On Sept. 24, 1881, Princess Liliuokalani drove the first spike into the first section of track of the first railroad to be built on Kauai at Kilauea Sugar Plantation.
The steam locomotives came from the East coast of the USA, by ship around South America, one hell of a long voyage
"Almost everybody who lived in Kapaa during that time remembers working in the cannery during the summer as kids," says Fifield. "Kapaa was a cannery town, and in contrast to the company stores that you'd find on sugar plantations, it had many independent businesses such as bars, cafes, photo studios, grocery stores and movie houses."
One of the town's landmarks was the Roxy Theatre, which, sadly, was demolished by Hurricane Iniki. William Fernandez, who built the theater, started out as an itinerant showman, traveling from sugar cane camp to sugar cane camp, screening silent movies on a large sheet.
On a visit to New York, Fernandez saw the original Roxy Theatre and he was determined to open a movie house of equal grandeur in unpretentious Kapaa. When he returned to Kauai, he arranged financing with people with sugar interests and built his Roxy Theatre, one of the largest theaters in the islands, seating 1,050 people; which welcomed its first customers in 1939.
After the United States entered World War II in 1941, thousands of troops were stationed on Kauai, some camping at what is now Kapaa Beach Park. The Roxy Theatre was open daily, with shows scheduled from early morning until late at night to accommodate the additional crowds of servicemen. Says Fifield, "The Army was happy to drop busloads of soldiers at the Roxy as long as they were assured it was showing morally correct movies."
Thanks for two great histories of Hawaii life, business and railroads. I learned something today.
ReplyDeleteawww! You're welcome! Just stuff I find fascinating
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