Built around 1912, it served the growing Chinese population centered in Lahaina, primarily those working in the sugarcane industry as a social and fraternal hall for the Wo Hing Society.

[4][6][7] Sometime around 1909, the Chinese in Lahaina formed the Wo Hing Society, an offshoot of the Chee Kung Tong.

The first floor of the main building housed a collection of Chinese artifacts and memorabilia of Lahaina around the start of the 20th century.

The cookhouse was a separate structure, created as a precaution to prevent the risk of fire damage to the main Wo Hing Temple.

[9] The temple also utilized Feng Shui principles, with the entrance (or front) of the building facing the ocean, and its back to the mountains.