Ewa Plantation Company Industrial Center, Honouliuli Plain, near intersection of Renton Road & Park Row, Ewa, Honolulu County, HI

Significance: Sugar plantations had a pivotal role in Hawaii's history. They were the main economic engines that fueled Hawaii's change from subsistence agriculture to a commodity-based system. Sugar plantations "were the ruling force behind Hawaii's economy for over 110 years." They altered the landscapes with large areas of sugar cane plantings, and by the construction of the mills to process this crop and of the villages to house the workers. The importation of labor for sugar plantations is the main reason for the multi-ethnic make-up of Hawaii's current population. Ewa Plantation Company's significance was due to its large size, long period of operation, high number of intact structures, and role as a model plantation in terms of living conditions and benefits to workers. The contrast with the plantations in the southern United States, which evolved from a history of slavery, was emphasized because "of the notable strides Ewa Plantation made towards fair and just treatment of its workers." The Industrial Center of the Ewa Plantation Company grew around the nucleus of the sugar mill building. Today, even though the mill building is gone, the complex is often called the Ewa Sugar Mill. The industrial and scientific emphasis of sugar plantations is a critical aspect of their history. This emphasis is exemplified in the mill and related buildings, but it also is seen in the crop and labor management practices. The strict accounting practices and ideal of self-sufficiency in plantation management led to the construction of simple, economical buildings. The history of the buildings in the mill area is complex. The term and the plan for the "Industrial Center" date from 1938. Before that, the arrangement of industrial structures around the mill was decided on a building-by-building basis.

Survey number: HABS HI-384

Building/structure dates: ca. 1889- 1902 Initial Construction

Building/structure dates: 1956 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: 1985 Subsequent Work

Building/structure dates: after. 1990- before. 1995 Subsequent Work

sugar plantations industrial facilities sugar industry industry storage ewa plantation industrial ewa plantation company industrial center honouliuli plain honouliuli plain intersection renton renton road row park row honolulu honolulu county hawaii j d bond james campbell benjamin franklin dillingham franzen photography david franzen historic american buildings survey elaine jackson retondo w j laurie incorporated mason architects george renton ann yoklavich mike zagorski photo ultra high resolution high resolution historic american engineering record historic american landscapes survey library of congress

1902 - 1980

Library of Congress

http://www.loc.gov/

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