Waimea (Hawaii)
| Waimea | |
|---|---|
| Nickname : Kamuela | |
 View from Waimea to Mauna Kea |
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| Located in County Hawaii and in the state | |
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| Basic data | |
| State : | United States |
| State : | Hawaii |
| County : | Hawaii County |
| Coordinates : | 20 ° 1 ′ N , 155 ° 39 ′ W |
| Time zone : | Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time ( UTC − 10 ) |
| Residents : | 9,212 (as of 2010) |
| Population density : | 92.1 inhabitants per km 2 |
| Area : | 101 km 2 (approx. 39 mi 2 ) of which 100 km 2 (approx. 39 mi 2 ) are land |
| Height : | 830 m |
| Postal code : | 96743 |
| Area code : | +1 808 |
| FIPS : | 15-78500 |
| GNIS ID : | 2414164 |
Waimea is a census-designated place in the north of the island of Hawaii in the state of the same name . The place is also known under the name Kamuela to avoid confusion with the places of the same name on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi .
location
The village is located at an altitude of 825 meters in the valley of the Waikōloa Stream on a saddle between the Kohala Mountains in the northwest and Mauna Kea in the southeast.
Waimea is the largest settlement in the interior of the island of Hawaii and a significant traffic junction, as State Routes 19 and 190 meet here. In addition, the Waimea-Kohala-Airport is located south of the village , but it is only important for regional traffic.
population
According to the 2000 census, Waimea has 7028 people, which results in a population density of around 70 inhabitants / km² over an area of 100.5 km².
history
The rainy area, which is suitable for agriculture, was inhabited by several thousand Hawaiians who practiced subsistence farming before the arrival of the Europeans . An important product was kapa , which was produced from the local deposits of Wauke ( paper mulberry tree ) and ʻUlu ( breadfruit tree ). With the arrival of the Europeans, the deforestation of the stocks of sandalwood began , the area around Waimea was henceforth mainly used for the breeding of cattle , which is still important today.
The first cattle were given to King Kamehameha I as a gift by the British captain George Vancouver in 1793 , and John Palmer Parker , who had lived on the island since 1809 , was commissioned by the king to tame the cattle that had meanwhile gone wild. His marriage to Kipikane, the daughter of a local tribal leader, in 1815, laid the foundation for the Parker Ranch , which is still the most important commercial enterprise in the area. The flourishing of cattle breeding was accompanied by a significant demographic change, as Latin American settlers were settled as vaqueros to supervise the herds .
As a result of cattle breeding, a culture developed in Waimea, which is rather untypical for Hawaii and corresponds to the western United States ; the most important rodeo in the entire state takes place here on July 4th .
During the Second World War, a military camp was built on the edge of the town, the airfield of which is today's airport; other buildings, such as the Kahilu Theater, were also built in this context. In the course of these years agricultural production was intensified and expanded; the cultivation of corn , cabbage , beets and other vegetables increased by about 500%.
The diversification of the economic bases of the place began with the establishment of the headquarters of the Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope in the last three decades of the 20th century.
sons and daughters of the town
- S. Neil Fujita (1921-2010), graphic designer
