Local cemetery historian Nanette Napoleon has received top recognition from the Massachusetts-based Association for Gravestone Studies. The Forbes Award is presented to someone who has contributed "exceptional service to the field of gravestone studies."
Napoleon has long followed her passion, leading Hawaiʻi cemetery tours for decades. She authored a book on the historic Oʻahu Cemetery.
Her love for graveyards began when she visited the historic Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, where many famous people are buried — like Jim Morrison. She was on a backpacking trip with friends through Europe.
"As we're traveling to other places, I started seeing cemeteries. It just hit me really hard that this is a beautiful place to be. These cemeteries are beautiful, and they're historic. And I was just overwhelmed by all of that, and ever since then, I've been overwhelmed with loving cemeteries," Napoleon said.
She credits the grave of the rock 'n' roll musician and the wise advice from revered Native Hawaiian kupuna Lydia Nāmahanaikaleleokalani Taylor Maioho for getting and keeping her on the path of graveyard history.
Before Maioho died in 1998, she had been the curator at Mauna 'Ala for decades.
"She took my hand like this and rubbed my hands and said, 'Nanette, you have a gift. You should be doing this. You need to do this for our people.' And I broke down and I started to cry," Napoleon said.
So where does Hawaiʻi's cemetery historian plan to be buried? Napoleon wants her ashes to be scattered in the ocean. That's where her father, who was a longtime beach boy at the Halekulani Hotel, was laid to rest. She plans to join him.
For years, Napoleon has been researching those who fought in the American Civil War. We walked the Oʻahu Cemetery grounds with her back in 2021 to learn how the Sons of Hawaiʻi ended up in the Civil War. We hana hou-ed part of that conversation.
This interview aired on The Conversation on May 13, 2024. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1.
