Waimea, Hawai'i County, Hawai'i
Encyclopedia
Waimea is a census-designated place
(CDP) in Hawaii County, Hawaii
, United States
. The population was 7,028 at the 2000 census. Since each U.S. state
cannot have more than one post office of the same name
and there are many 'Waimeas' on the islands of Hawaii, the official US Post Office
name for Waimea is Kamuela.
Waimea is the largest town in the interior of the Big Island, and is the center for ranch
ing activities and paniolo culture. The Parker Ranch
in and around Waimea is the largest privately-owned cattle
ranch in the US, and the annual Fourth of July rodeo
is a major event.
Waimea is also home to the headquarters of two astronomical
observatories located on Mauna Kea
, the W. M. Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope
.
s once supported several thousand native Hawaiians, who practiced subsistence agriculture
, made kapa
, and thatched
living structures. As the Europe
ans arrived in the area, most of the sandalwood (Santalum
ellipticum) forests were harvested and the land became ideal for grazing animals. California
longhorn cattle
were given as a gift to Hawaiian King Kamehameha I by British
Captain
George Vancouver
in 1793. In 1809, John Palmer Parker
arrived to the area after jumping ship and over time became employed by the king to tame the population of cattle, which at this point had grown out of control. In 1815 Parker married Kipikane, the daughter of a high-ranking chief, and as a family developed what is now Parker Ranch
, the largest ranch in the area. Waimea's post office name Kamuela is the Hawaiian name for Samuel, named after postmaster Samuel M. Spencer
(1875–1960), or the other influential Kamuela of the area, Samuel Parker
(1853–1920), the grandson of John Parker.
vaqueros ('cowboys'), bringing the traditional euro-latin culture of riding and roping skills. The king hired these vaqueros to teach Hawaiians herding and ranching skills and by 1836, the island had working cowboys. As the Hawaiian culture and Latin vaquero cultured commingled, a unique breed of cowboy emerged, the paniolo.
beef and vegetable prices increased and farmers returned to cultivate maize
, beet
s, cabbage
and a variety of other green vegetables. Farm and ranchland acreage increased from 75 in 1939 to 518 in 1946. Waimea also saw many soldiers during this time who built a large temporary tent city
, Camp Tarawa
. When the war was over and the military had left, Waimea had an entertainment center, now Kahilu Theatre, and an airstrip, now Waimea-Kohala Airport
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the CDP has a total area of 38.8 square miles (100.5 km²), of which, 38.8 square miles (100.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.15%) is water.
of 2000, there were 7,028 people, 2,371 households, and 1,782 families residing in the CDP. The population density
was 181.4 people per square mile (70.0/km²). There were 2,589 housing units at an average density of 66.8 per square mile (25.8/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 30.65% White, 0.33% African American, 0.17% Native American, 20.29% Asian, 15.61% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races
, and 32.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.80% of the population.
There were 2,371 households out of which 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples
living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.36.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $51,150, and the median income for a family was $55,822. Males had a median income of $36,710 versus $27,217 for females. The per capita income
for the CDP was $20,773. About 4.2% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
(CDP) in Hawaii County, Hawaii
Hawaii County, Hawaii
Hawaii County is a county located in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Hawaiian Islands. It is coterminous with the Island of Hawaii, often called the "Big Island" to distinguish it from the state as a whole. As of the 2010 Census the population was 185,079. The county seat is Hilo. There are no...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 7,028 at the 2000 census. Since each U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
cannot have more than one post office of the same name
Waimea
-Places:United States*Waimea, Hawaii County, Hawaii *Waimea, Kauai County, Hawaii*Waimea Bay, Hawaii on Oahu*Waimea Canyon State Park on Kauai*Waimea Ditch on Kauai*Waimea River on Kauai*Waimea Valley on OahuNew Zealand...
and there are many 'Waimeas' on the islands of Hawaii, the official US Post Office
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
name for Waimea is Kamuela.
Waimea is the largest town in the interior of the Big Island, and is the center for ranch
Ranch
A ranch is an area of landscape, including various structures, given primarily to the practice of ranching, the practice of raising grazing livestock such as cattle or sheep for meat or wool. The word most often applies to livestock-raising operations in the western United States and Canada, though...
ing activities and paniolo culture. The Parker Ranch
Parker Ranch
Parker Ranch is a working cattle ranch on the Island of Hawaii in the state of Hawaii, now run by a charitable trust.-History:The ranch was founded in 1847 and is one of the oldest ranches in the United States, pre-dating many mainland ranches in Texas and other southwestern states by more than 30...
in and around Waimea is the largest privately-owned cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
ranch in the US, and the annual Fourth of July rodeo
Rodeo
Rodeo is a competitive sport which arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain, Mexico, and later the United States, Canada, South America and Australia. It was based on the skills required of the working vaqueros and later, cowboys, in what today is the western United States,...
is a major event.
Waimea is also home to the headquarters of two astronomical
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
observatories located on Mauna Kea
Mauna Kea
Mauna Kea is a volcano on the island of Hawaii. Standing above sea level, its peak is the highest point in the state of Hawaii. However, much of the mountain is under water; when measured from its oceanic base, Mauna Kea is over tall—significantly taller than Mount Everest...
, the W. M. Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope
Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope
The Canada–France–Hawaii Telescope is located near the summit of Mauna Kea mountain on Hawaii's Big Island at an altitude of 4,204 meters , and is one of the observatories that comprise the Mauna Kea Observatory...
.
Native Hawaiian
It is believed that the watershed area of the Kohala mountainKohala (mountain)
Kohala is the oldest of five volcanoes that make up the island of Hawaii. Kohala is an estimated one million years old—so old that it experienced, and recorded, a reversal of magnetic field 780,000 years ago. It is believed to have breached sea level more than 500,000 years ago and to...
s once supported several thousand native Hawaiians, who practiced subsistence agriculture
Subsistence agriculture
Subsistence agriculture is self-sufficiency farming in which the farmers focus on growing enough food to feed their families. The typical subsistence farm has a range of crops and animals needed by the family to eat and clothe themselves during the year. Planting decisions are made with an eye...
, made kapa
Kapa
Kapa is a fabric that was made by Native Hawaiians from the bast fibres of certain species of trees and shrubs in the orders Rosales and Malvales. It is similar to tapa found elsewhere in Polynesia but differs in the methods used in its creation...
, and thatched
Thatching
Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge , rushes, or heather, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both tropical and temperate climates...
living structures. As the Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
ans arrived in the area, most of the sandalwood (Santalum
Santalum
Santalum is a genus of woody flowering plants, the best known and commercially valuable of which is the Indian Sandalwood tree, S. album. Members of the genus are trees or shrubs. Most are root parasites which photosynthesize their own food but tap the roots of other species for water and...
ellipticum) forests were harvested and the land became ideal for grazing animals. California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
longhorn cattle
Texas longhorn (cattle)
The Texas Longhorn is a breed of cattle known for its characteristic horns, which can extend to tip to tip for steers and exceptional cows, and tip to tip for bulls. Horns can have a slight upward turn at their tips or even triple twist. Texas Longhorns are known for their diverse coloring...
were given as a gift to Hawaiian King Kamehameha I by British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
Captain
Captain (Royal Navy)
Captain is a senior officer rank of the Royal Navy. It ranks above Commander and below Commodore and has a NATO ranking code of OF-5. The rank is equivalent to a Colonel in the British Army or Royal Marines and to a Group Captain in the Royal Air Force. The rank of Group Captain is based on the...
George Vancouver
George Vancouver
Captain George Vancouver RN was an English officer of the British Royal Navy, best known for his 1791-95 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of contemporary Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon...
in 1793. In 1809, John Palmer Parker
John Palmer Parker
John Palmer Parker was the founder of the Parker Ranch on the island of Hawaii in Hawaii.-Life:John Palmer Parker was born May 1, 1790 in Newton, Massachusetts. His father was Samuel Parker and mother was Ann Palmer Parker ....
arrived to the area after jumping ship and over time became employed by the king to tame the population of cattle, which at this point had grown out of control. In 1815 Parker married Kipikane, the daughter of a high-ranking chief, and as a family developed what is now Parker Ranch
Parker Ranch
Parker Ranch is a working cattle ranch on the Island of Hawaii in the state of Hawaii, now run by a charitable trust.-History:The ranch was founded in 1847 and is one of the oldest ranches in the United States, pre-dating many mainland ranches in Texas and other southwestern states by more than 30...
, the largest ranch in the area. Waimea's post office name Kamuela is the Hawaiian name for Samuel, named after postmaster Samuel M. Spencer
Samuel M. Spencer
Spencer Beach Park is a county park named for Hawaii island politician Samuel Mahuka Spencer .Spencer was born in the area in 1875, and died on February 28, 1960.He was named for Samual Mahuka who was a judge in the area from 1893 to 1901....
(1875–1960), or the other influential Kamuela of the area, Samuel Parker
Samuel Parker (Hawaii)
Samuel Parker, known as Kamuela Parker was a major landowner and businessman on the island of Hawaii, heir to the Parker Ranch estate...
(1853–1920), the grandson of John Parker.
Spanish
The early 19th century also saw the arrival from the Viceroyalty of New Spain and Viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata of the horse and SpanishSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
vaqueros ('cowboys'), bringing the traditional euro-latin culture of riding and roping skills. The king hired these vaqueros to teach Hawaiians herding and ranching skills and by 1836, the island had working cowboys. As the Hawaiian culture and Latin vaquero cultured commingled, a unique breed of cowboy emerged, the paniolo.
World War II
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
beef and vegetable prices increased and farmers returned to cultivate maize
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
, beet
Beet
The beet is a plant in the Chenopodiaceae family which is now included in Amaranthaceae family. It is best known in its numerous cultivated varieties, the most well known of which is the purple root vegetable known as the beetroot or garden beet...
s, cabbage
Cabbage
Cabbage is a popular cultivar of the species Brassica oleracea Linne of the Family Brassicaceae and is a leafy green vegetable...
and a variety of other green vegetables. Farm and ranchland acreage increased from 75 in 1939 to 518 in 1946. Waimea also saw many soldiers during this time who built a large temporary tent city
Tent City
A tent city is a temporary housing facility made using tents. Informal tent cities may be set up without authorization by homeless people or protesters. As well, state governments or military organizations set up tent cities to house refugees, evacuees, or soldiers...
, Camp Tarawa
Camp Tarawa
Camp Tarawa was a training camp located on the big island of Hawaii constructed and used by the 2nd Marine Division during World War II. The grounds of the camp were situated between the volcanic peaks of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa. Marines were sent straight from the bloodly Battle of Tarawa to the...
. When the war was over and the military had left, Waimea had an entertainment center, now Kahilu Theatre, and an airstrip, now Waimea-Kohala Airport
Waimea-Kohala Airport
Waimea-Kohala Airport is an airport located one nautical mile southwest of Kamuela , an unincorporated town in Hawai‘i County, Hawai‘i, United States....
.
Geography
Waimea is located at 20°1′26"N 155°38′50"W (20.023926, -155.647357).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the CDP has a total area of 38.8 square miles (100.5 km²), of which, 38.8 square miles (100.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (0.15%) is water.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 7,028 people, 2,371 households, and 1,782 families residing in the CDP. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 181.4 people per square mile (70.0/km²). There were 2,589 housing units at an average density of 66.8 per square mile (25.8/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 30.65% White, 0.33% African American, 0.17% Native American, 20.29% Asian, 15.61% Pacific Islander, 0.73% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 32.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.80% of the population.
There were 2,371 households out of which 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.36.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 29.7% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $51,150, and the median income for a family was $55,822. Males had a median income of $36,710 versus $27,217 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the CDP was $20,773. About 4.2% of families and 6.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.