Ranching on the Island of Hawaii

Hawaii is ranch country. From the uplands of Waimea, in the shadow of Mauna Koa, down to Kona on the west coast, Hawaii is dotted with historic ranches. I'm working with the Kona Historical Society to create the Kona Heritage Ranch, a living history site. I've also worked with the Paniolo Preservation Society in their fine work preserving ranch culture in Waimea (Kamuela).

Paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) Links

1. Na Paniola Pipi – The Hawaiian Cowboy
2. Dr. Billy Bergin has completed a fine history of animal husbandry on the Parker Ranch, published by the University of Hawaii Press.
3. Living History in Kona
4. Hawaiian Historical Society, founded in 1892
5. Kona Historical Society in Captain Cook
6. Paniolo Preservation Society in Kamuela (Wimea)
7. Hawaiian Cattlemen's Council
8. Parker Ranch
9. Links to Hawaii's Historical Societies and Sites
10. Kauai Rodeo Short History of Beef Cattle Raising in Hawaii
    The first cattle, originating from California, were introduced by Capt. George Vancouver on his second trip in 1793. On this trip and again in 1794, a total of eight females and four males were landed on the island of Hawai'i. One male and one female died shortly after landing. After the initial importation, King Kamehameha I placed a taboo on the slaughter of cattle, so that by 1830 when it was removed, cattle were very numerous.
    
    The wild cattle became so numerous and hard to handle that in 1932 King Kamehameha III sent his ambassador to Mexico to bring back three Mexican vaqueros (cowboys) to help thin the herds on the Island of Hawai'i. The Mexican cowboys became known in Hawai'i as 'paniolo' from the word 'espanol' for Spanish. The Hawai'ian cowboys learned from the Mexican cowboys how to ride horses, rope cattle and tame the wild cattle that roamed the Island. Soon these Hawai'ian cowboys also became known as 'paniolo' and became recognized world wide for their skills after Waimea's Ikua Purdy won the World Rodeo Championship in 1908. These paniolo also developed the slack key guitar style of music that is becoming noticed world wide today. There are samples of this music on the World Wide Web.
    
    Between 1850 and 1900, Angus, Devon, Dexter, Shorthorn, and Hereford cattle were imported. During this time, large-scale ranching operations were established, many which are still in operation in today's Hawai'i beef industry . [Exerpted from an article by Dr. James C. Nolan Photo to the left: Kona cowboys branding cattle.]

    Vaqueros

    Three vaqueros from California sailed to the Island of Hawaii in 1832. They taught the Hawaiians how to handle cattle. Thus the vaquero roots to Island ranching are very important.
11. Vaqueros: The First Cowboys of the Open Range by Jonathan Haeber, National Geographic News, August 15, 2003.
12. Short description of the vaquero American Memory Project
13. Conquerors, by Deb Bennett