Mary Dominis

Mary Lambert Jones Dominis (August 3, 1803 – April 25, 1889) was an American settler of Hawaii and the first mistress of Washington Place in Honolulu. Born into a large New England family, she married merchant sea Captain John Dominis, for whom Honolulu was a frequent port of trade. The couple relocated in 1837 to the Hawaiian Kingdom with their son John Owen Dominis. Their two daughters remained behind to complete their education.

As the Dominis mansion was being constructed, King Kamehameha III relocated the seat of government from Lahaina, Maui, to Honolulu, which was quickly becoming a nexus where commerce and the government intersected. As her husband was often away, Mary was responsible for overseeing the construction of the house and gardens. On a voyage to China, Captain Dominis was lost at sea, and the completion of the mansion fell to Mary, who took in long-term boarders. On the birthday of U.S. President George Washington in 1848, the U.S. commissioner to Hawaii, Anthony Ten Eyck, who was living there as a boarder, had the mansion officially named "Washington Place".

Her son John Owen Dominis married Hawaiian high chiefess Lydia Kamakaʻeha Pākī, the future Queen Liliʻuokalani. She disapproved of the marriage but came to terms with the union towards the end of her life. Upon Mary's death, her daughter-in-law removed the American flag that had flown at Washington Place.

Mary Dominis established the first European-style garden in Hawaii. She also began Hawaii's annual Christmas festivities by inviting the children of Honolulu and their parents to Washington Place to celebrate the holiday. This event marked the first appearance of the Christmas tree and Santa Claus traditions in Hawaii. The celebrations of Christmas at Washington House have continued for over 160 years and are an annual tradition in Honolulu.