It's a coincidence that this post is coming soon after yours eeyore, talking of turtles. But it looks like it wasn't an industry at all...
(I didn't happen to find any mention of these specifics in the forum. James, I know you mention Pahunu in the
On Face Value (4.19) notes and also on the
Robin's Nest page but neither place mentions all the following details. Hope I'm not rehashing things.)
I just happened to find out the following information today while looking at historic Hawaiian sites. We all know that the enclosure next to "Robin's Nest" was used for keeping turtles, but I found out that the structure is actually very old (referred to as ancient) and was made to keep turtles on hand for the local Hawaiian chief, so he could have turtle meat whenever he pleased. The chief had all turtles in the vicinity picked up and kept in the pond. They were kapu (forbidden) to anyone but himself (or possibly those he chose to share with.)
The turtle enclosure is known as the Pahonu Turtle Pond (Pahonu is sea turtle in Hawaiian), and was added to the Hawaii Historical Register on 9-2-1978. It was restored in the 1960s. Before Magnum P.I., "Robin's Nest" or the Anderson Estate was known as Pahonu.
The following are passages I found referring to the Pahonu Turtle Pond...
Hiking Makapu'u to Kaluanui Ridge
From the pu'u top, the ridge dipped slightly to a plateau where we passed an abandoned set of buildings, supposedly owned by the Kamehameha Schools and also supposedly used as a safe house by the Honolulu Police at one time. Beyond the buildings at the ridge's edge were platforms used by hang glider and mountain climbing enthusiasts. The plateau was also the junction where the ridge we were on merged with Kamehame Ridge. Sitting atop Kamehame ridge is a one-lane road that leads to wider Kamehame Drive which then bottoms out at Hawaii Kai Drive. I recognized the one-lane road and the abandoned buildings as sites for scenes from several "Hawaii Five-0" and "Magnum P.I." episodes. Bill also pointed out almost directly below our vantage point the beachfront home that served as the Robin Masters estate on "Magnum P.I." Fronting the home was the Pahonu (lit. "turtle enclosure") pond, a 500' by 50' rock structure built long ago for a Hawaiian chief who ordered every turtle caught along the Waimanalo offshore waters kept within its walls so he could sup on the delicious meat when he desired.
Hawaii Ecosystems middle school website
Pahonu is the name of the ancient Hawaiian turtle pond located in Waimanlo.It is a 500 ft. long and 50 ft. wide enclosure of submerged stone wall.The purpose of the pond was to house any captured turtles for an ali`i that favored turtles. Turtles were kapu, or could not be eaten by anyone, except for the cheif himself. This structure still stands and was restored in the 1960's.
ITS Nohona Hawai‘i Activity
Pahonu Pond - Turtle pond stocked by local fisherman to supply turtle meatfor the ali‘i of the district. Turtle meat was forbidden to all but the chiefs under penalty of death.
GCTTS News
1980's TV Show Magnum P.I. and Sea Turtles?
Sounds like an unlikely combination doesn't it? But they are related. If
you remember the popular 1980's show Magnum P.I. starring Tom Selleck,
then you remember it was filmed in Hawaii. Mr. Selleck's character,
Thomas Magnum, lived on an estate called Robin's Nest. A Mrs. Eve
Anderson actually owns the estate and before the show was filmed there,
the estate was nicknamed "Pahonu" which means "sea turtle" in Hawaiian.
The tidal pool along the beach front property was used for raising sea
turtles. You must also remember the famous iron gate at the entrance to
the estate that Magnum drove Robin Masters red Ferrari through many
times. The original gate was replaced during the filming of the show but
supposedly it has since been reinstalled. This original gate has a sea
turtle icon on it. To see this clever sea turtle gate, please click on
this link:
http://www.pbase.com/goislands/image/10751686
Sea Turtles of Hawai'i (book) with picture of the pond captioned "A hang glider's view of Pahonu turtle pond in Waimanalo where live honu were once held to be eaten by chiefs."
In old Hawai'i honu were captured in several ways. On nesting and basking beaches, they were turned over on their backs and rendered helpless. The eggs were also collected for food. In the water honu were captured by hand, speared, hooked, or taken in nets made of plant fibers.
List of the state of Hawaii Register of Historic Places
