark cells,” and dark activitiy held therin, were located.

Another Star-Bulletin article reveals excerpts of a journal discovered by then-superintendent Morris Freedman that covers most of the inmates from 1989 to 1908. “Disobedience to the moral suasion of parents [resulted in] a man-sized term of 3 to 5 years . . . Runaways were not few and far between . . . Ball and chain were used.”

Thompson’s thesis quotes from an unpublished article written by Freedman between 1935–1939 that reflects on the school’s startling policies on corporeal punishment before his tenure: “Oregon boots, shackles, leg irons, cat-o-nine tails, straps soaked in vinegar and salt, terrific lashings and beatings were the order of the day. In 1921, when Mr. Wesson [took over] the school his first act was to destroy these vestiges of the Dark Ages era [and he] discontinued the use of dark cells which were built below the level of the street surface . . . his treatment was by far more humane than it had been before.”

Sustainable Irony

The Waialeʻe Industrial School For Boys was meant to be a self-sustaining school. The boys, whose ages ranged from seven to 25, cultivated their own taro, bananas, sweet potato and sugarcane and raised cattle and pigs for milk and meat, and managed the school’s farm, repair shop, engine room, generators, water power, carpenter shop, tailor shop [and] ice house,” according to the Honolulu Advertiser in 1928. As times changed however, the boys’ work moved from agriculatural to industrial.

An average of 180 boys are reported to have lived at the school at any given time; they even assembled a music band and performed in many parades in Honolulu. The practice hall remains today, covered in graffiti across the street.

It’s surprising then, that in the school’s 50 controversial years of behavioral correction there is only one instance of a known escape. In 1946, four kids apparently made it all the way to Kahala in stolen cars, only to break into several homes in the area before they were captured by Honolulu police.

Alice Lou, the current owner of the property and administrator of Crawford’s Convalescent Home was amazed at how far the boys got when they had escaped. She and her husband have owned the property for over 50 years, yet claim to know very little about its history.

“You know,” she said, “when I was a little girl we used to take the open train from Aala Park in town, all the way to Haleiwa Beach Park over here. All the roads after that were covered in rough coral rocks. It must have been a whole other world for [those boys], out here in the country at that time.”

PUBLIC LAND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION TO HOLD PUBLIC HEARINGS ON PROPOSED NEW ADMINISTRATIVE RULES

ABOUT PLDC: The Public Land Development Corporation is a state entity created by the Legislature in 2011 to develop state lands and generate revenues for the Department of Land and Natural Resources. Through public-private partnerships, the corporation aims to attract private companies as joint partners in development opportunities.

The corporation was formed after the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1555 which was signed into law as Act 55 by Governor Neil Abercrombie. The corporation is governed by a five-member board of directors. Executive director is Lloyd Haraguchi.  Three state agencies are represented on the board either by its director or their designee. The agencies include the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism; the Department of Budget and Finance; and the Department of Land and Natural Resources. One member is appointed by the speaker of the House of Representatives, and one member is appointed by the Senate president.

 HONOLULU --  The Public Land Development Corporation (PLDC) will hold statewide public hearings, starting Monday August 20,  for adoption of new Hawai‘i Administrative Rules (HAR) for the PLDC. Some provisions may affect small business.

Lloyd Haraguchi, Executive Director for the PLDC, stated: “The upcoming public hearings are an opportunity to inform the public about the PLDC’s mission, objectives and priorities. We welcome public participation and encourage individuals to utilize this opportunity.”

The proposed adoption of a new Chapter 13-301, HAR, Practice and Procedure establishes operating procedures for the PLDC. It contains general provisions relating to the office location and hours, board meetings, and delegation of authority to the Executive Director; and sets forth procedures for proceedings before the board, contested case hearings, declaratory rulings, and petitions for amendment, adoption, or repeal of administrative rules.

Proposed adoption of a new Chapter13-302, HAR, Public Land Development Program sets forth a procedure for the PLDC to initiate, by itself or with qualified persons, or enter into cooperative agreements with qualified persons for the development or financing of projects that make optimal use of public land for the economic, environmental, and social benefit of the people of Hawai‘i.

Proposed adoption of a new Chapter 13-303, HAR, Project Facility Program establishes a procedure for undertaking and financing any project facility as part of a project. Project facilities include improvements, roads and streets, utility and service corridors, utility lines, water and irrigation systems, lighting systems, security systems, sanitary sewerage systems, and other community facilities where applicable.

Public hearings will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the following times and locations:

HILO: Monday, August 20, at Waiakea High School Cafeteria, 155 West Kawili St., Hilo, HI 96720;

KONA: Tuesday, August 21,  at Konawaena High School Cafeteria, 81-1043 Konawaena School Rd., Kealakekua, HI 96750;

MAUI: Friday, August 24, at Maui Waena Intermediate School Cafeteria, 795 Onehe‘e St., Kahului, HI 96732;

MOLOKA‘I: Monday, August 27, at Mitchell Pau‘ole Community Center, 90 Ainoa St., Kaunakakai, HI 96748;

O‘AHU: Wednesday, August 29, at Dept. of Land and Natural Resources, Kalanimoku Building, Land Board Conference Room132, 1151 Punchbowl St., Honolulu, HI 96813; and

KAUA‘I: Friday, August 31, at Elsie H. Wilcox Elementary School, 4319 Hardy St., Lihu‘e, HI 96766.

All interested persons are urged to attend the public hearing to present relevant information and individual opinion for PLDC to consider. Persons unable to attend or wishing to present additional comments may e-mail comments to randal.y.ikeda@hawaii.gov or postmark written testimony by Friday, September 14, 2012 to: PLDC, PO Box 2359, Honolulu, HI  96804.
More information on the PLDC is available at www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/pldc <www.hawaii.gov/dlnr/pldc> .
Copies of the proposed rules change are available on-line at http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/pldc/rules <http://hawaii.gov/dlnr/pldc/rules> .

Copies for public review are available Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at No. 1 Capitol District, 250 S. Hotel St., Room 501, Honolulu, HI 96813. The public may make written request for a mailed copy by indicating mailing address in correspondence sent to the PLDC address in the preceding paragraph.

Any person requiring a special accommodation (i.e. large print materials, sign language interpreters) should make a request in writing to the PLDC address in the preceding paragraph or by calling 587-0393 (V/T). The request will need to be received at least seven days before the hearing date.

News from Volcanoes National Park’s Volcano House

Volcano House, Kilauea, Hawaii, 1902

A NEW DAY FOR VOLCANO HOUSE

By Colin M. Stewart, Hawai‘i Tribune-Herald

Aug. 9, 2012: A new concessioner is set take the reins Monday at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park’s Volcano House.

Pending Congressional approval, Hawaii Volcanoes Lodge Co. LLC will assume operation of the historic hotel and restaurant overlooking Kilauea Caldera. Once the company has taken possession, it will begin an estimated year-long process of renovating the property, said Cynthia Orlando, superintendent of the national park.

“The contract should be signed by Monday the 13th,” she said Wednesday. “We’ll get notification from Washington, D.C., and then we’ll hand it over to them (Hawaii Volcanoes Lodge Co.).”

By Aug. 18, Orlando said, the property’s gift shop is expected to have a “soft opening” and be available to purchase a few limited items.

“It will be grab-and-go sandwiches, drinks, limited retail sales,” she explained.

About a week later, the Namakanipaio campground’s 10-tent cabins will also be in operation, said Walt Poole, concessions management specialist at HVNP.

“To get those open, basically they just need new floors and new mattresses,” he said.

Also scheduled to make an early opening to the public will be the eight bedrooms located in the Volcano House’s annex, which was added to the property in 1953.

“They’re going to push to get those open as soon as they can,” Poole said. “Perhaps before the first of the year. It will probably be at a reduced rate, because food and beverage won’t be ready yet.”

All of the hotel’s 32 rooms are expected to be overhauled, as well as the dining area and the addition of a lanai eating area. The entire process is expected to cost between $2.5 and $3 million and be complete sometime in late 2013, Orlando said.

“We are bringing back the culture and the history, and we’re putting more tradition in as many of the spaces as we can,” said Tanya Ortega, co-owner of Ortega National Parks, in an interview earlier this year.

Other features on the property may become available as work on them is completed, Orlando added.

“We’ll be opening things up in phases,” she explained.

Hawaii Volcanoes Lodge Co.’s contract is for 15 years. The company is a subsidiary of Honolulu-based Aqua Hotels and Resorts Inc. and Ortega National Parks LLC, a company with 16 years experience operating concessions at national parks in California and New Mexico.

Volcano House was built in 1846, although the modern building dates back to 1941. During its more than 150-year history, the hotel has been operated by George Lycurgus, Sheraton Hotels and Ken Fujiyama’s Ken Direction Corp.

Ken Direction’s contract expired in December 2008, but the company received a one-year extension while the National Park Service hammered out the details of a contract prospectus seeking a new concessioner. The building has been closed to the public since December 2009, when the National Park Service began a series of seismic and fire safety upgrades costing about $4 million.