Waimea, Hawaii Kamuela | |
|---|---|
 Some cattle pastures just outside Waimea, August 2007 | |
 Location inHawaii County and the state ofHawaii | |
  Waimea Location in Hawaii | |
| Coordinates:20°1′13″N155°40′4″W / 20.02028°N 155.66778°W /20.02028; -155.66778 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Hawaii |
| County | Hawaii |
| Area | |
• Total | 39.42 sq mi (102.11 km2) |
| • Land | 39.39 sq mi (102.01 km2) |
| • Water | 0.039 sq mi (0.10 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,670 ft (810 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 9,904 |
| • Density | 251.5/sq mi (97.09/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-10 (Hawaii-Aleutian) |
| ZIP code | 96743 |
| Area code | 808 |
| FIPS code | 15-78500 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2414164 |
Waimea is a landlocked community inHawaiʻi County, Hawaii, United States. Waimea is the center forranching activities andpaniolo culture. The name Waimea meansreddish water. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined that community as acensus-designated place (CDP). The population was 7,028 at the2000 census and 9,212 at the2010 census.[2] Since eachU.S. state cannot have more than one post office of the same name, and there is a post office inWaimea, Kauai County, the officialU.S. Post Office designation for Waimea isKamuela, although this name is only used by the post office, not by locals nor road signage.[3]
TheParker Ranch in and around Waimea is the largest privately ownedcattle ranch in the United States, and the annualFourth of Julyrodeo is a major event. TheWaimea Cherry Blossom Heritage Festival is held annually in the first week of February.
Waimea is home to the headquarters of twoastronomicalobservatories located onMauna Kea, theW. M. Keck Observatory and theCanada–France–Hawaii Telescope. It is headquarters of the International Lunar Observatory Association.[4]
Waimea is the home ofHawaii Preparatory Academy andParker School, two of the top independent schools in Hawaii.[5]
It is believed that the watershed area of theKohala mountains once supported several thousand native Hawaiians, who practicedsubsistence agriculture, madekapa, andthatched dwellings. As theEuropeans arrived in the area, most of the sandalwood (Santalum ellipticum) forests were harvested and the land became ideal for grazing animals. Californialonghorn cattle were given as a gift to HawaiianKing Kamehameha I byBritishCaptainGeorge Vancouver in 1793.[6] In 1809,John Palmer Parker arrived to the area after jumping ship and over time became employed by the king to hunt and tame the population of cattle, which at this point had grown out of control. In 1815 Parker married Kipikane, the daughter of a high-ranking chief, and as a family developed what is nowParker Ranch, the largest ranch in the area.[7]
The early 19th century also saw the arrival from the Viceroyalties ofNew Spain andRío de la Plata of the horse andSpanishvaqueros ("cowboys"), bringing the traditional Euro-Latin culture of riding and roping skills. The king hired thesevaqueros to teach Hawaiians herding and ranching skills, and by 1836 the island had working cowboys. As the Hawaiian culture and Latinvaquero cultured commingled, a unique breed of cowboy emerged, thepaniolo.[8][better source needed]
DuringWorld War II, beef and vegetable prices increased, and farmers returned to cultivatecorn,beets,cabbage and a variety of other green vegetables. Farm and ranchland acreage increased from 75 in 1939 to 518 in 1946.[9] Waimea saw many soldiers during this time, who were stationed atCamp Tarawa. When the war was over and the military had left, Waimea had an entertainment center, theKahilu Theatre, and an airstrip,Waimea-Kohala Airport.
Waimea is located in the northern part of the island ofHawaii at an elevation of 2,676 feet (816 m) above sea level. It sits at the southern foot ofKohala, the oldest volcano on the island, and it is near the northwestern base ofMauna Kea, the highest volcano.
Waimea's post office name "Kamuela" is the Hawaiian name for "Samuel", afterSamuel Parker (1853–1920), the grandson of John Parker.[10][11][12]
Hawaii Route 19 passes through the community, leading southeast 56 miles (90 km) toHilo and southwest 43 miles (69 km) toKailua-Kona via a route close to the shore.Hawaii Route 190 leads south from Waimea and provides a shorter inland route to Kailua-Kona of 39 miles (63 km).
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the Waimea CDP has a total area of 39.3 square miles (101.9 km2), of which 39.3 square miles (101.8 km2) are land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km2), or 0.10%, are water.[2]
Waimea displays a warm summerMediterranean Climate (Köppen climate classification Csb). The town sits at the transition between the wet and dry sides of the Big Island, and its weather therefore often changes dramatically over less than a mile.
| Climate data for Waimea | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 72.6 (22.6) | 72.2 (22.3) | 72.5 (22.5) | 73.3 (22.9) | 74.0 (23.3) | 74.5 (23.6) | 74.6 (23.7) | 75.7 (24.3) | 76.8 (24.9) | 76.8 (24.9) | 74.7 (23.7) | 72.1 (22.3) | 74.2 (23.4) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 50.4 (10.2) | 50.6 (10.3) | 51.7 (10.9) | 52.8 (11.6) | 54.3 (12.4) | 55.4 (13.0) | 56.4 (13.6) | 57.1 (13.9) | 56.9 (13.8) | 55.2 (12.9) | 54.2 (12.3) | 52.3 (11.3) | 53.9 (12.2) |
| Average rainfall inches (mm) | 4.74 (120) | 3.76 (96) | 3.84 (98) | 3.08 (78) | 1.74 (44) | 1.34 (34) | 1.97 (50) | 2.27 (58) | 0.89 (23) | 1.89 (48) | 2.94 (75) | 4.22 (107) | 32.68 (831) |
| Source:http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?hi3077 | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 7,028 | — | |
| 2010 | 9,212 | 31.1% | |
| 2020 | 9,904 | 7.5% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[13] | |||
As of thecensus[14] of 2000, there were 7,028 people, 2,371 households, and 1,782 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 181.4 inhabitants per square mile (70.0/km2). There were 2,589 housing units at an average density of 66.8 per square mile (25.8/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 30.65%White, 0.33%Black or African American, 0.17%Native American, 20.29%Asian, 15.61%Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, 0.73% fromother races, and 32.23% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino residents of any race were 7.80% of the population.
There were 2,371 households, out of which 39.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.6% weremarried couples living together, 13.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.36.
In the CDP 29.7% of the population was under the age of 18, 7.1% was from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.1% was 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 97.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $51,150, and the median income for a family was $55,822. Males had a median income of $36,710 versus $27,217 for females. Theper capita income for the CDP was $20,773. About 4.2% of families and 6.0% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 8.7% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.
TheWaimea Cherry Blossom Heritage Festival is held on the first weekend of February.[15][16] Therodeo and Horse Races are held atParker Ranch[17] on July 4 each year.
The statewide school district is theHawaii State Department of Education, and it covers Hawaii County.[18] Schools in Waimea include Waimea Elementary School and Waimea Middle School.[19][20]
TheHawaii State Public Library System operates the Thelma Parker Memorial Public and School Library.[21]
67-1225 Mamalahoa Highway, Kamuela, HI 96743
67-1229 Mamalahoa Highway Kamuela, Hawaii 96743
67-1209 Mamalahoa Hwy, Kamuela, HI 96743, USA
Media related toWaimea, Hawaii County, Hawaii at Wikimedia Commons
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