Chongshan North Road Tōdōri: The Road to the Shrine Paved by the Japanese Was Ultimately Reclaimed by Japanese Businesses

30-Second Overview: On April 17, 1923, 19-year-old Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito boarded a carriage at Taipei Station, traveling along a 15-meter-wide road to the Taiwan Shrine in Yuanshan¹. The Japanese named it "Chishiki Street" (Imperial Envoy Street). Construction for expansion began on March 30, 1937². On March 28, 1941, at 11:00 AM, a completion memorial service was held at the Taiwan Shrine. The road width was expanded to 40 meters, featuring a five-lane avenue, camphor trees on the median islands, maple trees on the sidewalks, mercury streetlights, and underground wiring. The construction cost was over 1.62 million yen². On October 25, 1945, at 10:00 AM, Rikichi Andō, in his dual capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese 10th Area Army and Governor-General of Taiwan, surrendered to Chen Yi, the representative of the Republic of China, at the Taipei Public Hall (now Zhongshan Hall)³. The Chishiki Street was renamed "Chongshan North Road" to commemorate the National Father, Sun Yat-sen. In 1951, the year after the Korean War broke out, the US Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) stationed in Taiwan⁴. The area around Section 3 of Chongshan North Road became an "American Concession," and Qingguang Market became the distribution center for PX goods⁵. On September 29, 1972, the day the Republic of China severed diplomatic ties with Japan, Japanese businesses did not withdraw; on April 28, 1979, the last US Defense Commander, Major General Linder, left Taiwan, and the site of the former USTDC Yuanshan Headquarters became the Taipei Fine Arts Museum⁶. Japanese businesses instead moved in heavily in the 1980s, with over 400 Japanese bars and izakayas operating simultaneously in the Tōdōri alleys⁷. At 9 PM tonight, walk into Sanjōdōri (Third Alley). As the izakaya noren curtains are lifted, laughter mixing Japanese and Taiwanese emerges. A 5-kilometer-long road has seen three foreign empires layer upon one another in sequence. The road to the shrine paved by the Japanese was ultimately taken back by Japanese trading companies. This article argues that the Chongshan North Road lived by Taipei people is not merely a "National Father Memorial Road," but a material landscape left by an island after three foreign empires took turns taking over.

9 PM in Sanjōdōri (Third Alley)

If you ask a 50-year-old Taipei person, "What is the most charming moment on Chongshan North Road?" they will not tell you about the red-tiled roofs of the Grand Hotel Taipei. They will tell you about the moment you walk into Sanjōdōri (Third Alley) at 9 PM.

Walk north from Exit 4 of Taipei Metro's Zhongshan Station for 50 meters, turn right at the intersection of Lane 53, Section 1, Chongshan North Road, and you have entered the Sanjōdōri area. The alley is 4 meters wide, flanked by old buildings 3 to 5 stories high. The first-floor signs display Japanese katakana and Chinese characters side by side: "Toru Chū," "Jolly Pasta," "Dragon Izakaya," "Yakitori Miyachi ka." Before 5:30 PM, it is quiet like an office alley, but after 7 PM, the signs light up one by one. By 9 PM, the noren curtain of the second izakaya is lifted, and laughter mixing Japanese and Taiwanese spills out.

Nanajōdōri (Seventh Alley) is the most famous of the Tōdōri culture — the intersection of Lane 121, Section 1, Chongshan North Road and Lane 119, Linssen North Road⁸. The Netflix series Hua Deng Chu Shang (Lights of the Night), released in 2021, filmed in this alley. The entrance of the "Hikari" HIKARI Hotel in the drama was filmed at the Sugar Bar in Nanajōdōri⁹. The actual scene at Lane 133, Linssen North Road filmed the first meeting between Ruby Lin and Tony Yang.

But the scope of Tōdōri culture is actually broader — Ichijōdōri (First Alley) is Shimin North Road, Nijōdōri (Second Alley) is Lane 33, Section 1, Chongshan North Road, Sanjōdōri to Kyūjōdōri (Third to Ninth Alleys) are neatly arranged between Lane 33 to Lane 135, Section 1, Chongshan North Road and Lane 67 to Lane 145, Linssen North Road. Jūjōdōri (Tenth Alley) is Lane 159, Linssen North Road⁸. The ten alleys run parallel northward, modeled after Kyoto's grid-like "machiwari" (town planning) design. East-west streets are called "dōri" (avenue/alley), and north-south streets are called "jin" (street)¹⁰.

This grid structure was not originally a bar street. When the Japanese designated this land as the "Taishō Town" high-end residential area in 1922, they built detached and semi-detached Western-style houses for Japanese officials. It was the best-secured and most prestigious residential area in Taipei during the Japanese colonial period¹⁰. A hundred years later, the people living in the same grid changed, but the alleys did not — the material skeleton of Taishō Town is the material foundation of the Tōdōri bar street.

📝 Curator's Note: General introductions describe Tōdōri as "bars opened by the Japanese when they came to Taiwan." This narrative misses a key timeline. In 1922, when the Japanese planned this high-end residential area, there were no bars. In 1945, after the Japanese withdrew, the ROC government took over the Japanese dormitories and turned them into civil servant housing; it was still a residential area. In 1950, the Korean War broke out; in 1951, the US military stationed in. The US military opened bars in these alleys (not Japanese izakayas, but American Bar style for American soldiers). In 1972, ROC-Japan diplomatic break; in 1979, the US military left; in the 1980s, during the Japanese economic bubble, Japanese businesses came to Taiwan — the "Japanese bars" of Tōdōri were actually the Japanese second occupation of this street, this time by trading company employees rather than colonial officials. Same grid, same orientation, but separated by 35 years of US military presence. The noren curtains you see and the Japanese you hear at 9 PM tonight are the result of a three-stage relay: Japanese colonial high-end residential → Post-war US military bars → 1980s Japanese business izakayas.

The Road's Name Changed Three Times

To understand Chongshan North Road, you must first know its name.

During the Qing Dynasty, this land was not within the Taipei City walls. The Taipei Prefectural City, completed in 1884, enclosed 1.4 square kilometers. East of the city, outside the East Gate (Jingfu Gate), were rice fields, cemeteries, and scattered settlements. The southern end of today's Section 1, Chongshan North Road, near the Executive Yuan, was then called "Kabayama Town," a name taken during the Japanese 1922 town name correction — to commemorate Kabayama Sukenori, the first Governor-General of Taiwan¹¹.

Starting in 1898, the Japanese began transforming the land north of Kabayama Town, building a north-south road leading to Yuanshan. What was in Yuanshan? In October 1901, the Taiwan Shrine was completed at the foot of Jiantan Mountain in Yuanshan¹². The shrine's main enshrined deity was Prince Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa, a Japanese imperial who led the Konoe Division to invade Taiwan in 1895 and died of illness in Tainan in October of the same year¹². The Japanese enshrined this "imperial who died for conquering Taiwan" as the "General Guardian" of Taiwan. The shrine's official rank was "Kanpei Taisha" (Imperial Grand Shrine), the highest level of shrine during the Japanese colonial period¹².

This 5-kilometer road from Taipei Station (now Taipei Main Station) to the Taiwan Shrine had a specific name in Japanese — Chishiki Street (Imperial Envoy Street). "Chishiki" refers to "the Emperor's envoy" in Japanese. On April 16, 1923, 19-year-old Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito (later Emperor Shōwa) boarded a carriage at Taipei Station and traveled along the Chishiki Street to the Taiwan Shrine for worship¹. Accompanying him were Imperial Prince Kitashirakawa Naruhisa, Imperial Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu, and other royals¹.

On April 17, 1923, Crown Prince Hirohito visited the Taiwan Shrine. Photo: National Taiwan Museum Collection. Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

Hirohito's visit that year was directly related to the later shape of the Chishiki Street. Starting in 1936, the Japanese began planning the expansion of the Chishiki Street, because 1940 was the anniversary of the Japanese "Imperial Era 2600," and the Taiwan Shrine also needed to expand accordingly. As a worship road, the Chishiki Street had to be upgraded². Expansion construction began on March 30, 1937. On March 28, 1941, at 11:00 AM, a completion memorial service was held at the Taiwan Shrine. The road width expanded from 15 meters to 40 meters, a five-lane avenue. The central fast lane and two side slow lanes were paved with asphalt. Trees were planted along the entire line. The median island greenery consisted of camphor trees, and the inner side of the pedestrian walkways had maple trees. Mercury streetlights were installed along the road, and wiring was undergrounded. The construction cost was over 1.62 million yen. In an era of wartime material shortages, this budget indicates the weight of this road in the imperial narrative².

📝 Curator's Note: The completion memorial service on March 28, 1941, was the last large-scale public construction ceremony in Japanese-ruled Taiwan. In December of that year, the Pearl Harbor Incident occurred, and the Pacific War broke out. The Taiwan Governor-General's construction budget was quickly swallowed by the war. The Chishiki Street was completed at the last moment — 40 meters wide, camphor trees, maple trees, underground wiring — and then the Japanese left. Today, walking along Section 1 to Section 3 of Chongshan North Road, the trees on the median islands have been replaced several times, but the 40-meter road width planned in 1941 has never changed. An empire collapsed while a road was half-expanded, but the road itself remained. Some of the trees planted in 1941 lived until the 1970s before being replaced. The Japanese ritual space is the material heritage left by this city, regardless of whether you like it or not.

The Chishiki Street and Meiji Bridge between 1901-1945. Photo: Unknown (Japanese colonial period hand-drawn postcard). Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

On October 25, 1945, at 10:00 AM, three months after the end of World War II, Rikichi Andō, in his dual capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese 10th Area Army and Governor-General of Taiwan, surrendered to Chen Yi, the representative of the Republic of China, at the Taipei Public Hall (now Zhongshan Hall)³. On the day the surrender ceremony ended, the existence of the Taiwan Governor-General was terminated.

The Chishiki Street also came to an end. After the National Government took over, it renamed this road "Chongshan North Road" to commemorate the National Father, Sun Yat-sen¹¹. The Meiji Bridge was renamed "Zhongshan Bridge"¹³. The ritual road paved by the Japanese for the imperial family became a National Father memorial road after the war. The name changed, but the road remained the same.

The Machine Gun Sweep of 1947

Less than 16 months after Chongshan North Road was renamed, something happened on this road that changed the fate of post-war Taiwan.

On the evening of February 27, 1947, inspectors from the Taiwan Provincial Monopoly Bureau found tobacco vendor Lin Jiangmai in front of Tianma Teahouse in Dadaocheng. During the inspection, they injured Lin Jiangmai with a gun butt, causing outrage among the onlookers. In the confusion, inspector Fu Xuetong fired a shot, accidentally killing pedestrian Chen Wenxi¹⁴. The next day, February 28, 1947, in the morning, people began to gather.

Around 1:00 PM, about 400-500 people departed from Taipei Station, heading towards the Taiwan Provincial Administrative Long-Official's Office (now the Executive Yuan) along Zhongqing South Road. The route was Chengde Road → Nanjing West Road → Dihua Street → Minsheng West Road → Yanping North Road → North Gate → Zhongxiao West Road → Zhongqing South Road → Chongshan South Road → Administrative Long-Official's Office¹⁵. When the procession reached the Chongshan Road intersection, before reaching the plaza in front of the Long-Official's Office, they were stopped by guards raising their guns. Subsequently, guards on the second floor of the Long-Official's Office opened fire with machine guns to disperse the crowd, causing at least 2 deaths and several injuries on the spot¹⁵.

The location of that machine gun sweep — the Chongshan Road intersection — is today's intersection of Chongshan South Road and Zhongxiao West Road, only one street away from Section 1 of Chongshan North Road to the north. On the afternoon of the same day, Huang Chaoqin, Chairman of the Taipei City Council, held an emergency meeting at Zhongshan Hall (former Public Hall). The next day, March 1, 1947, the "Investigation Committee for the Tobacco Smuggling Blood Case" was established at Zhongshan Hall, later renamed the "February 28 Incident Handling Committee"¹⁶.

📝 Curator's Note: The common narrative of the February 28 Incident focuses on Tianma Teahouse in Dadaocheng (the first shot) and the Administrative Long-Official's Office (the machine gun sweep location). However, the role of Zhongshan Hall is often overlooked. The Taipei Public Hall, completed in 1936, hosted the Japanese surrender ceremony on October 25, 1945, and held a meeting on February 28, 1947, that determined the direction of Taiwan's next 38 years. From peace to war, from surrender to suppression, this building witnessed two extreme historical moments within a year and four months. Today, walking into Zhongshan Hall, the square outside is quiet like a tourist attraction, but the ground beneath your feet is the physical site of two post-war Taiwan watershed moments. The starting point of Chongshan North Road — the intersection of Chongshan North and South Roads in front of the Executive Yuan — is only 800 meters from Zhongshan Hall and 1.5 kilometers from Tianma Teahouse. This small triangle formed by these three locations is the physical epicenter of Taiwan's post-war tragedy.

The US Military of 1951

On December 7, 1949, the National Government announced its relocation to Taiwan. Chiang Kai-shek flew to Taipei at 8:30 PM on December 10¹⁷. From this year onwards, Chongshan North Road became one of the most important axes of the Republic of China's capital — connecting the military stronghold of Yuanshan in the north to the Executive Yuan, Presidential Office, and Five Yuans in the south.

But the next transformation of Chongshan North Road came from a war.

On June 25, 1950, the Korean War broke out. US President Truman immediately dispatched the Seventh Fleet to the Taiwan Strait and resumed military aid to the Republic of China. In 1951, the US Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG) officially stationed in Taiwan¹⁸.

Where was the MAAG headquarters? Section 3, Chongshan North Road, near the Yuanshan section¹⁸. The specific location is today's Zhongshan Art Park (several hectares of land between Minsheng East Road and Chongshan North Road)¹⁸. After the ROC-US Mutual Defense Treaty took effect on April 26, 1955, the United States Taiwan Defense Command (USTDC) was established. Starting November 1, 1955, it was located in Taipei Yuanshan, with the headquarters at the site of today's Taipei Fine Arts Museum⁶.

At its peak, the MAAG had 2,347 military officers and enlisted men¹⁸. Throughout the 1950-70s, the area around Section 3, Chongshan North Road in Taipei concentrated the two major US military headquarters of USTDC and MAAG + the US Embassy to China (the Victorian-style mansion at No. 18, Section 2, Chongshan North Road, starting in 1953)¹⁹ + the Tianmu US Military Dormitory Complex where MAAG dependents lived (construction started in 1953, around Lane 181, Section 7, Chongshan North Road)²⁰.

The former US Ambassador's Residence (now Lightpoint Taipei), No. 18, Section 2, Chongshan North Road, 2025. Photo: Outlookxp. CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

Along the 5 kilometers from Section 1 to Section 3 of Chongshan North Road, the US's three major diplomatic, military, and residential bases stood in a row. Six years after this street was renamed from "Chishiki Street" to "Chongshan North Road," it became an "American Concession."

Qingguang Market grew out of this context. Located near the intersection of Chongshan North Road and Shuangcheng Street, it was originally to be called "Zhen Guang Market" in 1951, but the Hokkien pronunciation of "Zhen Guang" sounded like "Absurd," so it was changed to "Qingguang," meaning "Bright/Smart"²¹. The key to the market's formation was the US military PX (Post Exchange). Imported goods (jewelry, clothing, gifts, department store items) flowing out from the PX for American soldiers and dependents were all resold at Qingguang stalls²¹. In the 1950-60s, Qingguang was the place in Taipei where people most quickly touched the material life of "America."

During the August 7-9, 1959, Black Water Flood, the USTDC mobilized three US Navy helicopters to assist in disaster relief. Washington subsequently sent the aircraft carrier "USS Seaside Bay" carrying 21 Sikorsky H-34 helicopters to Taiwan. The mission code name was "Operation Hunger"²². During the post-disaster reconstruction period, US aid poured heavily into Taiwan.

On August 26, 1963, the Taipei US Military Guesthouse was established in Section 3, Chongshan North Road. From 1965 to 1972, during the Vietnam War, it hosted hundreds of thousands of US troops stationed in Vietnam for R&R (Rest and Recuperation)²³. At the peak of the Vietnam War, thousands of American soldiers flew from Vietnam to Taipei every week, spending money in the Qingguang Business District around Section 3, Chongshan North Road. American Bars, imported goods stores, hostess bars — this consumption ecosystem originated from the material heritage of US military consumption, not the prototype of the later 1980s Tōdōri culture.

📝 Curator's Note: The common narrative attributes Tōdōri's "bar culture" to the Japanese colonial period's "geisha entertainment" tradition. This narrative reverses the timeline. In the 1920s, Taishō Town was a high-end residential area with no bars. After the ROC government took over in 1945-1950, it became civil servant dormitories, still with no bars. Bars grew in the Tōdōri alleys only after the US military stationed in 1951, initially in American American Bar style — cowboys, jazz, martinis, hostesses, dancing. After the ROC-Japan diplomatic break in 1972 and the US military withdrawal in 1979, Japanese businesses took over the same shops in the 1980s, changing American Bars to Japanese izakaya styles, changing dancing to hostess entertainment — but the material landscape was inherited from the US military era, not the Japanese colonial period. Tōdōri's "Japanese" style flowed back after 1980, it was not left from the 1920s.

Japan Didn't Leave on That Day in 1972

On the morning of September 29, 1972, in the East Hall of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka, Foreign Minister Masayoshi Ohira, and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai, Foreign Minister Ji Pengfei, signed the Joint Communique of the People's Republic of China and Japan, announcing the establishment of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and Japan²⁴.

On the same day, the Republic of China government, on the principle of "traitors and thieves cannot coexist," announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Japan²⁴. The Japanese Embassy in Taipei quickly changed its establishment to the "Taipei Office of the Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association" (a non-official counterpart institution).

But Japanese businesses did not leave.

The 1970s was a period of high growth for the Japanese economy following the "Jimmu景气" and "Iwato景气," known as the "Archipelago Transformation." Companies in Tokyo and Osaka established branches overseas in large numbers. Taipei was one of the key destinations for Japanese business dispatches⁷. The 1972 diplomatic break did not cause Japanese businesses to withdraw; instead, due to the political vacuum after the break, private commercial activities needed more intensive non-official footholds. Where did Japanese businesses choose to live after coming to Taiwan? Naturally, they returned to the grid where Japanese lived during the Taishō Town period — the Tōdōri alleys east of Chongshan North Road and west of Linssen North Road.

From the perspective of the "relay" between the US military and Japanese businesses, the 8-year transition period from 1972 ROC-Japan diplomatic break → 1979 US military withdrawal → 1980s Japanese business entry completely rewrote the consumption pattern on the same street. On April 26, 1979, the USTDC held its last flag-lowering ceremony at its Yuanshan headquarters⁶. On April 28, 1979, the last US Defense Commander, Major General James B. Linder, left Taiwan⁶. On May 3, 1979, the last US military personnel left Taiwan¹⁸.

Qingguang Market immediately felt the impact. "After the US Military Assistance Advisory Group and Defense Commander withdrew in 1979 (Republic of China Year 68), the once-flourishing Qingguang Market gradually declined, losing its past bustle"²¹. But the Tōdōri alleys on the same street did not decline — the year the US military left, Japanese businesses had already started taking over.

In the 1980s, during the Japanese economic bubble, the number of Japanese businesses coming to Taiwan exploded. Japanese bars, izakayas, Japanese restaurants, and karaoke boxes opened in large numbers around Linssen North Road. "At its peak, over 400 stores operated here simultaneously"⁷. In March 1989, the first Chateau KTV store opened on Linssen North Road, expanding to five branches by the end of the year²⁵. The late 1980s to early 1990s Linssen North Road was one of the birthplaces of Taiwan's KTV industry.

The term "Tōdōri" — Japanese "jō" (alley) and "dōri" (street) — was also fixed during this period. Before the 1980s, Taipei people referred to this area as "Linssen North Road" or "alleys in Section 1, Chongshan North Road." After the 1980s, they began to commonly use Japanese numbering like "Nanajōdōri" (Seventh Alley), "Hachijōdōri" (Eighth Alley), "Kyūjōdōri" (Ninth Alley).

📝 Curator's Note: On the day the Joint Communique of the People's Republic of China and Japan was signed on September 29, 1972, the Japanese Embassy in Tokyo withdrew from Taipei, but most Japanese business employees did not leave. Why? Because Japan's 1970s economic momentum came from exports — semiconductors, automobiles, and electronics needed overseas markets, and Taiwan was the geographically and culturally closest option. After the diplomatic break, both sides abandoned diplomatic equality in exchange for continued free movement in the economic sphere. The same logic applies to the 1979 US-China diplomatic break — American soldiers left, but the same year the Taiwan Relations Act was passed, US-Taiwan non-official relations continued through the "American Institute in Taiwan" to this day. Taipei was the material experimental field for the diplomatic model of 'breaking diplomatic ties but continuing interaction' in the 1970-80s. The two plots in Section 3, Chongshan North Road (USTDC + MAAG) became the Fine Arts Museum and Art Park — military land downgraded to cultural land. But Japanese businesses continued to come to the Tōdōri alleys; this conversion is not visible at the street level.

The De-naming of 1996

Before 1996, the road in front of the Presidential Office was called "Jieshou Road" — a name changed in 1946 to celebrate Chiang Kai-shek's 60th birthday²⁶. This same road, connecting north to Section 1, Chongshan North Road, then Section 2, Section 3, all the way to Yuanshan. From Jieshou Road to Chongshan North Road, this 6-kilometer north-south axis is the most concentrated material landscape of Taiwan's political power.

On March 21, 1996, Chen Shui-bian, who had just been elected Mayor of Taipei for one year, announced the renaming of "Jieshou Road" to "Ketagalan Boulevard"²⁶. The reason for the renaming was clear — Jieshou Road commemorated an individual leader, while Ketagalan Boulevard commemorated the indigenous people of the Taipei Basin²⁶.

This renaming action was a symmetrical structure in the history of Chongshan North Road. In 1923, 19-year-old Crown Prince Hirohito rode a carriage from Taipei Station along the Chishiki Street, the highest ritual space of the Japanese Empire. In 1996, Chen Shui-bian named the southern end of this road an indigenous people memorial road, a reverse action by the democratized Taiwan towards colonial history. 73 years after the Japanese Emperor was received in worship from the end of this road, 73 years later, the other end of the road was named for the indigenous people who came before the Japanese.

Looking north from the Flower Expo Pedestrian Overpass at Section 3, Chongshan North Road, April 25, 2011. Photo: Xuan Shi Sheng. CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

1996 was also a key year for the major transformation of buildings at both ends of Chongshan North Road. Before 1995, the former US Ambassador's Residence was listed for demolition. On February 20, 1997, the Ministry of the Interior designated it as a City-Designated Historic Site¹⁹. On November 10, 2002, the former US Embassy, after restoration, was changed to "Lightpoint Taipei," operated by the Taiwan Film Culture Association led by Hou Hsiao-hsien, with hardware restoration sponsored by the TSMC Cultural and Educational Foundation. The Victorian mansion, which had been idle for 18 years after the ROC-US diplomatic break, became the home of Taiwan's film culture.

On December 20, 2002, the Zhongshan Bridge (formerly Meiji Bridge) was demolished, cut into 435 pieces and stored at the site of the Zai Chun Swimming Pool¹³. The reinforced concrete arch bridge, completed in 1933, was selected as one of the "Eight Scenic Views of Taiwan" that year¹³. It survived for 69 years before being demolished under Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's term on the grounds of "hindering the泄洪 (flood discharge) of the Keelung River." The last physical link of the Japanese colonial period on this axis from Chishiki Street to Chongshan North Road was cut off.

View near the Meiji Bridge, Japanese colonial period. Photo: Li Huozeng. Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

Three Places, Traces of Three Empires

After finishing the story of Chongshan North Road Tōdōri culture, locals will not take you to take photos at the Grand Hotel Taipei, nor will they take you to drink at Din Tai Fung. Locals will take you to see three places, each corresponding to a trace of an empire.

Lightpoint Taipei (No. 18, Section 2, Chongshan North Road). A white Victorian mansion built in the American South in 1926. It was upgraded to the US Consulate General in Taipei in 1949, changed to the US Ambassador's Residence in 1953, idle for 18 years after the 1979 diplomatic break, designated as a City-Designated Historic Site in 1997, and changed to Lightpoint Taipei Film Museum in 2002¹⁹²⁷. Today, Lightpoint Taipei screens 4 to 6 art films daily, and the first floor has the Wool & Flower Coffee Bistro. When sitting on the second-floor balcony, the traffic on Section 2, Chongshan North Road is endless before your eyes, and you are standing on the floor where the US Ambassador to China ate breakfast from 1953 to 1979. From a US political foothold to a Taiwan film cultural foothold, this conversion is more concrete than any text description.

Grand Hotel Taipei (No. 1, Section 4, Chongshan North Road, Yuanshan). From 1901 to 1944, this land was the Taiwan Shrine (later upgraded to Taiwan Grand Shrine). It was demolished after being hit by Japanese planes (legend says their own planes) in 1944²⁸. On May 10, 1952, Soong Mei-ling led the "Taiwan Friendship Association" to take over the former Taiwan Shrine land and rebuild it as the "Taiwan Grand Hotel," later renamed the "Grand Hotel Taipei"²⁸. By 1963, the hotel's foundation was complete. In 1973, the 14-story Chinese Palace-style red-tiled building designed by Yang Zhuocheng was completed — from this point on, the Grand Hotel Taipei became one of Taipei's most iconic buildings. From the highest divine site of the Japanese Empire to the reception gate of the Republic of China, the same land, from worship to hotel, but the "highest level" political meaning never disappeared.

_The Grand Hotel Taipei, March 11, 2012. Photo: lienyuan lee. CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons._

Taipei Fine Arts Museum (No. 181, Section 3, Chongshan North Road). From November 1, 1955, for 30 years, it was the USTDC Yuanshan Headquarters of the US Military Assistance Command Taiwan — from 1955 to 1979, this land was the Taiwan command of the Pacific Theater US military. Major General Linder issued the flag-lowering order from the office here on April 26, 1979⁶. After the US military withdrew in 1979, the land was idle for a few years. On December 24, 1983, the Taipei Fine Arts Museum officially opened on the former USTDC land. The US Military Command became Taiwan's first public modern art museum. This conversion explains the direction of Taiwan's social transformation after 1979 more cleanly: from a military frontier to a cultural subject.

After visiting these three places, you understand the true texture of Chongshan North Road. The red tiles of the Grand Hotel Taipei are below the foundation of the Taiwan Shrine from 1901 to 1944; the white wooden blinds of Lightpoint Taipei are the US diplomatic office from 1926 to 1979; the fair-faced brick walls of the Fine Arts Museum are below the US military command base from 1955 to 1979. A 5-kilometer-long road, three places corresponding to the material traces of three foreign empires, each place being "rebuilt after the previous empire left."

📝 Curator's Note: These three places have one thing in common — they are now all cultural spaces (hotel + film museum + art museum). Before 1979, the political symbols on this street were too dense — shrine, embassy, military command — but in the 40 years after 1979, all these political footholds were transformed into cultural footholds. This is not a coincidence. After the ROC-US diplomatic break in 1979, Taiwan faced the dilemma of "no diplomacy, no international organization membership." Cultural subjectivity (film, art, literature, design) became one of the only channels for an island to speak out to the world. The Fine Arts Museum opened in 1983, Lightpoint Taipei opened in 2002 — both are material practices in this direction. Chongshan North Road changed from a "ritual road," "diplomatic road," "military road" to a "cultural road," reflecting Taiwan's post-war decades-long trajectory of "losing diplomacy but establishing culture."

The Same Road, The Same Grid, Different Guests

At 9 PM tonight, we return to the noren curtains of Sanjōdōri (Third Alley).

On April 17, 1923, 19-year-old Crown Prince Hirohito rode a carriage from Taipei Station. On both sides of the road stood Taiwanese locals and Japanese mainlanders in kimonos, bowing to the Crown Prince in the carriage. The Crown Prince did not know that this road would be renamed "Chongshan North Road" 22 years later, nor did he know that 88 years later, the same road would be filled with Japanese business employees in suits walking into izakayas.

At 1:30 PM on February 28, 1947, more than 400 Taipei citizens walked south from the Chongshan Road intersection. They did not reach the plaza in front of the Administrative Long-Official's Office because the machine gun sweep scattered the crowd. Several people died; no one remembered the exact number that day. Three weeks later, Peng Mengji, Commander of the Kaohsiung Fortress, ordered suppression, and the entire island entered martial law. From the door of Zhongshan Hall to the Chongshan North Road intersection is only 800 meters.

On November 1, 1955, the USTDC officially hung its plaque at its Yuanshan headquarters. The 2,347 military officers and enlisted men of MAAG and USTDC + dependents moved into the surroundings of Section 3, Chongshan North Road and the Tianmu US Military Dormitories in large numbers. Qingguang Market rose accordingly, with imported goods flowing from the PX to Taiwan consumers. Section 3, Chongshan North Road became an "American Concession" overnight.

On April 26, 1979, Major General Linder lowered the Stars and Stripes at Yuanshan. Later that day, he wrote a letter to the Pentagon reporting the withdrawal plan. The coffee cup on his desk bore the US Navy logo — that coffee was brewed with beans brought by US aid.

In March 1989, the first Chateau KTV opened on Linssen North Road. In September of the same year, it reopened for the second time. Japanese playlists like Kimi ga Iru Dake de (Just With You) and Tadaima (I'm Home) were placed side by side with Lo Ta-yu's Lugang Small Town and Wu Bai's Last Dance on the song list. Japanese business employees and young Taiwanese people ordered the same song in the same karaoke room.

On the evening of November 26, 2021, the first season of the Netflix series Hua Deng Chu Shang was released. Ruby Lin, playing Luo Yunong, walked into the "Hikari" Hotel in Nanajōdōri (Seventh Alley), with the Tōdōri of 1988 in the background. After the series aired, every Saturday night, the Tōdōri alleys were crowded with young people wanting to take photos for check-ins — they did not know that the ground beneath their feet was the superposition of 1922 Taishō Town, 1951 US military concession, and 1989 Chateau birthplace.

At 9:30 PM on a Friday night in 2026, in an izakaya deep in Sanjōdōri (Third Alley), a 50-year-old Japanese business employee came out of the wooden door of Toru Chū. He lit a cigarette, glanced at the Chinese character signs and the katakana signs, and walked towards the Taipei Metro Station. His company is in the Neihu Science Park, but every Friday night he takes a taxi to Tōdōri for a couple of drinks because the Toru Chū here tastes exactly the same as the Toru Chū in Shinbashi, Tokyo. The sake he just finished was from Niigata, but the cup was fired by a Taiwanese ceramic artist. He has been in Taipei for eight years, but the noren curtains in this alley have been here since the 1980s when his father, a Japanese business employee, came to Taipei.

✦ The name "Chishiki Street" never completely disappeared. Renamed "Chongshan North Road" in 1945, and the southern end renamed "Ketagalan Boulevard" in 1996 — but the 40-meter width on both sides of the road, the positions of the camphor and maple trees, and the grid direction of the Tōdōri alleys were all established by the 1937-1941 expansion project. A road's name can change three times, but a road's material structure never updates.

The core contradiction of Chongshan North Road is this: The Japanese paved it starting in 1898, the 19-year-old Crown Prince Hirohito walked it in 1923, and it was expanded into a 40-meter, five-lane road to the shrine between 1937-1941. After the war, it was renamed to commemorate the Republic of China's National Father. In the 1950s, it became a US military concession. After the US military left in 1979, the ones who ultimately took over this street were still the Japanese — but this time, not the Emperor's special envoys, but trading company employees sent to Taipei by SONY, Panasonic, and Itochu.

Others see Chongshan North Road as the axis between the Grand Hotel Taipei and the Presidential Office. The Chongshan North Road lived by Taipei people is a three-layered axis: the shape of the Chishiki Street in 1923, the bar locations of the US military concession from 1951-1979, and the Tōdōri noren curtains taken over by Japanese businesses after the 1980s. Three foreign empires layered upon one another in sequence. Every time an empire changed, the name changed, but the same 5-kilometer-long road remained the same 5-kilometer-long road.

If you next walk past Lightpoint Taipei on Section 2, Chongshan North Road, stop for 30 seconds. Looking north from Lightpoint Taipei, you see the US Embassy that was removed in 1979; another 1.5 kilometers north to Zhongshan Art Park, you see the US Military Assistance Advisory Group that was removed in 1979; another 500 meters north to the Taipei Fine Arts Museum, you see the US Defense Command Taiwan that was removed in 1979. The three positions form a line, all along Chongshan North Road. Another kilometer north is the Grand Hotel Taipei — the foundation of the Taiwan Shrine demolished in 1944. Japan left 81 years ago, the US left 47 years ago, but tonight at 9 PM, this street still has Japanese business employees laughing and mixing languages with Taipei people.

Further Reading:

• Taipei: Three Times in One City, 1738 Longshan Temple Watching 2004's 101 — The location of Chongshan North Road in the 12 districts, placed side by side with the three timelines of Monga, Dadaocheng, and Xinyi
• Dadaocheng: A Street of 800 Meters Holds Three Centuries — Same batch 1 historic district sibling, a market street rising in the 1860 tea era, the first shot of the 1947 February 28 Incident occurred at No. 189, Nanjing West Road, Dadaocheng
• Monga: The Bustling Place of Qing Dynasty Taipei, Now the Oldest District in Taipei — Same batch 1 historic district sibling, a different street formation time from the "Japanese colonial planning" type of Tōdōri culture
• Ximending: The Entertainment Street Built by the Japanese in 1896, Still Taipei's Youngest Street After 130 Years — Same batch 1 historic district sibling, an out-of-city entertainment area planned by the Japanese like Tōdōri, but following a completely different subculture route
• Taiwan Tea Ceremony and Life Aesthetics — The mutual influence of Japanese aesthetics in Tōdōri culture and the post-war Taiwan tea ceremony revival movement
• February 28 Incident — On February 28, 1947, at 1 PM, a crowd march to the Chongshan Road intersection was machine-gunned by guards; Zhongshan Hall held an emergency meeting on the same day, becoming the headquarters of the Incident Handling Committee
• Beitou Hot Spring Street — 1979 Beitou abolition of prostitution vs. 1997 city-wide abolition of prostitution, two divergences of Taipei's post-war special industry landscape with Linssen North Road Tōdōri culture

Image Sources

This article uses 6 public domain / CC licensed images, all cached in public/article-images/geography/ to avoid hotlinking to source servers:

• Section 3 Zhongshan North Road Birdview from Overpass — Photo: Xuan Shi Sheng, 2011-04-25, CC BY-SA 3.0
• 1923 Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito Visiting Taiwan Shrine — Photo: National Taiwan Museum Collection / Unknown author, 1923-04-17, Public domain
• View of main road to Taiwan Grand Shrine — Photo: Unknown (Japanese colonial period hand-drawn postcard), 1901-1945, Public domain
• View near the Taihoku Meiji Bridge — Photo: Li Huozeng, 1895-1945, Public domain
• Former US Ambassador's Residence Chongshan North Road Side — Photo: Outlookxp, 2025-08-02, CC BY 4.0
• Taipei Grand Hotel Taipei Yuanshan Hotel - panoramio — Photo: lienyuan lee, 2012-03-11, CC BY 3.0

References

1. Taiwan Imperial Visit — Wikipedia — Record of the 1923 April 12-27 Japanese Crown Prince Hirohito visit to Taiwan itinerary, recording the complete visit schedule including departing from Taipei Station on the morning of April 17, traveling along the Chishiki Street to the Taiwan Shrine in Yuanshan, and accompanying royals such as Imperial Prince Kitashirakawa Naruhisa and Imperial Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu.↩
2. Chishiki Street — Wikipedia — Verbatim record of the Chishiki Street expansion project: "Held the expansion groundbreaking ceremony on March 30, 1937, and held the completion memorial service at the Taiwan Shrine at 11:00 AM on March 28, 1941," "The Chishiki Street, expanded at a cost of over 1.62 million yen, was a 40-meter-wide five-lane avenue. The central fast lane and two side slow lanes were asphalt roads. Trees were planted along the entire line. The median island greenery between the fast and slow lanes consisted of camphor trees, and the inner side of the pedestrian walkways had maple trees. Mercury streetlights were installed along the road, and wiring was undergrounded." The motivation for planning the expansion starting in 1936 was the Japanese Era 2600 (1940) commemorative project and the Taiwan Shrine expansion配套.↩
3. Taiwan Restoration — Wikipedia — Complete record of the October 25, 1945, 10:00 AM surrender ceremony held at the Taipei Public Hall (now Zhongshan Hall), where Japan, represented by General Rikichi Andō, Governor-General of Taiwan and Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese 10th Area Army, surrendered to the Allied Powers and the Republic of China representative Chen Yi.↩
4. US Military Assistance Advisory Group (Republic of China) — Wikipedia — Official record of the MAAG US Military Assistance Advisory Group established in 1951 and stationed in Taiwan, including key data such as the 1951 MAAG personnel count, members, and commanders' residences located near the US Ambassador's Residence on Chongshan North Road, and a peak of 2,347 military officers and enlisted men.↩
5. Taipei Pictorial Issue 598, November 2017 — US Military Brought Leisure Entertainment and Business Opportunities to Qingguang Business District — Official magazine of the Taipei City Department of Culture and Tourism records the reasons for the rise of the Qingguang Business District: "During the 1940s when the US Military Assistance Advisory Group was stationed, it was a leisure and entertainment venue for American soldiers." Complete historical background of Qingguang Market becoming the distribution center for imported goods flowing out from the PX (US Military Welfare Center).↩
6. US Military Assistance Command Taiwan — Wikipedia — Complete history of the USTDC: "Taiwan Liaison Center" established on April 26, 1955; renamed "US Military Assistance Command Taiwan" on November 1, 1955; headquarters located in Taipei Yuanshan (current site of the Taipei Fine Arts Museum); held the last flag-lowering ceremony on April 26, 1979; Major General Linder left Taiwan on April 28, 1979, as the last military officer to leave. Complete record.↩
7. Looking at 1988 Tōdōri Culture through "Lights of the Night"! Why Are Japanese Hotels Open All Over in Zhongshan District? — City Studies — City Studies special article from Vision Magazine records the rise of Tōdōri culture: After the 1970s, Japanese trading companies came to Taiwan in large numbers to expand business; during the 1980s Japanese economic recovery period, Japanese businesses纷纷 came to Taipei to establish branches; at its peak, over 400 Japanese bars and izakayas operated simultaneously on Linssen North Road. Complete transformation record.↩
8. Tōdōri Business District — Tōdōri Map + How to Divide Tōdōri — Liberty Times — Specific alley numbering for Tōdōri Business District Ichijōdōri to Jūjōdōri: Ichijōdōri Shimin North Road, Nijōdōri Lane 33, Section 1, Chongshan North Road, Sanjōdōri Lane 53, Section 1, Chongshan North Road plus Lane 67, Linssen North Road, Shijōdōri Chang'an East Road Section 1, Gojōdōri Lane 83, Section 1, Chongshan North Road plus Lane 85, Linssen North Road, Rokujōdōri Lane 105, Section 1, Chongshan North Road plus Lane 107, Linssen North Road, Nanajōdōri Lane 121, Section 1, Chongshan North Road plus Lane 119, Linssen North Road, Hachijōdōri Lane 135, Section 1, Chongshan North Road plus Lane 133, Linssen North Road, Kyūjōdōri Lane 138, Linssen North Road plus Lane 145, Linssen North Road, Jūjōdōri Lane 159, Linssen North Road. Complete comparison table.↩
9. Lights of the Night (TV Series) — Wikipedia — Netflix Taiwan original series Lights of the Night verbatim record: Filming started on September 11, 2020; wrapping on January 27, 2021; Season 1 released on November 26, 2021; starring Ruby Lin, Tony Yang, and Karen Mok; set against the 1988 Linssen North Road Tōdōri culture background; "Hikari" HIKARI Hotel entrance filmed at Nanajōdōri Sugar Bar; Linssen North Road Lane 133 filming scenes. Complete production record.↩
10. Taishō Town (Taipei City) — Wikipedia + Recognizing Taipei's Taishō Town and御成町 during the Japanese Occupation — Urban Renewal Research and Development Foundation — Taishō Town developed by Taiwan Building Co., Ltd. in 1912; divided into Taishō Town (east side) and御成町 (west side, adjacent to Chishiki Street) in the 1922 town name correction. Scope: East of Chongshan North Road, West of Xinsheng North Road, South of Nanjing East Road, North of Shimin North Road. Modeled after Kyoto's grid planning, east-west streets called "dōri," north-south streets called "jin." It was Taiwan's first privately developed high-end modern community, with detached and semi-detached Western-style houses. Complete record.↩
11. Chongshan North Road (Taipei City) — Wikipedia — Chongshan North Road naming history: Japanese colonial period Chishiki Street (from Kabayama Town to Meiji Bridge); post-war renamed "Chongshan North Road" to commemorate National Father Sun Yat-sen. Complete road record spanning Zhongzheng, Zhongshan, and Shilin districts.↩
12. Taiwan Grand Shrine — Wikipedia — Taiwan Shrine completed at the foot of Jiantan Mountain in Yuanshan in 1901; enshrined Prince Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa (led the Konoe Division to invade Taiwan in 1895, died of illness in Tainan in October of the same year); General Guardian of Taiwan; Kanpei Taisha (highest level shrine); upgraded to Grand Shrine in 1944 and added Amaterasu; demolished after the war in 1945. Complete historical record.↩
13. Zhongshan Bridge (Taipei City) — Wikipedia — Meiji Bridge second-generation reinforced concrete arch bridge construction started on January 25, 1930; completed on March 20, 1933; total length 120 meters, width 17 meters, 10-meter vehicle lane plus 3.5-meter pedestrian walkways × 2, granite railings, bronze lamp posts. Post-war renamed Zhongshan Bridge. Demolished on December 20, 2002, cut into 435 pieces and stored at the site of Zai Chun Swimming Pool. Complete bridge history.↩
14. Tianma Teahouse — Wikipedia — Tianma Teahouse incident origin: "Six inspectors from the Taipei Branch of the Taiwan Provincial Monopoly Bureau found a 40-year-old widow Lin Jiangmai, who had children, selling illicit cigarettes in front of Tianma Teahouse." Inspector Fu Xuetong fired a shot in confusion, accidentally killing pedestrian Chen Wenxi. Location: No. 189, Nanjing West Road, Taipei City, opposite Taipei Fazhu Temple. Complete incident record.↩
15. February 28 Incident Relic Database — Taiwan Provincial Administrative Long-Official's Office — February 28, 1947, afternoon crowd march route: Four routes converged from Taipei Back Railway Station Smoke Market, Dadaocheng, Monga, and Student Team to the Administrative Long-Official's Office on Chongshan South Road. Arrived at the Chongshan Road intersection at 1:00 PM, stopped by guards raising guns. Guards on the second floor of the Long-Official's Office opened fire with machine guns, causing at least 2 deaths and several injuries on the spot. Complete record.↩
16. Forgotten Historical Site of the February 28 Incident: Taipei Zhongshan Hall — Story Studio — Key role of Zhongshan Hall in the 1947 February 28 Incident: Taipei City Council held an emergency meeting at Zhongshan Hall on February 28, 1947; "Investigation Committee for the Tobacco Smuggling Blood Case" (later renamed February 28 Incident Handling Committee) formed at Zhongshan Hall on March 1, 1947. Complete incident record.↩
17. Academia Historica Taiwan Document Library — 1949 Government Relocation to Taiwan — December 7, 1949, Presidential Order announced government relocation to Taipei; Chiang Kai-shek flew to Taipei from Chengdu at 8:30 PM on December 10, 1949; 1949-1950 period, about 1.2 million people followed the central government and ROC army from mainland China to Taiwan. Official archive record.↩
18. US Military Stationed in Taiwan — Wikipedia — Complete history of US Military Stationed in Taiwan: Korean War broke out on June 25, 1950; MAAG US Military Assistance Advisory Group stationed in 1951; Washington announced cancellation of MAAG name on February 22, 1979; last US military personnel left on May 3, 1979. Both USTDC and MAAG headquarters were located in Section 3, Chongshan North Road, Yuanshan section (USTDC current site is Taipei Fine Arts Museum, MAAG Logistics Command camp current site is Zhongshan Art Park). Complete record.↩
19. Former US Ambassador's Residence — Wikipedia — Former US Ambassador's Residence at No. 18, Section 2, Chongshan North Road: Completed in 1926; upgraded to US Consulate General in Taipei in 1949; changed to US Ambassador's Residence in 1953; idle after ROC-US diplomatic break in 1979; designated as City-Designated Historic Site when demolition was planned in 1995; Ministry of the Interior designated as City-Designated Historic Site on February 20, 1997; reopened in 2002 after restoration as "Taipei House" (including Lightpoint Taipei Film Museum). Complete building history.↩
20. Yangmingshan US Military Dormitory Complex — Wikipedia — 1951 MAAG planning group hovered over Taipei in helicopters, finally selecting Yangmingshan Shanzihou and Tianmu (end of Section 7, Chongshan North Road) as sites for US military dependents' housing. Construction of Tianmu US Military Dormitories started in 1953, including Tianmu White House (No. 23, Lane 181, Section 7, Chongshan North Road). Complete construction record.↩
21. Strolling Old Taipei: Stories of the Qingguang Business District — Epoch Times — Qingguang Market 1951 (Republic of China Year 40) formation record: Originally to be called "Zhen Guang Market," but Hokkien pronunciation sounded like "Absurd," so changed to "Qingguang." Rise due to 1940s US Military Assistance Advisory Group stationing as a leisure and entertainment venue for American soldiers. Qingguang Market gathered many imported goods stores (jewelry, clothing, gifts, department stores). After the US Military Assistance Advisory Group and Defense Commander withdrew in Republic of China Year 68 (1979), the once-flourishing Qingguang Market gradually declined. Complete business district rise and fall record.↩
22. August 7 Water Flood — Wikipedia — August 7-9, 1959 August 7 Water Flood: USTDC mobilized three US Navy helicopters to assist in disaster relief. Washington ordered the aircraft carrier "USS Seaside Bay" carrying 21 Sikorsky H-34 helicopters to Taiwan. Mission code name "Operation Hunger." Complete disaster relief record.↩
23. US Military Stationed in Taiwan — US Military Guesthouse Entry — Taipei US Military Guesthouse established on August 26, 1963. From 1965 to 1972, during the Vietnam War, it served as a leisure venue for hundreds of thousands of US troops stationed in Vietnam for R&R (Rest and Recuperation). Complete record of Section 3, Chongshan North Road location.↩
24. Joint Communique of the People's Republic of China and Japan — Wikipedia — September 29, 1972, morning signing ceremony in the East Hall of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka and Foreign Minister Masayoshi Ohira represented Japan; Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai and Foreign Minister Ji Pengfei represented China. The Republic of China announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Japan on the same day on the principle of "traitors and thieves cannot coexist." Complete diplomatic event record.↩
25. Chateau Company — Wikipedia — Chateau KTV first store opened on Linssen North Road, Taipei City in March 1989. Founder Liu Ying originally operated a video rental store. Expanded to five branches by the end of the same year. Accompanied by the 1988 US Special 301 Report where MTV operators exited the market, combining MTV and karaoke into the new "KTV" model. Complete KTV industry rise record.↩
26. Ketagalan Boulevard Renaming History — Taipei Peace Foundation — March 21, 1996, Taipei Mayor Chen Shui-bian changed "Jieshou Road" (renamed in 1946 to celebrate Chiang Kai-shek's 60th birthday) in front of the Presidential Office to "Ketagalan Boulevard," symbolizing recognition of Taiwan indigenous people's history and culture. Official record. Jieshou Road's predecessor was called "Taipei City East Gate Street" during the Qing Dynasty.↩
27. Lightpoint Taipei Film Museum — Wikipedia — November 10, 2002, Lightpoint Taipei (Taipei House) officially opened. Operated by the Taiwan Film Culture Association led by Hou Hsiao-hsien. Hardware restoration sponsored by the TSMC Cultural and Educational Foundation. Mainly operates an art cinema (screening 4-6+ shows daily), including Wool & Flower Coffee Bistro and Lightpoint Life Cultural and Creative Store. Complete cultural space record.↩
28. Grand Hotel Taipei — Wikipedia — Grand Hotel Taipei history: Original site was the Japanese colonial Taiwan Shrine, demolished in 1944. On May 10, 1952, Soong Mei-ling led the "Taiwan Friendship Association" to take over and rebuild it as the "Taiwan Grand Hotel," later renamed "Grand Hotel Taipei." Kong Lingwei was the first general manager. Hotel foundation completed in 1963. 14-story Chinese Palace-style building designed by Yang Zhuocheng completed in 1973, becoming a Taipei landmark. Complete record.↩