Former Fujimura Family Residence (Tamura Family Residence) Board Fence

Two Fences of 1937

The Former Fujimura Family Residence (Tamura Family Residence) Board Fence is a set of wooden fences built in 1937 along the north side and within the grounds of a townhouse compound in Honmachi, Nonoichi City, Ishikawa Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 2021.

There are two runs, 51 metres in total. One extends east and west of the Rear Gate on the northern street; the other stands inside the compound, between the Annex and the Earthen Wall on the west side. Topped with copper coping, both were built by the Tamura family in 1937, the same year as the Rear Gate and the Main House.

So the Former Fujimura Family Residence is enclosed by two generations of wall: the early Meiji tiled Earthen Wall on the highway, and these Shōwa timber fences to the north and within.

Why It Was Registered

The fence was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that it shapes the scene both inside and outside the property.

The street-facing run was designed to match the Rear Gate and tidy the property's northern edge. The inner run screens the area around the Annex. Giving the outward-facing fence and the inward-facing one different finishes is the most interesting thing about this structure.

What to Look For

On the north side, posts stand on a concrete footing and carry vertical boarding. A lattice transom runs along the top under copper-sheathed coping, repeating the details of the Rear Gate. The concrete base betrays its early Shōwa date, yet everything you see above it is wood and copper.

The inner fence is quite different: square posts on footing stones, faced with cedar bark. Cedar-bark cladding is a rustic finish often found on tea-garden fences, and it gives the side facing the Annex and garden a quiet, natural look.

The lattice at the top lets light through and lightens the long run of boards. Look at it beside the lattice transom of the Rear Gate and you can see that gate and fence were designed as a pair.

Viewing the Board Fence

The section on the northern street can be seen from the public road. The cedar-bark fence between the Annex and the Earthen Wall is inside the grounds of a private home and cannot be seen.

On the northern street, take in the Rear Gate together with the fence on either side to see how the lattice and copper coping carry through from gate to fence. For the inner cedar-bark section, the Agency for Cultural Affairs database description is the best guide. Directions are on the Former Fujimura Family Residence page.