In the Hawaiian Encyclopedia there is a long section about the history of Hanalei. Chock Chin appears in there several times, as he had many businesses and enterprises and played an important role in the economy of the area. Here are the excerpts where he is mentioned.
Chock Chin Lily Pond
Hanalei Lily Pond in 1955
“Chock Chin dug a lotus pond (now called The Lily Pond) alongside the main road in Hanalei town where it may still be seen today. A freshwater spring replenished the pond, which Chock Chin stocked with edible lotus roots and fish.
“The lotus plants failed to grow, and later Mrs. Chock Chin planted water lilies in the pond. Later the Tasakas planted lilies in the pond and stocked it with carp. Unfortunately the fish were washed away by the 1946 tsunami.”
This pond was more than a tourist attraction. It was an important fixture in the family’s food supply, and turned out to be a place where some important life lessons were taught to the children. Read more >
Chock Chin Rice Mill
Chock Chin’s Rice Mill appears in Hanalei History Part 4, in a section about the Rice Mills on the Hanalei River. It reads:
“By 1893, there were at least five rice mills in the Hanalei region, including one near the Hanalei River about midway between the Hanalei Bridge and Hanalei town. The earliest rice mills usually consisted of two large mill stones that raised a pestle-shaped stone and dropped it into a stone bowl.
“One of these old style mills was the See Tai Wai Rice Mill located in Hanalei town near the Say Dock House. Other early rice mills were located at Wai’oli, Waikoko, and Wainiha.
“Rice mills operated for up to three months after harvest, and the smaller rice farms brought their rice to the mills run by the larger plantations, such as Shing Kon Sung (Soy Sung Wai), located in the bend in the Hanalei River near the rivermouth. Chinjiro Tasaka farmed rice on the east side of Hanalei Bay at Pu’upōā Marsh (Kamo’maika’i Fishpond) and took his rice by horse to the Hanalei River where it was carried across by boat and then hauled in Chock Chin’s wagon to the Chock Chin Rice Mill at Waikoko.”
— In another entry we find this —
“Another rice mill of the Hanalei region in the early 1900s was the Hiramoto Rice Mill (formerly Hee Fat Rice Mill), located at Waipā. Chinese rice farmer Hee Fat was among the largest of Kaua’i’s rice farmers, cultivating about 600 acres of rice in Hanalei and Kapa’a. At the far end of the coastal plain in the ahupua’a of Waikoko was the Chock Chin Rice Mill.”
Chock Chin’s Store
Hanalei in the Early 1900s: A Journey through Old Hanalei
“The Hanalei region was particularly prosperous from about 1890 to 1925 due to the rice industry. This wealth led to the opening of numerous stores and mills that dotted the landscape from Hanalei Bridge to Hanalei town and beyond. Also constructed during this period were many places of worship, including Christian churches and Buddhist temples, as well as Japanese and Chinese language schools.
“Local stores were central to the rice farming community’s social life, particularly on Sundays when residents gathered to exchange news and make business deals. Stores provided items for sale that could not be grown or produced locally, including: canned goods, staples like flour and sugar, butchered meat, baked goods, kerosene, and later gasoline, yardage and sewing supplies, hats, clothing, watches, and some farm supplies.”
The 1914 Polk-Husted Directory of Honolulu and the Territory of Hawaii listed eight general merchandising stores (seven Chinese-owned) and twelve Chinese rice planting companies in the Hanalei region.
“Some Chinese-owned stores in Hanalei in the early 1900s were: Ah Hoy Store (later called Ching Ma Leong Store); Chong Hing Store; T. S. See Wo Store; Ching Young Store; Katayama Store; and Chock Chin Store (later called C. Akeoni Store, Lau Store, and Hanalei Store). There was also a Chinese store about half-way up the valley and the Japanese-owned Hamamura Store.”
Encyclopedia entry for Chock Chin
Chock Chin
“Chock Chin was a prominent Chinese rice farmer and store owner in Hanalei. The father of twelve children from three different wives, Chock Chin built a home on leased land on the mountain side of the Government Road (Route 560) near the current site of Wai’oli Park.
“Across the street from the Chock Chin Residence was the Chock Chin Store, established in 1901. The site included a bakery, restaurant, butcher shop, tailor, blacksmith, and saloon, as well as a general store.
“The whole Chock Chin family worked at the family business. Mr. Chock Chin managed the store and was the baker. His wife Chun Shee (Mrs. Chock Chin) was the cook. The children worked the cash register and delivered bills. One of the sons had the job of driving the freight wagon pulled by two white mules. Chock Chin also engaged in various other entrepreneurial activities, including selling small dishes of ice cream at the Kīlauea Ballpark.
“Chock Chin’s bakery sold bread with guava jelly for ten cents a loaf, and it was a favorite lunch item of local children who walked to the store from nearby Hanalei School. Chock Chin also raised papayas, mango, avocado and loquat, mulberry, bananas, cows, chickens and pigs. There was a garden for sweet potato, corn, sugar cane and string beans and also a grove of bamboo.
“The name of the Chock Chin Store was later changed to C. Akeoni, Lau Store and then Hanalei Store in 1931 after Chock Chin died and Mrs. Chock Chin sold the store to Charles Lau, a rice farmer who later farmed taro. The Hanalei Store remained open as a restaurant, meat market, and general store until 1941.”
Chock Chin’s Store in the Business Directory
Here’s the entry for Chock Chin’s Hanalei store in the Honolulu City Directory of 1924. This publication listed businesses from all of the islands, not just Oahu (and certainly not just Honolulu).
Learn More
Learn more about the history of Hanalei by reading entire Hanalei section of the Hawaiian Encyclopedia.
