A Renaissance Hall on the Sapporo Campus
Among the historic buildings of Hokkaido University, Furukawa Memorial Hall is one of the most immediately handsome. It was built in 1909 (Meiji 42) as the forestry classroom of what was then the College of Agriculture of Tohoku Imperial University, the institution that had grown out of Sapporo Agricultural College. Today it belongs to the university's Graduate School of Letters and is known simply as the Furukawa Hall.
The design is Renaissance in manner: a central entrance with two wings reaching out to either side, the whole two stories tall and capped with a mansard roof. At the center of the roof rises a small turret that once held a bell. The composition is restrained rather than ornate, but its balance and its French-influenced roofline set it apart from the plainer teaching buildings nearby.
Why It Was Registered
The hall was designed by Niiyama Heishiro, an engineer of the Ministry of Education. It was registered as a Tangible Cultural Property on 3 September 1997 (Heisei 9), with the gazette notice on 16 September, an earlier listing than most of the other Hokkaido University buildings in this group.
The name carries its own history. The building was funded through a donation from the Furukawa family, whose wealth came from the Ashio copper mine, and the gift is understood as connected to the aftermath of the Ashio pollution incident. Of the classrooms raised with that donation, this is the only one still standing, which gives it value both as architecture and as the last physical trace of a particular chapter in the university's growth. As a former forestry classroom, it carries the character for forest worked into its details.
What to Look For
Read the roof first. The mansard, with its steep lower slope, is the feature that gives the hall its French-Renaissance flavor, and the small central turret, once fitted with a clock bell, is easy to pick out against the sky. Then look at the whole front and see how the central entrance and the balanced wings hold together as a single, dignified composition, even though the clapboard walls and gabled main roof mix in details that step outside strict Renaissance rules.
The hall stands on the working Sapporo campus. It is used by the Graduate School of Letters, so the interior is open only to those affiliated with the university, while the exterior can be viewed freely as you walk the grounds. It is an easy addition to a campus stroll that also takes in the old library reading room and stack.
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Q&A
- Where does the name Furukawa come from?
- The building was funded by a donation from the Furukawa family, associated with the Ashio copper mine, and is the only classroom from that gift still standing.
- Who designed it and when?
- Ministry of Education engineer Niiyama Heishiro designed it, and it was built in 1909 (Meiji 42) as a forestry classroom.
- What is a mansard roof?
- It is a roof with a steep lower slope and a shallower upper slope, a French form that gives the hall its Renaissance character.
- Can I go inside?
- The interior is used by the Graduate School of Letters and open to university affiliates only. The exterior can be viewed freely.
Basic Information
| Name | Furukawa Memorial Hall, Hokkaido University (former Tohoku Imperial University College of Agriculture Forestry Classroom) |
|---|---|
| Location | Kita 9, Nishi 7, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (registered 3 September 1997; gazette notice 16 September 1997) |
| Built | 1909 (Meiji 42) |
| Structure | Timber, two stories, sheet-metal roof; building area 414 m²; 1 building |
| Designer | Niiyama Heishiro |
| Owner | Hokkaido University (National University Corporation) |
| Access | Exterior viewable on the Sapporo campus; interior for university affiliates only |
References
- National Database of Designated Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs) — Furukawa Memorial Hall, Hokkaido University
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000282
- Cultural Heritage Online — Furukawa Memorial Hall, Hokkaido University
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/165592
- City of Sapporo — cultural property page (Furukawa Memorial Hall)
- https://www.city.sapporo.jp/ncms/shimin/bunkazai/bunkazai/syousai/37s_furukawa.html
Last verified: 2026.07.02