Lāna‘i

This book reflects his lifetime interest in the history of his home island of Lāna'i. Born and raised on the island in the plantation era, he was part of a family with deep roots on the island. He returned to the island often over the years, documenting cultural-historical and natural resources around the island and amassing an informal collection of important information for any student of Lāna'i's history.

Throughout his life, Munro remained a student of Lāna'i's history. In his own words, "the motivation for this account is humdrum — the curiosity of one who spent his childhood on Lāna'i. At the time, there were few historical works about the island in general circulation. His family had copies of Kenneth Emory's study of Lāna'i and Harold Stearns' work on the geology and groundwater resources. Anecdotes told at the dinner table and chance contacts with old-timers were about the only other sources. People reared on Lāna'i almost always have a fondness for, and even pride in, the place. Thus, the lack of sources of historical information can be a source of frustration." Upon retirement and accompanied by his wife Jean, he began this book as a compilation of his findings, supplemented by a wealth of photographs and images. The book goes into considerable detail on ownership history, the variety and challenges of early settlement, and the economic development of the island up through 1945.

William Munro was born and raised on the island of Lāna'i , Hawaii. The second of three sons, Bill spent the formative years of his life on Lāna'i, leaving to go to high school at Punahou on O'ahu. Returning from service in Germany and having married, he spent most of his life as a forester, and then in aviation management, for the U. S. Forest Service on the mainland. Throughout his years working and rearing his family, he remained a student of Lāna'i's history. He returned to the island often over the years, making trips with his wife Jean and his father (who had retired to O'ahu), documenting cultural-historical and natural resources around the island and amassing an informal collection of important information for any student of Lāna'i's history.