Jishan Gatehouse (, literally "accumulate goodwill tower") is a historic

gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the mos ...

Beitun District Beitun District (; lit: northern camp) is a district in Taichung, Taiwan. Located in the northern part of the city, it is a half mountainous, half urban area. Though Beitun District used to be considered part of the countryside, the new Taiyuan ...

Taichung Taichung (, Wade–Giles: ''Tʻai²-chung¹'', pinyin: ''Táizhōng''), officially Taichung City, is a special municipality located in central Taiwan. Taichung has approximately 2.8 million residents and is the second most populous city of Taiw ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Initially constructed as the south entrance to a ''

sanheyuan ''Sanheyuan'' (Chinese: ; pinyin: ''sānhéyuàn''; Wade–Giles: ''san1-ho2-yüan4'') is a historical type of residence that was commonly found throughout China and Taiwan. ''Sanheyuan'' have structures on three sides of a courtyard, forming an ...

'', the gatehouse is protected as a historical site in Taichung.

History

The Lai family were one of the earliest

Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive va ...

settlers in Taichung. Originating from Pinghe County,

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...

in mainland China, the family settled in what is modern-day Beitun District. In 1898, a member of this family, Changrong Lai (賴長榮), moved from Touzhang to the north to the current location, building the ''sanheyuan'' known as "Huaidetang" (). A simple gate was constructed at the southern entrance. In 1924, the family decided to rebuild the southern entrance according to a feng shui specialist's advice. The new entrance is said to be able to boost the family's prosperity and keep them away from harm. The name of the building was taken to encourage future generations to act with kindness.

References

{{Coord, 24.1693, N, 120.6938, E, type:landmark_region:TW, display=title 1924 establishments in Taiwan Buildings and structures completed in 1924 Buildings and structures in Taichung

History

See also

References