Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse
The Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse (山内家住宅文庫蔵, Yamauchi-ke Jūtaku Bunkogura) is a Dozo-zukuri earthen storehouse behind the main house of a kimono merchant family's estate in Fukibari, Yuzawa City, Akita Prefecture, built in 1935 and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on October 2, 2007.
A bunkogura is where a household kept what it could least afford to lose: deeds, account books, scrolls and other valuables. Yuzawa City's open-house notice calls this one the uchigura, or inner storehouse, and Shūken Jihō, the newsletter of the Akita Construction Industry Association, says the whole building served as the family's fireproof safe, sealed by its hinged double doors.
It is the largest of the estate's four storehouses: two stories, a building area of 96 square meters, and 7 Ken by 4 ken under a gabled sheet-metal roof, with the entrance on the gable end. Its ridge runs east to west behind the main house, and the merchandise storehouse and the tool storehouse stand parallel to it on the south and north.
Why the Document Storehouse Was Registered
The Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes a plain, straightforward exterior and an interior built of heavy timbers with a sense of strength. Nothing on the outside prepares you for the weight of the frame within.
The four storehouses share one design, and the agency credits them with giving the rear of the estate its coherence. The document storehouse anchors the group. The tool and merchandise storehouses are aligned with it, and the grain storehouse sits behind it and the merchandise storehouse.
What to Look For: A Raised Floor and a Transom
The outer walls are finished in mortar, and each opening is closed by a pair of hinged doors. Shut against an approaching fire, these heavy doors were the building's main defense.
Inside, look at the back half of the ground floor. The floor there rises by one step, and the boundary is marked by a Ranma transom and other fittings. It seems the rear was treated as the more formal of two spaces, a room-like division set inside the heavy frame of posts and beams.
Visiting the Document Storehouse
The Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse stands behind the main house and is hard to see from the street. It is normally closed, but Yuzawa City lists it, as the uchigura, among the venues of the 2026 open house together with the main house, with displays including the family's regalia for the daimyo procession.
No photography rules are published, so ask the staff on the day. The Yamauchi Family Residence page covers directions and open-house details.
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- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse
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Q&A
- When was the Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to 1935. It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on October 2, 2007.
- How big is the Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse?
- It is a two-story earthen storehouse measuring 7 ken by 4 ken, with a building area of 96 square meters, the largest of the estate's four storehouses.
- What is notable inside the Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse?
- The back half of the ground floor is raised by one step, with a ranma transom and other fittings at the boundary. The interior is framed in heavy timbers.
- What was the Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse used for?
- It held the household's most valuable possessions, and Yuzawa City calls it the uchigura, or inner storehouse. Shūken Jihō says the whole building served as a fireproof safe behind its hinged double doors.
- Can visitors enter the Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse?
- It is normally closed. Yuzawa City's 2026 open house lists it, as the uchigura, among its venues together with the main house.
Basic Information
| Name | Yamauchi Family Residence Document Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 2-1-4 Fukibari, Yuzawa City, Akita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2007/10/2 (Heisei 19) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 7 ken by 4 ken; building area 96 square meters |
| Owner | Private owner |
| Public Access | Normally closed; interior open on Yuzawa City's open-house day |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Document Storehouse (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006332
- Cultural Heritage Online: Document Storehouse (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/152935
- Yuzawa City: Yamauchi Family Residence Main House and six other buildings (Japanese)
- https://www.city-yuzawa.jp/site/bunkazai/2216.html
- Akita Prefecture: Yamauchi Family Residence, registered 2007 (Japanese)
- https://www.pref.akita.lg.jp/pages/archive/3375
- Akita Construction Industry Association, Shuken Jiho: Yamauchi Family Residence (Japanese)
- https://a-kenkyo.or.jp/shuken/0804/isan.html
- Yuzawa City: Open house of the Yamauchi Family Residence, September 27, 2026 (Japanese)
- https://www.city-yuzawa.jp/site/bunkazai/6523.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
