Kanasaku Family Residence Main House

A Meiji Townhouse in Takaoka

The Kanasaku Family Residence Main House (金作家住宅主屋) is a townhouse (machiya) of 1893 in Uchimen, Takaoka City, Toyama Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on August 1, 2016 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The Agency records a two-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 124 square metres; registration number 16-0117.

A Two-Row Plan

The Kanasaku Family Residence Main House stands on a long, narrow plot 4 ken (bays) wide (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Its entrance is at the north end of the front, and an earth-floored passage runs from it straight to the back, the classic through-passage of a Machiya townhouse.

The room layout is what sets it apart. The Agency notes that, where neighbouring townhouses usually line up four rooms in a single row beside the passage, the Kanasaku main house uses two rows of four.

Why It Was Registered

The Agency registered the Kanasaku Family Residence Main House for its contribution to the historic landscape, describing it as a townhouse that keeps the look of Meiji-era Takaoka alive.

The lean-to eave across the front is roofed in thick boards with what the Agency calls a kogai laid on top, a feature the Agency counts as typical of the area (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Inside, the formal rooms have carved ranma transoms and other careful detailing.

What to Look For

From outside, look at the lean-to eave across the front: thick boards with a kogai laid on top, a detail the Agency treats as characteristic of townhouses in this area.

The entrance at the north end of the front is the outward clue to the two-row plan behind it. The carved ranma transoms are inside the formal rooms and cannot be seen from the street.

Visiting

The Kanasaku Family Residence Main House is a private home; no official information on interior access was found as of October 2026. Please view it only from the public road and do not enter the property.