Draft:Kuihelani - The First Governor of Oahu

Kūʻihelani (c. 1750–1815) was the first Governor of O'ahu. He was the son of Kaʻaloa—who served as a famed counselor to Kamehameha the Great^[1]—and was a trusted 'aipu'upu'u nui (high steward) and luna nui appointed by Kamehameha around 1796.^[2] He served until about 1815, overseeing the island during the kingdom’s unification, managing lands including Maunalua, maintaining order in Honolulu, and collecting taxes.

He lived and was buried at Kaʻaloa, also known as Kapapoko, right in what became downtown Honolulu near the harbor by Ladd’s wharf. There he built an adobe house named after his father, along with storehouses and homes for his people stretching from Kikihale down to Kapuʻukolo.^[3] Because he was buried there, the spot became known as Kalua Pakohana — “the grave which stands alone.”^[4]

From the 1840s Land Commission testimony of his relatives and retainers, he had several wahine (wives), including Meheula (mother of his heir Kawailepolepo), Kamokuiki, Kaoʻo, and Kaualua, plus others settled in specific lots around his Kikihale compound.^[5]

Sometime when Kūʻihelani was Governor of Oahu (c. 1796-1815), John Adams Kuakini was caught with one of his wives and seriously injured his foot while trying to escape.^[6]

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