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Hawaiian Railroading and Railfanning In "The Aloha State"
Hawaiian railroading is rich in history albeit little of it remains in place today. While the islands have never had a large railroading presence they were served by a number of common-carrier systems over the years, including dozens of private sugar plantation railroads. Today, the State of Hawaii has no operating freight or passenger railroads and its only functioning rail services are tourist lines.
Hawaiian railroading's beginnings are often credited to the Island of Kauai, whose first opened in 1881 on three miles of narrow-gauge track at the Kilauea Plantation to haul sugar cane. By 1915 the island boasted over 200 miles of track, all of which served several sugar plantations on the island, although by the 1950s most of the island’s railroads were abandoned. Today, Kauai once again has an operating railroad, the 2.5-mile Kauai Plantation Railway, a tourist line that operates seven days a week. The Island of Oahu’s railroading history dates back to 1889 when the Oahu Railway & Land Company opened its 12-mile line between Honolulu and ‘Aiea. Over the next roughly 20 years the railroad continued to expand and grow, mostly serving sugar plantations, local industry and hauling passengers. In the railroad’s final form it stretched all of the past Waimea Bay and Sunset Beach to Kahuku, where it served a sugar mill there, including an 11-mile branch to Wahiawa to serve local pineapple fields. After World War II the railroad’s infrastructure was almost entirely worn out after heavy use during the war to transport material and troops. As traffic began receding following the war, when a 55-foot tsunami struck the north shore of Oahu on April 1, 1946 the railroad was all but forced to shutdown with the heavy damages inflicted on the property (as well as its customers). Hawaiian railroading's largest railroad, the OR&L had double-track operations between Honolulu and ‘Aiea, including block signaling and commuter operations. The Island of Maui’s railroading history dates back to 1890 when the island’s large Pioneer Mill, which harvested sugar cane, built a short railroad to better move its product to market. The railroad lasted until around 1950 when trucking and mechanical farm machinery was more cost effective than railroads. However, the railroad did not disappear. In 1969 A.W. "Mac" McKelvy partnered with the Makai Corporation and began the Lahaina-Kaanapali & Pacific Railroad, better known as the Sugar Cane Train. The railroad has become extremely popular over the last 39 years and currently operates six miles of track.
The large Island of Hawaii’s railroading history is best remembered with the Hawaii Consolidated Railway, one of the state’s only standard-gauge operations. The railroad was originally chartered as the Hilo Railroad on March 28th, 1899, to connect the Olaa sugar mill with Waiakea, a distance of eight miles. As the years progressed the railroad made numerous extensions, which included lines to Olaa, Kapoho (17 miles), Hilo itself and later a 12.5-mile line north of Olaa to Glenwood, although the latter was later scaled back in the early 1930s. The railroad continued to grow in the 20th century with a 33.5-mile line up the Hamakua coast. This extension was extremely expensive with numerous tunnels and bridges which forced the railroad into receivership in 1914. It emerged as the Hawaii Consolidated Railway and continued moving people and goods through World War II (its Hamarkua Division was very popular with tourists). As was the case with the Oahu Railway & Land Company, however, the massive and devastating tsunami on April 1st, 1946 destroyed numerous bridges and washed out the right-of-way in several locations instantly forcing the railroad to shutdown. Today, the Hawaiian Railway Society has rebuilt over six miles of track on the Island of Hawaii, with future plans for further extensions with excursions offered over the line. The society is also home to the state’s most extensive collection of railroad equipment.
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