What Is the Hojo Family Residence Main House?
The main house of the Hojo Family Residence (北條家住宅, Hōjō-ke Jūtaku) is a thatched farmhouse-style dwelling built in the second half of the 18th century in Izumi, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture, and it was designated an Important Cultural Property on 28 January 1977 under the name Hojo Family Residence (Kanai Town, Sado District, Niigata Prefecture).
It was the home of a line of herbal physicians whose heads took the name Dōeki, and it stands in the middle of the north side of the estate, facing south. The single-storey timber house measures 18.8 meters by 10.1 meters; Sado City gives the same span as 10 by 5.5 Ken. The main roof is Yosemune-zukuri hipped thatch, or Kayabuki. A tiled Hisashi canopy, added later, runs along the south front, lean-to Geya extensions roofed in tile and sheet metal wrap the south and west sides, and a tiled canopy is attached on the north. The effect is a tall cap of thatch ringed by a skirt of lower roofs.
No building date is recorded. The Hojo Family Residence main house is placed in the late 18th century on the evidence of how its pillars were finished and how far they have weathered.
Why the Hojo Family Residence Main House Was Designated
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Hojo Family Residence main house as a doctor's house built on an offset four-room plan, and as one of the most representative old farmhouses on Sado. It singles out the slender timbers, the refined finish of the reception rooms and the good state of preservation. Its designation number is 02014.
A Yomadori plan arranges four rooms in something close to a square grid, the standard layout of rural houses in many parts of Japan. In the offset (kuichigai) version the partitions do not meet in a straight cross but step past each other. What the Hojo house hangs on that ordinary frame is a suite of four Zashiki reception rooms on the upper side, which reflects a household of some standing: a doctor's family that was also a landowner in Izumi.
Inside the Plan
Sado City lays out the rooms of the Hojo Family Residence main house around the Oie, the central living room. North of it is the Nando, the closed inner room; the Daidokoro kitchen area lies to the west, on the lower side of the house; and the reception wing takes the east, or upper, side. That wing has four rooms: the Nakanoma and Kozashiki along the south, and the Zashiki and Irigawa-zashiki along the north.
From outside, the thatch dominates. The Agency, though, points first to the thinness of the members. The Hojo Family Residence main house does not show off heavy posts and beams; the timber is kept fine, and the reception rooms read as neat and restrained.
On the west, the house connects to the miso storehouse through that storehouse's covered Kuramae bay. The storehouse sits against the kitchen end of the house, and the two present one continuous frontage.
Visiting the Hojo Family Residence Main House
The Hojo Family Residence main house is a private home and its interior is not open. From mid-September 2026 Sado City has asked visitors not to enter the grounds because of work on the main house, so the building cannot be approached while the work continues.
The house stands inside the gate and well back from the road, and it is hard to take in from the street. Anyone hoping to see it once the work is finished should contact the city's cultural properties office first.
Q&A
- When was the Hojo Family Residence main house built?
- In the second half of the 18th century, as far as can be told. The date is an estimate based on the finish and weathering of the pillars; the exact year is unknown.
- When was the Hojo Family Residence main house designated an Important Cultural Property?
- On 28 January 1977, under the name Hojo Family Residence (Kanai Town, Sado District, Niigata Prefecture), designation number 02014.
- What kind of floor plan does the Hojo Family Residence main house have?
- An offset four-room plan. The Oie living room is at the center, with the Nando to the north, the Daidokoro kitchen to the west and a wing of four reception rooms to the east.
- How big is the Hojo Family Residence main house?
- It is a single-storey timber house 18.8 meters long and 10.1 meters deep, under a hipped thatched roof with tiled and metal-roofed canopies around it.
- Can I go inside the Hojo Family Residence main house?
- No. The interior is not open, and since mid-September 2026 Sado City has asked visitors not to enter the grounds while work is carried out on the main house.
Basic Information
| Name | Hojo Family Residence (Kanai Town, Sado District, Niigata Prefecture), main house (北條家住宅) |
|---|---|
| Location | 33 Izumi Otsu, Sado City, Niigata Prefecture |
| Designation | Important Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Designated 28 January 1977 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 18.8 meters long, 10.1 meters deep, single-storey timber building, hipped thatched roof |
| Owner | Private |
| Public Access | Not open (visitors are asked not to enter the grounds during work on the main house) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties: Hojo Family Residence, Kanai Town (Agency for Cultural Affairs, in Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/102/696
- Cultural Heritage Online: Hojo Family Residence, Kanai Town (Agency for Cultural Affairs, in Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/184846
- Important Cultural Property: Hojo Family Residence (Sado City, in Japanese)
- https://www.city.sado.niigata.jp/site/bunkazai/4924.html
Last verified: 2026.09.28
