Volcano House
Encyclopedia
Volcano House is the name of a series of historic hotels built at the edge of the Kīlauea
volcano, within the grounds of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on the Island of Hawai'i. The original 1877 building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
and now houses the Volcano Art Center. The hotel in use today was built in 1941 and expanded in 1961.
the volcano was the place to make offerings to the fire goddess Pele. Archeological evidence shows activity for hundreds of years, including gathering of volcanic glass to use as cutting tools.
Only a few rare eruptions such as the one in 1790
are explosive, and the northeast rim provides a relatively safe vantage point. The prevailing northeast trade winds and higher elevation cause poisonous gasses and lava to flow in the other direction.
Rev. William Ellis describes camping in this area in his journal of his 1823 missionary tour with Asa Thurston. An enterprising Hawaiian was reported to have set up a small thatched hut in the early 1840s to sell food to visitors, who by then included sightseers as well as explorers. Charles Wilkes
camped in this area on the United States Exploring Expedition
in 1840, on his way to Mauna Loa
. About 1846 a primitive one-room grass shelter was constructed at the rim of the Kīlauea crater by Benjamin Pitman
, the first hotel to call itself "Volcano House". However, sometimes visitors would show up after the long journey and nobody would be home.
A more substantial wood frame structure was built in 1866 with four bedrooms, parlor, and dining room. Mark Twain
stayed here, and wrote about his visit in the book Roughing It
.
A wood-sided building about 104 by 110 ft (31.7 by 33.5 ) was built in 1877. It included six guest rooms, two for the manager's family, and a dining room. Lumber for rafters and posts were harvested from local forests
of naio (Myoporum sandwicense
) and ōhia lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha
). Peter Lee built a hotel at the coast in Punaluu
to the west, and a road across the Kaū Desert to bring visitors. He also built a competing hotel at the Kīlauea rim called the Crater House Hotel. From 1883 to 1885 it was owned by the William Herbert Shipman
family.
In 1891, a group led by Honolulu businessman and politician Lorrin A. Thurston
(grandson of the missionary
from the 1820s) acquired the Volcano House and Peter Lee's hotels.
The business was so successful that a two-story addition became the main part of the hotel, adding 10 - 12 additional guest rooms, an observation tower, and a larger dinging hall, using the 1877 structure as a wing.
Thurston commissioned a cyclorama
of Kīlauea which he displayed in his travels to the mainland, including the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition
of 1893 and the California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894
in San Francisco.
In 1894 a four-horse stagecoach
reduced the travel time from Hilo from two days to six hours.
George Lycurgus
bought the hotel in 1895 and was associated with it for the next 65 years.
The Hawaii Consolidated Railway
line to Glenwood opened in 1901, bringing more visitors. Author Jack London
stayed in 1907.
In 1912, geologist Thomas Jaggar
built a scientific observatory adjacent to the porch, used until 1961 by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
. The instruments were housed in an underground vault with massive concrete walls, excavated by laborers from the nearby prison.
After ten years of lobbying by Thurston, a National Park
was established in 1916.
In 1921, Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
bought the property with plans for another expansion.
A large two-story wing took the place of the 1877 structure, which was literally sawn off and relocated back from the cliff to be used as employee quarters. Some of the building materials came from the dismantled Crater House Hotel just outside the park.
In 1932, a decline in eruptions and the Great Depression
allowed Lycurgus to buy it back for only $300.
In 1972 a dormitory for employees was built, and the vacant 1877 structure started to deteriorate.
The 1877 building is state historic site 10-52-5508, and added to the
National Register of Historic Places
on July 24, 1974 as site 74000293.
It was refurbished in the late 1970s and now houses the Volcano Art Center Gallery.
had stayed as guests) to allow him to build an even more elegant hotel on the site of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. A separate visitor's center farther back from the rim was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps
. By November 1941 a new building designed by Charles William Dickey
(1871–1942) was opened southeast of the original site, at coordinates 19°25′42"N 155°15′29"W. A wing with larger rooms was added in 1958 - 1961, for a total of 42 rooms. The facility also includes a dining room, snack bar, art gallery, and gift shop. Volcano House remains the only public hotel within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
.
From 1977 to 1986, Volcano House was managed by Sheraton Hotels. From 1986 to 2008 it was owned and operated by Ken Direction Corporation of Hilo.
Effective January 1, 2010, Volcano House was closed temporarily for renovations. The official National Park Service website states that the hotel will reopen in "early 2012"; however, as of January 2011 there was no evidence of any renovation work going on.
The Ken Corporation's concession expired at the end of 2008, and the National Park Service undertook a search for a new concessionaire. Initially the Park Service hoped to have the new concessionaire in place and the hotel reopened by January 1, 2011. However, as of February 2011 the Park Service was still seeking a new concessionaire.
Kilauea
Kīlauea is a volcano in the Hawaiian Islands, and one of five shield volcanoes that together form the island of Hawaii. Kīlauea means "spewing" or "much spreading" in the Hawaiian language, referring to its frequent outpouring of lava. The Puu Ōō cone has been continuously erupting in the eastern...
volcano, within the grounds of Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park on the Island of Hawai'i. The original 1877 building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places listings on the island of Hawaii
This is a list of properties and districts on the island of Hawaii in the U.S. state of Hawaii that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The island is coterminous with Hawaii County, the state's only county that covers exactly one island...
and now houses the Volcano Art Center. The hotel in use today was built in 1941 and expanded in 1961.
Early visitors
In ancient HawaiiAncient Hawaii
Ancient Hawaii refers to the period of Hawaiian human history preceding the unification of the Kingdom of Hawaii by Kamehameha the Great in 1810. After being first settled by Polynesian long-distance navigators sometime between AD 300–800, a unique culture developed. Diversified agroforestry and...
the volcano was the place to make offerings to the fire goddess Pele. Archeological evidence shows activity for hundreds of years, including gathering of volcanic glass to use as cutting tools.
Only a few rare eruptions such as the one in 1790
1790 Footprints
The 1790 Footprints refer to a set of footprints found near the Kīlauea volcano in present-day Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the island of Hawaii...
are explosive, and the northeast rim provides a relatively safe vantage point. The prevailing northeast trade winds and higher elevation cause poisonous gasses and lava to flow in the other direction.
Rev. William Ellis describes camping in this area in his journal of his 1823 missionary tour with Asa Thurston. An enterprising Hawaiian was reported to have set up a small thatched hut in the early 1840s to sell food to visitors, who by then included sightseers as well as explorers. Charles Wilkes
Charles Wilkes
Charles Wilkes was an American naval officer and explorer. He led the United States Exploring Expedition, 1838-1842 and commanded the ship in the Trent Affair during the American Civil War...
camped in this area on the United States Exploring Expedition
United States Exploring Expedition
The United States Exploring Expedition was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States from 1838 to 1842. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby Jones. The voyage was authorized by Congress in...
in 1840, on his way to Mauna Loa
Mauna Loa
Mauna Loa is one of five volcanoes that form the Island of Hawaii in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean, and the largest on Earth in terms of volume and area covered. It is an active shield volcano, with a volume estimated at approximately , although its peak is about lower than that...
. About 1846 a primitive one-room grass shelter was constructed at the rim of the Kīlauea crater by Benjamin Pitman
Benjamin Pitman (Hawaii)
Benjamin Pitman, , was an American businessman who married Hawaiian nobility.-Life:Benjamin Pitman born October 12, 1815 in Salem, Massachusetts....
, the first hotel to call itself "Volcano House". However, sometimes visitors would show up after the long journey and nobody would be home.
A more substantial wood frame structure was built in 1866 with four bedrooms, parlor, and dining room. Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
stayed here, and wrote about his visit in the book Roughing It
Roughing It
Roughing It is a book of semi-autobiographical travel literature written by American humorist Mark Twain. It was written during 1870–71 and published in 1872 as a prequel to his first book Innocents Abroad...
.
The 1877 structure
In 1876 George W. C. Jones bought out the other partners in the business and hired William H. Lentz to construct a longer-lasting structure, and manage the hotel.A wood-sided building about 104 by 110 ft (31.7 by 33.5 ) was built in 1877. It included six guest rooms, two for the manager's family, and a dining room. Lumber for rafters and posts were harvested from local forests
Hawaiian tropical dry forests
The Hawaiian tropical dry forests are a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion in the Hawaiian Islands. They cover an area of on the leeward side of the main islands and the summits of Niihau and Kahoolawe. These forests are either seasonal or sclerophyllous. Annual rainfall is less than and...
of naio (Myoporum sandwicense
Myoporum sandwicense
Myoporum sandwicense is a species of flowering tree in the figwort family, Scrophulariaceae. Common names include Naio, bastard sandalwood or false sandalwood. It is native to Hawaii and Mangaia in the Cook Islands.-Description:...
) and ōhia lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha
Metrosideros polymorpha
The ōhia lehua is a species of flowering evergreen tree in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that is endemic to the six largest islands of Hawaii. It is a highly variable tree, being tall in favorable situations, and much smaller when growing in boggy soils or on basalt...
). Peter Lee built a hotel at the coast in Punaluu
Punalu'u, Hawai'i
Punaluu is a census-designated place and rural community in the Koolauloa District on the Island of Oahu, City & County of Honolulu, Hawaii, USA. In Hawaiian, punaluu means "coral dived for", or in the case of the fishpond once located here, possibly "spring dived for"...
to the west, and a road across the Kaū Desert to bring visitors. He also built a competing hotel at the Kīlauea rim called the Crater House Hotel. From 1883 to 1885 it was owned by the William Herbert Shipman
William Herbert Shipman
William Herbert Shipman was a wealthy businessman on the island of Hawaii. One estate of his family was used to preserve an endangered species of Hawaiian Goose. A historic house associated with his family for over a hundred years is called the W. H. Shipman House in Hilo, Hawaii...
family.
In 1891, a group led by Honolulu businessman and politician Lorrin A. Thurston
Lorrin A. Thurston
Lorrin Andrews Thurston was a lawyer, politician, and businessman born and raised in the Kingdom of Hawaii. The grandson of two of the first Christian missionaries to Hawaii, Thurston played a prominent role in the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom that replaced Queen Liliuokalani with the...
(grandson of the missionary
Asa and Lucy Goodale Thurston
Asa Thurston and Lucy Goodale Thurston were in the first company of American Christian Missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands.-Asa Thurston:...
from the 1820s) acquired the Volcano House and Peter Lee's hotels.
The business was so successful that a two-story addition became the main part of the hotel, adding 10 - 12 additional guest rooms, an observation tower, and a larger dinging hall, using the 1877 structure as a wing.
Thurston commissioned a cyclorama
Cyclorama
For the classical album Cyclorama, see Jonathan Goldstein; For the rock album Cyclorama by Styx, see Cyclorama ; for the theatrical backdrop, see Cyclorama...
of Kīlauea which he displayed in his travels to the mainland, including the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
of 1893 and the California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894
California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894
The California Midwinter International Exposition of 1894, commonly referred to as the "Midwinter Exposition" or the "Midwinter Fair", was a World's Fair that operated from January 27 to July 5 in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. In 1892, U.S. President Benjamin Harrison appointed M. H...
in San Francisco.
In 1894 a four-horse stagecoach
Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a type of covered wagon for passengers and goods, strongly sprung and drawn by four horses, usually four-in-hand. Widely used before the introduction of railway transport, it made regular trips between stages or stations, which were places of rest provided for stagecoach travelers...
reduced the travel time from Hilo from two days to six hours.
George Lycurgus
George Lycurgus
George Lycurgus was a Greek American businessman who played an influential role in the early tourist industry of Hawaii. He ran afoul of the government of the Republic of Hawaii and was accused of treason...
bought the hotel in 1895 and was associated with it for the next 65 years.
The Hawaii Consolidated Railway
Hawaii Consolidated Railway
The Hawaii Consolidated Railway , originally named the Hilo Railway, was a standard gauge common carrier railroad that served much of the east coast of the island of Hawaii until an important section of the line was destroyed by a tsunami on April 1, 1946.- Origin :Like the Oahu Railway and Land...
line to Glenwood opened in 1901, bringing more visitors. Author Jack London
Jack London
John Griffith "Jack" London was an American author, journalist, and social activist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction alone...
stayed in 1907.
In 1912, geologist Thomas Jaggar
Thomas Jaggar
Thomas Augustus Jaggar, Jr. was an American volcanologist. He founded the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory and directed it from 1912 to 1940.-Biography:...
built a scientific observatory adjacent to the porch, used until 1961 by the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory is a volcano observatory located at Uwekahuna Bluff on the rim of Kīlauea Caldera on the Island of Hawaii. The observatory monitors four active Hawaiian volcanoes: Kīlauea, Mauna Loa, Hualālai, and Haleakalā...
. The instruments were housed in an underground vault with massive concrete walls, excavated by laborers from the nearby prison.
After ten years of lobbying by Thurston, a National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, is a United States National Park located in the U.S. State of Hawaii on the island of Hawaii. It encompasses two active volcanoes: Kīlauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, the world's most massive volcano...
was established in 1916.
In 1921, Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company
Inter-Island Steam Navigation Company was the company headquartered in Honolulu that ran steam boat service between Hawaiian cities from 1883 until 1947. On January 30, 1929 company founded the subsidiary company Inter-Island Airways that was later renamed to Hawaiian Airlines...
bought the property with plans for another expansion.
A large two-story wing took the place of the 1877 structure, which was literally sawn off and relocated back from the cliff to be used as employee quarters. Some of the building materials came from the dismantled Crater House Hotel just outside the park.
In 1932, a decline in eruptions and the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
allowed Lycurgus to buy it back for only $300.
In 1972 a dormitory for employees was built, and the vacant 1877 structure started to deteriorate.
The 1877 building is state historic site 10-52-5508, and added to the
National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on July 24, 1974 as site 74000293.
It was refurbished in the late 1970s and now houses the Volcano Art Center Gallery.
The modern hotel
The 115-room building burned to the ground on February 11, 1940 (ironically, from a kitchen fire, not a volcanic eruption). The 1877 structure was used again for guests while the new hotel was planned. Lycurgus visited Washington, D.C. to convince powerful friends (many, including President Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
had stayed as guests) to allow him to build an even more elegant hotel on the site of the Hawaiian Volcano Observatory. A separate visitor's center farther back from the rim was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps was a public work relief program that operated from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men from relief families, ages 18–25. A part of the New Deal of President Franklin D...
. By November 1941 a new building designed by Charles William Dickey
Charles William Dickey
Charles William “C.W.” Dickey was an American architect famous for developing a distinctive style of Hawaiian architecture...
(1871–1942) was opened southeast of the original site, at coordinates 19°25′42"N 155°15′29"W. A wing with larger rooms was added in 1958 - 1961, for a total of 42 rooms. The facility also includes a dining room, snack bar, art gallery, and gift shop. Volcano House remains the only public hotel within Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, is a United States National Park located in the U.S. State of Hawaii on the island of Hawaii. It encompasses two active volcanoes: Kīlauea, one of the world's most active volcanoes, and Mauna Loa, the world's most massive volcano...
.
From 1977 to 1986, Volcano House was managed by Sheraton Hotels. From 1986 to 2008 it was owned and operated by Ken Direction Corporation of Hilo.
Current status
In April 2008 the hotel had to be evacuated several times due to sulfur dioxide fumes from an eruption in Halemaumau Crater.Effective January 1, 2010, Volcano House was closed temporarily for renovations. The official National Park Service website states that the hotel will reopen in "early 2012"; however, as of January 2011 there was no evidence of any renovation work going on.
The Ken Corporation's concession expired at the end of 2008, and the National Park Service undertook a search for a new concessionaire. Initially the Park Service hoped to have the new concessionaire in place and the hotel reopened by January 1, 2011. However, as of February 2011 the Park Service was still seeking a new concessionaire.