What the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse is
The Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse (若喜商店作業蔵, Wakaki Shōten Sagyōgura) is a 2-story plastered Dozo-zukuri storehouse from the late Meiji period in the southwest corner of a miso and soy sauce maker's premises in Aza Sanchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2021.
According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse runs east to west against the south side of the brewing hall. It has a gabled Kirizuma-zukuri roof of Sangawara-buki pan tiles and a footprint of 130 square meters. It is long, divided partway along: the east side was the bottling room and the west side, near the street, the shipping store, with a doorway in the west gable end.
Soy sauce brewed next door was bottled here and sent straight out to the street on the west. Within the compound, the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse handled the last step before the product left the premises.
Why the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse was registered
It was registered as a building that "contributes to the historic landscape of the country." The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes Shikkui plaster walls with a Hachimaki band, plastered right up into the eaves, over a board-clad base, and values the building as part of a brewing merchant's compound.
Kitakata City's cultural property plan notes that most registered buildings in the city are earthen storehouses tied to a trade, such as shop, parlor, soy sauce and work storehouses. Among the eye-catching red brick of Wakaki Shoten, the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse represents the ordinary plastered storehouse that defines much of Kitakata.
It was registered on October 14, 2021, as number 07-0271, the same day as the brewing hall.
What to look for at the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse
Look at the eaves. The walls of the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse are plastered up and under the eaves, and a thickened band, the hachimaki, runs along the top of the wall. Sealing the rafters and eave beams in plaster is what makes a storehouse fire-resistant. At the bottom, boards protect the lower wall from rain splash.
The plan follows the work. The bottling room on the east lies next to the brewing hall; the shipping store on the west lies next to the street. The agency's interior photograph, taken from the west, looks through the partition into the east room. Goods moved from east to west, and the gable door was the way out.
With its long side and plain gable, it is the least showy of the 5 registered buildings, but this is where the daily work of the business was done.
Visiting the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse
The Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse is not part of the regular visit. To arrange a look inside, call Wakaki Shoten on 0241-22-0010.
The west gable with its doorway lies near the street, but the company does not say where it can be seen from. Entering the site, and taking photographs there, requires its permission.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Fukushima
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse
- [ Aizu-Wakamatsu Castle & Ouchi-juku Village Tours ]
Q&A
- Can I go inside the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse?
- It is not part of the regular visit. Call Wakaki Shoten on 0241-22-0010 to ask about seeing the interior.
- What was the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse used for?
- It is divided partway along: the east side was the bottling room and the west side, near the street, held goods ready for shipping.
- When was the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the late Meiji period, between 1898 and 1912.
- Why is the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse a Registered Tangible Cultural Property?
- Its plastered storehouse exterior, sealed right up into the eaves, forms part of the compound of a brewing merchant and contributes to the historic landscape. It was registered in 2021.
- How big is the Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse?
- It is a 2-story earthen storehouse with a footprint of 130 square meters.
Basic Information
| Name | Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 4786 Aza Sanchome, Kitakata City, Fukushima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2021 (Reiwa 3) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Dozo-zukuri, 2 stories, tiled roof, building area 130 m² |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database (business operated by Wakaki Shoten Co., Ltd.) |
| Public Access | Not normally open (ask Wakaki Shoten about viewing the interior) |
References
- Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse (Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013946
- Wakaki Shoten Work Storehouse (Cultural Heritage Online, Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/583436
- Kitakata City Cultural Property Preservation and Utilization Plan, Chapter 2 (Kitakata City, Japanese)
- https://www.city.kitakata.fukushima.jp/uploaded/attachment/43016.pdf
- Wakaki Shoten (Utsukushima Electronic Encyclopedia, Fukushima Prefectural Education Center, Japanese)
- https://www.gimu.fks.ed.jp/plugin/databases/detail/2/18/321
Last verified: 2026.10.04
