Ward Warehouse

Victoria Ward and her husband, Curtis Perry Ward, once owned an estate comprising over 100 acres in central Honolulu. At its greatest extent, these lands stretched all the way from Thomas Square to the shore. Until Hawaiian property laws changed in the 1870's, the Ward's stewardship responsibilities included all of the fringing reef fronting their property as well as fishing rights that extended indefinitely out to sea.

Victoria was born in Nu'uanu in 1846, the daughter of English shipbuilder, James Robinson and his wife, Rebecca Previer, a woman of Hawaiian ancestry whose chiefly lineage had roots in Ka'u, Hilo and Honokowai, Maui. C.P. Ward, Victoria's future husband, was born and reared in Kentucky, and he arrived in Honolulu in 1853. A vocal defender of his southern homeland during the War Between the States, C.P. Ward is remembered for his business acumen and staunch family loyalty. In the years before his marriage to Victoria in 1865, Ward established a thriving livery and dray business that serviced bustling Honolulu Harbor.

As was common for many young married couples of English and Hawaiian ancestry during this period, Curtis and Victoria Ward socialized comfortably with Honolulu's expatriate British families as well as with members of the various Royal families. This was a period of considerable turbulence in Hawaiian political affairs, and Curtis and Victoria joined with their friends in resisting the rising power of the sugar barons and firmly opposed reciprocity with the United States. Even in later years, Victoria Ward held to her political convictions and remained a loyal friend and supporter of Lili'uokalani after the overthrow of the monarchy in 1893.

For many years, Curtis and Victoria made their home near Honolulu Harbor on property presently occupied by the Davies Pacific Center. Seven daughters were born during these years: Mary Elizabeth (the future Mrs. Frank Hustace), Kulamanu, May (the future Mrs. Ernest Wodehouse), Einei, Lucy, Kathleen and Lani.