Place Ol Transition

Home , Hawaii State Library, Kalihi, Manoa

KALIHI: Place ol Transition

Vol. I

ETHNIC STUDIES ORAL HISTORY PROJECT Social Scie.nce Research Institute University of Hawaii at Manoa . . JUNE 1984 · TABLE OF CONTENTS: VOLUME I

Dedication • • . . • ...... iii Acknowledgments. . . . • . . • • ...... vii List of Contributors . . ~ ix Photographs. . • . .xi Introduction • . . • xli

Akinaka, Arthur Y. . • . . . . . • . . 1 Kam, Frankie • . . . . • 19

Izumi, Thelma Yoshiko. • . . . .41

11 11 Mendonca, Adolph Duffie • .73

Nakamoto, Aiichi • . . . 101 Adams, Albert 0. . . . • 123

Jamito, Sabas T. • . . . . 187 Kimura, Minoru . • 255 Martin, Peter. . 301

Appendix:

List of Interviewees • • • ...... • A-1

Chronology • . . • . . • A-3

Bibliography • . . . . • . . . .A-13

Glossary • • • ...... • . • . . . . . • B-1

Index. • . • C-1

v KALIHI: Place ol·Transition

Vol. II

ETHNIC STUDIES ORAL HISTORY PROJECT Social Scie.nce Research Institute University of Hawaii at Man-oa .· . JUNE 1984 TABLE OF CONTENTS: VOLUME II

Dedication. 0 0 . • • . . • • .iii Acknowledgments 0 . • • 0 • • . .vii List of Contributors. ix Photographs 0 . . . . • • • . • • xi Introduction. . . .xli

Sakima, Akira • .349 Okudara, Tokio...... 407 Christoph, Earle. .447 Vegas, John • .471

Joseph, Joe Antone. 0 .501

Villa, Agustina • 0 . .529 Cruz, Fermin...... 577 Bailey, Allen • .653 Like, Albert Nawahi . . .685

Appendix: List of Interviewees. . .A-1

Chronology. . 0 . 0 .A-3

0 A.:.~3 Bibliography. 0 . . . •

Glossary. 0 0 • 0 0 • • • 0 • •• B-1

Index • 0 . 0 . 0 •:.• . • 0 • • •• C-1

v KALIHI: Place ol Transition

Vol. Ill

ETH'NIC STUDIES ORAL HI-STORY PROJECT . . Social Scie.nce Research Institute ·,- University of Hawaii at Man-oa JUNE 1984 TABLE OF CONTENTS: VOLUME III

Dedication. • . • . . • . iii Acknowledgments • . . . . vii List of Contributors. • .ix Photographs . .xi Introduction. • • • xli

Rios, "Tana". . 729 Beck, Alexander • . 761 Rios, Mary. . 797

Souza, David T. . • 829 Souza, Mary • 857 Evangelista, Antonio. 887

11 Ornellas, Gussie". . • . . . • • 933 Miguel, Lorraine. 975

Miguel, Matias. • 999

Au, Yen Cheung. • • 1019

Anonymous • • • • • .1077

Hamamura, Akira • • • 1091 Houghtailing, George. . • . • . • .1097

Appendix:

List of Interviewees. . . . • . • • • • A-1

Chronology. • • . • • • . • . • A-3

Bibliography. • • . • . • • • . .A~l3

Glossary. • • • • • • • • • . • • • B-1

Index • • • . • • • . • . • • • . • • C-1

Ethnic Studies Oral History Project, University of Hawaii at Manoa, is located at: 2424 Maile Way, Porteus Hall 704, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822 DEDI C.ATI ON

TO ALL KALIHI RESIDENTS- PAST AND PRESENT ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We wish to acknowledge the contributions of the Ethnic Studies Oral History Project Advisory Committee: Diane Akau, District Parent Involver, Leeward District Title I Program Belinda Aquino, Coordinator and Assistant Professor, Philippine Studies Program, University of Hawaii at Manoa Stephen Boggs, Professor of Anthropology, University of Hawaii at Manoa Sabu Fujisaki, Membership Service Director, ILWU Franklin Odo, Director and Associate Professor, Ethnic Studies Program, University of Hawaii at ~·1anoa We also wish to thank the following individuals and organizations for their support and assistance: Resource Persons vSharleen Cuaresma-Primm, Kalihi-Palama Mental Health Center Chris Planas, Honolulu Community Action Program Suzette Yamasaki, . Honolulu Nutrition Program Noboru Yonamine, Board of Education ~my Agbayani, Operation Manong, University of Hawaii at Manoa David Kittelson, University Archives, University of Hawaii at Manoa J Norma Carr, United Puerto Rican Association of Hawaii ~Ron Higashi, Susannah Wesley Center · Senior Citizens Nutrition Meal Site Managers ~ everly Munar, Susannah Wesley Center lMasa Tanigawa, Ka Makua Mau Loa Church ; Basilia Tagupa, Kalakaua Recreation Center / Hilda Nakasone, Kalihi-Uka Recreation Center ,; Elaine Faumuina, Kuhio Park Terrace Present and Former Kalihi Residents Mary McMillen Cesario Ruizo William Kam George Farr Jiro Sato Wi 11 iam Puni Margaret Mokonui Hi ram L. Fong Faustino Fiesta Helen Ing Elsie Ho Raymond .Pagan Patricio Sabado Malala E. Mamea Christina Silva Pedro Carbonel Antonio Villa Leonara Ramsical Ines Cayaban Casiano Mijos Prudencio Domingo Clemente Sison Natalino Girao Hiroichi Hiroshige John Chinen Kisaku Hirata Emma Brewer Toyoso Nakao John Chaves Alvin K. Isaacs Edward Burns Beatrice Chong William K. Isaacs Hazel Naone . Mikio Asagi Daisy Fun Luke Ted Yap Joe Ayala Kazuo Yamane

vii viii

Harry Masuda Kiyoshi Kono Sotero Jucutan Pilar Jucutan Pearl Kim Mrs. Masaichi Tanouye Hiram Kaakua Hatsue Tanaka Mrs. Kisaku Hirata Umeno Iwatani Hideo Morita Filomeno Tagupa Masao Arnano Violet Leong Kimi Horinouchi

We are also grateful to the many individuals not listed here who have given their time, energy and talents. Most of all, we wish to thank the interviewees and their families for so willingly sharing their time and memories with us. The above individuals and organizations are not responsible for any errors the volumes may contain. LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS

Research and Interviewing Michiko Kodama, ESOHP Research Associate; Kalihi: Place of Transition Co-Project Director; Researcher/Interviewer WarrenS. Nishimoto, ESOHP Director; Kalihi: Place of Transition Co- Project Director; Researcher/Interviewer Fernando Zialcita, Researcher/Interviewer, Translator Tim Kashiwamura, Researcher Rieko Tamano, Translator General Staff Assistance Cynthia A. Oshiro, Educational and Academic Support Specialist L. Pua'ala Fisher, Administrative and Fiscal Support Specialist Marianne Lam, Administrative and Fiscal Support Specialist Ken Kitamura, Student Help David Cordero, Student Help Glenn Casil, Student Help Photography ESOHP Staff Final Transcript Processing Cynthia A. Oshiro, transcribing and photo layout Katharine Kan, index and glossary·

ix rn Above left, Albert Adams Vl 0 :c Above right, Arthur Akinaka -o Above, Yen Cheung Au Right, Allen Bailey

xi xiii

Above, Alexander Beck Right, Earle Christoph Below left, Fermin Cruz Below right, Mr. and Mrs. Antonio Evangelista

\ ,•.

("T1 (/') 0 :c ""0 XV

~ ·'·

Above left, George Houghtailing Above right, Thelma Izumi Right, Sabas Jamito Below right, Joe Joseph xvii

Above left, Frankie Kam Left, Dr. Minoru Kimura Below left, Albert L1ke Below right, Peter Martin xix

Above r1ght, Adolph Mendonca Right, Lorraine Miguel Below left, Pastor Matias Miguel Below right, Aiichi Nakamoto xxi

I'Tl (/) 0 :c ""0

Left, Tokio Okudara Below, 11 Gussie'' Ornellas Below left, Mary Rios Be 1ow right, 11 Tana 11 Ri os

rr1 (/) 0:c ""0 I'Tl (/) 0 :c ""0

rr1 (/) 0 :c -o xxiii

rn (/) Cl 0 . :::c Ill -a :::s c.. .3: (/) 0 s:: N Ill

Above left, Akira Sakima Above right, David and r~1ary Souza Below left, John Vegas Below right, Agustina Villa

rn (/) 0 :::r: -a XXV

Above, Harry Roberts estate in Kapalama, Oahu, ca. 1900s. Below, Harry Roberts outside his home in Kapalama, Oahu, ca. 1900s. xxvii

Above left, parents of Yen Cheung Au: Lau Nee Shee (left) and Au Tai Sau (right), ca. 1917. Left, Mr. and Mrs. Yen Cheung Au, ca. 1917. Below left, Joe Joseph (left) and friend in front of milk delivery wagon, ca. 1925. Below right, Joe Joseph as a youth, ca. 1925. xxix

.c.... c.... 0 Vl (I) "'0 :::::r

---· ------··-- -- 11 11 Above, Antone -Joseph ( Antone Joe ) on his Ka1ihi dairy, ca. 1920. Below, Joe Joseph with daughter, ca. 1941.

.- ~ . xxxi

Above, KalThi"koyukai, a Japanes-e community -organization, ca. 1930s. Below, Kalihi Kai Doshikai, a Japanese community organization, ca. 1930s. .)::o mOJ (') A"

X X X -'· -'· Kalihi Thundering Herd barefoot football league champions. 1927. Peter Martin, farthest on right; Alec Beck, third row. seated, second from left. Left, Kalihi Valley Athletic Club baseball champions, 1947. [Reprinted from Our Valley, Our Furu sato.] Below, Kalihi Valley Athletic Club barefoot football team, ca. 1940s. Tokio Okudara, front row, second from left; Akira Sakima, back row, fourth from left. [Reprinted from Our Valley, Our Fur usa to.]

X X X < xxxvii

.~ ...... N c 3

Above left, "Dyke" Yukito Izumi and his wife, Thelma, with daughter in Dyke's Market, ca. 1940s. Left, Patrons of Dyke's Tavern in Kalihi Kai, ca. 1947.

Below, Dyke's Market and Dyke's Tavern on Republi can Street in Kalihi Kai, ca. 1947. xxxix

.--i ...... N s::: .....3

Left, Kalihi Businessmen•s Associ ation, ca. 1950s. Frankie Kam, second from right; 11 0yke 11 Izumi, far right.

Right, Frankie•s Market, Dillingham Blvd. and Mokauea Street, during World War II, ca. 1943.

.--i ...... N s::: .....3

Right, Kalihi residents participate in a Red Cross drive, ca. 1940s. 11 0yke 11 Izumi, center; Thelma Izumi, sec ond from right; and Frankie Kam, far right. INTRODUCTION

The Ethnic Studies Oral History Project (ESOHP), University of Hawaii at Manoa, was established in 1976, by the Hawaii State Legislature. A unit of the University's Social Science Research Institute, the Project's primary objectives are to record and preserve the recollections of working men and women of various ethnic groups through oral interviews and to disseminate oral history transcripts and educational by-products to teachers, students, and the genera.l community. ESOHP's objectives also include producing and encouraging the development of pamphlets, readers, books, articles, short stories, drama, displays, slide shows and videotapes based on oral histories; serving as a resource center for oral history materials; and training groups and individuals in conducting oral hi story research. ESOHP's completed oral history projects and publications include Waialua and Haleiwa: The People Tell Their Story; Life Histories of Native Hawa11ans; Remember1 ng Kakaako: 1910-1950; Wa1 pi •o: Mano Wa1 (Source of Life); Women Workers in Hawaii's Pineapple Industry; The 1924 Filipino Strike on i

Kal ihi: A Place of Transition In July 1983, the ESOHP undertook its twelfth major oral history project, Kalihi: A Place of Transition. 'This project features life history interviews with present and former 1ongtime residents of Kal i hi. Kalihi, a multi-ethnic working-class district located west of downtown Honolulu, has a long history as a home of island immigrants. In the early years of this century, Kalihi, then a residential district of middle- and upper-class Hawaiians and part-Hawaiians, attracted Chinese and Portuguese residents. As Japanese, Puerto Rican, and other sugar workers left the plantations, many of them settled in Kalihi. In the decades to com.e, Filipinos, Samoans, Koreans, and Southeast Asians followed. For all these residents, Kalihi served as a place of transition. The older residents of the area experienced change as newcomers entered the community. The newcomers--many, often newly-arrived from other countries--adjusted their 1 ifestyl es to that of their new home. And, all witnessed and experienced the changes associated with the coming of newer generations of offspring. Kal ihi, itself, during this century, changed from a semi-agrarian community on the fringes of Honolulu to an urban one. This study focuses on these changes: the transitions made by individuals, community change, and change across generations. The continuities--where these exist--are also talked about by interviewees. With these volumes, readers may review with thirty-one longtime residents

xl i xlii

the individual and community changes that occurred in Kalihi over the past eighty years and gain some understanding of our local history.

Methodology To gain a better understanding of the subject and to identify gaps in the existing literature, researchers surveyed the available written sources on Kalihi and its history at the University of Hawaii Hamilton Library and the Hawaii State Archives. A bibliography and chronology of events related to Kalihi were compiled from these sources to help interviewer/researchers acquire necessary background information.

Many individuals familiar with Kalihi 1 S history and community helped outline topics of discussion and identify interviewees. During the course of the project, Michiko Kodama and Warren Nishimoto talked with: Amy Agbayani, Operation Manong, University of Hawaii at Manoa; Norma Carr, United Puerto Rican Association of Hawaii; Sharleen Cuaresma-Primm, Kalihi-Palama Mental Health Center; Elaine Faumuina, Kuhio Park Terrace; Ron Higashi, Susannah Wesley Center; Beverly Munar, Susannah Wesley Center; Hilda Nakasone, Kalihi Uka Recreation Center; Chris Planas, Honolulu Community Action Program; Basilia Tagupa, Kalakaua Recreation Center; Masa Tanigawa, Ka Makua Mau Loa Church; Suzette Yamasaki, Honolulu Nutrition Program; and Noboru Yonamine, Board of Education. Contact was also made with interested residents who added names to a growing list of potential interviewees. After reviewing the list and conducting preliminary interviews, eight women and twenty-three men were selected for taping. (The List of Interviewees appears in the Appendix.) In making the selections, the staff evaluated the interviewees• recall, intelligibility, and expressiveness. Also considered were the interviewees• seniority in age, place of residence, length of residence, and possession of special knowledge (i.e., uncommon knowledge of a particular locality, person, event, occupation, or lifestyle, etc.). The interviewees range in age from sixty-six to ninety-one and represent a diversity of lifestyles, occupations, and ethnic backgrounds. They include: a barber, engineers, a firefighter, a gas station manager, hog raisers, homemakers, a medical doctor, pineapple cannery workers, salesmen, school teachers, shipyard workers, storekeepers, and truckers. Ethnic groups represented include Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian, Japanese, Portuguese, and Puerto Rican. The majority of the forty-nine interview sessions were conducted in English; a few, in Japanese and Ilocano. The non-English interviews were translated for inclusion in these volumes. To avoid compromising the intent and meaning of the interviewees• statements, the translations are almost, but not always, verbatim.

Some Observations on the Kalihi Project 1. This project encompassed the geographic areas of Kalihi Uka, Kalihi Waena, and Kalihi Kai--in essence, the whole of Kalihi, from the mountain to the xl iii

sea. The size of the area, the diversity of experiences, and the existence of distinct neighborhoods within each section, posed logistical and analytical difficulties for the staff. These difficulties precluded generalizations about Kalihi as a whole but did not bar our learning about individual life experiences, particular neighborhoods, and aspects of local history. 2. In the project, the staff was fortunate in interviewing individuals who served as "lay historians." Albert Like and Tokio Okudara, in particular, presented explicit observations on local social change. They went beyond the mere recall of events and places to analyses of happenings in their neighborhoods. 3. This project includes interviews with a number of prominent, public figures. They, because of their positions in the community and their prior experiences with the press, presented situations not often encountered by the staff. Some were reluctant to participate, limited areas of questioning and edited transcripts much more so than other non-public figures. The staff's · preference is to minimize such editing and the limiting of questions, yet it recognizes the right of all to do so. These situations frustrated the staff, especially when valuable historical data were deleted. But, overall, it is felt that these interview transcripts still possess valuable data for the public and researchers. 4. The project also reinforced the staff's belief that it is best to conduct an interview in the mother tongue of the interviewee, for he or she generally speaks much more freely, extensively, and articulately. This was the case in the project's Filipino-dialect and Japanese-language interviews where trained interviewers conversant in the interviewees' language generated and asked questions. There is no substitute for an interview conducted in the interviewee's native language--as long as the interviewer has a firm grasp of the language and knowledge of the subject matter under discussion.

Cautionary Notes on Using the Oral Histories Historical propositions are only as valid as the evidence they are founded on. They may be supported by corroborative evidence, modi fed by new evidence, or rejected by negative evidence. Oral historical sources, when properly used, can support, modify, or reject historical propositions. These sources, however, must be treated with great care and circumspection. "Historians clearly must be careful about using recollections as evi dence. They must understand that a recollection is itself a complex piece of evidence. Three levels are included. There is the initial event or reality, there is the memory which is a selective record at least one step removed from reality, and there is the further selective and interpretive account recalled from memory by the witness/narrator. Furthermore, when a interviewer deliberately questions a person to solicit information as evidence, a fourth level of selection and poten tial for intrusion enters the process. The questions that an interviewer asks and the apparent purpose of his interviewing have a direct bearing on what is being called up from memory, and why."

-~William Moss, The American Archivist, 1977 xl i v

For the most part, interviewees displayed clear memories and responded with honesty and candor. Some may have enlarged their roles in particular events to validate personal statuses, but it is felt that no dishonesty was intended. They looked back upon their experiences and openly shared their observations and reflections. Many also made special efforts to verify dates and names and painstakingly reviewed their oral history transcripts for possible errors. Although every effort has been made to verify statements, it must be noted that unverifiable and questionable statements may be found in these volumes. Historians and writers are encouraged to corroborate oral historical statements before quoting them as fact.

Transcript Usage and Availability To facilitate the use of the transcripts, a number of aids appear at the beginning and end of these volumes: -A Chronology of events related to Kalihi -A Bibliography of materials related to Kalihi's history and community - A List of Interviewees and their occupations - A Photo Section with pictures of individual interviewees and some historical and contemporary photos of Kalihi Also included are a glossary of all 11 pidgi n11 English words and non-English words (underlined in the transcripts), and a detailed subject index. A biographical summary precedes each interviewee's transcript. All interviewees were encouraged to read their transcripts and make any deletions or additions they considered necessary before signing the following 1egal release: In order to preserve and make available the history of Hawaii for present and future generations, I hereby give and grant to the University of Hawaii Ethnic Studies Oral History Project as a donation for such scholarly and educational purposes as the Project Director shall determine, all my rights, title, and interest to the following: Tapes and edited transcripts of interviews recorded on (date) , Biographical Data Sheet dated (date) , and Notes of untaped interviews (date) The transcripts, published in these volumes, represent the statements which interviewees wish to leave for the public record. The majority are almost verbatim from the actual taped interviews. Minor editing was done by the ESOHP staff to make the transcripts easier to read. The flavor and authenticity of interviews were not compromised by this editing. Staff additions are in brackets [ ]. In a few cases, certain parts of the transcripts were omitted and the corresponding portions of tape erased at interviewee request. A few other interviewees made grammatical or syntactic changes in their transcripts. xl v

Several interviewees attached additions or explanations. These have been incorporated into the final transcript. Interviewee additions are in parentheses ( ). Three-dot ellipses indicate an interruption; four-dot ellipses indicate a trail-off by a speaker. Three dashes indicate false starts. The tape identification number, assigned to each tape and transcript, indicates project number, cassette number, session number, and year of interview, in sequence. For example, Tape No. 11-21-1-84 identifies project number 11, cassette number 21, the first recorded interview session, and the year, 1984, respectively. "I" following a tape identification number indicates a recorded interview done in Ilocano. "J" following a tape identification number indicates a recorded interview done in Japanese. Tapes are stored and are available for public listening at the Hamilton Library•s Hawaii and Pacific Collection, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Transcript volumes are available at the following places: Hawaii Oahu Hawaii Public Library Hawaii State Library Hawaii Community College Library Kaimuki Regional Library Kealakekua Community Library Kalihi-Palama Library* Kaneohe Regional Library Kauai Lil iha Library* McCully-Moiliili Library* Kauai Regional Library (Lihue) Pearl City Regional Libary Kauai Community College Library Honolulu Community College Library Kapiolani Community College Library Lanai Leeward Community College Library Windward Community College Library Lanai Community Library University of Hawaii at Manoa Hamilton Library Maui Ethnic Studies Oral History Project, SSRI Maui Regional Liorary (Wailuku) Ethnic Studies Program Maui Community College Library Hawaii State Archives Molokai *Kalihi: Place of Transition volumes Molokai Community Library only.

The staff of the Ethnic Studies Oral History Project believes that understanding the contributions of Hawaii•s multi-ethnic working people will foster within individuals a positive ethnic identity and an appreciation of the proud heritage that belongs to all of Hawaii•s people. We look forward to continuing the work at recording, developing, and popularizing the people•s history of Hawaii. ESOHP is responsible for any errors in representing or interpreting the xlvi

statements of interviewees. Warren S. Nishimoto, Project Director Michiko Kodama, Research Associate Cynthia A. Oshiro, Educational and Academic Support Specialist Marianne Lam, Administrative and Fiscal Support Specialist Honolulu, Hawaii June, 1984