Stepping Back in Time, and into Hilo’s Shipman House
By Denise Laitinen Stepping into Shipman House Bed and Breakfast on Reed’s Island in Hilo is like stepping into a piece of history. The house reflects a century of Hilo’s history, one filled with grandeur, decline, restoration, and preservation. In…
Then & Now: Volcano House Reincarnate–Uncovering Old Beauty and Discovering Hawai‘i’s Oldest Hotel Anew
By Alan D. McNarie The grand dame of Hawai‘i hotels is back! Volcano House began checking in visitors March 22 for the first time since it closed for structural upgrades and interior renovations on December 31, 2009. On June 1…
Then & Now: Hawai‘i, Maui, and the ‘Alenuihāhā
By Pete Hendricks Prevailing winds travel thousands of miles east to west across the vast Pacific Ocean in the latitudes of the Hawaiian Islands. These winds are known as “tradewinds” for their ability to push sailing ships around the world…
Then & Now: 50 Years of Merrie Monarch Festival–Nānā I Ke Kumu…Look to the Source
By Karen Valentine Something extraordinary happened in Hilo, Hawai‘i, in 1963—something no one would have guessed would blossom into the pinnacle of celebration and recognition of excellence in the Hawaiian cultural practice of hula. This year, the Merrie Monarch Festival…
Then & Now: Hawai‘i & Leviathan–The Fascinating Tale of Whaling Ships on Hawai‘i Island
By Pete Hendricks They had been swimming the Pacific Ocean for millennia. As humans extended their reach eastward, southward, and northward across the great ocean, leviathan and Polynesian often crossed paths. Thus, the first Polynesians to populate Hawai‘i incorporated the…
Then & Now: The Mysterious Death of David Douglas
By Robert Oaks Most residents and visitors to Hawaiʽi Island are familiar with the Kealakekua Bay monument marking the spot where Captain James Cook was killed in 1779. Less familiar is a monument that marks the spot where David Douglas,…
Then & Now: The Kohala Ditch
By Robert Oaks For over a century, like the other Hawaiian Islands, Hawai‘i Island depended heavily on sugar cane as a major component of its economy. The story of how sugar barons controlled the Kingdom, Territory, and State of Hawai‘i…
Then & Now: Kaloko Honokōhau National Historic Park
The Last in a Series of Profiles on Hawai‘i Island’s National Parks by Robert Oaks The Kaloko-Honokōhau National Historical Park, located south of the Kona airport, provides clues to the lifestyle of early Hawaiians. Atop seemingly barren and inhospitable lava…
Then & Now: Pu‘ukohola
By Robert Oaks Pu‘ukoholā Heiau, on the northwest coast of Hawai‘i Island, played a critical role in the unification of the island chain by King Kamehameha I in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Indeed, of all the national…
Then & Now: Pu‘uhonua O Hōnaunau
Second in a series of profiles on Hawai‘i Island National Parks By Robert Oaks Traditional Hawaiian society was regulated by a series of rules—kapu—the violation of which led to severe punishment, often including death. Examples of violating a kapu included…
Then & Now: Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park–100 Years of Witnessing Nature’s Fiery Spectacle
By Robert Oaks When westerners first learned about the “Sandwich Islands” in the 1700s, they were fascinated by its massive mountains, Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, the two tallest mountains on earth at over 31,000 feet when measured from their…
Then & Now: David Kalākauaʻs Hawai‘i—The High-Tech King and a Famous Visit to North Kohala
By Pete Hendricks On November 16, we celebrate the birthday of King David Kalākaua, Hawai‘i’s monarch from February, 1874, to January, 1891. This Hawaiian King is well known as a champion of Hawaiian culture, hula, and song. Lesser known is…
Then & Now: Ka‘u Landings
By Pete Hendricks Mauna Loa Volcano had almost taken its present form when the first Polynesians began to fish, live, and farm in the Ka’ū District. The Ninole Volcanic Hills, seen above Punalu‘u, date from eruptions long before Mauna Loa…
Then & Now: Kau‘pulehu and Kona Village Resort
By Pete Hendricks As the schooner New Moon entered Kahuwai Bay in 1961, only the ghosts of the deserted village of Ka’upulehu were present, but the bay had been an important chapter in the story of the Hawaiian Kingdom. In…
Then & Now: Hāmākua Coast—Sugar, Landings, and Shipwrecks
By Pete Hendricks The Hāmākua Coast from Hilo to Waipi‘o Valley is a 50 mile stretch of rocky shoreline, deep valleys, and imposing cliffs. Such a windward coast seems an unlikely place to find what was once the dominant industry…
Then & Now: Puako—A Resilient, Ocean Focused Community
By Pete Hendricks Puako, on the northwest coast of Hawai‘i Island, had been a fishing and salt producing settlement centuries before the arrival of Captain James Cook in early 1779. When Cook left Kealakekua Bay to continue his ill-fated third…
Then & Now: Mahaiula Bay–Surfing & Shipwrecks
By Pete Hendricks When the northwest ocean swell is big—usually in fall and winter—a large offshore patch of surf can be seen clearly from Ka’ahumanu Highway, three miles north of Keahole Airport. Mahaiula Bay—now known as Kekaha Kai State Park—has…
Then & Now: Murder & Movies in Old Honoka‘a Town
By Ann C. Peterson For many decades, sugar was king throughout the island chain, and in no place was this more so than in the folksy village of Honoka‘a in the northeast district of Hamakua. At its core, Honoka‘a embodied…
Then & Now: Multi-Cultural Holualoa—The “Long Sled”
By Ann C. Peterson When King Kamehameha ruled from Kamakahonu (near today’s Kailua Pier), he would look up to the slopes of Hualalai and know that all was good. This is where he had built Kuahewa, an extensive, dry-land farming…
Then & Now: “Dillingham’s Folly,” or How the Railroad Came to Hawai‘i
By Ann C. Peterson Imagine a time when the only way to get from the Hamakua district to Hilo and points south was by walking, by horse, or by “the most scenic railroad in the nation,” the Hawai’i Consolidated Railway—a…
Then & Now: A Country Vet In Kona
By Jolene Head “Doc” McCoy was never one to turn people away and enjoyed giving back to the community of Kona and to the State of Hawai‘i. Before Hawai‘i was a state, Dr. Kid McCoy was appointed the Territorial Deputy…
Then & Now: Wai‘ōhino
By Ann C. Peterson Driving through the sleepy little village of Wai‘ōhinu, tucked into a lush, green valley near the larger village of Na‘alehu, it’s hard to believe that it was once the economic hub of Ka‘u. Rich in early…
The Innkeeper and His Wife: Nostalgia and Romance from the Heyday of the Kona Inn
By Ann C. Peterson Lee Taylor walks into the doctor’s office in Kailua-Kona, and then there are four of us sitting in typical waiting-room fashion with our faces down, or in an old magazine — but not for long. I…
Then & Now: Kailua Pier
By Ann C. Peterson The historic Kailua Pier covers a turtle-shaped rock that may have inspired early Hawaiians to name the small bay just north of the pier, Kamakahonu (lit.: the eye of the turtle). The extended rock outcropping later…
Then & Now: Ka‘awaloa
By Ann C. Peterson To reach the remote site of the Captain Cook Monument, you have to kayak, hike, or ride on horseback to this narrow stretch of land between the base of Pali-kapu-o-Keoua and Kealakekua Bay. This land’s Hawaiian…
Then & Now: Moku‘aikaua Church
By Ann C. Peterson Church folks have gathered every Sunday for 185 years on the site where the stately Moku`aikaua Church now stands in Kailua Village. Their purpose has remained the same, but the structure sheltering their worship has changed…
