HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES H.R. NO. 100 THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 STATE OF HAWAII HOUSE RESOLUTION URGING THE BOARD OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES TO RENAME THE RUSSIAN FORT ELISABETH STATE HISTORICAL PARK IN WAIMEA, KAUAI, AS "PAULAULA".
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES H.R. NO. 100
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
H.R. NO.
100
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII
HOUSE RESOLUTION
URGING THE BOARD OF LAND AND NATURAL RESOURCES TO RENAME THE RUSSIAN FORT ELISABETH STATE HISTORICAL PARK IN WAIMEA, KAUAI, AS "PAULAULA".
WHEREAS, King Kaumualii was born in 1780 at Pōhaku Hoohānau at Holoholokū, Wailua, Kauai, to Kamakahelei and Kāeokūlani; and WHEREAS, Paulaula is the traditional place name for the eastern bank at the mouth of the Waimea River, and was the location of the royal compound of Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai; and WHEREAS, on January 27, 1779, Georg Anton Schffer was born in Mnnerstadt, Bavaria; and WHEREAS, Schffer studied medicine in Gottingen, Germany; and WHEREAS, by 1808, Schffer, a German National, travelled to Moscow to practice medicine; and WHEREAS, in 1799, the Russian-American Company was established to engage in the fur-trade, in which Russian explorers were dominant in Alaska; and WHEREAS, in 1813, in St. Petersburg, Georg Anton Schffer joined the Russian-American Company as a medical physician and sailed to Sitka, Alaska; and WHEREAS, on January 31, 1815, the Russian-American Company's trade ship Bering was shipwrecked on the beach at Waimea Bay, in front of the royal compound of Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai; and WHEREAS, Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, appropriated the Bering and its cargo; and WHEREAS, in December 1815, the Russian-American Company sent Georg Anton Schffer on a mission to Kauai to recover the Bering's lost cargo, and instructed him to receive payment for the cargo, salvage what he could from the vessel, and return immediately on the ship Otkrytie; and WHEREAS, on July 1, 1816, Schffer and Kaumualii entered into a secret treaty, which provided for the construction of forts on the island of Kauai, including one in Paulaula; and WHEREAS, on September 12, 1816, in Paulaula, Schffer began construction of a stronghold, built of lava blocks, to be named "Fort Elisabeth", after the consort of Emperor Alexander I; and WHEREAS, the fort at Paulaula was constructed largely from a Hawaiian labor force, and with rocks from Waimea River's east bank, which many Native Hawaiians consider a sacred area; and WHEREAS, in January 1817, Alexander Andreyevich Baranov, Chief Manager of the Russian-American Company, promptly repudiated Schffer and Kaumualii's transaction; and WHEREAS, in May 8, 1817, less than one year after Schffer's arrival at Kauai, Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, and thousands of his people ran the Bavarian physician and his men off of Kauai; and WHEREAS, the Russian Emperor informed Charles de Nesselrode, a Russian Empire diplomat, that acquisition of the Hawaii Islands would be useless, that acquisition could lead to "unpleasantness" in the country's relations with other powers, and that the Russian-American Company should try to keep Kaumualii's esteem and good will; and WHEREAS, on February 24, 1818, Charles de Nesselrode informed the Minister of Interior, Kozodavlev, of the Emperor's decision, which Kozodavlev relayed to the Council of the Russian-American Company in a letter dated March 13, 1818; and WHEREAS, the Council of the Russian-American Company decided to: (1) Return to Kaumualii the possessions he gave to Schffer, with the explanation that the Emperor already had enough possessions; (2) Ask the Ministry of the Interior to strike a gold medal inscribed "To Kaumualii, King of the Sandwich Island of Kauai, as a mark of Russian friendship", to be given to him on a ribbon of St. Anna; and (3) To inform Baranov to recall Schffer as soon as possible, and to put in the hands of a wiser person the matter of Russian-American Company trade with the Sandwich Islands; and WHEREAS, the Russian government informed Schffer that he had acted beyond his authority, brought him back to Russia, removed him from employment, and sent him back to Germany; and WHEREAS, for more than forty years after the departure of Schffer, Kaumualii, alii ai moku of Kauai, and later his descendants, occupied the Waimea fort; and WHEREAS, the fort was used as an administrative center, prison, and a burial ground of the island of Kauai; and WHEREAS, the Hawaiian government completed the half-finished structure and used the fort until 1864, when it was abandoned and its buildings dismantled to its foundations, with only its outer walls remaining; and WHEREAS, since the creation of the fort at Paulaula, no Russians have ever garrisoned the fort; and WHEREAS, the iwi of King Kaumualii's grandson is buried within this sacred site, along with six other Hawaiians who died in battle; and WHEREAS, in 1885, over twenty years after the fort's deconstruction, George Jackson, a Hawaiian government surveyor, rendered a map entitled "Plan of Old Russian Fort Waimea, Kauai"; and WHEREAS, the numerous names that have been given to this enclosure, including "Paulaula", "Fort Elisabeth", and "stone fort", reflect its cultural significance and multicultural history; and WHEREAS, in 1972, the State of Hawaii acquired the seventeen-acre property encompassing the fort structure for the purpose of preserving the site; and WHEREAS, the site, administered as the Russian Fort Elisabeth State Historical Park, was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1962 and listed on the Hawaii Register of Historic Places in 1981; and WHEREAS, in 2017, the two hundredth anniversary of the fort was commemorated with a forum on Kauai; and WHEREAS, in March 2018, a working group, composed of representatives from various cultural and historical organizations on Kauai, government agencies, and the Russian-American community, formed to discuss the future of the site; and WHEREAS, Kauai community representatives believe the name "Paulaula" should be honored by its inclusion in the name of the site, so that the moolelo of this wahi pana is shared and the āina that cares for the iwi kūpuna is honored; and WHEREAS, on Saturday March 20, 2021, an eight-foot-tall bronze statue of King Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, was unveiled at Paulaula, Waimea, Kauai, and symbolized his return to his ancestral home; and WHEREAS, various provisions of Hawaii's State Constitution provide for the preservation and promotion of native Hawaiian culture, history, and language, including article X, section 4, which states, "The State shall promote the study of Hawaiian culture, history and language"; and WHEREAS, Mua Ōlelo Hawaii emphasizes Ōlelo Hawaii place names, which should reflect the State's cultural heritage and its historical and geographical integrity; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2022, that the Board of Land and Natural Resources is urged to rename the Russian Fort Elisabeth State Historical Park in Waimea, Kauai, as "Paulaula"; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources is urged to develop new interpretive signs, brochures, and websites for the site that are available in Hawaiian and English and primarily reflect the āina of Kauai's alii nui, as well as the rich multicultural history of the site; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources is also urged to collaborate with the National Park Service to update the National Historic Landmark designation of the site and incorporate its Hawaiian place name and recent research findings by scholars of history and anthropology; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Secretary of the Interior, Director of the National Park Service, Governor, Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Administrator of the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, and mayors of the several counties. OFFERED BY: _____________________________ Report Title: Board of Land and Natural Resources; State Parks; Paulaula
WHEREAS, King Kaumualii was born in 1780 at Pōhaku Hoohānau at Holoholokū, Wailua, Kauai, to Kamakahelei and Kāeokūlani; and
WHEREAS, Paulaula is the traditional place name for the eastern bank at the mouth of the Waimea River, and was the location of the royal compound of Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai; and
WHEREAS, on January 27, 1779, Georg Anton Schffer was born in Mnnerstadt, Bavaria; and
WHEREAS, Schffer studied medicine in Gottingen, Germany; and
WHEREAS, by 1808, Schffer, a German National, travelled to Moscow to practice medicine; and
WHEREAS, in 1799, the Russian-American Company was established to engage in the fur-trade, in which Russian explorers were dominant in Alaska; and
WHEREAS, in 1813, in St. Petersburg, Georg Anton Schffer joined the Russian-American Company as a medical physician and sailed to Sitka, Alaska; and
WHEREAS, on January 31, 1815, the Russian-American Company's trade ship Bering was shipwrecked on the beach at Waimea Bay, in front of the royal compound of Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai; and
WHEREAS, Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, appropriated the Bering and its cargo; and
WHEREAS, in December 1815, the Russian-American Company sent Georg Anton Schffer on a mission to Kauai to recover the Bering's lost cargo, and instructed him to receive payment for the cargo, salvage what he could from the vessel, and return immediately on the ship Otkrytie; and
WHEREAS, on July 1, 1816, Schffer and Kaumualii entered into a secret treaty, which provided for the construction of forts on the island of Kauai, including one in Paulaula; and
WHEREAS, on September 12, 1816, in Paulaula, Schffer began construction of a stronghold, built of lava blocks, to be named "Fort Elisabeth", after the consort of Emperor Alexander I; and
WHEREAS, the fort at Paulaula was constructed largely from a Hawaiian labor force, and with rocks from Waimea River's east bank, which many Native Hawaiians consider a sacred area; and
WHEREAS, in January 1817, Alexander Andreyevich Baranov, Chief Manager of the Russian-American Company, promptly repudiated Schffer and Kaumualii's transaction; and
WHEREAS, in May 8, 1817, less than one year after Schffer's arrival at Kauai, Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, and thousands of his people ran the Bavarian physician and his men off of Kauai; and
WHEREAS, the Russian Emperor informed Charles de Nesselrode, a Russian Empire diplomat, that acquisition of the Hawaii Islands would be useless, that acquisition could lead to "unpleasantness" in the country's relations with other powers, and that the Russian-American Company should try to keep Kaumualii's esteem and good will; and
WHEREAS, on February 24, 1818, Charles de Nesselrode informed the Minister of Interior, Kozodavlev, of the Emperor's decision, which Kozodavlev relayed to the Council of the Russian-American Company in a letter dated March 13, 1818; and
WHEREAS, the Council of the Russian-American Company decided to:
(1) Return to Kaumualii the possessions he gave to Schffer, with the explanation that the Emperor already had enough possessions;
(2) Ask the Ministry of the Interior to strike a gold medal inscribed "To Kaumualii, King of the Sandwich Island of Kauai, as a mark of Russian friendship", to be given to him on a ribbon of St. Anna; and
(3) To inform Baranov to recall Schffer as soon as possible, and to put in the hands of a wiser person the matter of Russian-American Company trade with the Sandwich Islands; and
WHEREAS, the Russian government informed Schffer that he had acted beyond his authority, brought him back to Russia, removed him from employment, and sent him back to Germany; and
WHEREAS, for more than forty years after the departure of Schffer, Kaumualii, alii ai moku of Kauai, and later his descendants, occupied the Waimea fort; and
WHEREAS, the fort was used as an administrative center, prison, and a burial ground of the island of Kauai; and
WHEREAS, the Hawaiian government completed the half-finished structure and used the fort until 1864, when it was abandoned and its buildings dismantled to its foundations, with only its outer walls remaining; and
WHEREAS, since the creation of the fort at Paulaula, no Russians have ever garrisoned the fort; and
WHEREAS, the iwi of King Kaumualii's grandson is buried within this sacred site, along with six other Hawaiians who died in battle; and
WHEREAS, in 1885, over twenty years after the fort's deconstruction, George Jackson, a Hawaiian government surveyor, rendered a map entitled "Plan of Old Russian Fort Waimea, Kauai"; and
WHEREAS, the numerous names that have been given to this enclosure, including "Paulaula", "Fort Elisabeth", and "stone fort", reflect its cultural significance and multicultural history; and
WHEREAS, in 1972, the State of Hawaii acquired the seventeen-acre property encompassing the fort structure for the purpose of preserving the site; and
WHEREAS, the site, administered as the Russian Fort Elisabeth State Historical Park, was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1962 and listed on the Hawaii Register of Historic Places in 1981; and
WHEREAS, in 2017, the two hundredth anniversary of the fort was commemorated with a forum on Kauai; and
WHEREAS, in March 2018, a working group, composed of representatives from various cultural and historical organizations on Kauai, government agencies, and the Russian-American community, formed to discuss the future of the site; and
WHEREAS, Kauai community representatives believe the name "Paulaula" should be honored by its inclusion in the name of the site, so that the moolelo of this wahi pana is shared and the āina that cares for the iwi kūpuna is honored; and
WHEREAS, on Saturday March 20, 2021, an eight-foot-tall bronze statue of King Kaumualii, the alii ai moku of Kauai, was unveiled at Paulaula, Waimea, Kauai, and symbolized his return to his ancestral home; and
WHEREAS, various provisions of Hawaii's State Constitution provide for the preservation and promotion of native Hawaiian
culture, history, and language, including article X, section 4, which states, "The State shall promote the study of Hawaiian culture, history and language"; and
WHEREAS, Mua Ōlelo Hawaii emphasizes Ōlelo Hawaii place names, which should reflect the State's cultural heritage and its historical and geographical integrity; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2022, that the Board of Land and Natural Resources is urged to rename the Russian Fort Elisabeth State Historical Park in Waimea, Kauai, as "Paulaula"; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources is urged to develop new interpretive signs, brochures, and websites for the site that are available in Hawaiian and English and primarily reflect the āina of Kauai's alii nui, as well as the rich multicultural history of the site; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources is also urged to collaborate with the National Park Service to update the National Historic Landmark designation of the site and incorporate its Hawaiian place name and recent research findings by scholars of history and anthropology; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Secretary of the Interior, Director of the National Park Service, Governor, Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Administrator of the Division of State Parks of the Department of Land and Natural Resources, and mayors of the several counties.
OFFERED BY: _____________________________
OFFERED BY:
_____________________________
Report Title:
Board of Land and Natural Resources; State Parks; Paulaula