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Lahaina Cultural Guide
Separated from the remainder of Maui by steep pali (cliffs), West Maui--Lahaina--has a reputation for attitude and action. Once upon a time, this was the haunt of whalers, missionaries, and the kings and queens of Hawaii; now it's one of Maui's main resort areas. Lahaina Town was not only once the kingdom's capital but also the alii's (royalty's) playground. Today the main drag, Front Street, is crowded with T-shirt and trinket shops, art exhibits, and restaurants where tourists stroll day and night.
To understand historic Lahaina, be sure to visit these sights.
Baldwin Home Museum
Begun in 1834 and completed the following year, the coral and stone house was originally home to missionary and doctor Dwight Baldwin and his family. The building has been carefully restored to reflect the period; many of the original furnishings remain. You can view the family's grand piano, the carved four-poster bed, and most interestingly, Dr. Baldwin's dispensary. During a brief tour conducted by Lahaina Restoration Foundation volunteers, you'll be shown the "thunderpot" and told how the doctor single-handedly inoculated 10,000 Maui residents for smallpox.
Address: 696 Front St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-3262
www.lahainarestoration.org
Cost: $3 per person, $5 per couple
Open: Daily 10-4 and Friday nights 6 - 8:30 for candlelight tours
Banyan Tree
This massive tree was planted in 1873. It's the largest of its kind in the state and provides a welcome retreat for the weary who come to sit under its awesome branches. The Banyan Tree is a popular and hard-to-miss meeting place if your party splits up for independent exploring. It's also a terrific spot to be when the sun sets -- mynah birds settle in here for a screeching symphony, which can be an event in itself.
Address: Front St. between Hotel and Canal Sts., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Hale Paahao (Old Prison)
Lahaina's jailhouse dates to rowdy whaling days. Its name literally means "stuck-in-irons house," referring to the wall shackles and ball-and-chain restraints. The compound was built in the 1850s by convict laborers out of blocks of coral that had been salvaged from the demolished waterfront fort. Most prisoners were sent here for desertion, drunkenness, or reckless horse riding. Today, a wax figure representing an imprisoned old sailor tells his recorded tale of woe.
Address: Wainee and Prison Sts., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Cost: Free Open: Weekdays 10-4
Hauola Stone
Just visible above the tide is a gigantic stone, perfectly molded into the shape of a low-backed chair and believed by Hawaiians to hold healing powers. It sits in the harbor where the sea and the underground freshwater meet.
Address: In water behind public library on Front St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Holy Innocents' Episcopal Church
Built in 1927, this beautiful open-air church is decorated with paintings depicting Hawaiian versions of Christian symbols, including a Hawaiian Madonna and child, rare or extinct birds, and native plants. The congregation is beautiful, typically dressed in traditional clothing from Samoa and Tonga. Anyone is welcome to slip into one of the pews, carved from native woods. Queen Liliuokalani, Hawaii's last reigning monarch, lived in a large grass house on this site as a child.
Address: South end of Front St. near Mokuhina St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-4202
Lahaina Court House
The Lahaina Town Action Committee and Lahaina Heritage Museum occupy this charming old government building in the center of town. Pump the knowledgeable staff for interesting trivia and ask for their walking-tour brochure, a comprehensive map to historic Lahaina sites. Erected in 1859 and restored in 1999, the building has served as a customs and court house, governor's office, post office, vault and collector's office, and police court. On August 12, 1898, its postmaster witnessed the lowering of the Hawaiian flag when Hawaii became a U.S. territory. The flag now hangs above the stairway. You'll find terrific museum displays, the active Lahaina Arts Society, and an art gallery. There's also a public restroom.
Address: 649 Wharf St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-0111 for the Arts Society; 808/667-9175 for the Lahaina Town Action Committee
Cost: Free Open: Daily 9-5
Lahaina Harbor
For centuries, Lahaina has drawn ships of all sizes to its calm harbor. King Kamehameha's conquering fleet of 800 carved koa canoes gave way to Chinese trading ships, Boston whalers, United States Navy frigates, and finally, a slew of cruise ships, catamarans, and deep-sea fishing operators. During World War II, "a white tide" of Navy seamen flooded the town. Stroll past the various tour boats to see who's had the best luck fishing. If they're filleting their catch, you might glimpse eagle rays underwater snapping up the trimmings.
Address: Wharf St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Cost: Free
Master's Reading Room
Generally acknowledged as Maui's oldest residential building, the Master's Reading Room was constructed in 1834. In those days the ground floor was a storeroom; the room upstairs was a comfortable place from which naval officers could escape the heat and dust of Lahaina. Today, it houses the Lahaina Restoration Foundation, and is not open to the public.
Address: Front and Dickenson Sts., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-3262
Waiola Church and Wainee Cemetery
Better known as Wainee Church and immortalized in James Michener's Hawaii, the original building from the early 1800s was destroyed once by fire and twice by fierce windstorms. Repositioned and rebuilt in 1951, it was renamed Waiola ("water of life") and has been standing proudly ever since. The adjacent cemetery was the first Christian cemetery in the Islands and is the final resting place of many of Hawaii's most important monarchs, including Kamehameha the Great's sacred wife, Queen Keopuolani.
Address: 535 Wainee St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-4349
Wo Hing Museum
Smack-dab in the center of Front Street, this eye-catching Chinese temple reflects the importance of early Chinese immigrants to Lahaina. Built by the Wo Hing Society in 1912, the museum now contains beautiful artifacts, historic photos of old Lahaina, and a Taoist altar. Don't miss the films playing in the rustic theater next door—some of Thomas Edison's first films, shot in Hawaii circa 1898, show Hawaiian wranglers herding steer onto ships. Ask the docent for some star fruit from the tree outside, for the altar or for yourself.
Address: 858 Front St., Lahaina, HI, 96761
Phone: 808/661-5553
Cost: $2 Open: Daily 10-4