Ulupalakua Ranch
History
The ranch lies on lands that have a rich,
interesting history. Prior to European contact, early Hawaiians
farmed sweet potatoes, dry land taro and harvested wood, birds and
pigs from forested areas (the bare slopes you see today were once
covered with sweet smelling Sandlewood and Koa trees). Modern
agricultural began on what is now Ulupalakua Ranch lands in 1845,
that era lasting until 1856 when Linton L. Torbert, active member of
the Royal Hawaiian Agricultural Society, farmed potatoes and corn,
primarily to supply island merchant ships and California's 'gold
rush' era.to ship to California to fuel that regions 'gold rush' era
and on Direction from King Kamehamha III planted sugar cane. For
three decades (1856-1886), ex-whaling captain, James Makee farmed
sugar cane and other crops. This early entrepreneur even planted
cotton to take advantage of the Union blockade of southern ports
during the Civil War. Remnants of the sugar mill that Makee built,
then at the lead of mill design and technology, are still visible on
the ranch. Between 1886 and 1900, the property was owned and
operated by the Dowsett family, and it was during this tenure that
the property began ranching. From 1900 until 1922 the Raymond family
completed the change from crop farming to a cattle ranch. Between
1922 through 1963, the ranch was owned and operated by the Baldwin
family.
In 1963, C. Pardee Erdman purchased Ulupalakua Ranch from the
Baldwin family
 and the Erdman family has operated it since that
time. The ranch's peak size was about 40,000 acres before
approximately 20,000 acres of leased land was turned back over to
the State of Hawaii Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (1967) and the
State of Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (1997).
Today, Ulupalakua Ranch operates approximately 18,000 acres, 16,000
acres of fee simple land and 2,000 acres leased from the State of
Hawaii and private individuals.
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