Aug 29, 2014 - 1 min read

Fujimura Memorial Hall

An old school building dating back to 1875

By Cathy Cawood

Community writer

The building is set in a spacious paved area

The second floor features a colonial style balcony

Small-paned windows with dark gray shutters

Even on a gray, rainy day it was impressive

View from the balcony

A model of the wooden framework of the building stands below an impressionist painting

A scroll showing Takeda Shingen and his men

A hanko stamp pad (stamps are used instead of signatures in Japan)

Dragon motif on the cover of a small metal container

A collection of children's toys

Old wooden desks in neat rows

The old wooden staircase

This bowl of old-fashioned roses was sitting on the porch

I thought these differently sized chairs were cute

Near Kofu Station in Yamanashi stands a striking building with graceful lines and dark gray window shutters. It looks sort of colonial, and was in fact one of the earliest Western Style buildings to be built in Yamanashi. It is named for Shiro Fujimura, the second governor of Yamanashi, who encouraged Yamanashi people to imitate Western styles of architecture - a trend starting in the early Meiji Era. The building served as a school until 1957, then after a few years as a community center, it was moved to the present site near Kofu station to be preserved as a national cultural asset of importance. Admission is free, and there are some interesting objects on display.

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Cathy Cawood

By Cathy Cawood

Community writer

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