The mansion that houses the First Unitarian Church of Honolulu was built by Richard A Cooke and his wife Dagmar Sorenson in 1910 and enlarged thereafter to house them and their five children. After World War II, the house was sold. In 1954, the Bishop Estate, the new owner, converted it to a girls dormitory for 45 students of the Kamehameha Schools. The trustees named the house the “C.M. Cooke House,” honoring Richard’s father who was a pioneer Bishop Estate trustee.

Charles M. Cooke was president of C. Brewer & Co. one of the leading sugar companies in Hawai’i at the turn of the century. He also served as one of the first trustees of the Bishop Estate. His father and mother, Amos Star Cooke and Juliette Montague Cooke, arrived in Honolulu in 1837 as missionary teachers.  With S.N. Castle, Amos Cooke founded Castle & Cooke, later, the agent for the Matson Navigation Company.

See our First Unitarian Church of Honolulu Rental page if you are interested in meeting in this gracious, historic, comfortable building!