The Waterhouse Memorial Hall was built in 1913 by the Vories’ enterprise, Vories Unlimited Partnership, now as Omi Brotherhood, Ltd. It was a family residence for Paul B. Waterhouse, who first came to Japan as an English instructor at Waseda University, before meeting Vories and working together for 6 years in evangelistic outreach efforts.
Upon first meeting Vories, Waterhouse instantly admired his strong passion and devotion to the missionary work. This led him to join the Omi Mission, which was established by Vories as an umbrella organization for his missionary activities. As a skilled sailor, Waterhouse became the captain of the Galilee Maru, a mission ship on Lake Biwa, and traveled with Vories to the villages that surround the lake.
Western-style buildings were also constructed around the Waterhouse Residence. The Yoshida Residence was built in the same year as the Waterhouse Residence in 1913. In the following year, the Vories Residence was completed, followed by the Omi Mission Double House in 1921. A tennis court was also constructed in the central space between these residences. This area is now called the Western-Style Building District. Except for the Vories Residence, the original architecture remains intact for all of these, as well as for the Omi Kaseijuku Building.
After the Waterhouse Family returned to the US, the building was used for cooking classes held by the Omi Mission Women's Club. The kitchen and dining room were equipped with the latest cooking appliances and utensils imported from the US by Vories’ business, Omi Sales, which was formerly the Vories Unlimited Partnership.
After the Waterhouse Hall had finished serving as a residence, it was used later for different purposes. Because of the building's large size and its neighboring tennis court, it served for some time as a school building for the Omi Brotherhood Girls’ School, which opened in 1947 under new school reforms, continuing on from the previous Omi School for Women Workers, established in 1933.
