Statewide County HI Archives News.....Hawai'ian Chronology and the United States -- Part 19. July 14, 2008 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/hi/hifiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Darlene E. Kelley http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00026.html#0006374 August 3, 2008, 6:58 pm Keepers Of The Culture, A Study In Time Of The Hawaiian Islands July 14, 2008 Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Darlene E. Kelley http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00026.html#0006374 July 14, 2008 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Historical Collections of Hawai'i Keepers of the Culture A Study in Time, of the Hawai'ian Islands Hawai'ian Chronology and the United States -- part 19. by Darlene E. Kelley ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Chronology -- Part 19. ++ 1937 -- The passage of a favorable sugar act grants a quota to Hawai'i as a domestic producer. Solchi Sakamoto, an elementary science teacher and Boy Scout master with no previous coaching experience, organizes the Three Year Swimming Club to prepare his proteges for the 1940 Helsinki Olymipics. His swimmers train in irrigation ditches owned by Hawai'i Commercial & Sugar Company, having the athletes swim against the stream of irrigation water. Just after a year of his program, his swimmers began to meet with success. In 1938 the swim club won every Hawai'ian swim meet they entered By 1939 they won the National title and in 1940 they were slated to ill the slots on the U.S. Olympics team. Due to World War II the Olympics were cancelled in 1940 and 1944. In 1945, Somomoto was hired as head swim coach at the University of Hawai'i, where he continued to train the best swimmers in the islands. In 1948 the U.S. Olympic swim team again heavily weighted with Hawai'ian athletes, they won every event and Sakamoto saw his dream of training Champions come true. Ground broken for new National guard Armory at Wailuku, Maui. John Kelly shapes a surfboard with a V-shaped tail and rounded bottom, improving maneuverability. During testimony before Congressional Statehood Committee, Haan Kil-soo, a Korean resident of Hawai'i, charges the Japanese government attempted to unite Asians against whites. Japanese Vice Council Tsueneshiro Yamazaki terms the accusation as ridiculous. Kimono Queen Elko Yoriko starts her beauty business. She and a handful of others still practice the ancient Japanese art of elaborate dressing. First modern bowling alley, the ten lane Pla-Mor, opens at Hotel and Richards Street. Longshoremen begin peaceful picketing at piers in Hawai'i. Waikiki Business and Improvement Association hold its first meeting. Kodak Hula Show opens as a tourist attraction in Waikiki. Filipino leader Antonio Fagel imprisoned and charged with conspiracy to kidnap a Filipino worker during a strike. Following his imprisonment, union organization falls apart, marking the end of exclusively Filipino unions in Hawai'i. $ 113,975,000 worth of imports arrive in Hawai'i; Exports total $132,240,000. Amelia Earhart, Paul Mantz. Henry Manning and Fred Noonan arrive in Honolulu after a 15 hour flight from Oakland. It's the first leg of a projected trip around the globe, but Earharts' plane crashes when taking off from Honolulu for Howland Island and the flight is abandoned. " Waikiki Wedding" starring Bing Crosby is a huge success. U.S.-- American Gunboat Panay is sunk by invading Japenese forces on the Yangtze River in China. May 6 -- The German zeppelin "Hindenburg" crashes and is destroyed by fire at Lakehurst, New Jersey. Walt Disney premieres " Snow White And the Seven Dwarfs." ++ 1938 -- Sporadic strikes in two previous years cultimate in a shutdown of docks of the Inter-Island Steamship Company; more than twenty persons are hospitalized when violence breaks out. A hunt for Amelia Earhart who is lost on a round the world flight centersaround Hawai'ian waters. Cornerstone of a new Masonic Temple laid out at Makiki and Kinau Streets. Territorial Board of Agriculture and Forestry announces the planting of 160,000 trees in the forest. Gene " Tarzan " Smith crosses the Moloka'i Channel on a 13 foot paddleboard. making the trip in nine hours. Trolley coaches replace street cars on Waikiki run. New wing dedicated to King Lunalilo opens at the Queen's Hospital. W.Z. Fairbanks appointed First Assistant Public Prosecutor. Maui Swimmer Tasashi " Halo" Hirose only fifteen years old -- wins second in 200-meter swim and fourth in 100-metr swim in European Games. Program to encourage more diversified farming among Hawai'ian Homesteaders begins on Moloka'i with planting 500 acres of Indian Corn inter-cropped with pigeon pea. Controversy begins over the location of a fish cannery in Hilo. Hawai'ian Taro Products Ltd. plant begins production. Drydock workers strike settled after 4 months. $109,660.000 worth of imports arrive in Hawai'i; Exports total $98,086,000, the first time they dip below imports since 1869. Mokapu Cyclone tracked; Kailua and O'ahu catch the blunt of the storm's force. Winds are recorded at 54 miles per hour with the barometer falling to 22.77 inches, the lowest figure reported since the Weather Bureau office had oened 34 years earlier. Severe earthquake felt in all theislands. Korean Christian Church built, closely replicating the famous Kwang Wha Mun gate at Seoul. Harry Owens, Hawai'i orchestra leader and composer, wins Academy Award for best film song for " Sweet Leilani." Puerto Rican Adolph Samuels wins the islands' bantamweight and featherweight championship in boxing for the second year running. ++ 1939 -- On outbreak of World War II, President Roosevelt declares a limited emergency, submits a $1,319-million defense budget, and proclaims American neutrality. Navy holds biggest war games to date in Hawai'i. Honolulu's first blackout drill lasts 20 minutes. FBI's Honolulu office reopens to work with the Army and Navy on possible spying incidents. William K. Pai, the first person to swim the Kaiwi Channel,reportedly swims from 'Illo Point on Moloka'i to the Blowhole near Oahu's Sandy Beach. Hiram Fong elected to Hawai'i's House of Representatives; he later serves as House Speaker during 1949, 1951, and 1953. Charles Crane inaugerated as Mayor of Honolulu. Klyoshi Nakama of Maui establishes new one-mile swim record of 22 minutes 27.6 seconds. He also wins six titles at the Australian Nationals. Maui Swimmer Takashi " Halo " Hirose wins 100-meter swim at Pan American Games. $109,252,000 worth of imports arrive in Hawai'i; Exports total $115,096,000. Baby crane, one of the first hatched in captivity, arrives at Kapi'olani Park zoo. The New York World's Fair opens. ++ 1940 -- The Fedral census shows the island population to be 423,330. Puerto Ricans in the islands number 8,296. One hundred thirty ships of the U.S. fleet arrive in Hawai'i. Entire territory participates in a blackout drill. Navy plans for its largest Pacific air base at Barbers Point, plu expanding Kaneohe Naval Air Station by acquiring Mokapu penninsula. General election plebecite favors statehood by 2-1 margin. Members of the Soichi Sakamoto's Three Year Swim Club make up the majority of the U.S. Olympic Team, but Olympic games are cancelled due to World War II. Maui swimmer Klyoshi " Keo " Nakama wins five gold medals at Pan American Games. During this year, he holds 27 national titles in distances ranging from 110 yards to 1,500 meters. First public housing -- the Kamehameha Homes -- built by the Hawai'i Housing Authority in Kalihi. Sears, Roebuck & Company acquires Honolulu site for a new $500,000 store building. Volcano House destroyed by fire at a loss of $350,000. Federal Sugar Act removes restrictions on mainland sales of sugar refined in Hawai'i. $135,447,000 worth of imports arrive in the Islands; Exports total $103,068,000. Yearly production of island honey reaches 1,000,000 pounds of liquid honey, 10,000 pounds of beeswax and 5,000 pounds of comb honey. Longshore plantation workers strike at Kauai's Ahukini port. The 298-day strike is the longest in Hawai'i's history. First diabetic clinic in Hawai'i opens. Mauna Loa erupts with lava displays simular to those of 1926 and 1933. First escalator installed in the House of Mitsukoshi department store at King and Bethel Streets in Honolulu. It carries upbound traffic only from the first to the second floor. U.S. The Selective Service Act is signed by the President. ++ 1941 -- Mabel Smith Building is opened near Queen's Hopital in Honolulu. May 14 -- Build up of American air strength is marked by a flight of twenty-one Flying Fortresses from California to Hawai'i. Gene " Tarzan " Smith paddles the 100 mile channel between O'ahu and Kaua'i. Klyoshi "Keo" Nakama sets record in one-mile swim. $192,855,000 worth of imports arrive in Hawai'i; exports total $133,653,000. Inter-Island Airways Ltd. changes name to Hawai'ian Airlines Ltd. HRT ( Hawai'i Rapid Transit ) eployees strike to establish union shop. Iolani School uses $125,000 in contributions to buy 25 acres mauka of the Ala Wai Canal as a new school site. Construction of Halawa Shaft begins in response to growing water demands of a growing population and expanded military presence. Three 24 passenger DC-3s operated by Hawai'ian Airlines fly from Oakland to Honolulu in 13 hours, 53 minutes and 48 seconds, setting a new transpacific record for commercial planes. Board of Water Suppy takes first steps to develop project connecting Pearl Harbor and Honolulu water systems. The world's first official surfboard sailing race ( windsurfing ) held near Waikiki's Outrigger Canoe Club. November -- Lester Petrie is elected Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu and will serve for six years. December 7 -- An attack by Japanese planes on Pearl Harbor and other miltary instalations in the islands plunges the United States into World War II.; estimates Army and Navy casualties reach 3,435, with 2,323 killed; civilian casualties reach about three hundred wounded and sixty killed. Governor Poindexter proclaims martial law and requests General Walter D. Short to take over all normal powers of the Governor. The only combat against the armed enemy in the islands during World War II begins on the islands of Niihau with the landing of a Japanese flyer who is later killed by unarmed Benehakaka Kanahele. Public Schools closed for almost two months after Pearl harbor attack. U.S. Navy takes full control of the Kaho'olawe Ranch they had leased earlier and takes full control of the island. Honolulu Blood bank gets first blood donars. Kahului, Hilo and Nawiliwili shelled by Japanese submarines. Taiyo Maru returns 450 Japanese citizens residing in Hawai'i to Japan. War Department interns 273 Japanese aliens in Hawai'i. Army announces plans for $500,000 addition to Tripler general hospital and Schofield station hospital; Navy acquires 222 acres at Halawa for a 1,000 bed hospital. Many in Hawai'i affected as U.S. freezes Japanese and Chinese assets; Japan, in turn, freezes U.S. Assets there. Hawai'i receives its first radar equipment when the U.S. Army sets up five mobile units at various O'ahu locations. At 7:02 a.m. December 7th, operators at Opana ( a station near Kahuku Point ) reported a large radar blip moving toward O'ahu. Their superior, assuming the equipment had picked up an incoming flight of American B-17s, tells them not to worry about it. The blip turns out to be the Japanese attack force. December 17 -- Chester W. Nimitz succeeds Husband E. Kimmel in command of the Pacific Fleet. December 30 -- Japanese submarines shell the ports of Hilo, Nawiliwili, and Kahului. U.S. -- December 8 -- With only one disenting vote, the Congress declares war on Japan. December 11 -- Germany and Italy declare war on the United States, when then recognizes a state of war with these Axis nations. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Continued in part 20. 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