Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse

A storehouse beside the shop

The Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse (旧平井家住宅脇蔵) in Shinmachi, Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture, is a 2-storey earthen-walled storehouse raised in 1917 next to the shop and main house of the Former Hirai Family Residence, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on August 1, 2016 (number 12-0190).

The Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse stands just south of the shop, facing east onto Shinmachi-dōri on the corner with the side road. It is a Dozo-zukuri building of 2 storeys under a gabled tiled roof, with a building area of 24 m². Its frontage is narrow, but because it sits on the corner it can be seen from both streets.

Family tradition says the storehouse held the household's daihachi-guruma, the big two-wheeled handcarts of the day.

Artificial stone and white plaster

A lean-to roof (Geya) runs across the front of the Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse. Below it the wall is finished in polished artificial stone, a mix of cement and crushed stone ground smooth to resemble stone, while the upper storey is coated in Shikkui lime plaster. The pairing of this newer finish with a traditional white storehouse wall is what to look for on the facade.

There is no staircase inside. The upper floor is reached through a door on the north side that connects directly with the upper floor of the main house, a layout that shows how shop and storehouse were used as one.

A dated box in the roof

A study based on the city's detailed survey of 1996 reports that a wooden box was found at the middle of the main roof beam of the Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse. Its right side is inscribed with a raising date in the third month of 1917, its left side with the name of Hirai Nin'ichirō, sixth head of the family, and inside was a Buddhist sutra text printed in 1913. From this record the storehouse is thought to have been raised in 1917, either as a remodelling or after being moved from elsewhere.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs values the storehouse for keeping the full layout of a merchant compound intact: shop on the street, storehouse at its side and formal rooms behind.

Visiting

The Former Hirai Family Residence Side Storehouse stands on the corner of Shinmachi-dōri and the side road, so its exterior can be seen from the street at any time. From Shinmachi-dōri the pairing of artificial stone below and white plaster above is clearest; from the side road you see the depth of the storehouse. Photographing from the public road is fine, but it stands right at the pavement edge, so stay clear of traffic.

The interior is normally closed. The Former Hirai Family Residence is sometimes opened during events such as the autumn festival, but whether the storehouse itself is included depends on each opening. The history of the whole property and directions are on the Former Hirai Family Residence page.