The Mission Houses, which were the original headquarters of the Sandwich Islands Mission, are the oldest structures in Honolulu and provide a link to an era of significant cultural change in the islands. New England missionaries began to arrive in Hawaii in 1820 determined to convert the Hawaiians to Christianity.
By 1821, they had constructed a building called the Frame House, which served as the mission's center. The building still stands in downtown Honolulu across the street from the Kawaiaha'o Church.
The missionaries struggled to get their message to the Hawaiians, eventually realizing they needed not only to translate the scriptures into Hawaiian, but that they had to teach the Hawaiians to read. The missionaries set about translating the spoken language into written form and, using an imposed alphabet, finally translated the scriptures into Hawaiian. In 1822, in the Printing House on the grounds, the first sheets of printed material produced in the islands were pulled from the mission's press by High Chief Ke'eaumoku II.
Tours are available at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Groups of more than six should call 531-0481 for reservations.
