Spanish - MOVING Around Hawaii

I absolutely love it when some information surfaces to add to my research! One little letter of the alphabet has moved my Abuelta (Grandmother) from Kailua on the island Oahu to Kilauea on the island of Kauai. Thorough research tells me they arrived in Honolulu from Spain but there were several plantations called the "Big Five" who imported immigrants to work their fields from plantation to plantation. Our Juan Juan Francisco Silvan family worked in sugar cane fields as their muscles throbbed and calluses grew. The family of Juan and Victorino took them to Kauai on the beach where Abuelita learned to love flowers, ukeleles and the Hawaiian music...... When she and her family left Hawaii for California ..... her Uncle Victorino and Aunt Ramona chose Hawaii as their home, not America.

As I flesh out my story about Abuelita, I hope to follow Uncle Victorino Silvan and his family also. This week I found information showing the village they lived in --- as Hanalei . It was only 10 miles from Kilauea -- the name of the village listed on Juan Francisco and Eustoquia Rita's paperwork from Hawaii to San Francisco, California! So, the brother stayed close and raised his children while the other brother chose to move to California --- where my ancestors lived, thrived and multiplied.

This past week I have enjoyed classes at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, VA that has given me exceptional information on research possibilities and I am thrilled to think of finding Victorino's family in Hawaii and following them forward. NOW I NEED TO MAKE A TRIP TO HAWAII AGAIN ---- AND SEE WHERE THEY LIVED, WHERE THEY WORKED AND THE LIFE THEY LED IN THE PARADISE OF HAWAII. I know my Abuelita smiled at the memories she left behind in Hawaii and my book will reveal her love and their family descendents. I think I am addicted to family history as I revel in my Spanish heritage. One more class and I can get back to gathering information and adding more to the already 35 page manuscript I have written on MANUELA'S PETALS.