The History of Hawai‘i From Our Files: About 250 People Lived at the Ala Wai Harbor in 1965
HONOLULU Magazine emerged from predecessor Paradise of the Pacific, which began in 1888, fulfilling a commission by King Kalākaua. That makes this the oldest continuously published magazine west of the Mississippi with an enviable archive worth diving into each month. Here’s a look back at February 1965.
About 250 people live at the Ala Wai Harbor. “The house on the hill, complete with white picket fence, holds no enticement for them; they prefer their watery Ala Wai world,” Paradise says.
The monthly moorage fee is between $9 and $19 per slip, depending on vessel size, plus a monthly $1 poll tax. “The cost of living aboard a boat is so low it would, at first look, send the average homeowner down to the sea again to have another look.” Optional expenses include $2 for locker space, $2 for toilet and shower facilities provided by the state, plus electricity and phone.
It’s not nearly as cheap anymore, with mooring fees between $325 and $1,105. Lockers are $10, bathroom keys $15, parking $25 and electricity $100. But in 2019, 129 people called the harbor home.
Learn more about the evolution of covers in HONOLULU Magazine and Paradise of the Pacific: 125 Years of Covers, available at shop.honolulumagazine.com.
The first newspaper in Hawai‘i, Lahainaluna’s student newspaper, Ka Lama Hawai‘i, was printed in Hawaiian on Feb. 14, 1834.
Find more photos from Honolulu’s past every Thursday on Instagram @honolulumag.
