If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 714

 

 

 

 

 

Wailua Falls, Maui, Hawaii

[Photograph by R. Wenkem]

 

Today’s unused postcard features a color photograph by R. Wenkem of Wailua Falls, Maui, Hawaii.  Published by Ray Helbig’s Hawaiian Service, Honolulu in 1951 the card has S-116 on the reverse center line at the top.  It is Mirro-Krome card by H.S. Crocker Co., Inc. of San Francisco, California.  It is identified as a Natural Color Card, Nani Li’I “Hawaiian for ‘Little Beauty.’”  At the upper left on the reverse is the blurb:  “Wailua Falls, Maui . . . near Hana; the falls are one of the many cascades that plunge into the sea from the Haleakala slopes, and provide a beautiful setting for camera fans stopping at the distinctive Hotel Hana-Maui.”  The card was most likely a souvenir available at the hotel.

 

The Hana Highway, also called The Road to Hana, connects the town of Hana to east Maui.  This highway is 64.4 miles long.  It is narrow and winding, so it takes about 2.5 hours to travel from Kahului to Hana by car.  One report showed 620 curves all through lush tropical rainforest.  There are bridges dating from 1910 that are still in use.  In 2000 President Bill Clinton designated it as the Hana Millennium Legacy Trail.  There is a stone monument and a Zero Mile marker at the junction of routes 36, 360, and 365.  In 2001 the highway was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  Today the Hana Highway is a popular tourist attraction with many waterfalls and other attractions.  There are scenic turn outs including one for Wailua Falls. 

 

Haleakala crater is an active shield volcano located in East Maui.  It forms about 75% of Maui. The tallest peak is 10,023 ft or 3,055 m.  The last time it erupted was estimated in 1999 by the U.S. Geological Survey to have occurred between 1480 and 1600.  Even though it has not erupted in recent times it is still considered dormant rather than extinct.

 

Robert George Wenkam was a photographer, author, and book producer born in 1920 in Oakland, California.  He worked as a civil engineer with the Army Corps Engineers from 1941-1946.  In 1947 he worked as a civil engineer for Bogert Childs Association, of New York City.  Then in 1948 as an architect, designer for various firms in Honolulu.  From 1949 to 1976 he was an independent photographer.  In 1976 he was the owner, writer, photographer, of Wenkam/Candere Books, Honolulu.  Wenkam died in 2000 at the age of 80.

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hana_Highway

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haleakal%C4%81

https://prabook.com/web/george.wenkam/358294