An Archaeological Inventory Survey of the 13-acre Kahua ‘Olohū Property TMK: (3) 9-5-012:005 Kaunāmano Ahupuaʻa Ka‘ū District Island of Hawai‘i FINAL VERSION Prepared By: Matthew R. Clark, M.A., and Benjamin Barna, Ph.D., Prepared For: Department of Finance – Property Management County of Hawai‘i 25 Aupuni Street, Suite 2103 Hilo, HI 96720 August 2017 (revised December 2017) ASM Project Number 28660.00 An Archaeological Inventory Survey of the 13- acre Kahua ‘Olohū Property TMK: (3) 9-5-012:005 Kaunāmano Ahupuaʻa Ka‘ū District Island of Hawai‘i Executive Summary EXECUTIVE SUMMARY At the request of Alex Kelepolo of the County of Hawai‘i Department of Finance–Property Management, ASM Affiliates (ASM) conducted an Archaeological Inventory Survey (AIS) of the 13-acre Kahua ‘Olohū property (TMK (3) 9-5-012:005) located in Kaunāmano Ahupua‘a, Ka‘ū District, Island of Hawai‘i. The Kahua ‘Olohū property is part of a larger area near the town of Nā‘ālehu reported to be the site of traditional gaming fields associated with the annual Makahiki festival (Ellis 2004; Handy and Handy 1991). The Makahiki grounds were previously documented by McIntosh et al. (2012) during an archaeological reconnaissance survey of a larger State-owned parcel (TMK: (3) 9-5-012:002) that surrounds the County purchase on three sides. As a result of that study Kahua ‘Olohū was assigned the State Inventory of Historic Places (SIHP) site designation 50-10-74-29231. At the urging of the community, the County of Hawai‘i acquired the 13-acre study parcel on June 30, 2016 using funds from the Public Access, Open Space and Natural Resources Commission (PONC). The intention for the property is to form a community initiative to re-institute Hawaiian cultural games during the season of Makahiki. The County is currently seeking to establish partnerships with non-profit organizations, community groups, and volunteer organizations to provide management of the Kahua ‘Olohū property through PONC fund stewardship grants administered by the Department of Parks and Recreation. This AIS was conducted in an effort to determine the presence of archaeological/cultural sites and features within the study parcel, to establish their significance, and to provide recommendations regarding mitigative actions for the protection, preservation, restoration, and appropriate cultural use of Kahua ‘Olohū. The information contained in this report is a critical prerequisite to the implementation of maintenance/development actions on the Kahua ‘Olohū property by the County and/or approved community-based groups and volunteers. As a result of the current fieldwork, a portion of a previously-identified archaeological site (Site 50-10-74-29231) was documented within the current study area. Site 29231, which occupies the entire 13-acre study parcel, and includes an undetermined area beyond its boundaries, is the location of a traditional Makahiki game field visited by Rev. William Ellis (2004:185-186) in 1823, who observed the game of pahe‘e being played there at the time, and mentioned the game of maika as also associated with the site. The location of the game field was later described as Kahua ‘Olohū by Mary Kawena Pūku‘i (in Handy and Handy 1991), who notes that her elder relative Opupele also grew sweet potatoes in the area during the late 19th century. Pūku‘i relates that, “In old Hawaiian times this broad kahua or plaza was used not just for bowling, but for other sports such as boxing, javelin throwing, and hula dancing during the Makahiki festival” (Handy and Handy 1991:596). The study parcel was purchased by Wailuu as a portion of Grant No. 2113:2 in 1856, and later became part of the Nā‘ālehu Ranch and Dairy, Inc. (in 1908), operated by the Hutchinson Sugar Plantation Co. The lands were used as pasture, and for making silage, throughout the 20th century. The name Kahua ‘Olohū, descriptive of an open place for playing ‘ulu maika, is depicted in the general vicinity of the current study area on the 1962 United States Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5 min. series quadrangle, Naalehu, HI (and on all subsequent USGS Naalehu quadrangles). While the current AIS did reveal surface features that could have potential association with viewing the Makahiki games once played at Kahua ‘Olohū, most of the 13-acre portion of Site 29231 included within TMK: (3) 9-5-012:005 contains no physical evidence (on the surface) of the area’s past use. The area does however retain sufficient integrity of design, location, setting, feeling, and association (through its identification by Mary Kawena Pūku‘i) to be assessed as significant under Criterion a for its association with the annual Makahiki festival, Criterion d for the information it has yielded on past land use in the region, and Criterion e for its important traditional cultural value to the native Hawaiian people as a game field associated with traditional beliefs, events, and oral accounts. Site 29231 is recommended for preservation through rehabilitation with appropriate cultural use. AIS of TMK: (3) 9-5-012:005, Kaunāmano, Ka‘ū, Island of Hawai‘i i Table of Contents CHAPTERS Page EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................... I 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 1 STUDY AREA DESCRIPTION.................................................................................... 1 2. BACKGROUND ........................................................................................................... 6 CULTURE-HISTORICAL CONTEXT ........................................................................ 6 Generalized Model of Hawaiian Prehistory ............................................................. 6 The Ahupua‘a Land Management System ............................................................... 8 Games of the Annual Makahiki Festival ................................................................ 10 The Ruling Chiefs of Ka‘ū ..................................................................................... 11 History After Contact ............................................................................................. 12 The Death of Kamehameha I and the Abolition of the Kapu System .................... 15 The Journey of William Ellis Through Ka‘ū in 1823 ............................................ 17 Early Western Missionaries in Ka‘ū (1827-1848) ................................................. 20 The Māhele ‘Āina of 1848 ..................................................................................... 25 Land Grants, Land Use, and Changes in Land Tenure in the Vicinity of the Study Area (1850-1868) ......................................................................................... 32 The 1868 Eruption of Mauna Loa .......................................................................... 38 The Nā‘ālehu Sugar Company (1868-1884) .......................................................... 41 The Lease of the Government Remnants in the Vicinity of the Study Area (1873-1888) ............................................................................................................ 42 The Hawaiian Government Survey in Ka‘ū (1870-1887) ...................................... 44 The Hutchinson Sugar Company (1884-1972) ...................................................... 44 PREVIOUS ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH ...................................................... 56 3. STUDY AREA EXPECTATIONS ............................................................................ 64 4. FIELDWORK ............................................................................................................. 65 FIELD METHODS ...................................................................................................... 65 FINDINGS ................................................................................................................... 65 Site 50-10-74-29231 .............................................................................................. 65 5. SIGNIFICANCE EVALUATION AND TREATMENT RECOMMENDATION .............................................................................................. 73 REFERENCES CITED ................................................................................................... 75 AIS of TMK: (3) 9-5-012:005, Kaunāmano, Ka‘ū, Island of Hawai‘i ii Table of Contents FIGURES Page 1. Study area location. ................................................................................................................................... 2 2. Tax Map Key (TMK) (3) 9-5-12 showing the current study area (Parcel 005) shaded red. ..................... 3 3. 2016 Google Earth™ satellite image showing the current study area outlined in red. ............................. 4 4. Study area terrain, view to the northeast from the southern corner with eastern boundary indicated. .................................................................................................................................................. 4 5. Age of the geologic substrates in the vicinity of the current study area (outlined in red). Based on Sherrod et al. (2007:sheet 8). ................................................................................................................... 5 6. Soils in the vicinity of the current study area (outlined in red) after Sato et al. (1973). ........................... 5 7. Map of the Ka‘ū District (TMK Zone 9) showing location of the current