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The author of The Kahuna, Versatile Masters of Old Hawaii lived in Volcano for over 30 years until his death in October 1993. A student of Hawaiian tradition and culture, McBride frequently lectured on geology, botany, history and legends of Hawaii.
Of Irish and Iroquois Indian descent, McBride was born in Reading, Pennsylvania and grew up in Ohio. In 1943 he enlisted in the Navy and after basic
training was assigned to a ship stationed at Nawiliwili Harbor, Kauai. It was there that he fell in love with the Hawaiian Islands and people and started learning the Hawaiian language and about the Hawaiian culture.
After service in World War II and the Korean conflict, McBride received a B.S. degree in geology from Ohio State University, with a minor in botany. Following work in industrial research, he joined the National Park Service and was assigned to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. With his family, he made his home in the Volcano area. In the eleven year association with the Park , McBride continued to add to his knowledge of all things Hawaiian.
Throughout much of his life McBride was a dedicated student of Hawaiian tradition and culture. He told Hawaiian stories in the old Hawaiian way for nearly thirty years and held a kauila dagger, the sign of a professional Hawaiian storyteller. A talented stoneworker and woodcarver, McBride crafted numerous museum-quality reproductions of Hawaiian tools and weapons.
The author wrote and illustrated four other original works: About Hawaii's Volcanoes; Petroglyphs of Hawaii; Pele, Volcano Goddess of Hawaii (currently out of print); and Practical Folk Medicine of Hawaii. |
