Hilo Public Library celebrated two milestones on Saturday, honoring its 65th birthday and the centennial anniversary of its most prominent landmark.
It’s not often that such events involve actual stones.
One hundred years ago, the massive Naha Stone that now sits in front of the library building was moved back to the grounds, close to where it was originally located when King Kamehameha I is said to have moved it, fulfilling a prophecy that whomever could do so would be king of Hawaii.
“And he (Kamehameha) put forth all his strength and, behold, the stone did move under his arms, and he raised it on its side and with supernatural strength did overturn it,” writes L.W. de Vis-Norton in “Hawaii Nature Notes: The Legend of the Naha Stone.”
The site is also thought to be the location of the Pinao Heiau; a second stone from the heaiu sits next to the Naha Stone.
The Royal Order of Kamehameha was on hand to commemorate the occasion.
Kaliko Kanale thanked the library for inviting the Order to bless the stone.
“For us, it’s a dream come true to again bring the prophecies of our peoples back,” he said. “Not just the peoples of Hawaii, but of the world.”
He explained each component of the ho‘okupu offered by the Order, from ti leaf to ohelo.
“Part of the blessing is to reawaken ourself,” Kanale said.
After library staff had presented ho‘okupu wrapped in ti leaves, all in attendance encircled the stone and placed their hands on it for a final prayer, which concluded with “Aloha the library.”
Hilo has had a library since 1880, when a subscription library supported by fees and donations was in place. The current building was constructed in 1951 out of lava rock quarried from the 1880 Mauna Loa flow.
The library is now the busiest in the state, said branch manager Shelly Brown: “I believe the staff here moves a Naha-sized amount of books every day.”
Stacey Aldrich of Hawaii State Libraries reminded attendees that libraries have historically represented much more than the books they contained.
“They’ve been about human connections,” she said, thanking the Order for reminding the group about the importance of connection and of shared stories.
“Libraries continue to grow and adapt to support everyone,” Aldrich said. “Happy 65 years, and many more to come”
Former Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim also spoke at the ceremony, joking that he’d been invited because “they had a hard time finding someone older than the library.”
Kim recalled the Hilo of 1951, when most people didn’t have running water, visiting Kona was rarely done, and visiting Honolulu was “a dream.” There were few buildings like the library in town.
“I thought at the time that this was the most beautiful building I’d ever seen,” he said. It was the embodiment of e komo mai, Kim said.
In asking friends about their own memories of the library, Kim found that “almost to a person,” the kupuna remembered that the library had “opened the door to the world.”
“Nothing will beat the specialness of that time,” he said.
The day of celebration continued with performances from renowned Maui slack-key guitarist Jeff Peterson, which drew more than 100 people, Halau o Mailelaulani, and Kanikapila Music.
Peterson will also play at the Pahala Public and School Library on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Email Ivy Ashe at iashe@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
