Archive
HAPCo Employee Cards: 1923-1938
a slice of pineapple plantation life
Archive
HAPCo Employee Cards: 1923-1938
a slice of pineapple plantation life
Did you know that Lāna‘i at one point in history was home to 70 percent of the world’s pineapple produce?
Large portions of land on Lāna‘i was purchased by the Dole Corporation in 1922 for Hawaii Plantation Company. Pineapple production became the island’s economy and at one point was the largest pineapple plantation in the United States.
1922
James D. Dole buys out the Baldwin interests on Lāna‘i for $1.1 million and sets in motion plans that will make Lāna‘i the world’s largest pineapple plantation.
1923
James Dole and associates plan the construction of Lāna‘i City, Kaumālapa‘u Harbor, plantation fields, and plantation infrastructure. Dole engages David Root, James Munro, Tokumatsu Murayama, Hawaiian Dredging and others to help. The first buildings in Lāna‘i City are under construction. Japanese contractors and laborers are among the first to settle into plantation life on Lāna‘i.
1932
Mass migration of Filipino laborers arrive on Lāna‘i and eventually represent the ehtnic majority of the plantation workforce.
1961
Castle & Cooke buys out Dole Corporation.
1985
David H. Murdock purchases Castle & Cooke, which includes most of Lāna‘i.
1992
The final harvest of pineapple on Lāna‘i takes place in October. On November 14, a “Pau Hana” (“end of work”) at Dole Park marks the end of Lāna‘i's pineapple era.
