What the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls are
The Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls (旧甲斐家住宅東塀及び北塀, Kyū Kai-ke Jūtaku Higashibei oyobi Kitabei) are late Taishō (1919 to 1926) brick walls enclosing the east and north sides of the Kai estate in Aza Itchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2021.
They start just north of the shop storehouse, run along the Atsushio Kaidō on the east, turn along the north boundary and end north of the storehouse parlor at the far west. The Agency for Cultural Affairs gives the length as 61 meters in its structure field and 62 meters in its description; the walls stand 4 meters high under a pantiled coping (Sangawara-buki) with a projecting cornice band.
Kitakata is known for its earthen storehouses, so a tall brick wall around a house stands out. The Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls, with the shop storehouse and the front gate, make up the estate's face on the road.
Why they were registered
They were registered as contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The agency points to the doorway on the road, framed with relief decoration, and to the weighty frontage the walls give the business.
The walls are brick on a stone-clad base. The two faces are finished differently: brick tiles toward the road and, on the inner side, a German-style roughcast, a plaster finish thrown or troweled on with gravel to leave a coarse texture, much used on Western-style buildings of the Taishō years.
The public side gets a crisp brick face; the garden side gets a quieter rough surface. Each face of the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls is designed for the people who would see it.
What to look for
The highlight is the double-leaf doorway on the Atsushio Kaidō, framed with relief work. It is the view the agency chose for its registration photograph.
Walking along the 4-meter wall, you can read three layers: the stone base, the brick-tile face and the cornice under the tiled coping. The agency also photographed the north side, and turning the corner of the site shows just how far the wall runs. Compare the doorway here with the triangular arch in the south wall: the two were deliberately designed differently.
Visiting the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls
The east wall of the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls faces the Atsushio Kaidō and can be seen from the road during the closure. The doorway faces east and catches the morning light. Scaffolding or sheeting may cover parts of it at some stages of the work.
The roughcast inner face can be seen only from inside the estate, which has been closed since April 2023 for conservation work. Special openings are held about once a year, with the next planned for March 2027. Directions and the repair schedule are on the Former Kai Family Residence page.
Q&A
- Where are the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls?
- Around the east and north sides of the Kai estate, from just north of the shop storehouse along the Atsushio Kaidō to north of the storehouse parlor.
- How long and tall are the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls?
- The agency gives 61 meters in its structure field and 62 meters in its description. The walls are 4 meters high.
- What are the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls made of?
- Brick on a stone-clad base, faced with brick tiles toward the road and roughcast inside, under a pantiled coping with a cornice band.
- What should I look for on the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls?
- The double-leaf doorway on the road, framed with relief decoration.
- Can I see the Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls during the closure?
- The east wall faces the road and can be seen. The inner face is visible only from inside the estate, which has been closed since April 2023.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls |
|---|---|
| Location | 4611-1 Aza Itchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Brick, tiled coping, length 61 m |
| Owner | Kitakata City |
| Public Access | East wall visible from the road; estate closed since 2023 for conservation work planned through fiscal 2030 |
References
- Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls (Agency for Cultural Affairs database)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013935
- Former Kai Family Residence East and North Walls (Cultural Heritage Online)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/553815
- Former Kai Family Residence South Wall (Agency for Cultural Affairs database)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013936
- Conservation work on the Former Kai Family Kura Residence (Kitakata City)
- https://www.city.kitakata.fukushima.jp/site/kyukaike/57982.html
Last verified: 2026.10.01
