This cache is dedicated to the many brave men and women who
worked for the Wai`anae Sugar Company from it’s beginning in 1879
to its ending in 1946. For a little history read below.
In 1879, the plantation was started on 25 acres in Wai`anae
by Herman A. Widemann. Widemann, a German immigrant was backed
financially by Hackfeld & Co. and politically by the Hawaiian
monarchy. To begin he hired about 20 local Hawaiians, 15 haole
technicians and almost 60 Chinese laborers.
The Wai`anae Sugar Mill was the first mill developed on Oahu
that produced sugar. The mill boilers were fired up for the first
time on January 16, 1880.
The Wai`anae Plantation was one of the most modern and
efficient in all Hawai`i. A railroad was built for hauling
harvested can to the mill. It also took workers to and from the
fields.
Wells were drilled and tunnels dug deep into the mountains.
As more water became available more acreage was cleared and
planted. This acreage increased to 600 acres by 1890 and production
was almost 2,500 tons of sugar.
Waianae’s sugar boom continued into the 1940s, but it faced
irreversible setbacks as a result of "a day that would
live in infamy." The bombing of Pearl Harbor on December
7, 1941 led the United States into World War II.
WW II meant the end of the plantation. The draft and high
paying defense jobs created a labor shortage. By the end of the war
the plantation was in bad shape. Several years of drought, and the
fact that the employees voted to join the International
Longshoremen’s and Warehousemen’s Union. This meant higher wages
and benefits. Other costs kept rising. On October 17, 1946 the
stockholders voted to liquidate the company.
ATTENTION:
To reach the cache park at the end of Wai`anae Valley Road by the
Forest Reserve gate. LEAVE NOTHING OF VALUE IN YOUR
CAR. This is an isolated location and break in's have
happend from time to time. GPS reception was not the best at this
point. I lost all contact going thru a short tunnel. It took awhile
to lock in again. With my Garmin GPS MAP 60cx my best reading was
36' accuracy. Check the clue for a hint.
That's all I'm gonna say for now. Lets see how the HUNT goes
before giving anymore info.