The Waialua Sugar Mill is a historical sugar refinery located at the base of the Waiʻanae Mountains in the town of Waialua on the Hawaiian island of Oahu.
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In 1865, Levi and Warren Chamberlain started a sugar plantation in Waialua that ultimately failed,[1] and Robert Halstead bought the Chamberlain plantation in 1874 under the partnership of Halstead & Gordon. Gordon died in 1888, and the plantation was managed by the Halstead Brothers, Robert and his two sons, Edgar and Frank.[2] In 1898, Castle & Cooke formed the Waialua Agricultural Company and purchased the plantation from the Halstead Brothers.[2][3]
By the end of 1898, a new mill was constructed, and the first crop harvested in 1899, producing 1,741 tons of sugar.[3] Castle & Cooke also expanded the acreage, built a railway system, and maximized ground and surface water storage and irrigation systems.[1] Between 1900 and 1906, four surface water collection systems were constructed, giving the Waialua sugar plantation the largest water storage capacity in the state of Hawaii.[4][5] As a result of these efforts, sugar production increased from less than 5000 to 20,000 tons from 1900-1905.[1] Mechanical loading of harvested cane began to replace manual labor using self-propelled machines in 1920.[6] Later, the Waialua plantation would co-generate electricity and sell it to local communities, contributing a small percentage to Hawaii's energy production.[7]
The Waialua Sugarmill and lands was acquired by Castle & Cooke one of Hawaii's Big Five trading and sugar industry management companies.
By 1991, the mill was producing eight percent of sugar in Hawaii as the Waialua Sugar Company, a subsidiary of the Dole Food Company.[8] However, the plantation was unable to increase the tons of sugar per acre yields.[9] The Waialua Sugar Mill finally closed in October, 1996 due to profit concerns. and became the last sugar plantation on the island of Oahu.[3][8] By 1999, the old sugar workers camp was still inhabited by former Filipino laborers.[10] The area currently serves as an industrial park for the North Shore of Oahu.