RoadsideThoughts
A Gazetteer for the United States and Canada
Home >> State of Hawaii >> HiloIndex...

Welcome to Hilo ...

Hilo is located on the island of Hawaii.

While we don't have a date for the founding of Hilo, you might consider that their post office opened  in 1900.

Hilo is 50 feet [15 m] above sea level.<1>.

Time Zone: Hilo lies in the Hawaiian/Aleutian Standard Time Zone (HST) and does not observe daylight saving time

Area Code for Hilo: 808

The ZIP codes for Hilo: 96720-96721<2>

Communities Also Named Hilo ...

Using our Gazetteer, we found that there are 3 communities that are also named Hilo - they are located in Arkansas, Kentucky and Missouri.

For more information, see our Tidbits & Trivia Page for Hilo.

Websites for Hilo ...

Chamber of Commerce:   www.hicc.biz/

Although we don't have any websites that are specific to Hilo, the following might be of interest:

Communities near Hilo ...

We have created a list of 10 communities that are near Hilo.

  • Papaikou
    (5 miles [8 km] to the north)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Papaikou have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Papaikou
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Papaikou <4>
  • Keaau
    (6 miles [9.7 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Keaau have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Keaau
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Keaau <4>
  • Kurtistown
    (7 miles [11.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Kurtistown have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Kurtistown
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Kurtistown <4>
  • Pepeekeo
    (8 miles [12.9 km] to the north)
  • Mountain View
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
  • Orchidlands Estates
    (10 miles [16.1 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Orchidlands Estates have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Orchidlands Estates
  • Honomu
    (11 miles [17.7 km] to the north)
  • Hakalau
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the northwest)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hakalau have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hakalau
    • Jump to TripAdvisor's Tourism page for Hakalau <4>
  • Hawaiian Acres
    (12 miles [19.3 km] to the south)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Hawaiian Acres have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Hawaiian Acres
  • Ainaloa
    (13 miles [20.9 km] to the southeast)
    • Note: The GPS coordinates that we are using for Ainaloa have been provided by the GNIS.<3> The coordinates still need to be verified.
    • Jump to our Gazetteer entry for Ainaloa

To Help With Your Genealogy Research ...

We have a couple of sections for those tracing their genealogy.

We created a list of cemeteries that are in the area around Hilo. Our list includes the location of those cemeteries and we provide an overhead view. See our Cemetery List for Hilo.

We have a detailed list of newspapers that have been published in the area around Hilo. Our list includes 28 papers. See our Newspapers Page for Hilo.

TripAdvisor Tourism Pages for Hilo ...

Looking for more information about Hilo? A wonderful source is the TripAdvisor website. We always start with the TripAdvisor Tourism page, where you can read an overview with links that will help you find lodging, restaurants and attractions.

In addition to the Tourism page for Hilo, there are neighboring communities that also have Tourism pages. More information about those communities can be found on our TripAdvisor Page for Hilo.

Adding Hilo to Our Gazetteer ...

We originally found mention of Hilo in both the FIPS-55 and the GNIS. For more information, see the FIPS and GNIS Codes sections on our Miscellaneous Page.

From our notes, the earliest published mention we've found for Hilo was in the document titled List of Post Offices from Cameron Blevins and Richard Helbock.<5>

From that list, the Hilo post office opened in 1900.

We also found Hilo on a map titled Shell Oil Road Map for Hawaii (1956).

For more details, see References and Mentions for Hilo.

Footnotes ...

<1>The elevation is an estimate for the area around Hilo - it will be higher in some places and lower in others.
<2>ZIP Codes have been created by the United States Postal Service (USPS) as a way of grouping addresses to make delivery more efficient. The boundaries of the ZIP Code can be changed, re-assigned, eliminated or overlapped with other ZIP Codes. So keep in mind that any given ZIP Code is only 'loosely' associated with a community (such as Hilo). When looking for a ZIP Code, whether Hilo or elsewhere, it's always best to check the website of the United States Postal Service (USPS).

Our list of ZIP Codes for Hilo includes: 96720 & 96721.
<3>The location has been supplied by the Geographic Names Information System - which is maintained by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). While these values should be definitive, we found that accuracy can vary and you should double-check the location if accuracy is required.
<4>While we're fans and frequent users of TripAdvisor, you should know that we're also members of the TripAdvisor affiliate program.
<5>A copy of their list with background information can be found at:

      https://cblevins.github.io/us-post-offices/data-biography/