Three historic buildings and an extensive archival collection make up the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives (HMH). Image courtesy of HMH.
With three historic buildings and an extensive archival collection, the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives (HMH) preserves and interprets the history and lives of early New England missionaries to the Hawaiian islands. For tourists and school groups on Oʻahu, the organization provides insight into a pivotal moment in Hawaiian history, while also reaching audiences on other Hawaiian islands and the continental U.S. through its theater program. NEH funding has helped Hawaiian Mission Houses interpret its historic site and preserve its archival collections. And with grants from Mass Humanities and Connecticut Humanities, the NEH’s state partners, HMH has reached audiences in New England, bringing the far-flung locales close historical relationship to the fore.
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The historic buildings host workshops for the community and visitors. Image courtesy of HMH.
HMH hosts family fun days for their community and visitors. Image courtesy of HMH.
In the 1990s, an NEH challenge grant, which helped HMH raise an additional $1.2 million, supported the restoration and interpretation of the Historic Mission Houses—the early nineteenth-century New England-style buildings that were shipped to the Hawaiian islands along with the Protestant missionaries who were to live in them. Today, these historic buildings help visitors understand the missionaries’ lives—their efforts in working with the Hawaiian ali‘i and commoners to develop a written Hawaiian language, spread Christianity, develop a constitutional monarchy, and more.
In the intervening years, HMH has made an effort to incorporate broader perspectives into its programming and interpretations. Today, visitors to the site can take special tours focused on nineteenth-century history, architectural perspectives, and Hawaiian perspectives. This work has been made possible largely due to the extensive collection held by the archives, which documents this period in Hawaiian history. With NEH funding, HMH has created a long-term preservation plan for these archives, which will help preserve its holdings for the future.
Visitors of all ages are welcome to the historic site. Image courtesy of HMH.
HMH’s reach extends far beyond its location in Oʻahu. HMH commissioned a Hawaiian playwright and actor to create “My Name is ‘Ōpūkaha’ia,” a one-man play based on the life of a Native Hawaiian man who converted to Christianity, lived much of his life and died in New England, made the first strides in developing a phonetic alphabet for the Hawaiian language, and has been credited with inspiring the Protestant mission to Hawaiʻi. After premiering in Hawaiʻi, the play toured throughout New England, often including Humanities Discussion panels, funded by Mass Humanities, featuring scholars from Hawaiʻi and New England. The tour inspired thoughtful reflection and conversations on New England’s and Hawaiʻi’s shared past, and brought people from opposite ends of the United States together.
