Why isn't the Big Island of Hawaii more populated?

[Vega]

Seems like it should hold more people than the 186,738 it does.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Active volcanic peaks aren't all that conductive to habitation.  Oahu gets the bulk of the population thanks to Pearl Harbor.  Pre-European contact, Hawaii had the largest population of the islands, which is why the ruler of Hawaii became the king of all the islands.

[Nyvin]

Volcanoes, not as much of a military presence, the harbor at Hilo isn't as effective as the one at pearl harbor for large ships.   A smaller issue is I believe Hawaii gets hit harder from tropical storms when they are in the area.

That, earlier on, led to Oahu being built up much more, and since Oahu was built up much more, it made more sense for people to move to Oahu where there was already stuff, and so the early success led to more success.   

[Cubby]

Oahu must be getting crowded, and certainly very expensive. I notice its growth rate has been below the national average since the 1980's, while Hawaii County is still growing over 20% each decade. Are people going there rather than Oahu due to cheaper houses or because there's more available land to build on? 

[Nyvin]

Oahu must be getting crowded, and certainly very expensive. I notice its growth rate has been below the national average since the 1980's, while Hawaii County is still growing over 20% each decade. Are people going there rather than Oahu due to cheaper houses or because there's more available land to build on? 

The housing might be "slightly" cheaper on Hawaii than Oahu,  but all the commodity prices on Hawaii are actually much more expensive, which would erase any benefit of cheaper land.

This is because all the commodities get shipped to Oahu first, and then shipped to the other islands from there.

[Cubby]

The housing might be "slightly" cheaper on Hawaii than Oahu,  but all the commodity prices on Hawaii are actually much more expensive, which would erase any benefit of cheaper land.

This is because all the commodities get shipped to Oahu first, and then shipped to the other islands from there.

Sometime in the near future, I imagine Oahu will run out of available land to build on, so people will have to live on the other islands, since many Americans hate living in houses that aren't brand new.

[Frodo]

There's no natural harbor for a dense settlement like what you at Honolulu with Pearl Harbor on Oahu.  Same applies to Maui and Kauai as far as the bigger Hawaiian islands go.  

[Strudelcutie4427]

1/3 of it is made of active volcanoes (Kilauea, Mauna Loa), The rest is dense forests and the worlds largest mountain (Mauna Kea, if you count its submarine height). The only notable thing is that Lilo and Stitch was based there

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

1/3 of it is made of active volcanoes (Kilauea, Mauna Loa), The rest is dense forests and the worlds largest mountain (Mauna Kea, if you count its submarine height). The only notable thing is that Lilo and Stitch was based there

Come on now, I distinctly remember an episode of Hawaii Five-0 taking place on the Big Island!

And also Magnum P. I.!

[muon2]

I toured the five largest islands last month. In general habitable land exists along the coasts and in the saddles between volcanic peaks. Some of the coasts are steep cliffs due to land subsidence and they aren't habitable either. Saddle land needs water and soil and most of the rain falls on the north and east sides of the islands due to the trade winds blocked by volcanic peaks. The soil forms from the breakdown of lava, which takes thousands of years.

Mauna Loa on the Big Island has young lava fields and they haven't broken down into soil. Many stretches are rocky deserts. The saddle on the Big Island is also very young and still at high altitude so it isn't suitable for settlement. Hilo on the east coast is boxed in by the growing volcano to its south. That leaves the Kona coast as the only strip for development.

As Oahu gets over populated, Maui is the next best place for growth. It has a fertile saddle and buildable coastal areas. Lahaina on the west coast of Maui was the capital of Hawaii when the missionaries arrived in the early 1800's.

[publicunofficial]

1/3 of it is made of active volcanoes (Kilauea, Mauna Loa), The rest is dense forests and the worlds largest mountain (Mauna Kea, if you count its submarine height). The only notable thing is that Lilo and Stitch was based there

Lilo and Stich takes place on Kauai, not the Big Island.

[Strudelcutie4427]

I think the last few days shows us why. I didn’t know Kīlauea could trigger 6.9 quakes and have lava erupt through random cracks in the ground. I always thought it was just a constant runny flow of lava into the ocean

[°Leprechaun]

Why isn't the Big Island of Hawaii more populated?
I don't know, but I'm sure Pele does.
Has anyone asked her yet?

[YE]

Because there’s a 10K feet volcano on it?

[muon2]

I'm quite happy to have visited the Big Island and Kilauea in Mar, when things were quite a bit calmer. Plenty of steam, but no earthquakes or lava-blocked roads.

[Strudelcutie4427]

Because there’s a 10K feet volcano on it?

2. Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea.
Plus Kīlauea which is causing havoc rn