The Oldest Building on the Onoda Estate
The Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate (小野田家住宅長屋門, Onoda-ke Jūtaku Nagayamon) is a long gatehouse of about 1849 in Takatsuka-cho, Toyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 21 June 2013.
It stands south of the main house and faces south. It is a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 78 square meters, under an Irimoya-zukuri hipped-and-gabled roof of Sangawara-buki pantiles.
A nagayamon is a gate cut through a long, narrow range of rooms, a form used on the estates of samurai and of prosperous rural families in the early modern period. Here the rooms on either side are storerooms.
Why It Was Registered
The Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate carries registration number 23-0377 and was registered under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country, on the same day as the main house (23-0376).
Size is the point. At 17 meters long and 4.6 meters deep, it is what the Agency for Cultural Affairs calls a large-scale nagayamon, and the Agency credits it with giving the estate its dignified frontage. As the building that faced the outside world, the gate was where the household's standing was put on show.
It is also the oldest building on the estate. When the main house was rebuilt in 1886, the gate, already 37 years old, was kept.
What to Look For
Plank Doors and a Wicket
The opening of the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate is closed by a pair of plank doors with a small wicket door beside them. The big doors opened for carts and occasions; day to day, people came and went through the wicket. The way the gate was used is written into its doors.
One Room East, Two Rooms West
The storerooms are unequal in number: 1 room to the east of the opening and 2 to the west. On either side of the gateway, the 17 meters is given over to storage that served the working farm.
Plaster Above, Boards Below
The outer walls are finished in plaster, with sasarako-shitami weatherboarding along the lower part, overlapping boards held by notched battens. The boards take the splash of rain at the foot of the wall and the white plaster carries the rest, giving the long facade two horizontal bands.
Visiting
The Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate belongs to a private home. You cannot pass through it onto the property, and the storerooms are not open. Since the gate stands on the south face of the estate, a visit means looking at its exterior from the public road. Please do not linger at the gate or photograph it at length, out of consideration for the family living there.
Q&A
- Can you visit the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate?
- The property cannot be entered and the storerooms are not open. It is the gate of a private home, so view it from the public road only.
- When was the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate built and registered?
- It dates from about 1849. It was registered with the main house on 21 June 2013, under number 23-0377.
- How big is the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate?
- It is 17 meters long and 4.6 meters deep, with a building area of 78 square meters: a single-storey timber gatehouse under a hipped-and-gabled pantile roof.
- What rooms does the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate contain?
- Storerooms: 1 to the east of the opening and 2 to the west. The opening itself has double plank doors and a wicket.
- Which is older, the Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate or the main house?
- The gate. It dates from about 1849 and the main house from 1886, so the gate is 37 years older.
Basic Information
| Name | Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate (小野田家住宅長屋門) |
|---|---|
| Location | 65 Gochu, Takatsuka-cho, Toyohashi City, Aichi Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2013/6/21 (Heisei 25) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber structure, tiled roof, building area 78 square meters, 17 meters by 4.6 meters |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (private residence) |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database, Onoda Family Residence Nagayamon Gate (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00009613
- National Cultural Properties Database, Onoda Family Residence Main House (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00009612
- Designated and Registered Cultural Properties of Toyohashi (Toyohashi City)
- https://www.city.toyohashi.lg.jp/3254.htm
Last verified: 2026.10.01
