Ford Island (Hawaii)

Ford Island ; Mokuʻumeʻume
	View of Ford Island across Pearl Harbor Bay
Waters	East Loch, Pearl Harbor
Geographical location	21 ° 21 '48 " N , 157 ° 57' 34" W Coordinates: 21 ° 21 '48 " N , 157 ° 57' 34" W.
length	2 km
width	1 km
surface	1.83 km²
Residents	368 (2000) ; 201 inhabitants / km²
	Nautical chart with Ford Island

Ford Island (traditionally Mokuʻumeʻume ) is a small island in Pearl Harbor , Hawaii . It is located in the middle of the harbor basin and is connected to the main island by the Admiral Clarey Bridge . In 2000 there were 368 people on the island. The island is named after Dr. Seth Porter Ford (1818–1866), a physician originally from Boston .

geography

The island is almost 2 km long and almost 1 km wide and has an area of 1.83 km². Until 1998 it could only be reached by watercraft, on April 15, 1998 the US Navy opened the Admiral-Clarey-Bridge. Since then, the island can also be reached by vehicles via Pearl City .

history

The indigenous people of O'ahu called the island originally Moku'ume'ume , named after a traditional rite, which was originally performed on the island.

Around 1810, the Spaniard Francisco de Paula Marin acquired the island. He kept various cattle on the island. During a turbulent period that followed, with no significant settlement, the island is owned by the Hawaiian royal family. In the middle of the 19th century, Dr. Seth Porter Ford the island. His son, S eth Porter Ford, Jr, took over the property in 1885. He sold the island to the heirs of John li , a judge who lived from 1800 to 1870. His fortune was used to purchase many properties in and around Pearl Harbor. Charles A. Brown , the son-in-law of John li, administered the estate and thus also Ford Island from 1987 to 1916. After that, his son John li Brown took over the administration.

In 1899, the O'ahu Sugar Company leased the island from the estate trustees. This company planted sugar cane on the island and also built appropriate dock facilities to carry the sugar to the mill in Waipahu.

As early as 1902, the US Navy bought a small area totaling approx. 10,000 m² on Ford Island and Oahu in order to set up port facilities here. In 1917, in the face of the First World War, the land-based gun batteries Henry Adair were built on the northeast corner and the Boyd battery on the southwest corner of the island. The batteries existed until 1925 and were each equipped with two 9-inch guns. The decision to build these batteries had already been taken in 1916. At the same time it was decided to station the newly established 6th Squadron on O'ahu to strengthen the island's defense. The unit's commander, John F. Curry , was dispatched to determine a suitable location. He chose Ford Island because of its partly sea-based aircraft. The War Department agreed to his election and so in 1917 he was hired to contact John Li's estate administrators to buy the island on behalf of the War Department. The O'ahu Sugar Company left the island as a tenant at the end of 1917.

From now on, both the US Navy and the US Army use the island together.

In 1918 the Army built two hangars for seaplanes, appropriate ramps, a warehouse and an operations building. The Army Aviation Squadron was moved from Fort Kamehameha to Fort Island by ship. A corresponding slope was created beforehand. In 1919 the first naval aviators came to Ford Island. Pearl Harbor was established as an independent base and the airfield was renamed Luke Field after flying ace Frank Luke , who died on the Western Front in World War I.

Between 1921 and 1922, ten single-family houses and five two-family houses were built as accommodation in the direct vicinity of the airfield. Luke Field grew to a considerable size during this time. In addition, a sports hall, a post office and various other facilities for the base operation were built. In addition, a regular ferry connection was set up. Officers' quarters A, B and C were built in 1922, followed by a large home for NCOs in 1923. In the same year another ramp for seaplanes and a hangar were built. The base was renamed Naval Air Station Ford Island . In 1932 the Navy had 39 aircraft stationed on Fort Island. In the same year, the units were equipped with modern bombers from Keystone Aircraft Corporation . These were wooden, twin-engine biplanes. By 1935, 66 of these aircraft had been stationed on Ford Island. In the same year it became apparent that the island was becoming too narrow for the Army and Navy to share. It has been agreed that the Army will have full use of the Sunnyvale, California Navy Air Base . In return, the Navy should receive the North Island bases in San Diego and Fort Island. At the same time, the Army was buying land near Honolulu to build Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam , then called Hickham Field . During the construction phase, the Army continued to use Ford Island for flight movements.

In 1934 a magazine was built on Ford Island. In 1935 a large ramp for seaplanes was built on the south side, which still exists today. In 1936, 16 houses in two different designs were built in the Nob Hill settlement . In 1937 nine four-party houses were built for officers. Large docks for battleships were also built nearby.

In 1937 the Army left Ford Island for good to move across the bay to Hickham Field. Some facilities on the island moved to Hickham Field for reasons of space, such as B. the gym. In 1940, Army personnel and equipment relocated to Hickham Field was completed. Thus the presence of the Army on Ford Island was over, the Navy used Ford Island from now on alone.

During the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the island was in the center of the attack because the target of the attack, the Pacific Fleet, was anchored around the island. Due to the surprise attack, many of the 70 aircraft did not get the chance to mount the defense. 33 aircraft were destroyed, often still on the ground.

The following time of World War II was the busiest time on Ford Island, at times up to 40,000 people worked on the island. A squadron of Consolidated PBY reconnaissance aircraft was deployed on the island alongside a large number of other aircraft. The runway continued to grow during this time, every available space was built on with hangars and operational buildings. Due to its strategic location, the island became one of the most important naval air bases in the Pacific region during the war.

In the post-war period, the base lost its importance due to the extended range of modern jet aircraft and the new satellite reconnaissance. The seaplanes were gradually decommissioned. The base no longer met the requirements of modern naval aviation.

In 1962, Ford Island was deactivated as an air base. The area belongs to the US Navy. In 1964, Ford Island was named a National Historic Landmark and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976 .

Until 1998, access was only allowed to the Navy and the relatives of the residents. The island has been open to the public since the Admiral Clarey Bridge was opened by the Navy in 1998.

On July 1, 1999, Ford Island was closed to flight operations.

US Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt , John F. Kennedy and George HW Bush visited the island from the 1940s to the 1990s .