HistoricHawaii

By Mindy Pennybacker It began with plaque envy.  In 2015, after my husband, Don Wallace, and I had purchased 3052 Hibiscus Drive from my four brothers, we noticed that more than a dozen homes in our neighborhood boasted elegant, bronze plaques identifying them as City and County Historic Residences. We wanted a plaque of our own for three reasons. We wanted to commemorate my late grandparents, Lawrence and Mary Kang, who had bought the house in 1951, and my mother, Dolly Kang Lott, who maintained it with care and resided in it until she died. At times, it had housed up to nine family members from four generations. It is filled with memories of loved ones and big parties, and Don still cooks Korean barbecue on the cinderblock grill my grandfather built. Don and I had a big mortgage and small salaries, and the city’s property tax exemption for historically designated homes would help us afford to keep the house in the family. My family has always been proud of the tall, three-story, white wooden house with its peaked, gable roofs and big, double-hung windows admitting air and light from all directions. Don and I thought its age and unique style deserved recognition. It was built in 1929, and the architect was Swedish, my grandfather had said, although he couldn’t recollect the name. Neighbors said they’d hired architectural specialists who did all the research and filled out the historical designation nomination forms submitted to the Hawai‘i State Historic Preservation Division, known as SHPD. But we heard they charged thousands of dollars. Impecunious and underpaid journalists who prided ourselves on our research skills, we decided to do it ourselves. We quickly realized we would [...]

By Laurel Margerum Growing up, I did not pay much attention to the 120 to 140-year-old windows at my family’s seasonal camp in Maine. I was much more interested in the world to be explored on the other side of the glass, from the rocky islands to be reached by dinghy to the mossy hiking trails explored on foot. I first took notice of the windows when my mother pointed out an iridescence splash of light from their wavy glass on the hardwood floor. As I got older, I also began to understand how much work my parents and my mother’s parents put into maintaining the house. By the time I went to graduate school for Urban Planning and Historic Preservation, I was determined to contribute to the caretaking of the house that had always been my favorite place in the world. One thing needing urgent caretaking was our windows. My grandmother had restored them once in the 1970s after she and my grandfather purchased the camp. But almost fifty years later, most needed reglazing again, and no one really knew how to do it. During the summer between my first and second years of grad school, I interned with Maine Preservation’s Summer Fellows program. The program included a five-week placement with Bagala Window Works, a premier historic window restoration firm based in Westbrook, Maine. Over the course of the placement, I learned how remove old glazing putty and glass (in one piece!), prepare sashes for reglazing, reglaze with linseed oil putty, and repaint. Those five weeks were some of the most rewarding, valuable, and fun weeks of my life. I loved the challenge and endurance of glass removal and the quiet concentration [...]

For over 40 years, the historic former courthouse and police station in downtown Hilo has been home to the East Hawai‘i Cultural Center (EHCC), a nonprofit arts organization serving Hilo’s creative community since 1969. On the ground floor, galleries and exhibition spaces showcase the work of local and international contemporary artists while upstairs, an intimate 100-seat theater hosts performances, film screenings, lectures, and poetry readings. Constructed in 1932 and listed on the National and Hawai‘i Registers of Historic Places, the iconic two-story structure on Kalākaua Street has anchored Hilo’s town square since the Territorial Era. Over the years, the paint on the front lanai started to crumble as invasive species steadily overtook the surrounding landscape, prompting EHCC to embark on a transformative landscaping project in 2023, with a grant from HHF’s Hilo Preservation & Beautification Program. EHCC’s Native Plant Revitalization Project aimed to beautify and revitalize the grounds by reintroducing native plants and providing educational resources for visitors and passersby. The new Native Plant Garden was officially unveiled at Center’s Native Plant Pā‘ina on May 18, a celebration that brought together over 150 people with performances of oli and hula, ‘ukulele music, local food, keiki activities, and information about native plants. Designed in partnership with Laulima Nature Center, master gardener Yoga Ida Bagus and artists Sculptural Accents, the garden features native kalo, hāpu‘u, pōhinahina, tī plants, naupaka, and kupukupu ferns in planter boxes, gracefully spanning the building’s front facade. “As you know, how something looks on the outside matters. The improvement of our outside grounds has already changed how people feel about EHCC—from our staff to volunteers to visitors. ~Laurie Rich, Executive Director, East Hawai‘i Cultural Center Rich continues, “The improvement of our [...]

By Camie Foster Klum Our family has the privilege of serving as the current caretakers of an 8- by 10-foot board-and-batten cottage in the uplands of Waimea on the Big Island on what once was Parker Ranch land. We are not quite sure how old it is, but we believe it already has hit the century mark. Lifelong Waimea residents tell us that it used to be a bunkhouse or living quarters for one of the Parker Ranch paniolo. It has weathered storms and hurricanes with little apparent impact. Fortunately, although it has been fitted as a workshop, very little has been added to the structure other than layers of paint. I fell in love with it at first glance, and my respect for all that it represents has only deepened over the years. Someone carefully crafted the structure and oriented the two walls with windows to catch a healthy breeze without bearing the brunt of high trades. The windows, thankfully, appear original, as do the layers of glazing and paint. As a matter of fact, the only noticeable impacts of time are one cracked light — and the fact that at some point, someone removed one of the windows and put it back inside-out. I brought photos and measurements to the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation Trades Training Workshop on Historic Wood Window Repair in September, simply hoping for suggestions on where to find replacement glass and to see if I could learn how to proceed with a repair. Through the kindness of the hosts and instructors, I came home with a carefully cut piece of antique glass and the knowledge of proper procedures. Once my vintage Fletcher-Terry No. 5 point driver — the exact [...]