The Kapa'a Japanese Stone Lantern (Ishidoro)

The 15-foot cast concrete lantern in Kapa‘a was constructed in 1915 by Kaua‘i’s first generation Japanese immigrants as a tribute to their homeland and commemorates the 1912 coronation of Emperor Taisho. Its inscription reads, “Great Japan Emperor ascension to the throne, coronation, and commemoration lantern”. During World War II, as anti-Japanese sentiment grew on Kaua‘i, the lantern was buried in 1943. Nearly three decades later, county workers unearthed it in 1972 while responding to a complaint about a protruding metal rod in Kapa‘a Beach Park, but when no group was prepared to assume repair costs, it was buried again. In 1987, it was uncovered once more and re-erected through a community effort led by Mayor Tony Kunimura, the Kaua‘i Historical Society, and others. For the next 20 years, it stood supported by heavy I-beam braces until a 2008 award from the Kaua‘i County/HUD Community Development Block Grant Program helped fund its full restoration through the efforts of the Leadership Kaua‘i Lantern Restoration Committee and the Kapa‘a Business Association, celebrating Kapa‘a’s unique history and multicultural heritage.

Kapaa, Hawaii · United States