2021 Experts Lecture Series Explores Changing Interpretations of National Historic Landmarks

– Recordings of past presentations available below –

Almost 60 years have passed since the first Hawai‘i sites were designated as National Historic Landmarks. The federal program calls them “historic places that hold national significance.” The Secretary of the Interior designates these places as “exceptional because of their abilities to illustrate U.S. heritage.”

Over the intervening decades, the value of the sites remains, but increased awareness of diverse voices, through community input, has resulted in changing interpretations of the historic sites. Today, Hawai‘i has 33 properties designated as National Historic Landmarks. Learn how the original interpretations of six National Historic Landmarks in Hawai‘i have changed over time.

Thursday, January 28, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
USS Arizona, Pearl Harbor, O‘ahu (Designated on 5/5/89)
Presenter: Hanako Wakatsuki, Acting Chief of Interpretation, Pearl Harbor National Memorial

The Pearl Harbor National Memorial is the co-host for this lecture.

Watch the video replay below.

Thursday, February 4, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
‘Iolani Palace, Honolulu, O‘ahu (Designated on 12/29/62)
Presenter: Zita Cup Choy, Historian, Friends of  ‘Iolani Palace

Watch the video replay below.

Thursday, February 11, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
Kalaupapa National Historical Park, Kalaupapa, Moloka‘i
(Designated 1/7/76 as Kalaupapa Leprosy Settlement)
Presenters: Ka‘ohulani McGuire, Cultural Anthropologist, Kalaupapa National Historical Park
Christopher E. Johnson, Historian, Preservation Partnerships Program, National Park Service, Seattle, WA

 

The CHANGING LAHAINA HISTORIC DISTRICT

Thursday, February 18, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
The Changing Lahaina Historic District, Lahaina, Maui (Designated on 12/29/62)
Presenter: Dr. Ronald Williams Jr., owner, Ka ‘Elele Research and Writing Akewika (Archivist, Hawai’i State Archives)

PU‘UKOHOLā HEIAU

Thursday, February 25, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
Pu‘ukoholā Heiau, Waimea, Hawai‘i Island (Designated on 12/29/62)
Presenter: Mokihana Tadio, National Park Service

Thursday, March 4, 2021
12:00 to 1:00 PM
Kawaiaha‘o Church and Mission Houses, Honolulu, O‘ahu (Designated on 12/29/62)
Presenter: TBA