Mauna Kea Oral History Appendix - Office of Mauna Kea Management

JY:
KM:
JY:
KM:
JY:
KM:
JY:
KM:
JY:
Group:
KM:
MY:
KM:
MY:
KM:
MY:
KM:
MY:
KM:
JY:
KK:
MY:
JY:
MY:
JY:
MY:
JY:
Waimea Community, the whole community.
Hmm.
Even the farmers, through A.W., they got the farm lots. He helped them. They worked for
the ranch, and I guess old man Carter figured, “enough already.” So he asked them if
they wanted to buy the land to farm.
Hmm… It’s good though yes, if you take care of your people, they take care of you and
the land.
Yes… Before, Ke‘ämoku was all red top grass. We used to go out gather seeds, put ’um
in a bag and dry ‘um up.
And that was to spread somewhere else
Yes. That red top is nice, really beautiful!
So Ke‘ämoku, that was plentiful all out there
Plenty, all Ke‘ämoku.
[riding to location of an old house site – furo remains still visible]
What do you think about this place
Actually, this house, what I found out, it goes back to 18-something on the map. The
Spencers used to live here.
Wow!
On some maps never have, but on some that they found, had Spencer. [Referencing field
work conducted by Scientific Consultant Services, 2001; Parker Ranch Maps, dating
from 1901, identify a house site in vicinity, with name of F. Johnson on site.]
Hmm.
And what they claim is that the Spencers used to do a lot of things out here with the
sheep.
Yes, yes. As early as 1860, he set up Ke‘ämoku, then in ‘65 he got Pu‘u Anahulu…the
Waimea Grazing and Agricultural Company.
Yes.
So uncle, you never came out here
I came out here, but I never saw this. I passed here all the time, but I never seen ‘um.
This cement is pa‘a. It must be at least 100 years old.
So this is where the furo house was
Yes, that’s where the box was.
The box sits on it and then the fire. Maybe I saw this, but I never think it was a furo box.
Yes, maybe you saw it.
I never think. I never know had Spencer out here. The only place I know, Pu‘upä,
Spencer. I remember the house lot, where the banyan tree stay, they call ‘um ‘Obake
House.
Hmm.
On top there, had one hill, they called it Spencer’s Chair, the old man Pakana used to sit
there, look at the ‘äina. All out Pu‘upä side. Päpua‘a, all that place. Because that Päpua‘a
place before, the Lindsey family own out there too. Used to get mango trees, rose apple
trees, all that place. Only now, stone wall over there.
Mauna Kea– “Ka Piko Kaulana o ka ‘Äina”
Kumu Pono Associates LLC
A Collection of Oral History Interviews (HiMK67-050606) A:575