Wo Hing Society Hall Maui


Wo Hing Society HallThere is a historical building dedicated to Chinese culture at 858 Front Street in Lahaina, Hawaii, calledthe Wo Hing Society Hall. Wo Hing Society built a social and fraternal hall there in 1912 to service theChinese people thathad migrated to Maui and the west side of island at that time.The structure wasdemolished in the ’70s. By the 1940s, the building had become obsolete due to the dwindling Chinesepopulation in Lahaina and was in a state of disrepair.By working along with the Wo Hing Society in 1983, the Lahaina Restoration Foundation had restoredthe building’s previous condition of preservation. After substantial renovations and remodeling, themuseum reopened to the public in 1984. Only two Chinese Society Halls remainin existence on theisland of Maui, one of which is the Wo Hing Museum today. Listed on the National Register of HistoricPlaces in 1982, the Wo Hing Society Building was also listed on the Hawaii State Historic Register on July30, 1982.Most of the Chinese workers sent to Hawaii’s sugarcane farms in 1852 were single men. Some of theemployees stayed after the expiration of their contracts and found other jobs. With the influx of Chineseimmigrants and the geographic separation from mainland China, Chinese Tong societies emerged toprovide religious, political, and social support to the immigrants, in addition to financial help and burialbenefits.About a year after the Chee Kung Tong, Chinese inhabitants of Lahaina formed the Wo Hing Society.Individualdonations and contributions helped fund the construction of the Wo Hing Society Hall in 1912.Many Chinese people from Lahaina moved to Honolulu in the 1940s in quest of better job opportunitiesand a better quality of life. Because of this, the property was in disarray and a termite and rotinfestation was inevitable. Lahaina Restoration Foundation approached the Wo Hing Society in 1983 andcommitted to long-term partnership in order to help restore the building and open it for public use in1984. Restoration was finished in 1984 and the site is currently open to the public for viewing and use.It’s one of Hawaii’s best-preserved Chinese Tong Society Halls, if not the best.

Lahaina, Maui, Hawaii