Napoopoo Landing
Napoopoo Landing
The concrete wharf at Napoopoo is a reminder that this spot was a busy port and active commercial center from the late 1800s to the early 1900s. H. Hackfeld & Co. Ltd., prominent German agents and shippers for sugar plantations throughout the islands, built a large store next to the wharf in approximately 1900, which served local farmers and ranchers. Interisland steamers visited this bay regularly, unloading supplies and mail, picking up cattle, coffee, hides, butter and local produce for Honolulu.
Once regular steamer service stopped, Napoopoo ceased to exist as a commercial center as residents died or moved away. The small stores that once sold milk and bread closed. H. Hackfeld & Co., by then American Factors, no longer had a commercial interest in South Kona. With better roads being built throughout Kona, Kailua Bay became the favorite port, and the large old store crumbled into ruin.
Copyright 1998 Kona Historical Society. Reprinted by permission.