Honouliuli Village Traditional Cultural Place - One of Oahu's Most Important Ancient Communities Still Survives Today
Article and video by Ewa Historian John Bond
This 9 minute movie is actually a drive by just to give outsiders an idea of what Honouliuli village looks like today. There is actually a great deal of important cultural history associated with this Traditional Cultural Property.
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Honouliuli village has an ancient Hawaiian past that includes supporting the largest population of pre-contact native Hawaiians on O'ahu due to the very rich soil and abundant mountain streams and springs in the area.
Honouliuli is the largest ahupua'a on O'ahu, covering 43,000 acres. The ahupua'a is the traditional Hawaiian land division. Honouliuli encompasses all of the Ewa coast, part of the western edge of Pearl Harbor, goes up to the summit of the Waianae range, inland as far as up to Schofield Barracks, and bounded by Kunia Road.
Honouliuli is an ancient Hawaiian village community and also a place name for the north end of ʻEwa, lying along Honouliuli Stream between ʻEwa Villages and Waipahu.
Ewa was at one time the political center for O‘ahu chiefs and Honouliuli supported a major population and was the center of many activities on O'ahu prior to Western contact.
The land once belonged to Hawaiian royalty and was named Honouliuli - meaning dark, dark harbor - for the dark fertile lands that stretch from the waters of Pearl Harbor to the summit of the Wai`anae Mountains. Honouliuli includes lands extending from the mountains, to the watered plains where loʻi kalo (taro pond fields) and loko ia (fishponds) were developed.
Honouliuli was the trail head for the British Royal Navy mapped 1825 Malden Trails and was basically like Rome ("all roads lead to Rome") for Oahu because it had ideal agricultural growing conditions with rich volcanic soil and abundant fish pond and ocean resources nearby.
Several features within the ahupua'a of Honouliuli have been given the same name - the Waianae mountain watershed preserve, a US Fish and Wildlife bird refuge wetland on West Loch Pearl Harbor, the village itself between Fort Weaver Road and old Fort Weaver Road and the WW-II internment camp which in fact is not even near Honouliuli village but up in the mountains in Honouliuli Gulch.
Ewa Plantation and mill (in center) once covered the ancient coral reef of the Ewa Plain in a vast sea of green sugar cane. At right in this painting is the WW-II MCAS Ewa air base.
The Honouliuli village is in the Ewa Moku district and within the ahupua'a of Honouliuli. In the late 19th century to early 20th century, ʻEwa was the largest population center in West Oahu, with industry focused around sugar cane production.
The ʻEwa Mill was a major employer that set up residential villages within ʻEwa today known as Ewa Village, today an historic district and National Register eligible.
Honouliuli village also rightfully deserves such recognition.
Honouliuli village has a long and close relationship with the nearby Ewa Villages.
Remains of the once major Honouliuli steam powered pump station supplied the vast amount of the water for the Ewa Plantation and was also connected by the Ewa Plantation railway line.
Some of the old plantation era stores still survive today. Honouliuli once also had
its own Oahu railway stop and freight car siding.
Ewa Plantation Railway Overpass
Honouliuli village is actually within an ancient river valley that once feed hundreds of Kalo fields
Small streams and waterways cross through the Honouliuli village area
Most homes are from the plantation era or built in the Hawaii 50's style
The Honouliuli community is very watchful of outsiders!
Some embankment built streams resemble old Japan or European villages.
Housing tracts and golf courses everywhere but this ancient community survives!
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