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DHistory
History · Waimanalo

Half of Waimanalo’s homes were built after 1977

More historic than 10% of U.S. towns · #61 of 93 in Hawaii. What drives it

Most of Waimanalo was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1952 on.

0on the National Register
1%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Waimanalo’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

About Waimanalo’s history

How historic is Waimanalo?

D

More historic than 10% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Waimanalo’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Waimanalo is more historic than 10% of U.S. towns, #61 of 93 in Hawaii. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Waimanalo’s overall grade.
Founding eraNo founding year we can rely on, so the grade uses the other two–Homes built before 19401.2% of homes (±1.4) · typical HI town 1.7% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical HI town 0.0 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 10%
NewerOlder
Hawaii towns of 2,500+ (93)Ahead of 35%

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 Waimanalo’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (28% of Hawaii towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.4 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: our sources. 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 →

What stands out about Waimanalo’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Famous sons and daughtersAkebono Tarō, Boom Gaspar and 6 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Waimanalo’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Waimanalo’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people

8 famous people were born in Waimanalo

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

See all →
Akebono TarōAmerican professional wrestler and rikishi · b. 1969
Boom GasparAmerican musician · b. 1953
Sasha ColbyAmerican drag performer · b. 1985
Tetairoa McMillanAmerican football player · b. 2003
H
Hugh HoglandJapanese-American basketball player · b. 1998
T
Tyson NamMixed martial artist · b. 1983
The story so far

Waimanalo, in brief

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

Waimānalo (Hawaiian pronunciation: [vɐjmaːˈnɐlo] ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in the District of Koʻolaupoko, in the City & County of Honolulu, on the island of Oʻahu, Hawaii, United States. This small windward community is near the eastern end of the island. Waimānalo means "potable water"; it is so named for the many brackish ponds in the area that were used for irrigation. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a population of 6,057. About 1000 meters east of Waimānalo is the neighborhood of Waimānalo Beach. Waimānalo has a small commercial center along Kalanianaʻole Highway, but is separated from the shoreline and Waimānalo Beach (the longest stretch of sandy shoreline on Oʻahu) by …

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 5,451 to 6,057 (+11%).

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

Timeline

Waimanalo, 1880 to 2003

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1880In the archiveMauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880
  3. 20th century
  4. 1952On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1953Born hereBoom Gaspar is born here
  6. 1969Born hereAkebono Tarō is born here
  7. 1985Born hereSasha Colby is born here
  8. 21st century
  9. 2003Born hereTetairoa McMillan is born here
By decade

Waimanalo, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1880s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s1 item
Mauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880c. 1880Mauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880
1890s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today17 recent
Starr 060810-8518 Cardiospermum sp2006Starr 060810-8518 Cardiospermum spStarr 060810-8517 Cardiospermum sp2006Starr 060810-8517 Cardiospermum spStarr 060810-8516 Cordyline fruticosa2006Starr 060810-8516 Cordyline fruticosaStarr 060810-8515 Neonotonia wightii2006Starr 060810-8515 Neonotonia wightiiStarr 060810-8514 Neonotonia wightii2006Starr 060810-8514 Neonotonia wightiiStarr 040711-0112 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0112 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0111 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0111 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0110 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0110 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0109 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0109 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0108 Ficus cf. platypoda2004Starr 040711-0108 Ficus cf. platypodaStarr 040711-0107 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0107 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0105 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0105 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0104 Gaillardia pulchella2004Starr 040711-0104 Gaillardia pulchellaStarr 040711-0103 Sporobolus virginicus2004Starr 040711-0103 Sporobolus virginicusStarr 040711-0102 Casuarina equisetifolia2004Starr 040711-0102 Casuarina equisetifoliaHIMap-doton-Waimanalo2004HIMap-doton-WaimanaloStarr 020708-0010 Crotalaria sp2002Starr 020708-0010 Crotalaria sp
On the map

Waimanalo on the map, 1952 to 1999

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

Waimanalo on the 1952 USGS mapWaimanalo on the 1969 USGS mapWaimanalo on the 1978 USGS mapWaimanalo on the 1983 USGS mapWaimanalo on the 1999 USGS map1952Koko Head 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 Waimanalo.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Mauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880
Retake this viewMauna Loke (Rose Mont) in ca. 1880, c. 1880

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Waimanalo’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Places that used to be

Old corners and places now gone

Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Waimānalo
Gone or out of use
Meadow Gold Dairy Farmlocale

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Waimanalo BeachIts storyDKailua3 historic placesC+

Questions about Waimanalo’s history

How does Waimanalo rank for history?

Waimanalo is more historic than 10% of U.S. towns, #61 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.

How old are the homes in Waimanalo?

1% of Waimanalo’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 1.7% for a Hawaii town; the median home was built in 1977.

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 (18), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.