Abandoned Towns

Ghost town record · Hawaii County, Hawaii

Kapoho

Former community on the island of Hawaii.

Record

About Kapoho

Kapoho is a now-uninhabited unincorporated area in Puna district, Hawaii County, Hawaii, US, located near the eastern tip of the island of Hawaii, in the easternmost subaerial end of the graben overlying Kīlauea's east rift zone. Originally destroyed by an eruption of Kīlauea in 1960, it was rebuilt as a community of private homes and vacation rentals.

This is a site record: what public sources say about Kapoho, gathered in one place. We haven't written a full guide yet, so history, current access and photos are still to come. Treat the status as unknown until a guide confirms it.

Map

Where Kapoho is

USGS topographic map around Kapoho
USGS topographic map, The National Map (public domain). The pin marks the coordinates in the record; old townsites are often a little off.

Historic maps

9 historic USGS maps cover Kapoho

Topographic sheets from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain), oldest first. Older sheets often show the camp, mines and roads while the place was alive. The downloads are large map scans; USGS topoView shows them in the browser.

Directions

Getting there

Google Maps directionsApple MapsOpenStreetMap

Before you go

  • Many ghost town sites are on private land, active mining claims or tribal land. Check land status and ask permission.
  • Roads to old townsites are often unmaintained dirt. Map apps may route over closed or impassable tracks.
  • Removing artifacts from public land is illegal under federal and most state laws.

Nearby

Other sites near Kapoho

Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our Hawaii index.

Sources

Sources

  1. ghosttowns.com, "Kapoho": county, roads, climate, best time to visit, remains.
  2. Wikipedia, "Kapoho, Hawaii": coordinates and summary.
  3. Wikidata Q3192857.
  4. USGS GNIS 360551.
  5. USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
  6. USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).