Huwei Joint Government Hall is one of Yunlin County's best-preserved late Japanese-era modernist government buildings, completed in 1939 to house the fire brigade and police substation under the Huwei District Office; it was registered as a Yunlin County historic building in 2001, and eslite bookstore moved in to revitalize it in 2014, keeping the building in active public use.
Huwei Joint Government Hall was built in 1939 (Showa 14) as an annex to the Huwei District Office to relieve its cramped offices, housing the fire brigade, a police substation, and a public assembly hall; it was registered as a Yunlin County historic building — not a national monument — on October 31, 2001, and eslite bookstore, having signed with the county government in 2013, officially opened alongside Starbucks on January 20, 2014 (Wikipedia; National Cultural Heritage Database). Only five such 'joint hall' buildings survive nationwide: in Keelung, Hsinchu, Huwei, Tainan, and Hualien.
Highlights of Huwei Joint Government Hall
The building originally housed the Huwei District Office and the Police Department in a shared structure — 'joint' (合同) referring to multiple agencies under one roof. The exterior uses the modernist style that prevailed in the 1930s and 40s: horizontal strip windows, plain white walls, and horizontal string courses replacing the ornamental historical-revival details of an earlier era, while the corner tower retains the sense of mass and ceremony expected of a government building. The original structure remains intact, with the walls and tower outline clearly legible.
After eslite bookstore moved into Huwei, the interior maintained its reading and bookselling function while preserving the original corridor and room layout. Bookshelves and aged walls stand side by side, creating a rare scene of adaptive reuse in a historic building. The Yunlin Glove Puppetry Museum is immediately adjacent, and both are within the Huwei Cultural Park, making a combined visit efficient.
How to make the most of your visit
Practical information
Getting there and hours
- The exterior can be viewed at any time of day. For the bookstore interior, check eslite's current opening hours before you go.
- By car, enter Huwei via Provincial Highway 19. The hall is on Linsen Road Section 1; street parking and public car parks are nearby.
- By bus, alight at Huwei Station and walk about ten minutes, or use Huwei Youbike for the short trip.
Nearby connections
- Huwei Joint Government Hall, Yunlin Glove Puppetry Museum, Huwei Sugar Factory Creative Park, and Huwei Iron Bridge form a complete Huwei cultural day trip — all within three kilometers of each other.
- Douliu City's Taiping Old Street and Yunzhong Street Creative Village are about fifteen kilometers east of Huwei and can be added for a two-day Yunlin historic architecture itinerary.
Sources: Cultural Heritage Bureau (Ministry of Culture) Monument Database, Yunlin County Government Cultural Tourism Bureau. Photos pending Dio's own shots.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Huwei Joint Government Hall a national monument?
It is a Yunlin County historic building, registered in 2001, not a national monument.
When was Huwei Joint Government Hall built?
It was completed in 1939, during the late Japanese colonial period.
When did eslite bookstore move into the building?
It officially opened inside the hall in January 2014, alongside a Starbucks.