Ford Island
From Free net encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Ford Island (disambiguation).
Ford Island is located in the middle of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. It is connected to the main island by the Ford Island Bridge. The island houses several naval facilities. It also has two main groups of military housing: Nob Hill and Luke Field.
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History
Ancient Hawaiians called the island Moku-umeume—the isle of attraction. It is currently named after Dr. Seth Ford, a Boston physician who practiced medicine at the Hawaiian Insane Asylum and the U.S. Marine Hospital from 1861–1866.
When Ford died, the island was sold to the Honolulu Plantation. The U.S. Army purchased it during World War I for $236,000. It was transferred to the Navy in 1923. At the height of World War II more than 40,000 people lived and worked on the 450 acre (1.8 km²) island. The island was in the center of the Pearl Harbor Attack, because of the battleship moorings surrounding the island.
Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and George Bush were guests here.
The naval station was decommissioned in 1962. The island was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1964, and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
Several motion pictures were filmed on Ford Island, including In Harm's Way starring John Wayne, Tora Tora Tora, and the 2001 Michael Bay picture Pearl Harbor.
Before the Admiral Clarey Bridge was opened in 1998, transportation to and from Ford Island was by ferryboat. Tourists were unable to visit the island without a military ID or being invited by a resident. Now, civilians are able to visit the USS Missouri museum there.
Features
There is a monument to the USS Utah on the island. Luke Field (est. 1919) is located here.
Little Known Facts
Ford Island was host to an annual "Hydrofest" where hydrofoils raced around the harbor.
Hollywood actor William Joseph Hill grew up on Ford Island with his family. His father William Joseph Hill Sr. was a Captain in the U.S. Navy.
Damage to structures on Ford Island during the Pearl Harbor attack was surprisingly minimal. A bomb landed (probably by mistake) in the courtyard of the medical building, and windows in some buildings were shattered by the force of explosions on ships.
The contol tower at Luke Field, featured in the movie Pearl Harbor, is the tallest control tower in the world made entirely of iron.