This is waaay cool – we went last night.
Founded in 1844, O‘ahu Cemetery is Hawai‘i's oldest public
graveyard. Over the years, O‘ahu
Cemetery has become the permanent resting place of hundreds of prominent
history makers.
Located on 18-acres in lower Nu'uanu Valley, near downtown Honolulu,
O'ahu Cemetery is a "classic" example of an early American
"rural" cemetery, distinguished by a park-like setting, and an
eye-catching array of ornately carved tombstones.
Hawaiian Mission Houses is presenting Cemetery Pupu Theater - actors
dressed in period costume telling the life events of select individuals buried
at O'ahu Cemetery - at their respective grave sites.
There was nothing ghoulish about it; rather, it was very effective
storytelling. When you get there, you
are separated into groups then go from gravesite to gravesite for each
presentation.
$60 per person - includes drinks and pupu, seating limited, RSVP
required. Click here to make your
reservation:
https://safesite.4agoodcause.com/mission-houses-museum/event1.aspx?eventid=15
Portrayed in the June Hawaiian Mission Houses Cemetery Pupu Theater
program include:
John Papa I‘i (1800-1870)
John Papa Ii was a leading citizen of the Hawaiian kingdom during the
nineteenth century. Born in 1800 and raised under the traditional kapu system,
I‘i was trained from earliest childhood for a life of service to the high
chiefs.
I‘i served as a general superintendent of O‘ahu schools and was an
influential member in the court of Kamehameha III. He was appointed by the king
to the Treasury Board; was a member of the Privy Council; Board of Land
Commissioners and was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Hawai‘i .
Cherilla Lowry (1861 - 1917)
Cherilla Lowry founder and first president of the Outdoor Circle (TOC)
(100-years ago) whose mission was to “Keep Hawai‘i clean, green and
beautiful.” Twenty-two Monkeypod trees
were planted in A‘ala Park as the organization’s first tree planting project.
Through its mission, much of TOC’s activities strive to educate youth
and local citizens about environmental issues that concern the preservation and
conservation of Hawai’i’s natural resources, including planting trees,
beautifying parks and public areas including parks, streets, playgrounds and
schools and bicycle paths.
Eliab Grimes (1780–1848)
Captain Eliab Grimes, a native of Massachusetts, was a Honolulu
merchant of many years and operated with his nephew Hiram, as the firm E &
H Grimes. Eliab Grimes persuaded John
Sinclair to occupy the Rancho Del Paso (a 44,371-acre Mexican land grant in
present day Sacramento County, California)
until such time as he (Grimes) could take legal title to it.
In 1844, Eliab Grimes received the official land grant. Over the next
four years, Grimes and Sinclair, raised cattle and harvested wheat on the
property. Grimes, who subsequently
became an important trader and political figure in San Francisco, died in 1848
Lucy Thurston (1795 – 1876)
Asa Thurston (1787–1868) and Lucy Goodale Thurston were in the first
company of American Christian Missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands. Lucy Goodale Thurston voyaged to the Hawaiian
Islands in 1820 intent on bringing the word of God to its inhabitants. During the next fifty years she raised a
family, dealt with tragedy and helped to change the future of Hawaii forever.
The Thurstons, unlike most missionary couples, spent most of the rest
of their lives in the islands. Lucy
compiled her letters and other writings into one of the most vivid accounts of
the early mission days. She underwent a
mastectomy without anesthetic in 1855.
She died on October 13, 1876 in Honolulu.
Lorrin Andrews (1795–1868)
Lorrin Andrews was an early American missionary to Hawaii and
judge. In June 1831 the mission hoped
to establish a seminary on Maui, since it was somewhat centrally located among
the Hawaiian Islands. Andrews was selected to run the school called Lahainaluna
for "upper Lahaina."
On September 5, 1831 classes began in thatched huts with 25 married
Hawaiian young men. It was the first college west of the Rocky Mountains. His students published the first newspaper
and were involved in the first case of counterfeiting currency in Hawaiʻi. He
later served as a judge and became a member of Hawai‘i's first Supreme Court.
Please also consider visiting the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site
and Archives (on King Street, adjoining Kawaiaha‘o Church.) (I am honored and proud to have been recently
elected to serve on the Mission Houses Board of Trustees.)
I posted a video on YouTube of “Cherilla Lowrey” (1861-1917) founder
and first president of the Outdoor Circle (she is portrayed by Hanna
Gaffney.) (There as a little wind and
rain – it was recorded on my cellphone.)
Click here to make your reservation:
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