Menehune Fishpond

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Menehune Fishpond

| designated_other1_name = Alekoko Fishpond

| nrhp_type =

| image = Alekoko fishpond.jpg

| caption =

| location = On the Hulē{{okina}}ia River south of Līhuʻe (viewable from lookout on south side of Puhi Road)

| coordinates = {{coord|21.9525|-159.375278|display=inline,title}}

| locmapin = Hawaii

| nearest_city = Līhuʻe, Hawai{{okina}}i

| builder =

| architecture = Hawaiian fishpond

| added = March 14, 1973

| area = {{convert|5|acre}}

| refnum = 73000677{{cite web|url=https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail/aa39d6fc-af8f-4aba-aa9d-f0cd8c344401|title=Menehune Fishpond|publisher=National Park Service|date=March 14, 1973|accessdate=November 26, 2023}}

}}

The {{okina}}Alekoko Fishpond, known locally as the Menehune Fishpond,{{cite web|url=https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Draft_HUL_Road_PrivateRights_CD_2023_0.pdf|title=Draft Compatibility Determination for Right of Access for Mālama Hulē{{okina}}ia Community Workday|publisher=United States Fish and Wildlife Service|date=October 21, 2023|accessdate=November 26, 2023}} near Līhuʻe, Hawai{{okina}}i, on the island of Kaua{{okina}}i, is a historic Hawaiian fishpond. Also known as Alakoko Fishpond, it has been listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places since 1973.

The pond is bounded by a {{convert|900 |feet|m |adj=mid|-long wall}} at a large bend in Hulē{{okina}}ia River.{{cite book |last = Kirch |first = Patrick Vinton |chapter = Menehune Fishpond |title = Legacy of the Landscape: An Illustrated Guide to Hawaiian Archaeological Sites |publisher=University of Hawaii Press |year=1996 |location = Honolulu |page = 23 |isbn = 0-8248-1739-7 }}{{Cite news|last=Fujimoto|first=Dennis|date=July 7, 2020|title=New life for Alekoko|url=https://www.thegardenisland.com/2020/07/07/hawaii-news/new-life-for-alekoko/|access-date=July 7, 2020|work=The Garden Island}} It has been deemed "the most significant fishpond on Kaua{{okina}}i, both in Hawaiian legends and folklore and in the eyes [of] Kaua{{okina}}i's people today".{{r|nrhpdoc}} As the largest fishpond on Kaua{{okina}}i, it is estimated to have been constructed in the 15th century, and may be the first brackish-water fishpond in the Hawaiian Islands. Its construction is traditionally attributed to the Menehune, a mythical people said to have inhabited Hawai{{okina}}i before the arrival of the Hawaiians.{{r|nrhpdoc}}

It was first listed on the U.S. National Register in 1973; the listing included one contributing site and one contributing structure. In 2021 it was purchased by The Trust for Public Land and conveyed to Mālama Hulē{{okina}}ia, which has been restoring the land since 2018.{{cite news |first=Sabrina |last=Bodon |url=https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/11/17/hawaii-news/alakoko-menehune-fishpond-saved-chan-zuckerberg-make-4-million-donation/ |title=Alakoko 'Menehune' Fishpond saved; Chan, Zuckerberg make $4 million donation |work=The Garden Island |date=November 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211117211502/https://www.thegardenisland.com/2021/11/17/hawaii-news/alakoko-menehune-fishpond-saved-chan-zuckerberg-make-4-million-donation/ |archive-date=November 17, 2021 }} Restoration projects have included removing {{convert|26|acres}} of invasive mangrove and rebuilding a rock wall.{{Cite news |date=October 22, 2023 |title=Thousands of volunteers help restore 600-year-old Alakoko fishpond outside Līhu‘e |url=https://kauainownews.com/2023/10/22/watch-thousands-of-volunteers-help-restore-600-year-old-alakoko-fishpond-outside-lihue/ |access-date=2023-10-23 |work=Kauai Now}}