Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
portant early convert, often attending services in Kahului's humble grass-hut chapel. It's
also worth noting that the church was erected on Maui king Kahekili's
heiau
—the squash-
ing of one religion with the growing presence of another. In 1832, when the congrega-
tion was founded, an adobe church was built on the same spot and named in her honor.
Rain and time washed it away, to be replaced by the island's first stone structure in 1837.
Its construction was supervised by the missionary Edward Bailey, whose home stands to
the rear, and a three-year renovation project ended in 1976, bringing the church back to
form and allowing it placement on the National Register of Historic Places. Services at
Ka'ahumanu Church
(103 S. High St.) are at 9am Sunday, when the Hawaiian congrega-
tion sings the Lord's praise in their native language. It's an excellent cultural and religious
event to attend.
MM
Bailey House Museum
Regardless of whether or not you're a “museum person,” every visitor to Maui should see
the
Bailey House Museum
(2375-A Main St., 10am-4pm Mon.-Sat., $7 adults, $2 chil-
dren 7-12) on the road to 'Iao Valley. The Bailey House was built between 1833 and 1850,
and from 1837 to 1849 this whitewashed, missionary-style building housed the Wailuku
Female Seminary, of which Edward Bailey was principal. With the opening of Lahainaluna
High School in 1831 (which is the oldest public high school in the United States west of
the Rocky Mountains), it was decided that the young, educated graduates of Lahainaluna
would need refined, educated women whom they could eventually take as wives, hence
the need for the seminary. After the closing of the institution the Baileys bought the prop-
erty, began to raise sugarcane, and lived here until 1888. During this time, Edward Bailey
became the manager of the Wailuku Sugar Company, and more important for posterity, he
became a prolific landscape painter of various areas around the island. Most of his paint-
ings record the period 1866-1896 and are now displayed in the Bailey Gallery, which was
once the sitting room of the house. In 1973 it was placed on the National Register of His-
toric Places.
