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MakawaoIntersectionPhoto: 293.xx.xxx.xx · CC BY-SA 3.0
CHistory
History · Makawao

Makawao’s post office opened in 1900, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns · #30 of 93 in Hawaii. What drives it

Most of Makawao was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. Its Register listings are the Hardy House and the Frank and Theresa Gomes House. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1957 on, and the census since 2000.

1900first post office
2on the National Register
3%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Makawao’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Makawao began

When was Makawao founded?

1900

The Makawao post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 6,327 in 20002020 census: 7,297126 years

How historic is Makawao?

C

More historic than 26% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Makawao post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).
History grade

What drives Makawao’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Makawao is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #30 of 93 in Hawaii. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Makawao’s overall grade.
Founding era1900, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19402.8% of homes (±2.6) · typical HI town 1.7% · U.S. 8.4%C−National Register2 listings, 3 historic buildings, 4.1 per 10,000 residents · typical HI town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 26%
NewerOlder
Hawaii towns of 2,500+ (93)Ahead of 68%

Few Hawaii towns list much on the Register (a typical Hawaii town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Makawao’s 4.1 sits above most of its state (79% of Hawaii towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.6 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

The story so far

Makawao, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Makawao yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Makawao is a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County, Hawaiʻi, United States. The population was 7,297 at the 2020 census. Located on the rural northwest slope of Haleakalā, the community is known for being the hub of Upcountry Maui, a part of the island dominated by mostly agriculture and ranch land. Makawao Forest Reserve is to the east-northeast.

Its first post office opened in 1900. Its population held steady between the last two censuses: 7,184 in 2010, 7,297 in 2020.

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Makawao, 1900 to 1990

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 20th century
  2. 1900Post officeThe Makawao post office opens
  3. 1917Born hereKaoru Moto is born here
  4. 1933Born hereMyra English is born here
  5. 1944Born hereMike Stone is born here
  6. 1957On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1990In the archivePo'okela Church Makawao by Alan Gowans
By decade

Makawao, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1990s6 items
Po'okela Church Makawao by Alan Gowans1990Po'okela Church Makawao by Alan GowansStarr 970503-0314 Rauvolfia sandwicensis1997Starr 970503-0314 Rauvolfia sandwicensisStarr 970503-0315 Sesbania tomentosa1997Starr 970503-0315 Sesbania tomentosaStarr 970503-0320 Dodonaea viscosa1997Starr 970503-0320 Dodonaea viscosaStarr 970503-0321 Cordyline fruticosa1997Starr 970503-0321 Cordyline fruticosaStarr 970503-0322 Sida fallax1997Starr 970503-0322 Sida fallax
On the map

Makawao on the map, 1957 to 1992

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Makawao. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Makawao on the 1957 USGS mapMakawao on the 1983 USGS mapMakawao on the 1992 USGS map1957Haiku sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Makawao.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Makawao

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Hardy House
Hardy HouseFrank and Theresa Gomes House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Early 20th Century1
Hawaiian Vernacular1
Hardy HouseBuilding
All 2 listings
Frank and Theresa Gomes HouseBuilding · listed 2001

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

People over time

Makawao, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00020002020Peak: 7,297

Between 6,327 and 7,297 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Makawao’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Makawao

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Kaoru MotoUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1917
M
Mike StoneAmerican karateka · b. 1944
Clarence K. NishiharaAmerican politician
M
Myra EnglishPopular performer of Hawaiian music and celebri… · b. 1933
H
Hannibal TavaresAmerican politician · b. 1919
Places that used to be

Old burying grounds

Makawao’s post office has been open since 1900.

3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Makawao
MakawaoMaui Veteran'sSaint Joseph's Catholic

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Makawao’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPo'okela Church Makawao by Alan Gowans: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

OlindaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHaiku-Pauwela1 historic placeC+HaliimaileIts storyC+Kula1 historic placeB−PukalaniIts storyD−

Questions about Makawao’s history

What year was Makawao founded?

The Makawao post office opened in 1900, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Makawao rank for history?

Makawao is more historic than 26% of U.S. towns, #30 of 93 in Hawaii. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Makawao?

Two places: the Hardy House (listed 1984) and the Frank and Theresa Gomes House (2001).

How old are the homes in Makawao?

3% of Makawao’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.6 points), against a typical 1.7% for a Hawaii town; the median home was built in 1982.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.