Celebrating the lives and times of West Maui’s Plantation Era, the museum at The Wharf features artifacts and photos from both pineapple and sugar plantation life.

LAHAINA — The Lahaina Plantation Museum located on the upper level of The Wharf across from the Banyan Tree in Lahaina reopened to the public on Oct. 22.

Lahaina Restoration Foundation announced that the new museum hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. The museum will be closed on weekends and major holidays.

Admission is free, and donations are welcome.

Celebrating the lives and times of West Maui’s Plantation Era, the museum features artifacts and photos from both pineapple and sugar plantation life.

The small museum tells the story of plantation workers from arrival on Maui, to life in the camps, at work and through World War II.

A vast and diverse collection of artifacts donated by community members fills the small space, and a poignant video titled “The Last Harvest” expresses the sentiments of the community and the workers when the Pioneer Mill shut down completely on Labor Day, 1999.

“Visitors to the museum should come away with an understanding of what plantation life was like. We didn’t want it to be too much about the industry side, but more what daily life was like for the people working and living in this era,” explained Andy Kutsunai, former chairperson of the foundation’s Community Education Committee.

The Wharf donated the 650-square-foot space for the museum, and Mike Jones designed the displays. The deep sounds of a ship horn and noises of a busy dock can be faintly heard at the display of rattan suitcases and trunks that greets visitors to the museum. Walking over to the plantation camp section, a bicycle bell rings and a screen door slams while digital camp maps with dwellings, stores, graveyards and “chicken fight” areas clearly marked appear on a screen.

“It has been our long-term goal to create a space that would preserve and house artifacts used in the Plantation Era,” Kutsunai said. “This is only a beginning. We hope to have a full-scale museum in the future.”

Lahaina Restoration Foundation oversees, maintains, protects and restores the Lahaina Historic Districts, which include six museums and numerous historic sites.

As a significant place throughout Hawaii’s history, Lahaina’s unique character and sense of place are a blend of cultural themes and economic influences that have each left a physical remnant of their presence.

For more information on the non-profit Lahaina Restoration Foundation, visit www.lahainarestoration.org or call 661-3262.