Peter Young Kaʻeo Kekuaokalani (March 4, 1836 – November 26, 1880) was a Hawaiian high chief (aliʻi) and politician of the
Kingdom of Hawaii. His cousin was Emma, who contended for the throne after the death of Kamehameha. After being diagnosed with leprosy, he was exiled in 1873 to
Kalaupapa, the isolation settlement on Molokaʻ. He was later permitted to return to Honolulu, where he died.
Kaeo served as a member of the
House of Nobles 1863–1880, and on the Privy Council of King
Kamehameha IV 1863–1864.[4] He contracted
leprosy, now known as the Hansen's disease, which was incurable at the time. He was exiled to the leper colony at
Kalaupapa on the island of
Molokaʻi. He arrived June 29, 1873, traveling on the same boat as
William P. Ragsdale, a part-Hawaiian attorney who had served as interpreter for the government and in the legislature. Kaeo had the means to maintain a comfortable life, including the work of two servants, but was aware of the poverty and desperation around him.
During his exile at Kalaupapa, he and his cousin
Emma Kaleleonalani, at the time Queen Dowager, exchanged letters revealing their personal lives during this three-year period. In addition, these recount the affairs of the
Hawaiian Kingdom during the same period of time, expressed in their own words and reflecting their status as Hawaiians. They commented on island politics, dynastic intrigues, inter-ethnic rivalries and animosities, American-Hawaiian diplomatic strains, and frustrations during a time of national crisis. They wrote 122 letters now held in Hawaiian historical archives.[5]
For example, from Peter Kaeo to Queen Emma, August 11, 1873:
Deaths occur quite frequently here, almost dayly.
Napela (the Mormon elder and assistant supervisor of the Kalaupapa Settlement) last week rode around the Beach to inspect the Lepers and came on to one that had no Pai [taro] for a Week but manage to live on what he could find in his Hut, anything Chewable. His legs were so bad that he cannot walk, and few traverse the spot where His Hut stands, but fortunate enough for him that he had sufficient enough water to last him till aid came and that not too late, or else probably he must have died.[6]
On November 26, 1880, Kaeo died at Honolulu at the age 44, after being released from Kalawao in 1876.[7]The Hawaiian Gazette, December 1, 1880, said: "The Hon. P. Y. Kaeo died at his residence on Emma Street on Friday night [November 26, 1880]. The funeral took place on Sunday and was largely attended by the retainers and friends of the family. The hearse was surrounded by Kahili-bearers as becomes the dignity of a chief."
He was interred in the
Royal Mausoleum of Hawaii at Mauna ʻAla, along with many of the Young family members.[8] His remains were moved along with political advisor
Robert Crichton Wyllie and other members of Queen Emma's family to the newly build Wyllie Tomb in June 1904.[9][10]
Cracroft, Sophia;
Franklin, Jane;
Queen Emma (1958). Korn, Alfons L. (ed.). The Victorian Visitors: An Account of the Hawaiian Kingdom, 1861–1866, Including the Journal Letters of Sophia Cracroft: Extracts from the Journals of Lady Franklin, and Diaries and Letters of Queen Emma of Hawaii. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press.
hdl:
10125/39981.
ISBN978-0-87022-421-8.
OCLC8989368.
Parker, David "Kawika" (2008). "Crypts of the Ali`i The Last Refuge of the Hawaiian Royalty".
Tales of Our Hawaiʻi(PDF). Honolulu: Alu Like, Inc.
OCLC309392477. Archived from
the original(PDF) on November 11, 2013.