Block 35 of Yore

By Roy A. Del Rosario, class of 1945

Reflections whence I had lived the southeast end of Lanai City known as Block 35, where I grew up from age 9 to 17 except it was not always Block 35. Current Lanaians will attest my presumption to be credible. Utilizing datum derived from an old map & coupled with what I remember back then, my phenomenal memory lends credence to the origin of block 35.

Between early & late 1920’s the southeast corner of the city was mostly cleared area with only a row of eight houses scattered within the vicinity. It was likely than the area might have not yet been designated as a numbered block nor was the road fronting it had been given a street number or name.
I was 9 years old when we resided at block 33. Our home was fronted by Lanai Avenue. Other families in our row I remember were the Godinez, Daniel, Sipe, Mano & Endrina’s. Close to us were the Petaluna family, Funada’s & Morita’s.

Between 1938 & 1940 – the area adjacent to Block 33 across from the baseball park & Lanai Avenue was cleared off to accommodate families that were being relocated from Kikki Camp at Palawai Basin. When all the houses from Miki Camp were completely situated at the newly cleared site, it became a new home for the summer seasonal employees & dubbed as the new block 33. Henceforth the old block 33 became the new block 35.

In the ensuing years all the bachelor type houses in block 35 gradually converted into family type abodes where the Goshi’s, Pagay’s, Ohashi’s, Enfield’s, Alboro’s, Obado’s, Del Rosario’s, Tadios, Dimaya’s lived.

A small Army Signal Corps unit arrived in 1942 where a temporary billeting area for the military unit was housed until a small army camp was developed in the pineapple field between the city & Kaumalapau.

I left the island 58 plus years ago to enlist in the US Marine Corp in 1952. I hardly can recognize anybody now.

Residents of Bock 33/35 well into their golden years are likely to recall & still able to “talk story” growing up block 35. As indicative by the brown & yellow T-Shirt they proudly wear, sporting “ALWAYS IN OUR HEARTS, BLOCK 35, PLANTATION DAYS”…

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