Address
45-3490 Mamane Street, Honoka’a, HI 96822

TMK
(3) 4-5-006:014

SHPD Historic Site Number
50-10-08-30719

Abstract
M.S. Botelho Building and Garage is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places on the local level under Criteria A (Events/History) and C (Architecture).  The Hilo Railway had reached nearby Pa’auilo in 1913, and many citizens hoped that the reorganized Hawai’i Consolidated Railway would be extended to Honoka’a’s uptown.  Manuel S. Botelho made an investment here, buying this property in uptown in 1920-21 and constructing the building in 1927.  From that time, up to 1966 (and continuing on into the present) the building and garage has served many commercial purposes especially during the World War II years, as the hub of the town’s military recruitment center, the USO headquarters, and the dance hall for off-duty relaxation for servicemen.  Its Territorial Period plantation-style building adapted easily to its many occupants, and today retains all the major characteristics of the original building’s architecture.

This list of Hawaii’s historic properties is provided as a public service by Historic Hawaii Foundation. It is not the official list of properties designated on the Hawaii State Register of Historic Places. For official designations and determinations of eligibility, contact the State Historic Preservation Division of the Department of Land and Natural Resources of the State of Hawaii at 808-692-8015.