A 1937 Farmers' Hall That Became a Library
The Kohoku Library (former Ika District Agricultural Association Office) (江北図書館（旧伊香郡農会庁舎）, Kohoku Toshokan) is a building of 1937 in front of JR Kinomoto Station in Kinomoto-cho, Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture, built as the office and public hall of the Ika District Agricultural Association, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on March 6, 2024 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a timber building of two storeys with a single-storey part, a tiled roof and a building area of 255 square metres; registration number 25-0521, owned by the Kohoku Library foundation.
From Agricultural Office to Private Library
According to the National Diet Library's Current Awareness Portal, the library grew out of the Sugino Bunko, opened in 1902 by 杉野文彌, a lawyer from Yogo village in Ika District, who wished to give the young people of his home a place to study. It opened as the Kohoku Library foundation in 1907 and is said to be the third-oldest private library in Japan.
Tabiiro LIKES reports that, after several moves, the library settled in the present building in 1975. The building was originally the office and public hall of the district agricultural association, and the article describes the library as the oldest surviving library in Shiga Prefecture.
Why It Was Registered
The Kohoku Library was registered as a structure that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs singles out its deeply shadowed front, lined with tall round-arched windows and buttresses.
The National Diet Library report notes that the main building of 1937 had aged and needed major repair for earthquake resistance, and that under a new board joined by local volunteers, passing the building on to the next generation is seen as part of the library's mission.
What to Look For
It is a two-storey east-west block with a hipped roof of pan tiles, an entrance on the south and a single-storey kitchen wing on the west. On the upper floor the centre of the south front projects slightly under a gabled roof (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Look at the row of tall round-arched windows and buttresses on the front (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Tabiiro LIKES features the upstairs hall and its arched windows.
Visiting
According to Tabiiro LIKES, the library is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and closed on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and from December 29 to January 4. Enquiries go to the Kohoku Library (0749-82-4867).
The address is 1362 Kinomoto, Kinomoto-cho, Nagahama City, right by Kinomoto Station on the JR Hokuriku Line. A new annex, Lib+, stands just to the south (Tabiiro LIKES).
Q&A
- When was the Kohoku Library building built?
- In 1937, as the office and public hall of the Ika District Agricultural Association (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How is 江北図書館 read?
- Kohoku Toshokan (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How did the library begin?
- As the Sugino Bunko, opened by a lawyer in 1902; it became the Kohoku Library foundation in 1907 (National Diet Library).
- Can I visit it?
- Yes, it is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays (Tabiiro LIKES).
- When was the building registered?
- On March 6, 2024.
Basic Information
| Name | Kohoku Library (former Ika District Agricultural Association Office) (江北図書館（旧伊香郡農会庁舎）) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1362 Kinomoto, Kinomoto-cho, Nagahama City, Shiga Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2024/03/06 (Reiwa 6) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, two storeys with a single-storey part, tiled roof, building area 255 square metres |
| Owner | Kohoku Library Public Interest Foundation |
| Public Access | Open as a library (10:00 to 16:00, closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays) |
References
- Kohoku Library (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00014856
- E2692: Activities of the Kohoku Library (Current Awareness Portal, National Diet Library, Japanese)
- https://current.ndl.go.jp/e2692
- Book-related spots in Kinomoto (Tabiiro LIKES, Japanese)
- https://tabiiro.jp/likes/articles/view/1993/
Last verified: 2026.10.14