Oʻahu Cemetery & Chapel boundary wall at Nuʻuanu Ave. & Judd St.
Interactive map of Oʻahu Cemetery
Details
Established
November 1844 (1844-11)
Location
2162 Nuʻuanu Avenue
Country
United States
Size
4.38 acres (1.77 ha)
TheOʻahu Cemetery[1] is the resting place of many notable early residents of theHonolulu area. They range from missionaries and politicians to sports pioneers and philosophers. Over time it was expanded to become an area known as theNuʻuanu Cemetery.[2]
It was the first public cemetery in Honolulu, founded in November 1844. Due to the growth in thewhaling industry, discussion had started in 1836 on the need for a new burial ground that was not associated with a specific church. The 4.38 acres (1.77 ha) site was purchased for $300 and $350 granted for a house. The money was raised by selling subscriptions on 59 plots of $12 each. Later another 3 acres (12,000 m2) were purchased fromGerrit P. Judd to expand in 1860. Rev.Samuel C. Damon served on the cemetery association in the early days. The first recorded burial was American sailor H. Wolley, for $2.50.[3]
After theattack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, all paper currency on the islands was withdrawn and replaced withHawaii overprint notes, in case the Japanese invaded. Faced with the task of quickly destroying $200 million of cash, the crematory at the cemetery was used to burn it, instead of risking transport to the mainland.[6][7] However, progress was too slow, so the larger furnace at theAiea sugar mill was also used.[8][9][10][a]
An area called theSeamen's Lot contains many unmarked graves for sailors, provided by theHonolulu Sailor's Home. Another plot is dedicated to firefighters, marked by a monument 15 feet (4.6 m) high. Two dozen were killed by strafing in the December 7, 1941, attack.[11]
Strictly speaking, the original 1844 cemetery is called "Oʻahu Cemetery", although the extended area is often called "Nuʻuanu Cemetery"[17][18] after the area.[19]
a.^ Some sources[8][9] do not use the word "Oʻahu" for the crematory, but use "Nuʻuanu", and this was the only crematory listed in telephone books at the time that was on Nuʻuanu Avenue.[26]
^Richard A. Greer (1967). "Here Lies History: Oahu Cemetery, a Mirror of Old Honolulu".Hawaiian Journal of History.1. Hawaiian Historical Society:53–71.hdl:10524/384.
^"Company History".archive of former web site. Nuʻuanu Memorial Park Ltd. 2000. Archived fromthe original on November 13, 2007. RetrievedNovember 22, 2009.
