Fort DeRussy

Fort DeRussy. . This green expanse in the middle of Waikīkī is Fort DeRussy, named in honor of Brigadier General Rene E. DeRussy, Corps of Engineers, who served with distinction in the American, British War of 18 12. It was started in 1908 as vital American bastion of defense, but today it serves as a place of recreation and relaxation for U.S. military personnel and their families. , If you turn toward the mountains, all the land you see before you extending to the foothills of Mānoa Valley was planted in taro for many centuries. But, as the number of Hawaiian farmers in Waikīkī died off and the demand for poi decreased, by the 1870’s taro production praotically ceased. Successful rice planting experiments led to a kind of “rice fever” which swept of the islands. , Chinese rice planters took over abandoned taro patches and turned Waikīkī into a vast rice plantation. For a few years, rice not sugar, was king in Hawai’i. The disappearance of taro from Waikīkī not only marked an economic change, but a cultural change as well: Hawaiian mythology says the first man was born of Hāloa, the sacred taro plant. The planting and eating of taro was for ancient Hawaiians the basis of their existence and their spiritual sustenance as well. When taro disappeared from Waikīkī, as it did from so many areas, so did the spirit of Hāloa. , The coconut grove near this historical marker is the oldest and last of its kind in Waikīkī today.